The story behind the C-47 transport aircraft manufactured in OK and used during D-Day in WW II. Commemoration of the 75th anniversary of D-Day (June 6)
Dan Provo holds a Masters Degree in Anthropology and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Missouri – Columbia and is currently Director of the Oklahoma History Center and Museum of History. Dan has had the opportunity to work in various museums for over 35 years at the city, state, and private levels. During that time he have been involved in the full planning and construction process for building two new museum facilities and for growing the staff from less than 5 people at each site to up to 50 people as well as for managing annual operating budgets up to 6 million dollars. Dan has extensive experience in grant writing and reviewing grants on the local, state, and national levels as well as serving on various art show juries and review panels, and has provided organizational, operations, and exhibits assessments for various other museums and organizations and been involved with media interviews and stories on the local, state, national, and international levels.
He has been married to his wife Kathy, a teacher, for 41 years. They have two children, a son-in-law and one terrific grandson.
Gean B. Atkinson is president of Atkinson Advertising Associates. He is a past president of Club 29 and of the Committee of One Hundred.
He has bachelors and masters degrees in Journalism and Radio & Television from the University of Central Oklahoma and was named the Outstanding Journalism Graduate Student and later a Distinguished Alumni.
His family is a product of Oklahoma history. He is a descendant of immigrants from England and citizens of the Cherokee Nation. His grandfather was City Manager of Muskogee and a partner of the Brook, Brook and Brook Law firm. His Cherokee great-grandfather, after arriving on the infamous “Trail of Tears,” was elected to the Cherokee National Council and his son, T.L. Rider, was a circuit riding Methodist minister and served in the Oklahoma’s first, second and third Houses of Representatives and then the next two sessions of the Senate His great uncle, Eck Brook was the first state senator from Muskogee in 1907.
Gean is a past member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, was a Commissioner for the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department and was also a commissioner for the Capitol Preservation Commission.
He is a member of numerous boards including Delta Dental of Oklahoma, New View Oklahoma and is President of the board of Friends of the History Center. He is a co-founder and chairman emeritus of Friends of the Capitol
He served as a Marine Lieutenant in Vietnam and Navy Captain in Desert Shield/Storm. He was president of the Navy League of Oklahoma City and is a charter member of the Marine Corps Coordinating Council of Oklahoma. He serves on the Service Academy Selection Committee for Senator James Lankford.
He is an inductee of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame and has authored three books the first of which was an account of his family history since the Revolutionary War entitled “Pilots of my Soul”.
Special Guest – Rear Admiral Jeffrey Trussler
Rear Adm. Jeff Trussler is originally from Miami, Oklahoma, graduating from Oklahoma State University in 1985 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and was commissioned at the Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. He also graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1992 with a Master of Arts in Managerial Economics and was a 2011-2012 Fellow of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Seminar XXI program in Foreign Politics, International Relations and the National Interest.
His previous shore and staff assignments include Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet (COMSUBPAC) command center watch officer, U.S. Pacific Fleet (CINCPACFLT) nuclear propulsion examining board (NPEB), two tours at the Navy Personnel Command (NPC), the Joint Staff and the Navy Staff, Office of the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Dominance (N2/N6).
At sea and operational assignments, he served as a division officer on USS Honolulu (SSN 718), engineer officer on USS Tennessee (SSBN 734) and executive officer on USS Columbus (SSN 762). He commanded USS Maryland (SSBN 738)(Blue) in Kings Bay, Georgia, and Task Force 69 for the U.S. 6th Fleet in Naples, Italy.
Trussler’s first flag assignment was as commander, Undersea Warfighting Development Center (UWDC) where he was responsible for training, assessment, tactical development and analysis of Undersea Warfare capabilities.
Trussler was the recipient of the Naval Submarine League’s Rear Adm. Jack Darby Award for Inspirational Leadership and Excellence in Command for 2006. A member of the Cherokee Nation, he was the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) Executive Excellence award winner for 2008.