A new chapter of the Oklahoma Military Hall of Honor has been established in Shawnee, headquartered in the Pottawatomie County Veterans Memorial and Museum (the old Carnegie Library Building). It has been named the Rueben Rivers Chapter in honor of WWII Medal of Honor recipient, Staff Sergeant Rueben Rivers of Pottawatomie County.
Since 1999 the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame has honored 247 men and women of Oklahoma who served in the Uniformed Services of the United States, that have demonstrated extraordinary acts of courage, heroism or gallantry in action and continue to serve our country and communities today.
There are many more heroic and patriotic Oklahomans deserving of significant recognition for their service to our great nation. The Oklahoma Military Hall of Honor was established in 2023 to expand the impact of the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame and honor these veterans. The Rueben Rivers Chapter will consider nominations of veterans from Pottawatomie, Lincoln, Seminole and Okfuskee counties until individual chapters are formed in each county. Nine individuals per chapter can be inducted into the Hall of Honor each calendar year. The citations for each inductee will be housed in the Pottawatomie County Veterans Memorial and Museum, next to Veterans Park. Public presentations will be made at various times of the year to correspond with veterans’ gatherings. Chapters are in Enid, Broken Arrow, Tahlequah, Stillwater, Tulsa, West OKC Metro, Mannford, Moore, Ada, Chandler, Guthrie, Norman, Del City and Shawnee.
Anyone may nominate a veteran for the Hall of Honor at any time. Nominations of individuals are to be submitted through any of the Hall of Honor chapters.
The Chapter Ambassador will assure the integrity of the nominations, with information outline below. Contact Doug Warden, Ambassador, Rueben Rivers Chapter of the Oklahoma Military Hall of Honor at dougwarden444@hotmail.com with any questions.
1. The required nomination packet will include a nomination cover sheet and a nomination statement of no more than 150 words that will appear on the Hall of Honor citation. Information and required forms are found on the Oklahoma Hall of Fame website (https:\omhof.org).
2. Nominations must be expertly prepared and formally endorsed by the Chapter Ambassador. The endorsed nomination will be forwarded to the Regional Ambassador for approval.
3. Nomination packets of veterans nominated for the Hall of Fame, but not selected, will be automatically considered for the Hall of Honor if endorsed by the Hall of Fame Selection Committee and the Ambassador-in-Charge of the Selection Committee.
4. A nomination may be prepared and submitted at any time. Nominations will be submitted to the board on a timely basis. Emphasis will be placed upon the Memorial Day and Veterans Day time periods.
6. Upon approval, the Regional Ambassador will prepare an appropriate certificate, insert it into a presentation folder along with a medallion, and provide it to the Chapter Ambassador with an appropriate local presentation to the honoree.
For more information, go to the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame website (https://omhof.org) and click on Hall of Honor or contact Doug Warden, Oklahoma Military Hall of Honor Ambassador, at dougwarden444@hotmail.com.
