9/17 Women

UD Chapel Speaker:  Mr. Drew Edmondson Drew Edmondson is the former Attorney General of the State of Oklahoma, having served in that office from January 1995 to January 2011.  During that time his duties surrounded the Murrah Building bombing in April 1995, to reform of the death penalty appeals process, to litigation against the tobacco companies and protection of Oklahoma’s waters.  He served on the negotiating committee of eight attorneys general which concluded the tobacco lawsuit with the largest civil settlement in history.  He was instrumental in establishing the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust and the Oklahoma Education Technology Trust, both of which will provide funding for health and education initiatives in perpetuity. His prior service included ten years as the elected District Attorney in Muskogee, Oklahoma, a term in the Oklahoma Legislature, service in the United States Navy, with duty in Vietnam, and some time teaching speech and debate at Muskogee High School. Drew is married to the former Linda Larason of Fargo, Oklahoma (they celebrated their 47th wedding anniversary last June) and they have two children, Mary Elizabeth, an attorney in Arlington, VA., and Robert Andrew, PhD, on faculty at the University of Oklahoma. Mary is married to Mike Ross and they have twins, Catherine and Andrew.  Robert is married to Andrea Hamer and they have three dogs. Drew is currently practicing law with the Gable Gotwals firm.  Since leaving the AG’s office, Drew chaired the Justice Commission created by the Oklahoma Bar Association, examining wrongful convictions and recommending reforms, and is a member of the Oklahoma Center  for Community and Justice. He is a graduate of Northeastern State University and the University of Tulsa School of Law.  He serves on the Executive Board of Oklahoma City University School of Law and is on the Board of Trustees for Bacone College. Secret Agent of Compassion  Mission 007 - Sept 17, 2014

Good Morning Agents! Here, at just past the halfway point of the Compassion Games, I have a question for you. Who are you constantly? In other words, how do you act and behave when there is no one watching, when with absolute certainty you know that what you are doing is not being seen by anyone? Such is the encouragement that we, at IKT HQ, offer you today. Your mission, should you choose to accept it today, is to do the right thing. To complete it successfully, first, consider the mission and what it means to you. Pay attention to the opportunities you have to do the right thing when alone. Solidify your practice today by doing at least one "right thing" act anonymously. Moving forward, try to extend the concept of doing the right thing throughout your life. Do all the little things the way they are meant to be done. And when the opportunity arises, do the bigger things in a way that makes you proud. Should your actions or those of any of the International Kindness Team be exposed, it will increase the positive ripple effect of creating more kindness in the world. Thus, we at IKT HQ request that you report your activities on the Compassion Map. Good luck, agents. This mission can be viewed at the IKT HQ website.