OKC HOG CHAPTER #4029
Where we believe in Riding Safe and Having Fun
Article from the April 2013 Newsletter written by Dewey E.
In 1984, The OKC HOG chapter started out with meetings at the Cattleman’s Steak House on S. Agnew. The Founding members were Elsie Kelley #11, Pat Divebliss #9, Mac McGlathery #16, Duke Ingraham #24, and Dan Miehls #28. Soon these few were joined by Hope McGlathery #23, Doug and Nancy Carter, Robert and Alice Hunt, Carolyn McGlathery, Robert Truitt, Joe Donuruma. After growth of the chapter continued they moved to the 29th Street store where the monthly meetings were held in the basement of the building. There was a kitchen upstairs where Elsie, Pat, and Hope would prepare the meals for pot luck dinners to enjoy during the meetings which was held the first Wednesday night of the month. Soon the group welcomed Wes and Victoria Anderson. Then soon after Jim and Beverly Brenner, Theresa Hatcher, Mike Wyinger, John and Shirley Edwards and Larry Bean #26 joined. Now the group had approximately 20 active members who shared the common excitement of riding a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
Labor Day Weekend 1995 the group moved the Harley Davidson shop to Agnew. The meetings started upstairs in the mechanics workplace but they finished the adjacent Hog House then the meetings were moved there. Elsie and Mike Kelly sold Harley World in 1997 and for a short time kept the meetings in the Hog House but it soon became too small to conduct the monthly meetings so the chapter moved to the Elks Lodge in Midwest City in 2003 where we still hold our meetings today.
OKC HOG published a cookbook “Slopping the Harley Owners Group” and had a couple of more in 2007 and 2008. In 1993, a color book “Matt-Mam goes to the Motorcycle Shop” in 1994 which featured everyone who worked at the shop at that time, Matt-Man, Elsie and Mike Kelley, Pat Divibliss, Hope McGlathery, the kids Michael and Tyler Springer, Bud Croney (Mechanic Extraordinaire), Brian Springer, Larry Bean, Paul and Debbie Hozzball, plus some of the people who went on our CA run that year. In 1993 the chapter sponsored another Color Book just on motorcycles which did not sell as well as the cookbook and first color book.
In 1997, Dan Newman became General Manager of Harley Davidson World at the Agnew Store which was an old movie theatre converted to a Harley Davidson dealership. In 2008 the OKC HOG chapter helped Dan and Sara Newman move from the Agnew store to the new (modern) dealership on Reno. It was a sight to behold! Really, a beautiful dealership! Dan and Sara Newman retired in May, 2011. The current general manager Jim Strickland started at that time. Overall, our chapter has sponsored three National Rally’s in OKC and continues to prove we have the Greatest HOG Chapter on the Planet!
This is a brief history of our past 27 years as a HOG chapter. More chapter history stories will continue as research is conducted. Most of this information was provided by Hope McGlathery before she passed away. Also, some of the following original members/officers helped fill in the blanks; Duke Ingraham, Kevin (Jaffo) Henwood, George and Dana Harper, Vicki Anderson, Jim “Dandy “ Brenner, Mike Wolfe, John and Roxanna Snodgrass, and Jim Dill.