Open letter to constituents:

Dear House District 69 Constituents,

As your State Representative, I would like to thank you for entrusting me to represent you at our State Capitol. I am honored to be your Representative.

When you elected me in 2018, I ran on bringing change to House District 69 and Oklahoma. Three campaign promises were made to you. I promised to listen, I promised to communicate and I promised to lead while protecting conservative values. Over the past two years, I fulfilled those campaign promises in many ways.

During my first campaign and over the last two years, I knocked thousands of doors visiting with you in your living rooms, front yards, and on the doorstep getting to know you and listening to what is important to you. Like you, my priorities for the state are protecting traditional family values, the unborn and your constitutional right to keep and bear arms, promoting a diverse and prosperous economy, improving efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency in core governmental functions including public education health care, public safety and our transportation infrastructure, and finally in supporting our Veterans. I am proud of the votes that I have taken over the last two years that have reflected these values.

In terms of communication, I hosted town halls, coffee talks, spoke at homeowner’s meetings, read and responded to your emails, sent surveys, listened to and returned your phone calls and hosted constituents at the Capitol. I communicated through emails, newsletters, social media, direct mail and phone calls. I regularly appeared on panels at legislative forums, wrote op-ed articles for the newspapers and remained active in our community. I will continue to do my best to keep you informed and hope that you will contact me if I can be of assistance.

By building relationships, being a calm and compassionate self-starter, I have been able to transition from being a freshman legislator to a leader in the House of Representatives. I was appointed Assistant Majority Floor Leader, the highest-ranking Freshman position in the House. This appointment also gave YOU an important voice at the table for critical decision-making on which legislation would be heard. I serve on the Common Education Committee, the Health Services and Long-Term Care Committee, the Sub Appropriations Committee for Human Services, the Tourism Committee, and a House Oversight Committee. I also initiated and organized a weekly Freshman Caucus Meeting at the Capitol to help new legislators understand different policy issues. During my first year, I successfully authored and led 5 bills through the legislative process to the Governor’s desk where Governor Stitt believed they were worthy of his signature. Before our legislative session was interrupted due to COVID-19 this spring, I passed four bills off of the House Floor along with a Joint Resolution for Veterans onto the Senate.

I was honored that several constituent groups have recognized my legislative contributions and leadership over the last year. The Oklahoma School Advisory Board recognized me for outstanding contribution to education in 2019. The Tulsa Fraternal Order of Police awarded me Backer of the Year! I successfully moved legislation on Government and Educational Transparency, Foster Care, Mental Health Care, Criminal Justice, Streamlining Government, Senior Care and Substance Abuse. In 2019, I was appointed by the Speaker of the House to attend the Emerging Leaders Conference in San Jose, California.

My goal is to always represent you in the most professional manner possible with the absolute highest degree of integrity. As funeral service professionals, my parents instilled in me the importance of professionalism, public service and living a life according to the teachings of Jesus Christ. I grew up in the First United Methodist Church in Vinita where I was a frequent acolyte. My mother sang in the choir and was my junior choir director, while my father served on the Board of Trustees for decades. My statement of faith is based on the Apostles Creed that I learned as a child, and my life is centered on serving God through serving others with love, kindness and grace. I attend Asbury United Methodist Church and my relationship with my God is the single most important part of my life.

After graduating from high school, I was offered a scholarship to play golf at Oklahoma State University. I had a successful career on the course and in the classroom graduating with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. Following college, I worked in the residential real estate business and owned a retail home design store and business while raising my daughter and nurturing a blended family with special needs. I understand the despair of families on the DDSD waiting list and the challenges they face.

My community service involves serving 8 years on the Board of Directors of the Women’s Oklahoma Golf Association, including the last four in which I served as President and I am the current Immediate Past President. During my time of service, I led the way in converting the 101-year-old organization from a social organization into a 501c(3) public charity. I developed successful programs such as a scholarship program for high school seniors, a grants program for underfunded Oklahoma high schools, and a grass roots program to introduce young women to the game of golf. In 2016, the City of Tulsa appointed me to a steering committee to offer solutions for an area of Tulsa with very high concentrations of crime and poverty. I immediately saw a need and founded a 501c(3) non-profit for at-risk youth called Tulsa Midnight Basketball for which I currently serve as the Executive Director. Tulsa Midnight Basketball is a development program that offers nutritional services, life skills workshops and recreation for underprivileged youth. I have also served on local, state and national boards of directors, including the First Tee, the Oklahoma Golf Hall of Fame, The South Tulsa Community House, The Tulsa Fraternal Order of Police Benevolent Fund and The American Cancer Society. I am a strong supporter of the Collegiate Women’s Golf Ministry. I have chaired many committees, events, and fundraisers. I am a member of the Jenks Optimist Club, the Tulsa Republican Women’s Club, and the NRA.

I was blessed to be married to the love of my life, Joey Dills for 27 years before he passed away from cancer in 2019. Joey was a wonderful husband and father as well as a successful commercial insurance agent. Our daughter, Annie, is married and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Bio-Medicine at The University of Oklahoma. Our oldest son, William, is married and is an attorney in Houston, Texas. Our youngest son, Joey, is a special-needs adult who lives in Tulsa. I have two precious granddaughters, Isabelle and Mallory, and my first grandson is on the way. When my husband became critically ill in the late spring of 2019, and with the support of House Leadership, I chose to leave session a few weeks early to be with Joey as much as possible before he passed away. Some of my voting percentages reflect my time with my terminally-ill husband, not because I do not care about the issues presented during my time away, but because I physically was not there for those votes.

Regarding education, many people move to House District 69 for the top ranked public education in the Bixby and Jenks School Systems. I believe all children have a right to a quality education and parents have the right to choose the educational environment that best suits their needs. This right is enshrined in our state constitution that requires the provision of a system of public schools that are open to all children. I attended public schools and my daughter attended a private, Christian school. Education is the responsibility of families, churches and the government. I support a strong public education system.

I authored virtual charter school transparency bills because I wanted you to know where your hard-earned tax dollars are spent. I led the way over the past two years on school transparency and accountability because I promised to reform education and make it better. Since a prominent virtual charter school was under investigation and the State Auditor was ordered to do an investigative audit, I thought this was the best place to start. The virtual charter school legislation that I authored was passed unanimously by the House and Senate, was signed by the Governor and was supported by ALL virtual charter schools including the one under investigation.

Moving forward, I am already working with the Senate, including Senator Newhouse of Bixby, on major reform issues for all schools and making sure that money is going where it needs to go. I am very excited about this partnership and what the future holds. Government transparency is a fundamental value of mine. I will always fight to shine light into the darkest corners of government spending and waste.

In closing, I hope you have been pleased with my representation and agree that I have delivered on my promises. I pray that you give me the opportunity to continue to fight for our community. I would greatly appreciate your vote on June

30th.

Respectfully Yours,

Sheila Dills

Representative, House District 69