U.S. Rep. Kevin Hern: Billie Roane will be missed

To the friends and family of Billie Roane,

Bartlesville was the first place I went when I began my journey from business to U.S. Congress. Bartlesville is a city on a hill. It shines as a beacon of community, prosperity, and of the rugged independence that’s only found in the American spirit.

Good communities are led by great people – people like Billie.

I was fortunate to know Billie as a friend, and I would like to share some things about her that I think took her from good to great.

Billie was constantly active in several community organizations, events, and initiatives that she did for others. She constantly gave of herself to a community that she believed was more important than her own private time, energy, and resources.

Leaders can often struggle with identity. All leaders are busy, and they spend much of their time doing things they don’t fully understand, and that can be disorienting. Billie’s busyness never robbed her of her identity in Jesus Christ. It’s only when your identity is fixed on something more important than yourself that you can be prepared to lead well.

I came to know her first during our time together at the Arvest Forum with Jim Bohnsack, and later with Representative Earl Sears. I now travel to Washington D.C. and across our great nation talking about how the Arvest Forum in Bartlesville, Oklahoma is one of the most wholesome expressions of community I have ever witnessed. So much of that was because of Billie.

Every city needs a place where community can grow, and every city would be blessed by the selfless, loving, and determined leadership of someone like Billie Roane. She will be missed, and she is appreciated.

May God bless you,

Kevin Hern

Member of Congress

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: U.S. Rep. Kevin Hern: Billie Roane will be missed