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New children’s book explores Oklahoma City bombing through eyes of memorial fence
BY Heide Brandes Photos By Emily Brashier
“The fence company opened at 6 a.m. on April 19, 1995… When the store manager called a meeting for 9 a.m., the guys swallowed the last sip of their coffee, shut off the forklifts and settled in the conference room.
Still laying on the floor, I was close enough to hear voices begin to quiet as the manager strolled into the room. It was in the middle of the manager’s speech that we heard a very loud boom and felt the ground beneath us shudder. The windows rattled and the doors actually bowed…”—the fence.
In the new book, If the Fence Could Talk written by Oklahoman Brad Robison and illustrated by Margaret Hoge, the Alfred P. Murrah bombing is tackled from the unique viewpoint of the fence that would one day be placed around the Oklahoma City National Memorial.
This fence, which starts out humbly on the floor of a warehouse, would become a rallying point for Americans and visitors to leave tokens of respect, sorrow, hope and love in the horrifying days following the worst case of domestic terrorism this country has ever seen.
“On April 19, 1995, Oklahoma City was changed forever when the unforgivable act of one individual took the lives of 168 men, women and children and injured hundreds more,” Former Governor Frank Keating writes in the forward. If the Fence Could Talk shares what the fence became in the days, months and years that followed for the rescue workers, family members, friends and strangers who gathered at the site.”
A Book is Born
Brad Robison served as a volunteer for the Oklahoma City National Memorial since 1997. In 1998, he began working for the Oklahoma City National Memorial as an archivist and helped develop a library and information center.
In his volunteer efforts, Robison would often give speeches and talks to the public. When addressing school children, his speech would tell the story of the bombing from the viewpoint of the fence.
“Every time he did that speech, people told him he needed to write a book,” said Hoge, who illustrated If the Fence Could Talk. “It’s amazing how such an ordinary thing like a chain link fence became such an extraordinary piece that protected and served the people.”
Based on a presentation Robison delivered as part of a campus lecture series at Rose State College, where he serves as coordinator of library archives and special projects, If the Fence Could Talk is a 32-page picture book featuring illustrations by Hoge, creator of the art curriculum and instructor at Heritage Hall’s grade school division.
If the Fence Could Talk follows the evolution of the fence as teddy bears, t-shirts, business cards, ball caps and other items are attached to the fence as solemn and loving reminders of the 168 people killed in the bombing.
“Every time I’d given presentations before, people were really intrigued in the items left on the fence,” Robison said. “And the only way I could think of to tell the story was to speak from the fence’s perspective. My hope for If the Fence Could Talk is that it continues to tell the story of how people came together and how they continue to remember.”
Robison had seen Hoge’s book Goodnight OKC, and he contacted her to provide the illustrations.
“The ideas for the illustrations come from the words,” Hoge said. “I close my eyes and picture what the words in the book describe—a plain ordinary fence, American flags that were left, people leaving items in the rubble. We worked hard to keep the images positive, because we didn’t want the book to be scary.”
Remembering Through Memories
“People strolled by me at all hours of the day and night. Some shed tears. Many stayed for long periods of time, just staring at me and asking the same question over and over: How could someone blow up a building with innocent men, women and children inside?”—If the Fence Could Talk
The book is geared toward children ages 8 and older, but the author and illustrator stress that adults would enjoy it as well. In addition, all proceeds from the sale of the book go to the educational programming at the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. A donor funded the distribution of the book to all public elementary schools in the state.
“I think one of the appeals of this book is that it’s not just telling the story again, but telling it from a unique point of view that will engage young readers,” said Gini Campbell, vice president of publishing and education for the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. “When we first got the book, we were excited about the story. It is presented in a way that told the history in a respectful manner that was not scary.”
If the Fence Could Talk, from The Oklahoma Heritage Association Publishing, a publication of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, is available for purchase from bookstores statewide, Amazon and at the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
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