OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Ryan Whicher is ecstatic the Thunder-Rockets game will be nationally televised Thursday night.
Its not because he lives in Maryland and none of Oklahoma Citys other games this season have been broadcast beyond the local telecasts. Its not even because Russell Westbrook will make his return to OKC.
Whicher is pumped because millions of people will get to see the Thunders uniforms.
On Thursday, OKC will debut its new City uniforms, designed to pay homage to those affected by the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. A striking combination of charcoal and bronze, numerous details will be familiar to Oklahomans. The Survivor Tree on the waistbands. The Gates of Time on the side panels.
But for people outside of the state, the symbolism may be foreign.
And for some, the bombing itself may be unknown.
Thats why Whicher is so grateful the Thunder and the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum collaborated on these uniforms, why he is so glad viewers across the country and even around the world will have a chance to see them. They will help keep alive the memory of what happened.
Tragedies like this, I always worry that everyone else is going to forget about it and the victims will kind of be on their own at some point, Whicher said. Thats a fear in the back of everyones head, Im sure.
And this is absolute 100% proof thats not the case.
Those killed, those injured and those affected havent been forgotten.
That includes Ryan Whichers dad.
Alan Whicher became the assistant special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service field office in Oklahoma City back in August 1994. He decided to take the desk position after serving on President Bill Clintons security detail, moving to Oklahoma from Washington, D.C., hoping for a slower, simpler life.
Whicher didnt want to miss any more birthdays or holidays with his family. He wanted to spend more time with his wife, Pam, and children Meredith, Melinda and Ryan.
No one welcomed that more than Ryan, who was in middle school at the time.
He was like the Terminator in real life, Ryan said. He was this massive figure who was a law enforcement guy. To me, he was just this awesome human.
