[rjmoreland]

I'm a nurse and I've been offered a job in Idabel, OK. What is the town like? I need to move somewhere with a good school district because I have 4 kids that I need to think about. Are there any close towns that are better to live in?

[Synopsis]

Check out GreatSchools.net to find out about the schools. It's a beautiful area but rather secluded. I like secluded though..

[rjmoreland]

Are the people friendly? Is there a lot of crime?

[Synopsis]

Generally, the people all over Oklahoma are very friendly; some of the friendliest you'll find anywhere. As far as crime goes, the citydata main website says that it has a higher than average crime ratio (compared to the U.S). But, once again, I would imagine that crime is also more reported in such a small place, whereas in a large city many crimes go unreported. I can't tell you from a personal standpoint though because I've never lived there.

And again, you have to take into account that many more people in a small town/city will be more apt to report (even minor) crimes and therefore give the image of a higher crime rate. The very best thing you can do is visit there and stay for a few days and look at the area first hand. One thing you can always tell about an area that is riddled with crime; the shabbiness of the homes, economics, etc. I associate crime more with poverty than I do any other single factor. If you were to travel there and see poverty and unkempt homes over a very large area, and only pockets of decent areas, I'd run for the hills.

[StillwaterTownie]

You had best hope they have recently painted the town in Idabel. When I drove through there around 5 years ago I was struck at how poor, run down and weather beatened the town looked. Downtown it seemed the only bright and proud building was a drive in bank. I had lived in north central Oklahoma all my life and didn't know poor could look so bad as in Idabel. I had heard that southeast Oklahoma was quite poor, and I had gotten exposed to it all that I cared to see.