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OKLAHOMA CITY – What began as a simple sketch on a piece of scrap paper has become a reality for Oklahoma Guardsmen and local first responders.
Oklahoma National Guard leadership held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday for the Oklahoma National Guard Wellness Center, a nearly 35,000-square-foot facility at the Oklahoma City Military Complex.
"This is a big event for us,” said Brig. Gen. Brad Carter, assistant adjutant general, Oklahoma Army National Guard and presiding officer for the ceremony. “Of all the years I’ve worn this uniform, I can’t tell you how excited I am about a facility that we’ve put up. Thank you for everyone that put this together, in particular our congressional delegation, our state legislature who has been so supportive of the Oklahoma Guard.”
The state-of-the-art facility, constructed by Flintco and designed by Larson Design Group, represents a major step forward in the OKNG's commitment to the holistic health and wellness of its service members. The center is the first of its kind for the organization, not only in its function but also in its design, working with Verdacity to achieve 'Gold’ for a WELL Building Standard.
The facility’s WELL design focuses on enhancing human health and well-being through the building’s environment, with features that address air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind and community.
The idea for the facility was born from a conversation between Maj. Gen. Thomas H. Mancino, adjutant general for Oklahoma, and Lt. Col. Montana Dugger, deputy for the OKNG's Construction and Facilities Maintenance Office. A simple, hand-drawn sketch on scrap paper laid the foundation for a facility that would bring all of the OKNG's mental and physical health resources under one roof.
“My staff and I drew this [plan] up with pencil and paper, a ruler and a dream,” Dugger said. “If you’ve ever been in engineering or construction more than a day, you know that sometimes things can take five, seven, 10 years to come to fruition, so I had no idea two to three years ago that I’d be standing in front of this building already completed.”
Amenities within the wellness center include a fully equipped workout space for resistance training and agility, indoor and outdoor meditation spaces, a chapel, conference rooms, classroom spaces, and a teaching kitchen.
The facility also houses OKNG programs and services, including Behavioral Health, Chaplain, Equal Employment Opportunity, Family Programs, Holistic Health and Fitness (H2F), Integrated Primary Prevention, Resilience, Suicide Prevention, Substance Abuse Prevention and Risk Reduction, and Sexual Assault Prevention and Response.
“With the availability of a chapel, classrooms, and individual office spaces, we have the opportunity for our service members and their families to access many more resources,” said Col. Lindy White, joint resiliency director for the Oklahoma National Guard. “All these services will finally have a home."
After hearing the story of how the idea came about, knowing the positive effect a facility like this could have and that it all started on a scrap piece of paper, White asked to have the sketch framed and displayed in the new facility for years to come.
“I’m going to take a line from Col. White," Dugger said during the ceremony. She said, ‘Sometimes innovation can start with just a sketchpad and a pen.’”
The official opening of the OKNG Wellness Center is scheduled for March 2, 2026. More information about accessing the facility will be made available after the opening at https://ok.ng.mil/Wellness/WellnessCenter/.
| Date Taken: | 02.19.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 02.19.2026 15:50 |
| Story ID: | 558415 |
| Location: | OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 34 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, From scrap paper to state-of-the-art: Oklahoma National Guard unveils new Wellness Center, by Leanna Maschino, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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