Intersection, held on November 7, 2017, was the first Oklahoma Link Coalition conference. Hosted by Kirkpatrick Foundation a the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City, the conference drew more than one hundred attendees. Speakers for the day included: Dr. Melinda Merck, nationally renowned forensic veterinarian; Dr. Randall Lockwood, senior vice president of Forensic Sciences and Anti-Cruelty Projects for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA); Diana Webster, attorney and president of the Native America Humane Society; Cynthia Armstrong, Oklahoma state director for the United States Humane Society; David Claunch, animal controll officer for city of Purcell; Steve Kunzweiler, District Attorney for Tulsa County; Donnell Weatherall, Deputy Directory of McClain County Emergency Management; Lieutenant Kimberly Teachman, lieutenant for Oklahoma City Police Department.

 

Sessions throughout the day emphasized the need for multidisciplinary collaboration to identify the Link in society. Lockwood instructed the crowd, "We need good laws, the general public, the polic, judges, veterinarians—in short, entire communites—to recognize and respond to signs of abuse."


 

Intersection Speakers