Wagoner City Councilor Recounts His Experience During 2022 Shooting At Saint Francis Hospital

A Wagoner City Councilor says he and his young son were on the Saint Francis Hospital campus last year right before a gunman killed four innocent people, then himself.

Despite a minor setback on his calendar, Patrick Sampson says June 1st, 2022 included another typical trip taking his son to the doctor.

“Typically, we wouldn’t have been there that late,” said Sampson, a city councilor in Wagoner. “We just had another appointment that kind of got pushed back.”

Within five minutes of finishing that physical therapy appointment, Sampson and his son left Saint Francis. In those short minutes, that ordinary day turned into one he says he will never forget.

“I start seeing patrol cars coming down the road,” he said. “I figured there was something that was happening.”

Sampson says he was on the way home with his son when he found out exactly what was unfolding.

“There was a lot of buzz going on and then my wife actually called me and asked me if we were OK,” said Sampson.

Nearly a year later, he says that day still crosses his mind. Knowing something so horrific was happening in the area he had just been with his child continues to strike a nerve.

“Kind of an eerie thing just knowing that the timeline of everything that happened and how it happened so quickly,” said Sampson.

The incident proves to him anything could happen anywhere. He has tried to protect his son from that day, and they still go to the hospital once a week for appointments.

“I did not tell him about that issue because we still have to go up there,” said Sampson. “I want to make sure that he feels safe in the environment that he’s in.”

While he feels fortunate to have safely gone home that day, he also regrets not being able to do more.

“In the way that I was angry is the fact that I wasn’t able to help,” said Sampson. “That’s just the kind of person that I am. I want to help in whatever situation I can, even being in harm’s way.”

Sampson says he continues to process that day and move on. His hope is for everyone else impacted to do the same. He also shares a lot of gratitude for the first responders and their quick response that day.