Abbie Alford joined the Fox23 News Team in August 2007. She arrives from Springfield, Ill., dubbed the Land of Lincoln, where she spent nearly three years tracking down politicians in the state Capitol as a general assignment reporter for the CBS and MyNetwork affiliate WCIA/WCFN TV. In that position, she helped start the city’s first 9 p.m. newscast and covered everything from political corruption to communities against violence. While new to Tornado Alley, she’s no stranger to devastating storms. She witnessed Springfield’s recovery of the most destructive tornado in the city’s history in March 2006. Not only did she document the city’s emergency response efforts, but she also participated in the community’s effort to raise awareness about the neurological disease ALS, or “Lou Gehrig’s disease,” during the annual “Jerry’s Kids” telethon. She started her career on the right foot by earning her master’s degree at the distinguished University of Illinois at Springfield’s Public Affairs Reporting program. She gained on-the-job experience while interning in the state Capitol for the then-ABC affiliate WAND-TV Decatur/Springfield. Her hard work during the program landed Abbie her first commercial journalism job with the station as a general assignment reporter. She earned her bachelor’s degree in speech communication from Eastern Illinois University. Although Abbie has a soft spot for the Midwest, her roots are in Northern California where she was a raised as a cowgirl on a cattle ranch and as an oh-so-big Giants’ and 49’er fan. In her spare time, the woman loves to eat. She can’t wait to dig in at Tulsa’s variety of restaurants. And she always welcomes the opportunity to chat and to listen to people’s stories that put the spice into everyday life. If you have a story idea or would just like to drop Abbie a note, you can email her at aalford@fox23.com.