Council Chair

Welcome, Hola, Mingalaba, Salam, Osiyo, Xin Chao, or Hey, y’all might be some greetings you will receive when coming to my favorite city: Tulsa.

Born and raised in Tulsa, I have had the great fortune of seeing her being woven into the great tapestry of life she is today, where the threads of art and culture are wrapped together in kindness and love.

Tulsa has been named America’s most generous city for a reason. You can truly find your family here — whether it is in visiting our diverse cultural communities such as the Global District or Historic Greenwood, while listening to the Tulsa Sound in our rich entertainment venues like Cain’s Ballroom or BOK Center, or enjoying our natural playscapes in Gathering Place or Oxley Nature Center.

Maybe you will find your family while experiencing our ever-expanding Tulsa Zoo with its new elephant preserve and the recent birth of a white rhino named Hodari, or while learning in one of our world-class museums that cover everything from The Church Studio established by Leon Russell, Bob Dylan Center, Woody Guthrie Center, Philbrook Museum of Art, Greenwood Rising, Gilcrease Museum, or the upcoming OKPOP Museum, to name only a few.

The Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium provides a fun-filled ride through Tulsa’s history in our second largest industry: aerospace. Did you know 15 Oklahomans have gone into space or contributed to space exploration, and we are the only state to have people in every phase of the U.S. Space Program?

I could go on forever because there are so many wonderful things in Tulsa. Are you feeling overwhelmed and need help deciding where to start? We have you covered there, too. You can find many resources at the Dennis R. Neill Equality Center or the new Route 66 Welcome Center at Mother Road Market.

So come on in, make yourself at home, and welcome to the family.

Crista Patrick Chair, Tulsa City Council