JUNE 2019 Vol. 9 Issue 9
Covering
PRSRT STD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID EDDM RETAIL
*****************ECRWSS****
Local Postal Customer
adahub COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
An Original Music Docuseries
STREAM ONLINE
PLAYITLOUDSHOW.COM 2 • www.adahub.com
adahub COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
Publisher Okie Icon Media
CONTENTS
JUNE 2019
FEATURES
8
Managing Editor David Dinsmore Featured Writer Sunnie Dawn Smith Ad Sales Brad Carter Art Direction Fawn Wilson-Olivarez Photography Nicholas Geisler
To advertise call 421-7874 5,000 copies direct mailed every month!
Comments or Suggestions? info@adahub.com • (580) 421-7874 A rticles and advertisements in the Ada Hub do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the magazine or Okie Icon Media. Okie Icon Media does not assume responsibility for statements made by advertisers or editorial contributors. The acceptance of advertising by Ada Hub does not constitute endorsement of the products, services or information. We do not knowingly present any product or service that is fraudulent or misleading in nature. Ada Hub assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials.
A PUBLICATION OF OKIE ICON MEDIA © COPYRIGHT 2019
5
Library takes kids out of this world with space-themed summer learning program
8
Oka’ Institute working to ensure responsible water use for now, future
6
Artist returns to painting to find purpose
11
7
Roff baseball coach uses winning reputation to teach life lessons
Local rapper takes authentic approach to creating, sharing music
PRESTIGE RV CENTER
SALES ✦ SERVICE ✦ PARTS ✦ ACCESSORIES THE QUALITY YOU EXPECT WITH THE SERVICE YOU DESERVE
1/2 MILE SOUTH OF I-40 ON HWY 177 SHAWNEE, OK 405-275-3556 WWW.PRESTIGERVCENTER.COM
www.adahub.com • 3
$6.99 COMPLETE LUNCH
to include choice of burrito or quesadilla with chips & salsa and a drink
99¢ TACOS on TACO TUESDAY! 1010 Lonnie Abbott Blvd. Ada, Oklahoma
580.332.2959
Fresco’s Mexican Grill & Gourmet Frozen Yogurt
Support Ada’s Local & Independently Owned Business
Summer of
INDEPENDENTS EAT ★ DRINK ★ SHOP ★ THINK
LOCAL
Ada Area Chamber of Commerce SMALL TOWN • BIG OPPORTUNITY
www.adachamber.com
4 • www.adahub.com
Library takes kids out of this world with space-themed summer learning program By Sunnie Dawn Smith
E
very summer, the Ada Public Library hosts a summer reading challenge and activities nearly every day based around a certain theme. The theme this year is “A Universe of Stories.” Debbie Whelchel, the children’s librarian, loves this theme for the amazing amount of possibilities. Outer space is a theme that can engage everyone’s imagination, whether young or old. It is one of the few frontiers left to explore both in the real world and within the creative mind. Every year, a collaborative group of librarians across many states comes together to propose summer program themes. Once they decide on a theme, an artist and illustrator creates artwork to go along with it. This helps libraries plan fun summer activities with organizational support outside the local library. This year, it was easy to choose the theme because July 20 will be the 50th anniversary of the first walk on the moon. The library will host many programs designed to engage the imagination and provide some fun while also being educational, and all will be tied together to the theme of space. Even a program showcasing exotic animals that took place in late May tied the animals into the different constellations. Some of the other programs will include making galactic slime, stellar crafts and Destination Moon! With Mad Science of Oklahoma. They will also be making cosmic cupcakes, doing galaxy sensory crafts and making space junk art. In addition to the crafts, they will also have magicians, storytellers and musicians. The full schedule of activities can be found at the Ada Public
Library at 124 S. Rennie. While the library is hosting many new and different programs around the theme of space, they will also have their regular activities as well, encouraging a love of reading for ages birth through 18. This summer, the different storytimes will be focused around outer space as they read books and do a craft. Lapsit Storytime for children birth through 3 is hosted on Fridays at 10:30 a.m., and Storytime and Craft is for children ages 3-8 and is every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. They also host two book clubs through June and July, comprised of one for teens ages 13-18 that meets every other Monday and one for juvenile fiction ages 8-12 that meets once a month. These books can be borrowed from Whelchel at the library. The books that they will be reading are all nominated for the Sequoyah Book Award, so these students will be able to vote for them next year. They would also be able to take their AR test on them when they go back to school in the fall. This is one of the ways that Whelchel said she hopes to help prevent the summer slide, helping students who read in the summer return to school in the fall more advanced. Those who do not read much in the summer tend to fall behind.
The Ada Public Library will participate in A Universe of Stories, a theme adopted by many libraries to get kids excited about learning this summer. PHOTO BY NICHOLAS GEISLER
Another way librarians work to prevent the summer slide is through their summer reading challenge. Reading logs can be picked up at the Ada Public Library, through listing the names of the books on a plain piece of paper works as well. For every five books read, the child will receive a prize and get their name on the wall of stars. Many local businesses have helped sponsor their prizes, including Burger King, McDonald’s, Applebee’s, Sonic, Santa Fe, Lazer Zone, McSwain Theater and Taco Bell. The main goal of the summer programs is to get kids into the library and make them feel comfortable there so they will develop a lifelong love for reading and research. While many of the activities are focused around reading, critical think-
ing and creativity, it can also be nice to just hang out and watch a movie. This is why on Fridays at 1:30 p.m., they host movie and popcorn. They will show “Muppets in Space” on June 14, “Monsters vs. Aliens” on June 21 and “The Cat from Outer Space” on June 28. They will feature “The LEGO Movie 2:The Second Part” on July 12, “Spiderman: Into the Spider Verse” on July 19 and “Bumblebee” on July 26. Their theme this year opens up nearly limitless possibilities for engaging with both fiction and nonfiction. Because there is still so much left to learn and explore regarding outer space, it can provide a fertile ground for imagination. “Today’s young readers will be tomorrow’s scientists, who will help explore outer space and develop new technologies,” Whelchel said. This all begins with first exploring their own imagination through reading. www.adahub.com • 5
Artist returns to painting to find purpose, peace By Sunnie Dawn Smith
A
rt is not for the faint of heart. It can lead to a life filled with beauty, seeing all the world through the particular lens of the artist, but it can also be filled with anxiety and doubt. There are times in some artists’ life where that doubt and self-criticism leads them to stop creating, even though art is the thing that they need most in their life. Local artist Evie Jaquess has overcome that fear of failure and now uses art to help express her emotions and as her own form of therapy. Jaquess discovered her love for sketching and painting when she was in junior high. “I loved the idea of all art being unique,” Jaquess said. “It wasn’t cookie-cutter, so I always tried to move outside the box. All of the artistic perspectives were so unique.” She continued to create art all the way through high school, discovering her passion for acrylic painting. However, as happens in many cases, she stopped painting not long after she graduated high school. Life got in the way of art. There was no longer the time or energy for creation as she was trying to figure out her own path to adulthood. Three years ago, though, Jaquess realized that there was something missing from her life that she desperately needed to find. It was art. She gradually started getting back into painting little by little, but there were challenges. The difficulties were not necessarily getting the supplies or finding the time. Instead, there were issues that she had to grapple with in her mind and her heart. “The most challenging part of getting back into it again was my own fear of failure,” Jaquess said. “But then I decided to paint for me and find the therapeutic release of painting. It was my happy place, and it still is.” Jaquess doesn’t try to paint in a specific style but rather uses each new work of art as an opportunity to try new things and letting the subject determine the style. This goes back to her roots as an artist and the individualism of art she liked most in the beginning. Her process for each paint6 • www.adahub.com
Artist Evie Jaquess had put away her paint brushes before she realized how therapeutic art could be, despite the fear of failure that sometimes comes with expressing herself. PHOTO BY NICHOLAS GEISLER
ing begins with a random inspiration of something around her, whether it be earth, nature or her children. These subjects get her started with her first ideas until she has a jumping off point. Sometimes this first inspiration comes from an artistic experiment as well. For instance, one painting came from an exercise that she wanted to try. “I wanted to do something different, so I drew on a canvas with my eyes closed and tried to paint something out of what was there in pencil,” Jaquess said. While the approach is reminiscent of early abstract artists, the finished product is more representational, though it does still retain some of the abstract elements within the overall painting. What started out as just a mass of lines transformed to a Mother Nature-type being emerging from a grove of trees. The figure is faceless, with a long mass of green hair hanging in natural curls almost the length of the body. The face is brown, though mostly
hidden by the hair, as is the body. It seems as if the figure is almost made of wood, not just emerging from the forest, but from the tree itself. While the grove of green trees speckled with pink flowers behind the figure is dark, she emerges into a brilliant yellow and white sunlight. While this is stunning visually, it also relates to the therapeutic nature of Jaquess’s paintings. Thematically, one could see this figure as being the artist herself, moving out of the darkness of her past and into the hopeful light of her future. While Jaquess has only returned to art in the past three years, she has done so with a vengeance, painting in a prolific manner. Now that she is older and wiser, with more life experience behind her, she can create art in a much freer manner than when she was younger, abandoning much of the insecurity of youth as she finds herself in both the real world and the world that she creates.
Roff baseball coach uses winning reputation to teach life lessons By Sunnie Dawn Smith
E
ad Simon may not have always known he wanted to be a baseball coach, but he did figure it out pretty early on in life when he was in junior high. He saw the importance that coaches can have on the lives of their players, and he wanted to be able to help mold other players into young men of good character. By being a coach, this gave him the opportunity to do that while also continuing to be involved in something he loved very much – baseball. Simon began playing T-ball when he was around 5 years old, and it was just something he did every summer. He wasn’t pushed into it. It was something that he loved, and it became a part of his summer life. As he grew older, he played baseball in junior high and high school. He played a few years in junior college and then made the decision to become a coach. He started studying the game more intently and preparing to coach his own team one day. During his final year of college, he did student-teaching at Allen schools in the fall, and that spring he was hired on as their new baseball coach, where he stayed for five years. After Allen, he moved to Roff. While Allen was a great school with a great program, Simon wanted to be able to do both fall and spring baseball, and he wanted his sons to be able to do the same. Allen did football in the fall, and then baseball in the spring. He has been at Roff now for 16 years and has never looked back. He has coached the team to many victories, including a third consecutive state championship in the last year. They won state in Spring 2018, Fall 2018 and Spring 2019. In his 20 years of coaching, he has amassed 1,000 wins and was recognized this past spring by the Oklahoma Baseball Coaches Association. This is an honor that few receive. For someone who has so many wins, one of the most interesting things that Coach Simon talks about is the importance of failure in baseball. “It is a game of failure,” Simon said. “You may strike out and then not have another opportunity for another 30 minutes. You
Roff High School baseball coach Ead Simon has led his team to three consecutive state championships in the last year, but he still makes sure his players do the little things right as they develop as on and off the field. PHOTO BY NICHOLAS GEISLER
can’t be faint of heart, and you have to have patience.” This is one of the things that Simon tries to teach his team – the importance of patience and perseverance. These are skills that go beyond baseball and relate to life as well. He sees his job as not just being a coach but as being a mentor. Seeing his players figure out who they are on and off the field is his favorite thing about coaching. “I get to watch the development of the students as both players and human beings,” Simon said. “I get to see them do things that they didn’t think they could do and watch them go from boys to men. I’m sure not a perfect human being, but I want to be a good example to these young men and show them what I learned.” There are definitely challenges to being a coach, as well. For Simon, the hardest part is spending time away from his family. Thankfully, his family is very understanding, especially because they are right there with him. One of his boys just graduated from Roff, and his other son will be a junior in high school this fall. Both have played on his baseball team, so that does give him more time with them. Plus, it is special for
him that he gets to be both a father and a coach to his children. His daughter will be a sophomore this coming year. She plays softball, so she definitely understands the grind of practices, games and teamwork. In addition to being a mentor for his players, Simon also encourages his boys to do the same for younger kids. A few years after he started coaching at Roff, Simon started a summer baseball camp that his team members have the chance to run. The camp is for kids ages 5-12, and it gives his high schoolers a chance to put themselves in his shoes, passing on the things that they have been taught and being good role models for the younger generation. The camp started out smaller with about 50 kids in attendance, but over the years it has shown steady growth and now hosts about 150 kids. While the kids get something out of it, his own players do as well. “Our baseball players are the ones who make the camp and treat those kids like a million bucks,” Simon said. “They put in a lot of time and energy. It puts them in a different perspective and gives them a chance to be mentors and role models.” www.adahub.com • 7
Oka’ Institute working to ensure responsible water use for now, future By Sunnie Dawn Smith
W
ater is essential to life. It is something that is so easy to take for granted, especially in the Ada area where clean, fresh water is abundant due to the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer. One of the interesting things about Ada, though, is that in addition to the abundance of water, there are also many resources for studying water and sustainability issues. This is one of the reasons that former East Central University President John Hargrave suggested starting the Oka’ Institute on the ECU campus back in 2015, and it was officially established the following year. 8 • www.adahub.com
Hargrave had read a report from the Ada Jobs Foundation about how Ada was in an excellent position to become a “water cluster.” That means the area offered many different resources dedicated to water research and sustainability that could all come together to collaborate and make Ada one of the premier places for research and industry. In addition to the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer, there is also the Robert S. Kerr Environmental Research Center funded by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The Chickasaw Nation were already leaders in water planning and sta-
bility. The City of Ada had been interested in doing aquifer recharge, which is a way to harness excess rain to gradually replenish the aquifer. “Geographically, and with the right people around the table, it seemed like the right time to have a water institute,” said Susan Paddack, executive director of the Oka’ Institute. They named it the Oka’ Institute after the Chickasaw and Choctaw word for water. The Oka’ Institute focuses on four main areas: education, research, economic development and policy development.
They are closely tied with the Water Resources Policy and Management Masters program at ECU, but they also put on a Water Fest for fifth graders from all over Pontotoc County. They are determined to bring education about water issues to all levels of education from young to old. One of the most exciting things that they are currently involved in is that they are getting ready to launch the Eastern Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer Hydrology Study with the United States Geological Survey. Back in 2003, when several landowners wanted to sell their water to Texas, legislation was passed to first do a study of the water. The study needed to determine the maximum annual yield and the equal proportionate share. What this means is that they needed to figure out how much water could be taken out of the aquifer while still maintaining the optimal levels to have enough clean water for the springs and streams as well as for use by people and industry. The equal proportionate share the study determined told all the stakeholders involved – those who own water rights on their property – how much water they could take out while still keeping the maximum annual yield. When this study was originally taking place, there were some people who were resistant to it, Paddack said. However, after the study, these same individuals are now around the table and excited for the next study, because all of this research just gives people more tools about how to use their resources in a sustainable and responsible manner. The current study will require more site-specific analysis. Now that they know the maximum annual yield, they need to know what different areas of the aquifer can provide as far as sustainable water usage. For instance, if one landowner wants to drill a well around the Blue River area, that might not make that much of a difference, but if several people want to drill, it might affect the levels of the river. This new site-specific model is for everyone’s information – landowners, businesses, municipalities, etc. – and this research will give everyone the tools they need to use water responsibly. One of the most exciting things about this is the way that everyone is coming together and acknowledging the importance of it. Previous studies were led by state agencies or mandated by legislation, but that has changed. “The stakeholders have said that this is important,” Paddack said. “We want to make sure that our children and grandchildren and their grandchildren – everyone who has a stake in the aquifer – will have a tool that knows where we can drill and where we can pump. It is a true publicprivate partnership.” In addition to initiatives like this one, the Oka’ Institute also provides funding for research projects, giving professors and students the opportunity to work together. They have an annual Sustainability Conference in October, which brings experts in the field from all over the world to Ada, Oklahoma. At 7 p.m. on June 24, esteemed water expert, Barney Austin, will be giving a free lecture in Estep Auditorium in the ECU University Center about the work he has been doing in Iraq. The Oka’ Institute is doing big things for Ada but also for the future as they move forward toward more progressive ways of thinking about responsible use of water.
The Oka’ Institute has played a key role in identifying the benefits and limits of the area’s water supply and how locals can use it to the benefit of everyone dependent on it. PHOTO SUBMITTED www.adahub.com • 9
MAIN OFFICE (580) 332-HOME (4663) 125 S. Broadway Ada, OK 74820
Klean
Keeping It...
from your friends at Home Place Real Estate
LORETTA BUSH 580.421.7402
CASIE ELKINS 580.665.9990
HALEY NUNN 580.235.3492
HESTON BUSH 580.399.6379
Commercial • Residential • Industrial
Daily, Weekly, Bi-Weekly & Monthly Rates LISA WATSON 580.618.2118
BURT DAILEY 580.235.5856
TOM BUSH 580.399.8990
bonded & insured
BILL WOOD 580-436-9838
Buying or Selling? Keep It Simple.
JUNE
SPECIAL
25% OFF
on first month invoice with one year contract
Call 580.332.(HOME) 4663
HOMEPLACE.PRO LACEY CHRISTY 580.320.3946
A.J. CHRISTY 580.399.5010
If you’re missing some of the simple sounds of life, EarMaster can help.
PAUL PENWRIGHT
Hearing Instrument Specialist
Whether you’re new to hearing aids or are a current wearer, we can guide you on the path to better hearing. We’ll find the solution that’s right for you and your active lifestyle.
Call to schedule a FREE hearing consultation today.
580.436.EARS (3277)
Ask how you can try hearing aids for 2 weeks for FREE
703 North Broadway, Suite 2 | Ada, OK 74820 | www.ear-master.com 10 • www.adahub.com
(580)
310-9080 call toll free at 1-866-423-4918
Hearing r e t t e B y Enjo
Success By Design See what our design & printing services can do for your business!
advertisements | brochures | flyers | business cards & more
adahub COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
For more information, contact Brad at 405.808.0963
Local rapper takes authentic approach to creating, sharing music By Sunnie Dawn Smith
T
he community of Ada is blessed to have so many talented musicians in many different genres. One performer who is truly unique, though, is local rapper Dylan Peet. Peet – a computer science major at East Central University – came to Ada to study from his home in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas. While he may be young, he has a perspective on life that goes well beyond his 23 years. He brings this fresh, genuine and authentic expression of the world to others through rap. It all started when he was in eighth grade. His girlfriend at the time wrote him a poem, and he decided to write one back to her. The amount of joy he received in expressing himself through poetry was surprising to him, and he turned to writing as an outlet. Starting out in poetry, rap was a natural progression for him. All song lyrics are essentially poetry, but the way he relished the rhyme, rhythm and sound of his poetry lent itself well to the genre of rap. He recorded his very first song only a year later called “I’m So Raw Remix,” which was essentially him establishing himself in the genre of rap. Peet said his creative process depends on the type of song he wants to create and the emotions he wants to evoke. “After finding an instrumental that embodies what I’m going for, I lock myself in my room, car, bathroom, etc., and let the words come to me,” he said. “Sometimes I can finish a song in one sitting, other times it may take a while.” The best thing about music for Peet is the ability to express himself creatively with no
boundaries. It doesn’t matter if the music comes quickly or if he has to work for it. In either case, it is an expression of what lies inside him. Just as all writers do, Peet will occasionally struggle with writer’s block. He wants every song to be perfect, and that struggle for perfection can lock him up creatively and cause him to overthink the process. However, if he just lets go and tries to make it real instead of good, that is when his best work comes out. “My best songs come when I am using less thought and more heart and soul,” Peet said. While Peet relishes the creative process, the reason he continues to create music is the connection with his audience. While some people care about how many people are listening to their music, Peet sees it as quality over quantity. “The goal is always to connect to the listener,” he said. “Even if it’s just one person, to share similar experiences and have my music resonate is the metric by which I define a successful song. I don’t care much for views or plays. I care more about the consumer. Whenever I get personal messages from people saying how much my music hit home for them, it pushes me even more to continue being the voice for those who may feel voiceless.” He wants to be the best at what he does, and a large part of that for Peet is touching the lives of others. In addition to connecting with his audience, though, Peet also gets enjoyment out of the creation of music itself and playing around with the words and rhythms, relishing in the sounds
Dylan Peet came to East Central University from Nassau in the Bahamas to study computer science and to share his music with local audiences. PHOTO BY NICHOLAS GEISLER
of poetry. “A lot of artists tend to focus on staying on beat in their music” Peet said “I find the pockets within the instrumentation and skate on them.” For Peet, it isn’t just keeping the exact beat of the music, but playing with it, making it a lively conversation between the instrumentals and his own vocalizations. This is one of the reasons he loves collaborating with other musicians as well, though he always tries to make sure that they are being just as authentic to themselves as he tries to be. “The one thing I always tell (people) that I do music with is to be themselves on the track, because I’m being myself,” Peet
said. “Therefore the collaborations never affect anyone as a creator.” This goes hand in hand with his overall view of creating his own material. “It’s easy to paint a luxurious lifestyle but much harder to dig deep within oneself, past ego and insecurities and be both vulnerable and honest,” Peet said. “My sounds are a reflection of the latter.” Peet’s music can be found online at soundcloud.com/ smsdyllz, and he will also be performing various shows in the area as well as performing in collaboration with the Sky Juice Kings. Upcoming shows can be found at instagram.com/ smsdyllz. www.adahub.com • 11
new hours 11am – 2am
june 21
Finally Summer! $2 margaritas $2 coronas
9pm-12am 5pm–9pm
june 29 june 28
all day
Cruise In
BANDLINEUP All shows are free!
DJ JASON DANIEL SATURDAY, JUNE 22 9PM – 12AM
push play SATURDAY, JUNE 29 9PM – 12AM
12 • www.adahub.com
Cruise In