TulsaPeople May 2023

Bring on the fun with Tulsa Picnics and Events and other area activities

Tulsa. It’s who we are.

Caretaker, caregiver and Tulsa proud. Dr. Parker is more than just part of the Saint Francis family—she’s part of our promise to improve the health of the communities we call home.

Ryan Parker, M.D. • Emergency Medicine Physician and Associate Chief Medical Officer

FIRST OKLAHOMA BANK PRESENTS Leaders with Heart

PASSIONATE. INVOLVED. INFLUENTIAL.

Her community involvement emulates her late maternal grandfather, the legendary Sam Avey, whose activities boosted Tulsa’s economy.

In the early 1940s, he purchased the Tulsa Coliseum, an indoor arena at the corner of Fifth Street and Elgin Avenue, where the Tulsa Oilers ice hockey team played and KAKC radio station was located. He operated the coliseum until a lightning strike burned it to the ground in 1952.

“All large public gatherings were in the Coliseum, and he welcomed ALL people… He also began the Babies Milk Fund, which held fundraisers at the Coliseum. When they needed a ‘baby,’ Grampaw put me in a rocking chair at age 2 with a milk bottle as promotion for the fundraisers. I have always been a part of and encouraged to do more on my own, and it blesses me.”

Sharon and her late husband, Coleman, raised three daughters in Tulsa. The entrepreneurial family developed KingsPointe Village at 61st Street and Yale Avenue and Kings Landing, a shopping plaza with sweeping views of the Arkansas River at 99th and Riverside.

Her proactive personality has earned Sharon the title of one of Tulsa’s “busiest community leaders.” She has served on multiple organizations: the TCC Foundation Board, the Tulsa Historical Society Board, the River Parks Authority, and the Arts Alliance Tulsa Board, to name some.

“If an organization’s mission causes my heart to soar, I am always thrilled to serve if asked. Currently, I have so enjoyed being a part of the fundraising of The Little Lighthouse for the past 20 years for The Garden Party,” Sharon says. “Miracles happen every day with the students and their parents.”

In 1994, Sharon was named among the “Most Powerful Women in Tulsa.” Her reputation for getting things done propelled her into chairing Tulsa’s Centennial, leading a City Streets Task Force, co-chairing a third penny sales tax extension, and serving on the state Women’s Commission.

“Sharon is a force of nature with an unstoppable and unforgettable personality,” says Tom Bennett Jr., Executive Chairman of the Board of First Oklahoma. “Not only is she a good businesswoman and community philanthropist, she has a long legacy of providing leadership to our community. We are blessed by Sharon’s and her family’s positive impact on Tulsa!”

Through her grandfather, who in the early 1950s helped establish Farmers & Merchants Bank, Sharon also learned the importance of saving, investing and having a good bank. “The founders of First Oklahoma Bank are experienced in banking principles/ investments, and always have a willing heart to answer questions or assist in any way,” Sharon says. “They are involved in the Tulsaarea community…responsive and always very helpful, which gives the banking client a confidence in its myriad of services.”

As a fourth-generation Tulsan, Sharon King Davis cares about preserving the city’s history while promoting its economic expansion.

J. D. MYER AND ANNE BROCKMAN

7 CITY DESK

Celebrating culture in Tulsa’s Global District. Making music at The Church Studio. Bringing art to one area neighborhood. Two Lindsey House moms share their stories.

Sun’s out, shades on. Cherry Street’s jewelry box. This year’s proven plants for your garden. Connie Cronley’s complicated conversations.

79 TABLE TALK

Mediterranean on the mind. Delightful summer recipes. New Rose District taproom. Community

Rhonda Beaver, chief administrative officer for Muscogee Nation Department of Health, at Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare

Finding the best care for you starts with a conversation between you and an Ascension St. John doctor. What sets us apart is our unrelenting commitment to advanced and high-quality care in our community.

• Experienced heart care for routine and advanced heart care

• Leading brain and spine specialists, caring for movement disorders, spine care and more

• Advanced cancer treatment and surgery, from diagnosis through recovery

• ER care teams available 24/7, including our Joint Commission-certified Comprehensive Stroke Center

And you’ll find we excel just as much in the things that can’t be measured — listening more closely and caring more compassionately.

Your first choice for leading care

And just like that … it’s time for the May issue.

Spring is speeding past all of us, especially me, and here I am again putting together an editor’s letter moments away from uploading this magazine to the printer.

e team here at TulsaPeople works on each issue for months, but there’s always a mad dash the few days before upload. We’re crossing Ts and dotting Is. I’m triple-checking the photographer’s credit is correct on that submitted photo. ere’s a word that keeps tripping us all up. Eventually we’re satis ed and hope all this hard work is enjoyable for you, our readers.

is month’s issue is a fun one — literally. It’s our annual Summer Fun Issue. is is our take on what we think will make for a great summer season.

First up is the Summer Fun Guide, compiled and designed this year by Creative Director Madeline Crawford. She metaphorically hit the ball out of ONEOK Field’s ballpark on this one. ere are ideas for fun in town and road trip adventures. Be sure to check it out on p. 41.

is month marks the 50th year for Mayfest, the annual spring celebration of visual and performing arts. is year, e University of Tulsa is taking the helm of this tradition. I had the chance to speak with two of Mayfest’s local juried artists. Steve Smith and Heidi Kemp are talented Tulsans whose caliber of creations is what makes Mayfest so treasured. Read my brief preview of the festivities on p. 50. en mark your calendars for the rest of the season as we detail the summer’s festival lineup starting on p. 50.

Everyone’s favorite automobile sheri from Disney’s “Cars” was voiced by Tulsa’s own Michael Wallis, who is pro led in our Legends series this month by the talented Gail Banzet-Ellis I’ve been lucky enough to meet and speak with Wallis over the years. He’s one of those people who makes you feel like you’ve been friends forever and that he’s genuinely interested in knowing what’s going on in your life. He’s a gem and it shows in this in-depth Q&A on p. 38. is month we publish our intrepid intern J. D. Myer’s pro les on four local music acts whose timeless tunes lls the air at some of Tulsa’s favorite restaurants. Diners not only come for what’s on the menu but also the melodies lling the air and the atmosphere created by these talents. is was a story pitched by Myer and he did a great job. ere’s so much to see, do, experience, engage and explore in our great city. I hope you can use this month’s issue to learn more about the great people doing amazing things to make our city what it is. I hope you can spend some time with the ones you love as you visit the shops, festivals, restaurants, programs and more pro led in this issue.

Happy reading. TP

Volume XXXVII, Number 7 ©2023. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher, including created advertising in a proofed or printed stage.

TulsaPeople Magazine is published monthly by 1603 South Boulder Avenue Tulsa, Oklahoma 74119-4407

P: 918-585-9924 F: 918-585-9926

PUBLISHER Jim Langdon

PRESIDENT Juley Roffers

VP COMMUNITY RELATIONS Susie Miller

EDITOR Anne Brockman

FEATURES EDITOR Tim Landes

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Blayklee Freed

EDITORIAL & MARKETING ASSISTANT Tiffany Howard

EDITORIAL CONSULTING Missy Kruse, The Write Company

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Madeline Crawford

ART DIRECTOR Georgia Brooks

GRAPHIC DESIGNER Ashley Guerrero

MANAGING PHOTOGRAPHER Michelle Pollard

VIDEOGRAPHER Greg Bollinger

SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Andrea Canada

ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Josh Kampf Rita Kirk

CONTROLLER Mary McKisick

INTERNS Elizabeth McCullough J. D. Myer

Anne Brockman EDITOR

TulsaPeople’s distribution is audited annually by

Langdon Publishing Company sets high standards to ensure forestry is practiced in an environmentally responsible, socially beneficial and economically viable manner. This issue of Tulsa People was printed on recycled fibers containing 20 percent post-consumer waste with inks containing a soy base blend. Our printer is a certified member of the Forestry Stewardship Council and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, and additionally, meets or exceeds all federal Resource Conservation Recovery Act standards. When you are finished with this issue, please pass it on to a friend or recycle it. We can have a better world if we choose it together.

Disregard any TulsaPeople subscription solicitation that is not directly mailed from the Langdon Publishing office at 1603 S. Boulder Ave. Contact Langdon Publishing directly if you are interested in subscribing or renewing your TulsaPeople subscription.

Intentional spaces

The chapel at Osage Forest of Peace is a place where people of many faiths can gather to pray and meditate. Tuesday-Saturday, sitting meditation is offered in the chapel three times a day. Interim Executive Director Michaela Lawson, pictured here, says it was designed with intention and is a sacred space. TP

NOTEBOOK

BY ANNE BROCKMAN

PLAYFUL IMPROVEMENTS

The 11-acre McCullough Park, 11534 E. 25th St., recently reopened after a $3.6 million renovation of its baseball diamond and dugouts, along with a new main entrance, larger parking lot, walking trails, a restroom, picnic shelters, a plaza, splash pad, playground, pump track bike park and a multi-use sports court.

A steering committee of local representatives and Tulsa Parks officials designed the park to reflect a global community, with brightly colored painted surfaces, graphics of the world, and multiple languages depicted in the splash pad plaza and design of the shade structures.

At Whiteside Park, 4009 S. Pittsburg Ave., ground has been broken on a new inclusive playground. City of Tulsa officials say it will be one of the most inclusive play places in the state as it is designed with all users in mind and will engage children and adults with a wide range of abilities.

The 5-acre Celebration Park, 1110 W. 20th St., opened

April 4 with two playgrounds, a splash pad, a multi-use sports court, pavilion with picnic tables and barbecue grills, lighted sports field, open play areas and more.

The park, a $2.4 million project funded in part by a federal Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant and funds from Improve Our Tulsa 1 and 2, is a key component of a plan to revitalize the Eugene Field and River West communities.

“Before the renovation, this park was barren and mostly known as a place for overflow event parking,” says Anna America, the City’s chief of culture and recreation and parks director. “The community chose the name ‘Celebration’ because of their excitement about what we’ve built here together. Celebration Park will help continue the revitalization and growth we are witnessing in this area, but more importantly to me, it will be a place for these families and children to come together, to be active, and to just play and have fun.”

4 Tulsans selected for Aspen Institute’s Healthy Communities Fellowship

Aspen Global Innovators Groups named members of its 2023 Healthy Communities Fellowship class, which is focused on advancing health equity by supporting leaders in communities that are disproportionately impacted by economic and health disparities, including Oklahoma, Texas and Alaska.

Omare Jimmerson is the executive director of the Tulsa Birth Equity Initiative, a program working to save the lives of Black and Brown women with doula care and empowerment.

As managing director of entrepreneurial network Build in Tulsa, Ashli Sims is helping reclaim the narrative: Black Wall Street is not a history lesson, but a blueprint.

Janel Pasley is a visual artist, writer, innovator and community advocate who serves as the program officer at Ascension St. John, championing the Community Health Equity Catalyst Strategy.

As an emergency medicine physician and Union Public Schools board member, Dr. Chris McNeil creates pathways for BIPOC children to seek medical education and professions with Youth Medical Mentorship.

Learn more at aspenglobalinnovators.org.

Members of the Nathan Hale High School boys basketball team were treated to a surprise new pair of shoes during a field trip to Silhouette Sneakers and Art, 10 N. Greenwood Ave., Suite C, on March 22. Anonymous community donors funded the purchases for the whole team, including coaches.

Janel Pasley

Omare Jimmerson Ashli Sims

Dr. Chris McNeil

Left, Mayor G.T. Bynum, Parks Director Anna America and City Councilor Jeannie Cue at the opening of Celebration Park; right, McCullough Park received a $3.6 million renovation to improve outdoor facilities.

MAY 5-6

NATIVE PLANT SALE

Back for the second year, this sale sports plants that can encourage pollinators and other native critters, bolstering our region’s ecosystems.

PHILBROOK MUSEUM OF ART, 2727 S. ROCKFORD ROAD PHILBROOK.ORG

MAY

MAY 2

GHOST HUNTING 101

Peruse for the paranormal with Teri French and Tulsa Spirit Tours. Weekly classes are held Tuesdays and cover the fundamentals on how to hunt ghosts.

VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS POST 577, 1109 E. SIXTH ST. TULSASPIRITTOUR.COM

MAY 11

TULSA DRILLERS VS. SPRINGFIELD CARDINALS

Tulsa Drillers have reintroduced Oily the Oiler — a vintage mascot with a baseball for a head and a big grin — and will offer a commemorative bobblehead to the first 1,000 fans.

ONEOK FIELD, 201 N. ELGIN AVE. TULSADRILLERS.COM

MAY 13

TULSA FESTIVAL OF KITES

Hosted by the Tulsa Wind Riders Kite Club, members will share their kite fl ying enthusiasm and know-how with guests.

EAST 43RD STREET AND SOUTH GARNETT ROAD FACEBOOK.COM/TULSAWINDRIDERS

MAY 20

TULSA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Hear musicians perform Luminous: Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 “Eroica” with Sarah Hicks guest conducting.

TULSA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, 110 E. SECOND ST. TULSAPAC.COM

MAY 20

PASSPORT TO PARADISE

Now in its 72nd year, Tulsa Garden Club’s annual tour features four private residential gardens in midtown. Be inspired, learn something new and give back.

MULTIPLE LOCATIONS

TULSAGARDENCLUB.ORG

MAY 20-21

GOATS GALORE

Baby goats are taking over the Boneyard, so prepare for snuggles as you sip local brews and enjoy live music by Grass Crack. DEAD ARMADILLO BREWERY, 1004 E. FOURTH ST. FACEBOOK.COM/DEADARMADILLOBREWERY

MAY 31

BOOK CLUB

Calling all lovers of horror! The 2023 Horror Lit Book Club continues its meetings the last Wednesday of the month through October.

WHITTY BOOKS, 2306 E. ADMIRAL BLVD. WHITTYBOOKS.COM

VISIT TULSAPEOPLE.COM/ABOUTTOWN FOR MORE LOCAL EVENTS AND A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF WEEKLY MUSIC LISTINGS.

COMPILED BY BLAYKLEE FREED

MEG GOULD

TULSA FMAC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

STORY AND PHOTO BY TIM LANDES

Meg Gould has been very busy since joining Tulsa O ce of Film, Music, Arts and Culture in January. ere was the Sundance Film Festival in Utah and a trip to showcase Tulsa music at South by Southwest in Austin, plus she’s been learning all the ins and outs of Tulsa’s rich history in entertainment, art and culture.

e Texas native met me at Notion Espresso, 321 S. Frankfort Ave., Suite 3B, to discuss her three-decade career in lm and television that included work on the reboot of “Walker, Texas Ranger” that took her from Los Angeles back to Texas, and her recent move from the Dallas Film Commission to oversee Tulsa FMAC.

SHE WAS PITCHED THE JOB IN NOVEMBER, WHILE VISITING TULSA FOR A CONFERENCE. RENEE MCKENNEY, HER FRIEND AND FORMER COWORKER AT VISIT DALLAS, HAD RECENTLY MOVED HERE TO OVERSEE VISIT TULSA AND SOLD GOULD ON WHAT TULSA IS OFFERING ... I was researching about Tulsa and living here, and it was just so appealing. Tulsa has world-class museums. Having the Bob Dylan Center here and it being a music city. Also, I can tell you from coming from Texas, we’ve been paying attention to what Oklahoma Film has been doing, and I knew what projects were looking this way, because we had several of them looking in Texas, and then they lmed here.

HER FIRST WEEK ON THE JOB, SHE TRAVELED TO SUNDANCE TO SUPPORT A LOCALLY MADE FILM THAT DREW SUPPORT FROM TULSA FMAC AND CHEROKEE NATION FILM OFFICE ... As soon as I got here, I hear about this movie called “Fancy Dance” that had lmed here and with the help of our FMAC funds, and with the help of Cherokee Nation funds, was able to be completed. Two days after I got here, we ew out to Sundance and went to the premiere and hosted a pre-party as well. After seeing the quality of work that was coming from here, I just knew this was going to be so exciting. e momentum has been building, and I just wanted to be a part of that.

MARTIN SCORSESE’S “KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON” (RELEASING IN OCTOBER) AND OSCAR-NOMINATED “MINARI” WERE FILMED HERE IN RECENT YEARS. STERLIN HARJO’S “RESERVATION DOGS” IS CURRENTLY FILMING IN THE AREA. THOSE SUCCESSES HAVE HELPED CREATE MORE LOCAL OPPORTUNITIES ... Right now, I can tell you we have four di erent projects that are lming here. I can’t tell you what they are. We have interest in at least three or four more that we’ll be shooting probably during the summer. It’s just exciting to see how supportive of lm everybody is here.

WHEN IT COMES TO MUSIC, GOULD RECENTLY RETURNED TO HER HOME STATE TO HELP PUBLICIZE TULSA’S DIVERSE SLATE OF TALENTED MUSICIANS ... e music part is just amazing to me. Every band I hear just blows me away. We actually just got back from South by Southwest where we programmed the music for the Tulsa house. Natalie Dankert in our o ce did an amazing job with that. We took 16 bands from Tulsa down to Austin and had really fun- lled nights. ere was a line around the corner every night. I was getting calls from people that I know from Texas that were like “Hey, can you get me into Wilderado?” So it was very well received. And

a lot of people were talking about our Tulsa music as it should be celebrated.

ON WHAT MOST EXCITES HER ABOUT THE MONTHS AHEAD

Seeing what we can do to continue to bring those projects here. We’re working on several different things on an incentive front. We are waiting to hear about the state incentive. (Editor’s note: If the state legislature passes HB 1362 it will raise the state’s lm incentive program annual cap from $30 million to $80 million.) I’m really excited about the possibilities of what the lm world will be here in Tulsa. And the music industry: we want to really just pump it up. We want people to know about us, to come here and see all what we have to o er. ere’s the Bob Dylan Center and Woody Guthrie Center and all of the Tulsa Arts District is surrounded by music. We really need to celebrate what we have here, celebrate our wins, and I’m excited to be a part of that. TP

OVER 1,000 THERE ARE EV CHARGING STATIONS IN OKLAHOMA.

ONE MORE THERE’S

IF YOU INCLUDE YOUR GARAGE.

There are more EV chargers than you realize. While there’s a lot of hype around electric vehicles (EVs) right now, there are also a lot of questions — about their performance, reliability, charging capabilities and range. At PSO, we want to provide you with answers to your EV questions, so you can make informed decisions. Learn more and find a charging station at: GetToKnowEV.com

COME AS YOU ARE

EVENT CELEBRATES MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY IN EAST TULSA.

BY JULIANNE TRAN

Driving east on 21st Street, you’ll nd yourself in a completely di erent Tulsa. Stores nestled together display signs in Spanish, Vietnamese and more, beckoning you in for a meal or grocery run. Here, you’ll nd ingredients and dishes from every corner of the world.

All are welcome in the Tulsa Global District.

“Hispanic, Latinx populations as well as Asian populations are growing (quickly) in east Tulsa,” describes Luisa Krug, executive director of Tulsa Global District. “ ere’s a blending of culture in this area that you don’t necessarily see in other parts of the city.”

e East 21st Street and South Garnett Road commercial corridor was designated as the Global District in 2020 through the Tulsa Planning O ce’s Destination Districts program and Oklahoma Main Street Center.

Since then, Krug has worked to nurture the district to support local businesses, amplify the area’s multicultural diversity and create a safe and welcoming neighborhood.

Tulsa Global District aims to transform the area into a city destination while also preserving its existing, culturally vibrant community.

“When you see beautiful things in your neighborhood, that makes you feel like someone cared to invest in this,” Krug says. “I think that can be really meaningful for communities.”

Tulsa Global District also partners with local

THIS MONTH AT Circle Cinema

YOU’VE GOT MAIL

7:30 p.m., May 11

In celebration of Tom Hanks coming to Tulsa for a sold-out Magic City Books event, see one of his most beloved films on the big screen. Struggling boutique bookseller Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) hates Joe Fox (Hanks), the owner of a chain store that just moved in across the street. When they begin an intense and anonymous internet romance, Joe must now struggle to reconcile his real-life dislike for her with the cyber love he’s come to feel.

SECOND SATURDAY SILENT: PETER PAN

11 a.m., May 13

Enjoy a classic silent film with a live score played by Bill Rowland of the American Theater Organ Society Sooner State Chapter on Circle’s restored 1928 theater pipe organ. See the 1924 original film adaptation of “Peter Pan,” with the boy who never grows up trying to outwit the nefarious Captain Hook. Presented with support from Play Tulsa Music.

SCARFACE — 40TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENING

9 p.m., May 13

organizations to host events that celebrate the community’s cultural traditions and practices.

On May 19, Tulsa Global District and Asian Paci c Islander Desi American Tulsa will host a night market and food festival in celebration of Asian Paci c American Heritage month.

“( e event) will showcase great local vendors, celebrate di erent cultures and introduce cuisines and traditions that may be new to some attendees,” says Tina Tran, a founder of APIDA Tulsa.

APIDA Tulsa supports the Asian American community through education, community building, cultural events and advocacy.

“Food is a universal language that connects us all — it’s a great way to learn about di erent cultures,” Tran beams. “And we have some really amazing food and vendors right here in Tulsa.”  e event will feature a variety of di erent Asian cuisines and food trucks, along with performances from Hmong dance groups, lion dancers and other cultural musicians and dance groups. TP

MAY 19 — NIGHT MARKET

NAM-HAI ORIENTAL FOOD MARKET, 11528 E. 21ST ST. | 5-9 P.M. Free admission. Food and product vendors will be on-site, as well as festivities. globaldistrict.org

Say hello to our little friend. Tony Montana is back with a 4K restoration in celebration of the 40th anniversary. Presented by Graveyard Shift, Oklahoma’s premier big screen experience for cult and retro movies. In one of his most iconic roles, Al Pacino plays the drug lord building an empire in Miami.

THE BEST OF ENEMIES

7 p.m., May 18

National Theatre Live brings the best British theater to audiences around the world with preshow trivia hosted by Tulsa actor Nick Cains Recorded live from London’s West End, see David Harewood (“Homeland”) and Zachary Quinto (“Star Trek”) play feuding political rivals in James Graham’s (“Sherwood”) multiple award-winning new drama.

IT AIN’T OVER

Opens for daily screenings May 12

An intimate portrait of a misunderstood icon, this documentary about Yogi Berra takes us beyond the caricatures and “Yogisms,” and into the heart of a legend whose unparalleled accomplishments on the baseball diamond were often overshadowed by his off-the-field persona.

Compiled by Circle Cinema’s Ryan Thomas. Visit circlecinema.org for pricing and more information.

Nkuaj Huam Ci, a Hmong dance group, performs at the March 2022 Square at Nam Hai multicultural festival.

BIG MOVES

ENTREPRENEUR COACH FOCUSED ON FEMALE EMPOWERMENT MAKES HER HOME IN TULSA.

BY JORDAN COX

Bri Seeley says she accidentally started her rst business in 2007. What started out as a side hustle in fashion turned into a full- edged business, resulting in dressing stars and seeing her work on sites like Zappos. But when she looked up eight years later, Seeley realized the business didn’t align with her personal core value of freedom, so she pivoted to a service-based business providing consulting and coaching to entrepreneurs.

“Women had been asking me for years how I did what I did,” she says. So in 2015, Seeley began her work in business consulting in Los Angeles under the name Seeley Enterprises Inc. “As the years progressed, I began to see the immense freedom that entrepreneurship can bring, especially to women and other marginalized communities where employers don’t want to hire us, or pay us, or honor good working conditions or schedules. As an entrepreneur, we get to set those rules for ourselves.”

After LA, Seeley moved to New York City then Tulsa in 2020 to “ride out the pandemic, away from New York City,” she says. “I think I was tired and wanted some respite from the hustle and bustle of big city life.” Seeley found herself drawn to the calmer, easier existence in Tulsa. “My business life is so hectic that living in a place that was calmer really resonated with me.”

As her business approaches its eighth anniversary, Seeley, who was hailed Business Coach

of the Year and Business Woman of the Year in 2020 by the Stevie Awards, is re-branding Seeley Enterprises Inc. to focus more on business design and strategy. is year, Seeley also will launch her nonpro t In nite HERizons, an international organization devoted to providing economic equity for women through entrepreneurial and business education and empowerment. “I help wantrepreneurs, solopreneurs and CEOs build e ective, aligned and pro table businesses from the inside out,” she says of both Seeley Enterprises and the new nonpro t.

Part of In nite HERizons will include the inaugural Success Becomes Me conference happening Sept. 20-21 at Cox Business Convention Center. Although Seeley could have hosted this conference in many large cities, she felt it important to launch the rst-ever event in Tulsa. Targeted at business owners or women ready to uplevel and rede ne their success, the event will feature 18 female entrepreneur speakers and plans to host 400 women in-person and 1,000 virtually. “An element of the intention of the conference is to have every woman, within a year, increase revenue by 130%. is is a ‘feel-good’ and change-the-trajectory-of-your-life kind of event.”

For those interested in attending the May event, visit successbecomesme.com. To learn more about Seeley Enterprises Inc.’s business consulting services, visit briseeley.com. TP

COWORKING WITH COFFEE

“You can’t have work without coffee,” says Ben Von Drehle, founder of The Root Coworking.

Opening in June, members and non-members can fuel up at Notion Market Cafe, a full-service cafe with Notion Espresso, in The Root’s new Market Station at 1207 S. Lewis Ave.

“Coffee is an integral part of what we do and who we serve,” Von Drehle says. “We want to give our customers the ability to order a quality cup of coffee and a chef-curated menu of food items without ever having to leave The Root.”

Notion has built a brand in Tulsa and developed a community aspect to its business that goes beyond coffee and food, Von Drehle says.

This community focus especially aligns with the values of The Root, a coworking space that provides members with more than just a workspace at its original location, 110 S. Hartford Ave.

Von Drehle says this second location is “only the beginning for what we have planned here in Tulsa and Oklahoma” as demand for turn-key flexible workspace has increased significantly.

“We want to give our members options to work where and how they like, and that includes having access to multiple locations,” he says.

Members will have access to unlimited drip coffee from Notion Market Cafe. The full-service cafe also is open to the public who can purchase a $25 day pass to work from any of the shared space areas.

Notion Market Cafe will be open 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday. Visit therootcoworking.com to learn more.

JULIANNE TRAN

Bri Seeley is an author and podcaster who has trained over 5,000 people around the world in entrepreneurship. She is ranked No. 1 on Google as an entrepreneur coach and is the winner of two Stevie Awards, which recognize excellence in business. She has called Tulsa home since 2020 and will host an inaugural women’s business conference in September.

Ben Von Drehle

GOING SOLO

NIGHTINGALE’S PARKER FERRELL RELEASES ALBUM RECORDED IN PART AT THE LATE STEVE RIPLEY’S STUDIO.

BY LINDSEY NEAL KUYKENDALL

Like the title of his upcoming new solo record “Love Runs rough,” Parker Ferrell’s latest recording is the story of people coming together, bound by music.

“Some people say this album is long overdue. In hindsight I can see the plot threads and the characters converge,” Ferrell says.

With the support of the Tulsa Film, Music, Arts and Culture O ce and its Play Tulsa Music Creative Content Fund Grant, Ferrell was able to bring together a band to create his musical vision in partnership with the late Steve Ripley, Charlene Ripley and Jared Tyler at the helm for a project that blends folk, rock and world music.

“I picked some of my favorite Tulsa musicians, and Steve’s wife, Charlene, graciously invited us to the farm to record the full band portions of the album in the studio that Steve built,” Ferrell says. “Charlene was so kind and hospitable. She even made us sourdough bread. It was a wonderful week of sessions with some incredible musicians. e dream had come true. I couldn’t believe it, and I was beside myself with gratitude.”

e recording was done at both the Ripley Studio and Tyler’s home studio. For the four days Ferrell recorded at the Ripley Farm, “it was pure focus — everything a session should be,” he says. “We were completely immersed in the experience.

It’s like Steve’s spirit was really with us throughout the recording process.”

Steve’s memory was a major part of the album. “Steve mentored Jared and mentored me,” Ferrell says. “He would have been smiling ear to ear knowing we were working together.”

Ferrell, 35, did all the songwriting on the album and played guitar and piano for “To Deserve You” and “To All e Friends I’ve Known.”

“Love Runs rough” will be released June 3 with a album launch event at 7 p.m. at Flyloft, 117 N. Boston Ave. TP

“Love Runs Through” features many local musicians:

Michael Frost, drums

Zach Hardin, bass

Matt Magerkurth, cello

Luke Bulla, violin

Andrew Bair, keys

Briana Wright, Jared Tyler, Ken Pomeroy and Suzi Land, vocals

Mike Cameron, saxophone

Gary Hale, flutes

Timbre Cierpke, harp

Edison Hill, percussions

UNITY IN COMMUNITY

Temple Israel’s second annual concert series East Meets West returns this month with live talent, food trucks and camaraderie. True to its theme “United We Stand,” this free outdoor event invites Tulsans of all religions and backgrounds to attend.

“The rise and the publicity around antisemitism is everywhere. We’re very blessed here in Tulsa, that it hasn’t become a mushroom here,” says Rick Cohn, co-organizer of the event with Cantor Laurie Weinstein of Temple Israel. “We just want to acknowledge what a great community we have here, what a (wonderful) ecumenical community and what a wonderful secular community we have, and celebrate that.”

Musical acts span the gamut of genre and geography with talented Tulsans on stage like Jenny Labow, who has performed with Martina McBride and Sarah McLachlan, and Scott Musick, one of the founding members of the band The Call. Additionally, the Boston Avenue United Methodist Church Choir will perform with Weinstein and Labow.

Cohn — who founded Z104.5 FM, The Edge — has decades of experience producing outdoor shows, as he produced five Edgefest concerts at Mohawk Park in the mid- to late-’90s.

United We Stand will be held 3-7 p.m., May 20, on the east lawn at Temple Israel, 2004 E. 22nd Place. Attendees are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs for seating. Admission is free but there’s a suggested donation to keep programming like this on the books for the future. — BLAYKLEE FREED

Next month Parker Ferrell will release his new solo endeavor, “Love Runs Through.”

Rick Cohn and Cantor Laurie Weinstein

CHILD’S PLAY

If Leon Russell had written a children’s song, it might have sounded a bit like Symon Hajjar of Hot Toast Music Co.’s “Livin’ in the 918.” Extolling the virtues of Tulsa and composed on toy pianos by a group of enthusiastic Monte Cassino kindergartners, the tune has the hallmarks of a Russell composition, albeit for a younger demographic.

FOLK HERO FANFARE

WOODY GUTHRIE’S NAMESAKE CENTER CELEBRATES 10 YEARS THIS MONTH.

STORIES BY JULIE WENGER WATSON

On May 5, the Woody Guthrie Center, the public museum and archive honoring the life and legacy of Okemah-born folk hero Woody Guthrie, kicks o its celebration of 10 years in Tulsa’s Arts District with a week of festivities featuring everything from baseball and poetry to the provocative punk protest of Russia’s Pussy Riot. Many of the activities are free and open to the public, and several of Guthrie’s family members will be in town to participate in the multi-day celebration.

WGC Director Cady Shaw has been coordinating the 10th anniversary celebration since she started her job in November.

“ e Woody Guthrie Center is such a wonderful place,” she says. “I want to invite people to come out and rediscover the area.”

Tulsa Drillers baseball games at ONEOK Field start the week, with free commemorative T-shirts on May 2. Nora Guthrie, Woody Guthrie’s daughter, will throw out the rst pitch for the game on May 5, and fans will join in what is anticipated to be a record-busting group sing-along to Guthrie’s famous “ is Land is Your Land,” led by Guthrie’s granddaughter, Sarah Lee Guthrie.

May 6 events begin at 10 a.m. with a full day of free, family friendly activities at Guthrie Green,

including food trucks, a maker’s market and music from artists Hot Toast Music Co., Jake Xerxes Fussell, the Secret Sisters and more. Entry is free to the WGC Saturday, where there will be multiple presentations, including one with Guthrie’s granddaughter, Anna Canoni. Folk musician Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and his daughter, lmmaker Aiyana Elliott, will be on hand to screen Aiyana’s award-winning documentary about her father, “ e Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack.”

Saturday night during a ticketed event at Cain’s Ballroom, Nora Guthrie will bestow the Woody Guthrie Prize on the Russian performance collective Pussy Riot, famous for their feminist protest in the form of unauthorized guerilla punk rock gigs in public spaces, followed by an on-stage interview and performance. Sunday closes out the anniversary with “People’s Poetry” at the WGC, featuring former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, and a WGC members-only concert with Ramblin’ Jack, Sarah Lee Guthrie and Robert Carradine at LowDown.

Shaw sees the celebration as a way of thanking Tulsa for helping keep Woody’s legacy alive.

“I think this weekend is our gift to the public,” she says. “We’ve been here 10 years, and we welcome you. We welcome everyone.” For more information, visit woodyguthriecenter.org. TP

In March, Hajjar — songwriter, performer and imperturbable child-wrangler — took 20 students to The Church Studio, Russell’s former recording studio, where they tracked their “Livin’ in the 918” oeuvre. The result was magic.

An educator and musician for decades, Hajjar recently transitioned into children’s music full time, performing publicly as well as helping kids find their own musical voice through projects like this. Recording a chorale of kindergartners, as well as a full band backing track, in three hours of professional studio time took some logistics, but Hajjar is a pro. He divided the crew into groups of five, taking one section at a time, while the remaining mini-musicians were supervised in the green room.

“The kids had headphones on, and I was in front of them with my own headphones conducting them,” he explains. “They don’t read yet, so I made motions for each of the verses. ‘Waves’ for where the Arkansas River runs and ‘straight’ like a blade of grass for where the prairie grass grows — kind of guiding them through the song.”

Each child will receive a digital copy of the song, which Hajjar hopes will help spark a lifetime of creativity.

“I really think kids learn best when they’re active in their own learning. They’re way more capable and brilliant, especially young children, than we give them credit for.”

Hajjar also just released a new album, “All the Feels,” which focuses on giving children (and their adults) language and tools to help them better understand themselves and each other. It’s available on all streaming platforms. Physical copies can be purchased at hottoastmusic.com. TP

Russian punk collective Pussy Riot, with members Diana Burkot, Maria “Masha” Alekhina, Olga Borisova and Taso Pletner, will receive the Woody Guthrie Prize at this year’s 10th anniversary festivities for the Woody Guthrie Center.

Symon Hajjar

‘FLY THE FLAG’

‘SOMETHING LIKE A DREAM’

BY ETHAN VEENKER

“It just seemed a great model for what Tulsa has always been: a point of intersection,” says Sean Latham, Ph.D., director of the Oklahoma Center for the Humanities. “It’s a site of possibility.”

at site of possibility Latham refers to is the train tracks just south of the Zarrow Center in the Tulsa Arts District. In plain view from his o ce window, the railroad tracks running through downtown that have historically divided our city inspired the name for Switchyard, an arts and literature festival hosted by e University of Tulsa, for which Latham serves as the lead organizer.

“ e plan here is to create something like a dream the city’s long had, something like Tulsa’s own South by Southwest,” he says, referring to the perennially popular multimedia festival hosted in Austin each year.

Running May 30-June 4 in downtown Tulsa, the Switchyard’s general itinerary includes talks, readings and other cultural events during the day, with musical performances at night. (Switchyard comes this year alongside the World of Bob Dylan, a separate but joint-operated festival that will help facilitate the 35-plus musical performances slated for the week. Latham also is the director of the TU Institute for Bob Dylan

Studies.) TU plans to put on the festival annually, and hopes are high for its inaugural year.

With those high hopes come big names, for example Art Spiegelman, creator of the “Maus” series of graphic novels, a canonical title in the genre which enjoyed a sales renaissance and a fresh crop of headlines last year when a Tennessee school district elected to ban the books. It’s no surprise, then, that censorship and book-banning are big topics at Switchyard this year.

“We feel a particular obligation to take up some of the most challenging ideas that are out there right now and (to) provide a space for real, community-based intellectual debate,” Latham says.

Underscoring this is a speaking event with Maia Kobabe, creator of the graphic memoir “Gender Queer,” which by some accountings is the most banned book in America these days. But Spiegelman and Kobabe are far from the only noteworthy speakers at the festival. Find the full schedule online.

Passes for the festival range from $75 (“Ideas Track”) to $500 (“VIP”). Visit switchyardtulsa.com before May 15 to beat the late-registration fees and nd more info on the expansive lineup of speakers and musicians, as well as the bespoke podcast and magazine launching alongside the festival. TP

A few days before Memorial Day, while some kids are packing bags for family lake trips, some members of Tulsa Boy Scout Troop 26 can be found tending to U.S. flags they’ve installed at local homes participating in the troop’s Fly the Flag program, returning for its eighth year in 2023.

Assistant Scoutmaster Christopher Smith, along with sons Kyler (an Eagle Scout) and Julian (a Life Scout), began the fundraiser in 2016.

The Scouts, ranging in age from 10-18, plant each 10-foot flagpole and 3-foot-by5-foot United States flag in the front yard of participating households a few days before Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Veterans Day and Patriots’ Day. Troop 26 removes the flag a few days after each holiday. Scouts show the flag the highest respect, saluting as they place and remove it.

Members pay $60 the first year after registering and $50 each subsequent year. All funds go toward scholarships for participating Troop 26 Scouts to attend various adventures designed to teach survival, teamwork and leadership skills.

In 2022, the troop helped just under 600 homes display their patriotism in unity with their neighbors.

“We may have different opinions when it comes to politics, religion, education or any number of subjects, but we all love our country,” Smith says. “Displaying our flag, and displaying the flag in solidarity with your neighbors, is a great reminder for everyone that we live in the greatest country on the planet.”

Fly the Flag serves homes inside neighborhoods Maple Ridge, Hidden Valley, Forest Creek, Southern Hills, Forest Ridge, Whispering Hills, Kensington Ridge, Rabbit Run and Pecan Grove. Visit troop26.org/flagservice to learn more about the program and sign up.

— ELIZABETH MCCULLOUGH

TU’S SWITCHYARD FESTIVAL AIMS TO BE THE CITY’S PREMIER EVENT FOR ART, LITERATURE, MUSIC AND IDEAS.

Sean Latham is the lead organizer of the inaugural Switchyard festival, a fi ve-day event celebrating arts and literature. Activities will be split between three downtown venues: Hyatt Regency Hotel, 101 Archer and Cain’s Ballroom.

Scouts Andrew Pollard, Anthony Pollard and Maxwell Sullivan

May 30 — June 4, 2023

6 days. 26 speakers. 14 bands.

Switchyard is a national festival of literature, music and ideas organized by The University of Tulsa. Running across five days, it will feature a dozen keynote events with some of

the nation’s most creative thinkers and performances by more than 30 local and national performance artists—all based in the heart of Downtown Tulsa.

www.switchyardtulsa.com

LAYERS OF LINZY

MULTIDISCIPLINARY ARTIST CREATES HOME FOR ALL TO ENJOY.

BY BLAYKLEE FREED

Storytelling that transcends a single medium continues growing as new platforms emerge. Characters from video games appear in TV shows, actors make cameos in feature lms as themselves, and reality TV has blended virtual and physical worlds with the help of social media.

For multidisciplinary artist Kalup Linzy, layered storytelling has been a vital part of his artistic career since he was a teen. Today he expresses creativity through a cast of characters he embodies that appear in Linzy’s videos, paintings, photos and performances. “Basically, I dress up and play di erent characters,” he explains. Katonya, the artist, is the persona behind many of his paintings that depict other characters Linzy has formed, like Florida Queen and Lisa, who appear in Linzy’s videos.

ese people make up the Queen Rose family, a ctitious group inspired by Linzy’s own upbringing in central Florida where he fell in love with the art of performance watching soap operas with his family. “Guiding Light” was on the TV at his

grandma’s and aunt’s house. At his dad’s house, “General Hospital.” “Just how dramatic they were being, that actually made me want to perform and act, so I started doing my own soap operas in high school as my class projects,” Linzy says.

“Soap operas run in my family,” he continues. “My great-grandmother would listen to ‘Guiding Light’ on the radio … when (soap operas) went to TV, my grandmother was deaf, and she would sit there and watch them. I guess she gured out how to read lips. Soap operas, and these characters, are just as much a part of our family history as the real people in that history.”

Decades ago, a relative gave Linzy the beginnings of their family tree, from emancipation. “It always stuck with me, how family trees are made up, and how there are people you think you’re related to that you’re not … then there’s people who you have no idea you’re related to.”

So Linzy, a Tulsa Artist Fellow, has crafted a family with varied personalities to embody each of his artistic endeavors. One of the latest endeavors

is Queen Rose Art House, which he calls a continuation of the Queen Rose family story.

Linzy purchased the house at 843 N. Birmingham Place in 2021 and founded Queen Rose Art House. It’s where he lives, but it also provides a backdrop for his videos and a communal space for other artists. Currently open by appointment only, Linzy plans to have weekend hours open to the public soon.

In 2021, Linzy announced an artist-inresidency program to directly support up-andcoming artists and welcomed the rst two creatives last year. At 45, he’s at the midpoint of his career, he explains. “In that middle space, you can kind of get lost,” Linzy says. “I had to give myself something to do, to be productive and stay stimulated and interested, so I thought I needed a new purpose.”

With Queen Rose Art House and an artistin-residence program in its second year, Linzy is now in a mentor-type position, he says. Multidisciplinary Colorado-based artist Peter Max Lawrence was the rst 2023 artist-in-residence in April. In July, North Carolina-based contemporary abstract artist Kym Cooper will begin her artistin-residence. (Residents will dwell in the garage apartment, which was being renovated at the time of writing. For now, they are residing at Tulsa Artist Fellowship.)

e main house, a vibrant orange and yellow two-tone, single-story home and Linzy’s matching truck depict signature images and icons drawn by Linzy that appear in his paintings as well. Tampa-based artist Kale Roberts painted the truck with help from Morgan McClellan, who also tackled the house. On the north side, largerthan-life oil paintings by McClellan depict Linzy as Katonya, Florida Queen, Breena Cowell and Janice Queen.

e backyard space is open with murals on the fence line. is spring, Elizabeth Henley, Aunj Braggs, Christina Henley, Alexander Tamahn and Christian Holtzscher each painted pieces on panels, joining the other 12-by-12-foot works by Michael Palazzo, Lucas Wisner and Zuawé

Inside the main house, Linzy’s collection of artwork includes pieces from Tulsans. A row of skateboard decks with intricately designed sandpaper tape by Trueson Daughtery hangs in the entry room, and Elizabeth Henley’s needle-punch art hangs in the dining room.

ough Linzy has studio space through Tulsa Artist Fellowship and often works there, he hopes Queen Rose Art House can be the set of future lm projects.

In addition to the art house project, Linzy released a music project in March (“Not Ready to Say Goodbye”) and is now working on an art show with James Franco that will be presented at e Breeder Gallery in Athens, Greece, in 2024.

Visit queenrosearthouse.org for news and event announcements, and visit kaluplinzystudio.com for links to Linzy’s performances and other work. TP

Queen Rose Art House is the brainchild of Tulsa Artist Fellow and multidisciplinary artist Kalup Linzy, above. Along with the home’s exterior and his car, artists, such as Lucas Wisner, right, have painted murals on the home’s backyard fencing.

STRUCTURE AND SUPPORT

LINDSEY HOUSE EMPOWERS WOMEN TO BREAK GENERATIONAL CYCLES OF POVERTY AND ABUSE.

BY LAURA DENNIS

Lindsey House was founded in Tulsa in 2010 as a nonpro t to provide temporary shelter for women and children experiencing situational homelessness. Today, it provides these families with a fully furnished living space and concentrates on a series of courses that includes nancial literacy, workplace pro ciency and life skills.

President and CEO Maggie Hoey says the mission is helping women nd stable employment, reduce debt, establish a savings fund, live within a budget and secure a ordable housing.

“We’re just trying to ll in all of the knowledge gaps they might be lacking, so they can go and be successful and productive heads of household,” she says. By providing these resources, Hoey says the hope is to empower women to break generational cycles of poverty and abuse.

Lindsey House can accept 24 women into the program, which typically lasts one to two years depending on the individual and the goals they’ve identi ed. Elizabeth Singley, a full-time mother of two, says her experience has provided a safety

net of resources and a secure environment that has allowed her to become fully self-su cient and independent. “(My time here) has drastically improved my life,” she says.

Singley, 33, grew up in Pryor. “(It) wasn’t great,” she says of her childhood. “My mom was in active addiction and my father was incarcerated when I was 2.” As an adult, Singley found herself down a path similar to her parents, and after 10 years of drug addiction and living a risky lifestyle, she ended up in jail.

Upon release in 2021, Singley joined Women in Recovery, a prison diversion program aimed at helping women conquer drug addiction and recover from trauma, and discovered Lindsey House.

“I wanted the structure and support that I knew (they) could provide,” she says. “I knew it was a good place for me because I saw other women in the program succeeding, not just nancially but also as mothers.” She secured a stable job and is on track to graduate from the program this year.

Much like Singley, Tracy Schilke found — and maintains to this day — a similar sense of stability

as a Lindsey House resident.

“When I came here I was so afraid because of the things I’d experienced,” she says.

In 2016, Schilke ed to Tulsa to be closer to family and to escape a tumultuous relationship. After her car was stolen and her home was destroyed in a house re, she found herself in need of help and guidance.

In 2021 she was accepted into the Lindsey House program. It was there she found the community for which she longed. In the past two years, Schilke has worked hard to complete the program and has found a career she nds fullling at a local school. She graduated from the Lindsey House program in February and moved to a place of her own. She says, “If it weren’t for Lindsey House, I don’t know where I’d be. I feel like I can face it now; my heart is full of gratitude.”

For more information on Lindsey House and its application process, visit lindseyhouse.org. TP

Lindsey House empowers women and their families on their journey to independence. Program participants Elizabeth Singley, left, and Tracy Schilke, center, are pictured with the nonprofi t’s President and CEO Maggie Hoey, right, at its headquarters, which opened in 2020.

SKY’S THE LIMIT

ROPES COURSE IS FIRST INSTALLMENT FOR A LOCAL YOUTH PROGRAM.

STORIES BY J.D. MYER

At High Point Urban Adventures, participants scale the seven ropes courses and subsequent elements, learning teambuilding, trust, communication and problemsolving skills along the way.

Each course works on a continuous belay system, so when you get geared up and clipped into the course you won’t be detached from the safety cable until completing the nal element of each course, explains Brandon Morrell , who co-founded the endeavor with his wife, Shanelle.

“Each challenge course has multiple levels allowing us to serve various age groups and levels of comfort with heights,” Morrell says, mentioning the outdoor blue course has three levels, with the highest reaching 55 feet. “We encourage both student groups and adult groups. We will modify our programming — ground games, low ropes and high ropes — for school-age groups, as well as young adults and corporate groups.”

High Point Urban Adventures opened March 7, 2022, at 1006 N. Quaker Ave. e Morrells are leasing the space, formerly known as HelmZar Challenge Course from Tulsa Public Schools.

High Point seeks to form strong community

ties by creating positive and impactful moments in youth lives of Tulsa, Morrell says.

Of the seven di erent courses, ve are outdoor and two indoor with one climbing wall.

How to enter each course varies. e blue indoor course, for instance, allows people to walk up a set of wooden stairs to start, but most of the others are accessed using a climbing wall. Either facilitators or group team members will help belay each person up the wall, even if they’re not great climbers.

Speci c courses are set up to allow two or more people to work together in traversing through the obstacles, so sta can initiate more teambuilding objectives across each of the paths. “Goal setting is an important aspect of what we’re doing,” Morrell says. “Continuing to challenge people to move outside their comfort zone is important.”

Between all the zig-zag beams, shaking bridges, swinging tires, Tarzan ropes, ziplines and rock walls, the Morrells remain true to their mission statement — “Providing a safe place for empowering youth to overcome adversity and realize God’s purpose for their lives.” Bookings can be made at highpointok.org. TP

Within High Point Urban Adventures, the Morrells have implemented what authors Casey Gwinn and Chan Hellman originally coined as the “Hope Score” from their book, “Hope Rising.” In Gwinn’s and Hellman’s work, they provide a systematic methodology for measuring hope and the elements that comprise hope. “Measuring team cohesion, measuring self-efficacy, measuring trust, are all different elements of the hope score that we’ll be examining,” Brandon Morrell says, “because hope is the belief that tomorrow can be better than today, and I have the power to make it so.”

High Point Urban Adventures is the Morrells’ first location for High Point Youth Ranch, a proposed residential center for children.

TIPS ON ‘THE TALK’

May is Sex Ed for All month — an opportune time to learn more about Amplify, a youth health collective with a mission of “Advancing youth sexual health through education collaboration and advocacy.”

In its 10th year, Amplify leverages the strengths of young people, partner organizations and trusted adults to provide and strengthen a network of educational, environmental and social supports leading to positive adolescent sexual health outcomes.

In partnership with the Oklahoma State University Center for Family Resilience, Amplify surveyed nearly 800 Tulsans on sexual health education. Results indicated 92% of respondents are in favor of sexual health education in local schools, and over 40% of participants would like to learn more about teen development and how to talk to their teens about sex.

“Parents want sex ed — no matter what some of this national, state and even local rhetoric might be — we know that parents want sex ed in schools,” says Brittany McCulloch, communications and marketing manager for Amplify. “We want to help parents have these conversations with kids. Sex ed in schools really supports that sex education at home. … One of the main curriculums we use encourages kids to go home and talk to their parents … so that we can decrease the number of teens getting pregnant or contracting STIs.”

With the expansion of evidencebased sexual health programs and services, the Tulsa County teen birth rate has declined by almost 58% since 2009. McCulloch says Amplify will be at Mayfest to connect with Tulsans, so stop by to say hello, and visit amplifytulsa. org for more info. TP

Left, Katy Morrell and Reagan Summerlin traverse the elements at High Point Urban Adventures, a ropes course facility formerly known as HelmZar Challenge Course. Brandon Morrell, right, founded the endeavor with his wife, Shanelle.

LaKala Williams, Amplify community engagement specialist

CALLS FROM THE CANOPY

OSAGE FOREST OF PEACE OFFERS PERSONAL AND GROUP RETREATS.

BY BLAYKLEE FREED

The canopy of post oaks encompassing the Osage Forest of Peace loses leaves every winter, resting dormant for the season. While many visitors enjoy the proli c patch of Osage County wilderness when spring has sprung, Interim Executive Director Michaela Lawson appreciates the raw nature of winter at the Forest.

“ e sunrises are exquisite because the bareness of the trees. It just feels like humanity to me,” she says. “You see their nakedness and can see everything — the ones that are strong and tall and straight, and the ones that are tall and straight but (have) weathered a lot of heart ache.”

Open every month except August, Osage Forest of Peace o ers visitors space to reconnect with nature, with themselves or with whatever spiritual source they feel drawn to. A stone labyrinth winds underneath the trees, and prayers written on white strips of cloth tied to trees in the Zen Garden blow in the breeze. e winding trails, cozy cabins and serene chapel are just a few spaces for visitors to meditate, journal and pray.

“What I really see, though, is that people come here and rest,” Lawson says. “When you’re in that space (of rest), something happens, like they can feel themselves lling up with source.”

Finding source, or seeking the divine, was the idea behind this stretch of 45 wooded acres located north of Sand Springs between Shell Lake and the Keystone Ancient Forest. In the late 1970s, Sister Pascaline Co of the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration (a Catholic order of nuns) encountered an article about Father Bede Gri ths in a magazine. She and Sister Maurus Allen set out for India to study with Gri ths at the ashram where he resided, called Shantivanam (shanti means peace, and vanam means forest in Sanskrit).

Co returned a year later, and the Sisters purchased the property in 1979. Gri ths o ered the rst Eucharist Mass on the forest oor two days after the purchase.

Osage Forest of Peace o ers sponsored retreats (where they do the programming) and opportunities to faith groups and organizations to host retreats that align with the Forest’s values and focus areas. Individuals can book a cabin for an overnight stay or use the trails during daylight hours. Lawson encourages those interested to experience what surprises the Forest has in store. Donations are welcome, and visitors must be 18 or older and able to hold the silence during quiet

hours. Only certi ed service animals are allowed on the property.

ough the Benedictines no longer run the place, the essence of the Sisters’ e orts remain. “I can just see them in their white smocks walking up and down the trails coming for meditation,” Lawson says. “I feel like they weave this little nest to hold us in, and then they also kept this routine that brought a rhythm and a cadence that was very sustaining.” TP

Osage Forest of Peace opened in 1980 under the name Osage+Monastery — Forest of Peace by the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, as an East-meets-West spiritual center. OM, the original initials, is also the Sanskrit word for God, while the cross between the O and M illustrates Christ’s centrality.

Left, Sue Woodward, forest therapy facilitator, and Interim Director Michaela Lawson

MAY CHARITABLE EVENTS

COMPILED BY TIFFANY HOWARD

1 Golf Tournament

Benefits Town and Country School. TANDCSCHOOL ORG

3 Newsmakers

Benefits Association for Women in Communications.

AWCTULSA ORG

4-21 Designer Showcase

Benefits Foundation for Tulsa Schools and Home Builders Association Charitable Foundation. TULSAHBA.COM

5 Great Plains Journalism Awards

Benefits Tulsa Press Club.

TULSAPRESSCLUB ORG

Taste of Tulsa

Benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oklahoma. BBBSOK ORG

6 Arias and Ales

Benefits Tulsa Opera. TULSAOPERA.COM/ARIAS-ALES

City Nights

Benefits T-Town TNR (Trap Neuter Release). TTOWNTNR.COM

Hats off to Union ... A Derby Day Soirée!

Benefits Union Schools Education Foundation.

UNIONFOUNDATION ORG

Memory Gala

Benefits Alzheimer’s Association Oklahoma Chapter.

MEMORYGALA ORG

Run for the Roses

Benefits Tulsa Boys’ Home.

TULSABOYSHOME.ORG/RUN-FOR-THE-ROSES

7 Spring Serenade

Benefits Tulsa Youth Symphony.

TULSAYOUTHSYMPHONY.ORG

9 Goodwill’s annual Awards Luncheon

Benefits Goodwill Industries of Tulsa.

GOODWILLTULSA ORG/RSVP

13

Booked Up for Summer

Benefits Reading Partners. FACEBOOK COM/READINGPARTNERSTULSA

DIG: Day In the Garden

Benefits Tulsa Botanic Garden.

TULSABOTANIC ORG

Equality Gala

Benefits Oklahomans for Equality.

OKEQ.ORG

13-18

Dream Home Tour

Benefits St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

DREAMHOME.ORG

19

Conservation on Tap Benefits Tulsa Zoo.

TULSAZOO ORG

20

The Bloom Event

Benefits Humble Warrior Collective. HUMBLEWARRIORCOLLECTIVE ORG

Golf Fore Groceries

Benefits Kendall Whittier Inc. KENDALLWHITTIERINC.ORG

Great Strides Walk

Benefits Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. CFF ORG

Passport to Paradise Garden Tour

Benefits Tulsa Garden Club. TULSAGARDENCLUB.ORG/GARDEN-TOUR

20-21

Home Remodeling Showcase

Benefits John 3:16 and Tulsa Home Builders Association Charitable Foundation.

TULSAHBA COM

24-26

Reconciliation in America National Symposium

Benefits John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation.

JHFCENTER ORG

29

Links to Independence Golf Classic

Benefits Ability Resources Inc. ABILITYRESOURCES.ORG EDITOR’S NOTE:

William Booth Society Gala

On March 21, more than 1,000 guests and supporters of The Salvation Army attended the 30th annual William Booth Society Gala, held at Cox Business Convention Center. For more than 117 years, The Salvation Army in Tulsa has endeavored to create pathways that lead people from places of need to places of hope. Besides the elegant dinner and live-art auction, attendees were inspired by special guest Tim Tebow who delivered a powerful message about his faith, generous giving and his personal mission to create a better world one act of kindness at a time. At the conclusion of the evening, Tebow participated in a brief Q&A with Tulsa Little League players about the importance of balancing their Christian faith with their athletic pursuits.

1. Tebow, center, with Isaiah Jarvis to his right and the rest of the Tulsa National Little League team including Honorary Chair Sean Kouplen, who is also the team’s head coach

2. The theme of the event was creating “Bridges of Hope” to reach community members in need.

3. Honorary Chairs Angela Kouplen, Sean Kouplen, Terri Ramseyer and Roger Ramseyer

4. Major Sarah Nelson and Captain Dan Nelson, Tulsa Area Commanders of The Salvation Army

5. Guest speaker Tim Tebow delivered a message emphasizing the importance of giving until it hurts.

6. The William Booth Society Gala is held annually to support all local Salvation Army Tulsa Metro programs; this year, the event raised more than $1.2 million.

7. Front row, guests Scott Burnett, Anne McCoy and Ann McKellar; back row, Jim McKellar and Kim Burnett

ANDREA M. JURGENS, MD, MPH, FAAD ERIN ROBERTS, MD, FAAD &

Dance of the Two Moons

With a theme of “Fabulous Fifties,” the Indian Health Care Resource Center of Tulsa rocked its sold-out Dance of the Two Moons fundraiser March 4 at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Tulsa. Sponsored by Griffin Media, the emcees were KOTV anchors Tatum Guinn and Jonathan Cooper. The 520 guests enjoyed a sit-down dinner and dancing the night away to live musical performances. A total of over $234,000 was raised to benefit IHCRC’s Youth Program, which puts on a spring break cultural camp, the Restoring Resilience Powwow that brings awareness to children’s mental health, the Native American Youth Summit, family fun and fitness activities, nutrition education, drum group and more.

1. Youth drumming group Little Native Singers, led by Rob Anquoe, Indian Health Care Resource Center board member

2. Honorary Chairs Leslie Paris and Ken Ray Underwood both have a long history of supporting IHCRC’s youth programs.

3. Guest Shohreh Gardner, IHCRC Board President Janice Edmiston and guests Gay Crocker Munsell and Sonya Erin Munsell

4. Guests Seprieono Locario and Jami Bartgis dance to live music by The Fabulous Mid Life Crisis Band.

5. Mike Loman — aka NDN Elvis — entertained the crowd as one of the night’s musical performances.

6. Lesa Shaw, director and tribal liaison for UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Oklahoma, and Mallory Van Horn, CEO of UHC, receive the Circle of Life Community Partner award from Tonia Gist, IHCRC development director. The award is the highest level of recognition given at the event and acknowledges significant financial contribution to IHCRC.

7. A drive-in themed concession stand served as a restaurant gift card and liquor pull.

Heart of Henry

The 11th annual Heart of Henry Gala, which benefits Tulsa Day Center, took place Feb. 23 at Southern Hills Country Club with 340 guests in attendance. With a dinner prepared by Southern Hills, the evening also included an awards ceremony that recognized Kristi Krajicek as Volunteer of the Year, Indian Health Care Resource Center of Tulsa with the Community Awareness Award and Lynn Schusterman as the 2023 Heart of Henry recipient. Longtime Tulsa Day Center supporter David Hentschel began the yearly HOH event to honor the spirit of philanthropy displayed by Henry Zarrow and his wife, Anne. This year, the evening saw a 20% giving increase over pre-COVID years, and proceeds will go toward services that include housing, case management and providing clothing and housewarming baskets to the vulnerable community TDC serves.

1. Susie Collins Hentschel, David Hentschel and Monica Martin, director of development for Tulsa Day Center

2. Jacob Krajicek with Kristi Krajicek, Volunteer of the Year Award winner

3. Event Chair Andy Wolov with Lynn Schusterman, 2023 Heart of Henry honoree, and TDC Executive Director Mack Haltom

4. The evening’s menu included filet mignon, parmesan chicken and chocolate silk parfaits.

5. Mimi Tarrasch, Family and Children’s Services chief program officer for Women in Recovery and Women’s Justice Programs, with Stacy Schusterman, chair of Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies

6. Alison Anthony, CEO and president of Tulsa Area United Way

7. Nancy Curry, senior program officer for The Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation

8. Vast Bank Chair Tom Biolchini spoke to the crowd on how to give to TDC and what is most needed by the organization.

Her Family

HEALING THROUGH ART

MUSCOGEE NATION’S COUNCIL OAK COMPREHENSIVE HEALTHCARE IS ALSO A TRIBAL ART MUSEUM.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY TIM LANDES

When approaching the registration desk at Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare a person is greeted by one or two staff members and a giant painting by Bobby C. Martin (Muscogee Nation) titled “But You Don’t Look Indian ...” Martin also created the giant tiled painting on the opposite wall depicting the Council Oak tree with a long branch extending across the lobby’s walls stretching back to the Muscogee Nation’s ancestral lands.

Opened in 2021, Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare, 10109 E. 79th St., started as a hospital, but it also has evolved into a Muscogee Nation art museum. While doctors use some of the best technology to treat Native patients from any tribe, the art is also meant to help heal those seeking treatment and their loved ones who accompany them.

This isn’t the Indian Health Service environments of bland rooms with public service announcements, uncomfortable chairs and long waits as depicted in Muscogee/ Seminole filmmaker Sterlin Harjo’s “Reservation Dogs.” Council Oak is a world-class treatment center and home to the most extensive collection of Muscogee art on display in the state.

“I’m happy we’re here to help our people who are here for medication or are sick,” says artist Yatika Fields (Muscogee, Cherokee, Osage), who has many pieces at

Council Oak. “Art is powerful. Art inspires. Art is a tool that really can create healing, and create a way of new thinking, open a new door and passageway for that process of imagination and healing to begin.”

THE HOSPITAL

Muscogee Nation officials had long been looking for a way to grow their medical presence in Tulsa, but nothing fi t their needs. Then they saw on the news in late March 2021 that Cancer Treatment Centers of America Tulsa would close in June and the campus residing within the reservation would soon be for sale.

“Within 20 minutes, we had texts going between myself, Chief (David ) Hill and Shawn ( Terry), who is our Secretary of Health,” says Rhonda Beaver, chief administrative officer for the Muscogee Nation Department of Health. “Within a couple of weeks, we were having dinner with the owner ... He was delighted to know our mission and his mission aligned with what we were trying to do, so we came to terms on an agreement.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic intensified, the deal was done fast in what was essentially a turnkey operation. In their monthly meeting in June 2021, Muscogee Nation National Council voted unanimously to purchase the property. The previous owner left behind everything that didn’t fi t through a doorway.

“I believe all of that more so became a sense of urgency

as a result of the pandemic,” says Beaver, who worked for IHS for nearly two decades before joining her tribe’s health department. “We had a hard time placing our patients. By the time we would call around there would be no beds here in Oklahoma. So we would call other states like Louisiana, Colorado, Arkansas. And then in some instances, by the time we’d get ready to move that patient to Louisiana, we’d get a phone call back and say the bed’s gone.”

Council Oak first opened in August 2021 with urgent care to test Oklahomans for COVID-19. Operations since have expanded with the focus solely on helping area tribal citizens with urogynecology, pulmonology, an HIV and hepatitis clinic, a diabetes clinic, a surgery center and a neurology clinic focusing on general neurology, stroke prevention, post-stroke and headache treatment. There’s also a hospice wing with a negative pressure room for those who want to be close to their loved one without sharing the same air.

The hospital also has some of the best technology in the region for helping find a problem and then treat it. There is a 512-slice CT machine, which means “it slices you up 512 times. The more it slices you up, the easier it is for them to see and to catch something,” Beaver says. “We recently bought a DaVinci Robot for the surgery suites. That was a $2 million investment for the facility. We know new doctors are learning with this technology, so when they get here, we want to be ready for them.”

Yatika Fields’ “The Ribbon Dance” on display at Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare.

The 20-acre campus comprises 336,385 square feet of health care facilities including inpatient and outpatient accommodations. It includes a 30,386-square-foot medical offi ce building and about 40 hotel rooms that are being remodeled to better accommodate family members and patients with added amenities for longer stays. When completed, the rooms will be offered at a reduced price.

“We know the needs of our people, and we want them to have a facility where they feel comfortable, where they feel like they’re at home, where they feel like they’re getting the healing that they deserve, where they’re getting culturally appropriate care, where we’re the friendliest facility around, and that they know they’re getting taken care of here,” Beaver says. “That’s ultimately our mission. We’re very pleased we can build something that mostly resembles what the Muscogee people are about.”

FROM HEALTH CARE TO ART

In September 2021, Muscogee Nation opened a 65-suite, monoclonal antibody infusion center that infused more than 5,000 Native and non-Native COVID-19 patients. It was a collaboration between IHS and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Tulsa County, which allocated $500,000 to assist with infusion center costs.

When sculptor Kenneth Johnson (Muscogee) first visited Council Oak, he stood in the courtyard with hired art curator Julie O’Keefe (Osage) as she pointed out there were no flowers or birds or anything from the natural world. As they stood there, Johnson looked up at those patients in second-floor windows looking down on a drab courtyard that had a couple of benches with shade.

“There were people sitting up there for an hour looking down with their life literally flowing in and out of them, and I pictured something that would be inspirational,” says Johnson, who resides in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he operates Kenneth Johnson Studio. “I saw a beautiful white ethereal egret coming out of that courtyard. It’s interacting with an 11-foot stainless steel pole that has two powder coated white steel feathers on it, and it represents feather dance. It’s a form of prayer. Since many people here are dealing with their mortality, they want to know their prayers are being heard.”

In the center of the installation Johnson and his team are creating a 32-foot turtle rising out of the ground that is made of Georgian marble from the Muscogee ancestral homelands. Its white stone signifies healing. Johnson says the turtle is made in four quadrants, and each quadrant has a bench inscribed with a saying in the Muscogee language from four different Muscogee Nation citizens: Bobby Yargee's states “Have love for one another”; Johnson’s great grandmother Ida Bruner ’s states “Think on the good things”; Phillip Deere’s states “Keep standing strong”; and Joy Harjo’s is from a song she wrote, “Pass this love on, It knows how to bend, it will never break.” There’s also a water fountain in the center that is meant to be touched.

“The colors are important. The concepts are important. The language is important. It’s all incorporated into something. What we see out there now is a corporate landscape, and what Muscogee Nation has empowered is Indigenous branding on the landscape,” he says. “All these are incorporated into the concept that a hospital should be doing, which is healing, or giving you the tools to grieve or mourn, and it reminds you people have gone before you and done the same things.”

ART FOR HEALING

O’Keefe’s background is in consulting and dealing with artists throughout Indian Country, including extensive work with Bacone College’s collection of late Muscogee artist Acee Blue Eagle’s art, so hospital administrators contracted her to help them.

When she first visited the facility in February 2022, O’Keefe quickly realized there was so much space to work with “they could fill this place every day with art, and it would never fill up.”

Everyone agreed all art should come from Muscogee Nation artists. Some of the works would be acquired, whether it was one of Yatika Fields’ paintings or maybe some of his father Tom Fields’ photographs or a beaded bandolier bag created by Jay McGirt . But there would need to be new art commissioned as well to fi t the needs of the hospital and its patients.

“All of these new pieces of artwork needed to reflect healing — healing not just within the mind or the body, but also within the spirit,” O’Keefe says. “I asked the artists to really convey within their work what they viewed as healing. How they viewed their people as healing. How they viewed themselves. How they viewed their caregivers, and how this affected them.

The commissions brought about “incredible murals and paintings and sculptures and pieces where the Muscogee (Creek) community, but also the greater Native community, can come into this facility and they can experience some of that,” O’Keefe says.

Overall, there are hundreds of pieces by more than 30 Muscogee artists. Some of the artists, like Johnson, have created their biggest pieces to date for Council Oak.  Fields had to double check the measurements of his studio to make sure there was enough room for the 10-foot-by-30-foot canvas, much less space for him to work on it before he embarked on his largest piece yet. The result is a massive oil painting full of bright colors depicting a ribbon dance from a green corn ceremony.

“My work is kind of like a vessel, and an entryway into free association with those memories. So it’s not a painting of such a literal ceremony, but yet literal mark makings that bring you into it and take you further, which in reality I think a ceremony should do. It kind of opens up pathways and doors for you to feel all senses and find a place in you where you’re connected in unison with the space and atmosphere you’re in,” says Fields, who is a Tulsa Artist Fellow and works locally with Joseph Gierek Fine Art and with Garth Grennan Gallery in New York City. “I feel it’s really fi tting that it’s right across from where you’re getting medications to feel better, because this is just another piece that’s going to make you feel better.”

IMMEDIATE IMPACTS

Dr. Micah Wright (Choctaw) grew up with tribal/native care for his primary health source. That motivated him to become a doctor “to have the opportunity to give back to the system that provided for my family. Providing care to Native patients is a huge privilege for me.”

He understands the importance of the Muscogee art that fills the campus.

“In order to gain trust from my patients and their family, we aim to provide an atmosphere that promotes healing and embodies cultural awareness,” Wright says. “By creating a space that implements cultural history and artwork, patients and their family are able to feel represented.”

Every time Beaver walks through the Council Oak hallways and offices she’s reminded of her family, friends and past events that cling to her heart.

“When I see a picture of a ceremonial dance, it reminds me of taking my grandfather to these places. When I see Tom Fields' black and white pictures of churches, it reminds me of Fourth Sunday (fellowship gatherings),” she says. “I get these good feelings, positive feelings. It’s not cold, it’s not sterile and it’s not uncomfortable. I think that helps in a healing process.”

Renovations continue throughout the campus as it turns to spring. There is art in storage ready to be hung once construction is completed in those areas. Some are being loaned to museums for exhibits. Johnson and his team are nearing completion on his courtyard installation. Muscogee Nation hosts its second annual art market a few miles down the road at River Spirit Casino and Resort.

Standing in the main hallway not far from Fields’ “The Ribbon Dance,” O’Keefe admires a giant painting by Starr Hardridge (Muscogee) titled “Breath Giver” that depicts a young Muscogee girl blowing a flower’s seeds into the air.

“This has been a project that will go down in my own personal history as one of the most fascinating and interesting and fulfilling projects I’ve ever worked on,” she says. “You do not have to be an artist to heal from art. You can go observe it, you can change the way you feel in a moment by just taking the time for a little self-care and going to take a look at something beautiful that stops you for just a minute, takes you out of your world and then go on. But sometimes that’s just the little push that we need. And art can do all of that.” TP

Hear more on the importance of this project on the May 17 episode of Tulsa Talks: A TulsaPeople podcast.

Yatika Fields

Kenneth Johnson

Julie O’Keefe

Michael Wallis

THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR HAS CALLED TULSA HOME FOR FOUR DECADES.

BY GAIL BANZET-ELLIS

Michael Wallis’ life is a collection of adventures, memories and lifealtering experiences sure to rival the twist of any bestselling book. A storyteller and historian, he writes with a keen sense of magic and romance for the West and the characters who shaped it. Wallis is a three-time Pulitzer Prize nalist who authored “Route 66: e Mother Road,” inspiring new generations of travelers to exit the interstate and rediscover the historic highway. His passion for sharing Route 66 with the world also led to the “Cars” animated lm series that features his distinct voice as the Sheri of Radiator Springs.

Wallis has penned 20 books while living in Tulsa. His latest about outlaw Belle Starr is due for release next year. From his writing studio in the historic Sophian Plaza, he says Tulsa’s creative energy has fueled his successful career.

Michael Wallis lives and works from his writing studio in the Sophian Plaza, a residential building that dates to the 1920s and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

WHAT WAS ONE OF YOUR MOST DEFINING MOMENTS IN LIFE? I had to take six hours of Spanish with a lab (at the University of Missouri). e rst day of classes, I walked into this classroom in this beautiful academic hall and took a seat and there were about 40 students in there. ey were mostly men all like me — former GIs, football players, there were probably four authentic students in that class. It was a pretty motley bunch. I was still wearing my combat boots and eld jacket. Into the classroom walks this lovely young woman, a graduate student getting her master’s in Spanish. She wrote her name on the blackboard: Señorita Suzanne Fitzgerald. at moment is indelible in my mind.

I wasn’t interested in learning the Spanish language necessarily. I kind of goofed o . It was a rough class for her. I would raise my hand and wave it furiously. She would call on me and I would just say gibberish like “adios, señor.” Mid semester, I got a notice to go to her o ce and she said, “Señor Wallis, I really know you’re trying but you really need to pull this grade point up. If you can’t pull it up, I’m going to have to send a notice to your parents.” Well, I hadn’t lived at home in a long time. In fact, my mother was deceased. I said, “Señorita you do what you think is best.” At the end of the semester instead of giving me the F I deserved, she took pity on me, and I got a D-.

DID THAT D- TRANSLATE INTO, “YES, I WILL GO ON A DATE WITH YOU?” Kind of. I ran into her later in the student union. I said, “Do you remember me?” She said, “Oh, yes, I remember you.” We sat down and were chatting. I was very taken with her. I hired her to be my tutor, and I took the next semester of Spanish by correspondence. We got to know each other, and then very soon after that we both left Columbia and moved together to Santa Fe where I really came of age as a writer. I got my master’s degree in writing on the streets of Santa Fe and Taos, up in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, but Suzanne and I didn’t get married then. We went our separate ways after a while. She went back to Mizzou to get another master’s and I stayed on writing. I married an actress. She married a professor. en in 1980, we found ourselves single again and it was perfect timing. We were wed in 1982, the same year we moved to Tulsa. at day of our wedding, May 22, 1982, was de nitely the best day of my life.

WHAT AGE DO YOU FEEL RIGHT NOW AND WHY? I’m 77 but I feel timeless. I’m telling you that right now as I’m battling some incredible, very serious health issues, nothing really life threatening. We feel like this too will pass. I totally subscribe to the power of positive thinking. You say, “ is isn’t going to conquer me.”

HOW WOULD YOUR FRIENDS DESCRIBE YOU? One of the things they always think of me is tenacious because they know my mantra and it’s very simple: I’m not as lean, I’m not as mean, I’m still a Marine. ey often talk about how balanced I am. I believe in balance and calming things down. I’m habitually open minded.

WHAT WOULD PEOPLE BE SURPRISED TO KNOW ABOUT YOU? Some of my good friends know this about me, but de nitely not everyone does, certainly not all of my readers. Being a native of St. Louis, if you cut my wrist, Cardinal red blood will come out of it. I’ve done some things in my life that are pretty crazy. I’ve done some things in my life I’m not particularly proud of, but I have absolutely no regrets except this one: I would have loved somewhere along the line to have played out eld for three years for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Over the years when I was a boy, I got to meet some of the Cardinals through writing contests. I like football and soccer, but baseball was my sport and that’s what I love.

WHAT HAVE BEEN THE MOST SIGNIFICANT CHANGES YOU’VE EXPERIENCED IN TULSA? Tulsa is where I transitioned from journalism to writing books. at’s very important. I just nished my 20th book, a biography of Belle Starr. All of the books were written here either at our old place on Rockford Road across from Philbrook or in this building (Sophian Plaza). ere have been signi cant changes, things I actually wrote about in 1980 when I came here with a photographer when I was on a little sabbatical from Time magazine in the Caribbean bureau in Miami. I spent all of my time with Caribbean pilgrims from Haiti and Cuba who were drug smugglers. It was very exciting, the intrigue and the danger. It was like living in Casablanca — both the movie and the city itself. We went out west. I love to get on the other side of the great river. We came to Tulsa as guests of the city of Tulsa. We stayed in the Mayo Hotel in the penthouse. It was a really hot summer in 1980. It was the rst time I really got to see Tulsa up close and personal, and I liked a lot about it. I liked the history. I stalked all over this city. What I thought then is that there were really three elements here that were not being utilized the best. ey were Route 66, the Arkansas River and the art deco architecture. A lot of that got lost in the shu e.

Another thing I think was de nitely lost in the shu e was the whole Greenwood story. When I was here, I asked to spend some time with as many old reporters from the Tribune and the World that they could get together for me in a conference room at the Mayo. ey were, of course, old, ancient white men. I just had an open discussion about history and Tulsa — the good, the bad and the ugly, talking about everything — Trails of Tears, the Civil War, Reconstruction, Tulsey Town, the Creeks coming, oil booms. Finally, I said, “Let’s talk about May of 1921.” ey didn’t say a word. One of them said, “We don’t talk about that.” You’ve got to tell the whole story. e slim book “Death in the Promised Land” was the only thing I could nd at the time on the massacre, so I’m glad to say that all of those things — Route 66, art deco architecture, the Arkansas River have greatly improved since 1980, as obviously has the whole story of Greenwood.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT TULSA THAT INSPIRES YOU TO WRITE? Tulsa is a great location. ere is enough material here in Oklahoma for many, many books. A lot of it hasn’t been tapped before and has been ignored. (Suzanne and I) like what we have set up here, living in our historic building that’s on the National Register of Historic Places, living with all of these ghosts around us all over the place. We always thought we’d probably move back to Santa Fe, but we’re not. We’re here to stay. We’re boni ed Okies, we’re Tulsans.

HOW MANY BOOKS DO YOU CURRENTLY HAVE ON YOUR SHORT LIST TO WRITE? I have three solid candidates percolating right now. At least one of them is ction.

WHAT WAS A “WORST TIME” AND HOW DID YOU PULL THROUGH IT? I’ve had a lot of tough times, here, there, everywhere. My primary doctor always says, “Michael, you live with the sins of your youth: sports, the Marines and motorcycles.” One of the worst times was here in Tulsa in 2001 when I was two blocks from my house at the Sophian Plaza at the intersection of 15th Street and Denver, and I was run over by an SUV on my motorcycle. It was a miracle I survived. It was incredible. I had on a helmet, boots, leathers and gloves or I would have died. ey loaded me up and took me to St. John’s in the ER where I remember hearing the nurses applaud because I got wheeled in on this gurney with my helmet on my chest. I had six weeks of total hospitalization and intensive care. It almost ripped my left foot o . My foot was broken in several places. My leg, my hip was shattered. My shoulder was banged up on the left side. I had such great medical attention and a wonderful orthopedic surgeon who took care of me. I got through all of that. When I was sitting all bandaged up in the hospital and in residential rehab, I would get sundowners at night when the sun goes down. I had a lot of visitors, but in those lonely times what I came to think about was the simple things in life and how much pleasure they brought me. It put everything in perspective for me. It didn’t have to be the big grand things, the big book awards, the big events. It would be looking out the windows of the Sophian with my two great felines watching the rain or having co ee with a dear friend, just the simple things. I came to appreciate that. I kind of made it all into lemonade.

HOW DO YOU MEASURE SUCCESS? It’s not the royalty checks or the residual checks that come in. It’s when I see how this work has done out there, how it has impacted people in small towns and big cities. When I hear from people who say I read your book about Frank Phillips and it totally changed my life, or when I hear from young and old people that I’m impacting. at is my measurement of success — what I can do, what I can leave behind. TP

Here comes the sun!

Near and far, summer activities surround Tulsa for days full of fun.

BY MADELINE CRAWFORD

Whether right in town or out exploring, here is your guide to your next adventures, all drivable with less than a tank of gas. Start in the Tulsa metro for in-town fun before venturing to the medieval in Muskogee or the modern in OKC. Fuel up, and let’s roll!

TULSA TIME

Craft and customize your extra special summer day with TULSA PICNICS AND EVENTS

Owner Vanessa Mieses creates settings that are perfect for a memorable occasion. Select a picnic theme, then location — such as a local park, The Studio in Kendall Whittier, or even your own home. From there, enjoy the details of your heartfelt backdrop. Add to the occasion with a bubble machine, a lawn games package, a charcuterie box or cheesecake churros. Schedule your event at tulsapicnics.com.

MAKE A MEMORY

Tulsa Picnics and Events

SUMMER-MUST LIST

Grab your blankets and chairs for one of Philbrook’s FILMS ON THE LAWN, 2727 S. Rockford Road. The evenings feature themed activities and food vendors to match the movie of the night. A tradition since the early 1970s, this season will include “Mean Girls,” “Top Gun” and more. For the full schedule, visit philbrook.org.

for adults 21 and older to mix and mingle at one of Tulsa’s favorite attractions. On May 2, 16 and 30, from 6-9:30 p.m., guests can explore after hours with specialty drinks, unique animal experiences and live music. Visit tulsazoo.org for tickets.

Tulsa Zoo, 6421

Get tickets for a game at ONEOK Field, 201 N. Elgin Ave. Summer is the chance to cheer on FC TULSA , Tulsa’s premier professional soccer club, as they play against Miami, Memphis and more. The TULSA DRILLERS , our Double-A baseball team, takes the field through September, with fireworks on the weekends. Check out the schedules at fctulsa.com and tulsadrillers.com.

E. 36th St. N., hosts ZOO NIGHTS

Make your own staycation or spread the fun throughout the months.

Food, events, iconic spots — here is your local to-do list.

FIND YOUR FIT

ELLA + ORCHID, 6010 S. Yale Ave., offers many stylish options to keep you covered, coordinated and fashion-clad while having fun in the sun. Sport a fanny pack ($28) for an athleisure look. For a day at the pool, don’t be without a washable, multi-pocketed neoprene organizer by Taylor Gray ($45). For a fresh First Friday look, slip on a pair of crisp Zadig and Voltaire punched sneakers ($208).

SAVE THE DATE

“THE LION KING” THEATER

JUNE 1-17 | TULSAPAC.COM

The landmark musical returns to the Tulsa Performing Arts Center for 22 inspiring performances.

THE OUTSIDERS HOUSE MOVIE ON THE LAWN FILM

JUNE 3 | THEOUTSIDERSHOUSE.COM

Watch “The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking” with special guest Tami Erin aka Pippi. This is an all age event. Entry includes tour of the museum.

MADONNA CONCERT

JULY 27 | BOKCENTER.COM

The pop icon brings four decades of greatest hits to the BOK Center.

918 FOOD FESTIVAL FOOD

SEPT. 2 | 918FOODFESTIVAL.COM

Chow down with over 100 food trucks to choose from at Route 66 Village. The festival also hosts art, music and merchandise vendors.

ITINERARY KID CORNER

At the corner of East 81st Street and South Harvard Avenue, your family can have your own play date.

9 A.M.

Start with breakfast at BBD 2, 8218 S. Harvard Ave., with the Mickey/Minnie pancakes for the kids and veggie omelets for the parents. A helpful staff makes it a great breakfast spot to dine quick or take your time reminiscing over the vintage record collection on the wall.

10 A.M.

Head to ADVENTURE AVENUE , 8150 S. Harvard Ave., for a morning of imagination play. A staple in Tulsa’s destinations for kids, it offers several stations for pretend: a firefighter, restaurant server, veterinarian, mail delivery and more. Kids can draw and color, build with blocks and ride tricycles. A supportive space to explore, play time is booked in two-hour increments.

Book in advance at adventureavenue.com

1 P.M.

FUEL UP!

As you head out on your next adventure, stop by REEDER’S AUTO AND TIRE , 2406 E. 21st St., for fuel (for you and your ride). Known for both following TikTok trends and traditional travel snacks, Reeder’s offers a delicious selection of treats. With in-house chefs, they offer a rotating menu for fresh and convenient grab-and-go options. There’s also full- and self-service fuel options, auto technicians and a car wash. Load up for the road before you head out.

Grab lunch and a treat from YUM EATS AND SWEETS , 8204 S. Harvard Ave. The sweet shop offers cookies, cupcakes, bubble teas, candy and more. It also serves sandwiches, toasts and smoothies. After you eat up and peruse the gift shop, enjoy your self-guided session at The Slimery. Scheduled hour-long sessions include ingredients to create your own slime. Add-ins include beads, jelly cubes and even instant snow. Reserve your time at yumtulsa.com/slimery.

The Slimery

OKLAHOMA AQUARIUM , 300 Aquarium Drive in Jenks, commemorates 20 years of memories in May with a season of under-the-sea fun. Visitors can now take an aquatic-themed carousel ride from a dolphin, seahorse or other sea creatures. The aquarium’s riverfront backyard offers front-row views for Jenks’ Boomfest fireworks show on July 4. The educational and exciting Sharklahoma runs the month of July with opportunities to learn about the ecological and economic importance of sharks including the Bull Shark, the inspiration behind the aquarium’s new logo. The Jenks facility is the only place to view a bull shark exhibit in the western hemisphere. Visit okaquarium.org for more details.

SUMMER-MUST LIST

Hop to Owasso for a visit to AIRTOPIA ADVENTURE PARK , 12932 E. 86th St. N. The indoor park includes trampolines, a ninja obstacle course, climbing walls and kids soft play zone for children under 42 inches tall. Sundays offer a family special, $50 for four one-hour passes of jump time. For more details, visit airtopiapark.com/owasso.

Escape to POSTOAK Lodge and Retreat’s ZIP LINE CANOPY TOURS to soar through the treetops. Located a quick 15-minute drive to 5323 W. 31st St. N., the adventure provides a bird’s-eye view of the Osage Hills and downtown Tulsa. Visit postoaklodge.com/ zipline-tours for more details.

If you are looking for some lively indoor fun, try GOT WOOD AXE THROWING CO. With three locations in the state (and two more on the way), the largest axe throwing company in Oklahoma offers axe throwing entertainment. Great for a date night or group hang, guests book a lane for one- or two-hour sessions. Learn more at gotwoodaxe.com.

A quick car ride away, these are your must-do events for the sunshine season.

FIND YOUR FIT

Hunting for the perfect summer accessory? Venture to AMBER MARIE AND CO. in Sapulpa at 116 E. Dewey Ave. for on-trend staples. We love their Swig Packi cooler that fits 12 cans and is available in three patterns ($54.95). You can always stop by Amber Marie and Co. in town, but the Sapulpa shop that resides in the Old City Hall is a cute look.

SAVE THE DATE

LIV GOLF INVITATIONAL SPORTS

MAY 12-14 | BROKEN ARROW | LIVGOLF.COM/EVENTS/TULSA

Hosted at Cedar Ridge Country Club, the new golf league’s tournament features a “festival-style” atmosphere to cheer on the pros.

RUMMAGE AT THE RANCH SHOP

JUNE 9-10 | BIXBY | 181RANCH.COM

Located at 181 Ranch, shoppers search through handmade and vintage items in the barn sale and craft fair.

BIXBY FREEDOM CELEBRATION FIREWORKS

JUNE 30 | BIXBY | BIXBYFREEDOMCELEBRATION.COM

Family fun, food trucks and a spectacular fireworks display all hosted at Bentley Sports Complex.

REDBUD FESTIVAL PARK COMMUNITY MOVIE NIGHT FILM

JULY 22 | OWASSO | CITYOFOWASSO.COM

Snuggle into your holiday pajamas and celebrate Christmas in July with a showing of “The Grinch.”

ITINERARY DAY TRIP DATE

Pancakes, berries and plants for the couple looking to spend a morning in Broken Arrow.

7 A.M.

The early bird catches the berry! Beat the heat with an early start at THUNDERBIRD BERRY FARMS for blueberry picking starting in June. Located at 7515 S. Hansen Road, there are more than 15 acres of berries and vegetables. Grab a jar of local honey or blueberry jam as an extra souvenir.

9 A.M.

Settle in for a big breakfast at BRAMBLE BREAKFAST AND BAR , 121 N. Ash Ave. The Rose District location serves exclusive brunch items on its Shaky Jake’s menu. Try the Oreo pancakes for a sweet treat or the Broken Arrow Benedict for some savory fare.

11 A.M.

FUEL UP!

Or plug in. If you are driving an electric vehicle, FRANCIS ENERGY has over 100 charging stations across the state. Aiming to ease range anxiety, its charging stations are compatible with every major electric vehicle and can deliver up to 800 miles per hour of charge. The average charge time is between 15-30 minutes and costs between $5-$25. With stations in Tulsa, Sand Springs, Jenks, Broken Arrow and Owasso, you are set wherever your next adventure leads.

Swing by THE SUCCULENT SHOP, 319 S. Main St., on your way back into town. The Broken Arrow boutique offers a sipand-shop experience. You and your partner can pick out a plant and pot before heading up to the loft where plant coaches help create your greenery. Grab a drink at the bar while you peruse the house plants and local gifts.

AQUARIUM, BRAMBLE: GREG BOLLINGER; AMBER MARIE, FRANCIS ENERGY, ZIP LINE: COURTESY; GOT WOOD: MICHELLE POLLARD

Bramble's Oreo pancakes

FAR OUT

From El Reno to Grand Lake and back, travel the state for new encounters and classic adventures.

Set in the rolling hills just outside of Wagoner, escape with your sweetie or your gal pals to THE CANEBRAKE . Guests can traverse scenic hiking trails in the morning then find the ultimate in relaxation at the fully equipped spa. Yoga sessions, dance lessons and more are just some of the amenity perks. Cabins and lodge rooms offer a perfect respite while the on-site boutique allows for the perfect souvenir. Dine in style for weekend lunch and dinner, or stay for Sunday brunch.

MAKE A MEMORY The Canebrake

SUMMER-MUST LIST

In 2023, KIDDIE PARK in Bartlesville celebrates over 75 years in business. Make it a night with 75-cent rides, concessions and family fun. The season opens on May 5, and the park is announcing more plans as the summer nears. Visit kiddiepark.net for more information, and remember, the last train ride of the day is always free!

ART showcases a mixture of modern and classic art well worth the drive. Opening June 17, the museum hosts 100 artworks to celebrate August Rodin OKCMOA also houses Noble Theater, an art house cinema that screens independent, international and classic films. Visit okcmoa.com for tickets.

The OKLAHOMA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL returns for another six weekends of magic and merriment. Running April 29-June 4, the iconic Oklahoma event hosts jousting, merchants, turkey legs and more. Join for the formal Queen’s Tea or adult-only King’s Smoker events. Huzzah! Learn more at okcastle.com.

Chihuly Renoir Kehinde Wiley OKLAHOMA CITY MUSEUM OF

FIND YOUR FIT

Locally owned since 2003, STILLWATER SUMMIT CO., 115 W. Seventh Ave., Stillwater, is your stop for some summer gear. With classic brands including The North Face, Teva and Patagonia, the shop also sells its own line of shirts and accessories. The brand is a summer staple for active days spent hiking, climbing and biking.

SAVE THE DATE

FRIED ONION BURGER DAY FESTIVAL FOOD

MAY 6 | EL RENO | ELRENOBURGERDAY.COM

The 35th annual Burger Day Festival takes on the challenge of making the World’s Largest Fried Onion Hamburger, plus a classic car show and more.

RED EARTH FESTIVAL

JUNE 1-3 | OKLAHOMA CITY | REDEARTH.ORG

The 37th annual event showcases Native American dance, art, music and more.

KIDSFEST FUN

JUNE 24-25 | BARTLESVILLE | WOOLAROC.ORG

Woolaroc Museum and Wildlife Preserve hosts Kidsfest with crafts, games, inflatables and more for the entire family.

WOODSTOCK ON THE WATER MUSIC

AUG. 12 | AFTON

THECASITASATGRANDLAKE.COM/UPCOMING-EVENTS/WOODSTOCK-ON-THE-WATER

Enjoy a raft out on Grand Lake with free live music and sunshine on the water.

ITINERARY GIRLS’ DAY

Cruise over to Grand Lake for a girls’ day full of relaxation and a dash of cheeky fun.

10 A.M.

THE SPA AT SHANGRI-LA , 57301 E. Oklahoma 125, Afton, offers several solutions for serenity. The spa, located in Shangri-La Resort, has facials, manicures, massage and hair treatments available. Guests also have access to the sauna, steam room and indoor pool. Make reservations at shangrilaok.com/spa.

1 P.M.

FUEL UP!

Cap off your summer with a stop by Arcadia’s POPS 66, 660 Oklahoma 66. The landmark diner and gas station is open seven days a week for food, fuel and merch. Grab a drink from their large collection of bottled sodas and snap a photo outside next to 66-foot-tall pop bottle. It is an iconic stop for a memorable summer.

To catch some rays and waves, visit SAIL GRAND WATERFRONT to reserve a pontoon boat. Available for hourly and full-day rentals, the pontoon seats up to 11 guests. The ride is perfect for cruising the shoreline or finding a cove to picnic and swim. Grand Lake consists of 46,500 acres of water for exploring and enjoying. If you’re feeling adventurous, add on a wakeboard or kneeboard to your ride. Visit sailgrand.com to book.

7 P.M.

Head to THE SHEBANG, 29975 S. 566 Road, Monkey Island, for an evening of fine dining, drinks and giggles. A fun and flirty (pink!) atmosphere gives lots to look at while you peruse the menu and peek around the five dining rooms. For the grand finale, try the French Silk Pie. On Friday and Saturday nights, step up to the mic for karaoke at the Balcony Bar. TP

PHOTO: NATHANIEL WILLSON; POPS: LORI DUCKWORTH/OKLAHOMA TOURISM

The Shebang

MUSIC MENU

BY J. D. MYER AND NATALIE MIKLES | PHOTOS BY GREG BOLLINGER

Our city has a melodic presence that flows in and around our streets, calling people together to share meals, melodies and memorable moments that life has to offer. Venues like Polo Grill, The French Hen, Hodges Bend and Nelson’s Buffeteria are long-standing examples that wholeheartedly exude the essence of Tulsa with their intimate dining experiences and regular live music performances.

Mark Bruner

From the relaxed alcove of Polo Grill’s lounge, guests old and new are greeted with the familiarity of being in a cozy home-like setting where sips and serenades accentuate this gem of Tulsa.

Since its conception by Robert Merri eld in 1983, three expansions have occurred — the most recent in November 2020 with the addition of the Polo Lounge featuring comfortable seating and an indoor space for live musical performances by award-winning guitarist Mark Bruner

Bruner has witnessed the evolution of Polo Grill, 2038 Utica Square, since coming on board in fall 2013, when he began playing for the restaurant’s Sunday brunches. “I’ve lived and made my career in Tulsa for 40 years,” Bruner says. “ ere’s a creative spirit that ows here like no other place. Whether it’s the music, art or architecture, it just feels like home to me.”

e ’60s pop genre is a favored selection for Bruner and his audience, though he possesses an internal catalog of songs across numerous decades

and styles. Often taking song requests with every performance, Bruner a rms the importance of having a sizable repertoire.

Much of a skilled musician’s prowess comes from the ability to read and interact with their crowd.

“I tailor my sound and music to be smooth and laid back to compliment the tranquil vibe of the room,” Bruner says. “ e Polo Lounge has been such a popular destination for diners not just from Tulsa but internationally with some guests visiting from Germany, Israel and the United Kingdom. Polo Lounge has truly been a huge hit in Tulsa! I’m proud to be a part of that.”

Mark Bruner and Polo Grill — two Tulsa classics. Combine them and you have the ingredients for a great time. For lunch, order the grilled chicken sandwich — a super good sandwich with Parmesan-roasted artichokes, roasted red pepper, basil pesto aioli and Swiss cheese. The lobster and crab bisque is another longtime favorite.

Mark Bruner at Polo Grill

Patrick Savage and Mary Cogan at The French Hen

At four local restaurants, diners come for more than great food.

Mary Cogan and Patrick Savage

e French Hen, 319 E. Archer St., is a ne dining establishment where the cuisine is prepared from scratch daily, continually keeping the restaurant’s high standards for food and service.

On select nights, guests are treated to live music performances from Mary Cogan, singer, and Patrick Savage, producer-composer-musician on guitar.

Cogan and Savage met through mutual musician friends around town and he joined her band in 2004. Savage makes his career as a singersongwriter, often writing music at least once a week with frequent trips to Nashville, while Cogan is a vocal artist whose passion for singing has become part of her career.

“We do a lot of e Chicks and Fleetwood Mac, and we even go back to a George Jones and Patsy Cline type music,” Cogan says. “Our audience has a large age range who like to come and watch us because there is a little bit of something for everyone.”

inking back on when she rst began her musical career, Cogan claims, “I always loved to sing and kind of thought that I could. But I never had the guts to get up there and do it. And when I did it here in Tulsa, it literally exploded.”

One ursday a month, from 6-9 p.m. or 7-10 p.m., catch Cogan and Savage at e French Hen. e duo also performs at Doc’s one Sunday night a month, and during Utica Square’s Summer's Fifth Night Concerts featuring their whole band.

Try some of the French classics, like escargot and seared foie gras. We’re big fans of the osso bucco buccatini.

The delicious play of osso bucco with the light, fresh flavors of lemon, capers and niçoise olives makes this an extra-special dish. Save room for the espresso chocolate mousse — the best mousse in town.

The Round Up Boys

As soon as a hungry diner enters Nelson’s Bu eteria between 11 a.m.-1 p.m. each Friday, they are greeted with a live performance from e Round Up Boys. Nestled in the corner of the restaurant by the entrance, the band creates a lunch soundtrack.

While the restaurant has moved a few times since opening downtown in 1929, Nelson’s, now at 4401 S. Memorial Drive, continues its rich history in service of Tulsa residents and families, many of whom are known by rst name upon walking through the front door. “In 2029 it’ll be 100 years,” says Nelson “Barry” Rogers III, who oversees operations with his brother, Steven, and the restaurant’s two owners Jody and Suzanne, his sister and mother respectively. “ at’s pretty rare for any restaurant anywhere in the country to go that long, so we’re proud of it. And we’re proud of the food.”

e Round Up Boys guitarist and founding member of the band Bob Fjeldsted recalls forming the group in late 1989 alongside Bob Plumley, Buster Grass and Wayne Vivion. Now, besides Fjeldsted, current band members are Jerry Smoot (saxophone), Chuck Dorman (bass) and Bill Taylor ( ddle). Nelson’s has become a home for the band’s classic rock, jazz, western swing, country and blues concerts for the past 33 years.

“You’ll see people you’ve known for 30, 40 years,” Fjeldsted says. “You’ll see people bringing the great-grandkids and Nelson’s has been a way of life. Everybody here is family, you know, we love these families. We just weren’t born by the same people, and hopefully it will never change.”

Do we even need to tell you what you should order?

Hello, chicken fry! The chicken fried steak is legendary. Try it with mashed potatoes and fried okra. Don’t forget dessert. Lemon meringue pie (oh so good) is served only on Fridays.

Mike Cameron

When walking through the front door of Hodges Bend, 823 E. ird St., guests are transported through time into a venue that feels like an homage to the taverns from the 1920s, only with touches of modern co ee house aesthetics. On Monday nights every seat lls in preparation for saxophonist Mike Cameron’s live jazz routine, which starts at 9 p.m. and goes until midnight.

Accompanied by a rotating cast of musicians from Tulsa and Oklahoma City, the space really comes alive with Cameron’s original compositions and a selection of jazz standards and tunes from the Great American Songbook.

Cameron is a well-established jazz musician, professor and composer in addition to being a co-founder of the band Count Tutu. “I’m a Tulsa native and have been doing performances as early as the mid-'90s,” Cameron says. “I started performing more professionally in the mid-2000s and moved back to Tulsa from Chicago in 2013 where I started getting more involved in in the local jazz scene.”

In 2019, Cameron moved to Boston and completed his doctorate in jazz studies at the New England Conservatory of Music before returning to Tulsa last year. With his return Cameron found more frequent performances with other local acts like Dean DeMerritt Jazz Tribe, in addition to Mike Cameron Collective and Count Tutu.

“Tulsa has a nice representation for certain styles of music,” Cameron says. “Venues like Hodges Bend alongside LowDown have been proponents for establishing a stronger representation of jazz music, whatever you interpret that word to mean, in our city.”

Order the Cielito Lindo, a cocktail of tequila, lemon, agave, strawberry shrub and basil. Food here isn’t typical bar food. Order something delicious like mussels and French fries, steak frites with bearnaise sauce or the Hodges burger with spicy pickles and Russian dressing. TP

The Round Up Boys at Nelson’s Buffeteria Mike Cameron (right) at Hodges Bend

MAYFEST MEDIA

It’s six weeks until Mayfest and Stephen Smith is hard at work in his home studio with a 40-inch-by-60-inch workin-progress on the easel. Longtime Tulsans will easily determine the subject matter: Woodward Park’s azalea grove in full bloom. With pops of pink depicting flowers, it’s easy to picture yourself walking down the earthen path.

Smith defines himself as an abstract impressionist painter who uses the impasto technique with heightened or abstracted color, laying oil paints down with thick vigor via palette knife. As an abstract impressionist, “I let the person decide the details,” Smith says. “That’s not my role — that’s not what painting is about.”

Always fond of art, as a young man Smith attended a retrospective in St. Louis of renowned impressionist Claude Monet . “It opened my eyes to what painting could be,” he says. As an undergraduate at The University of Tulsa given studio space in the graduate painting program, he says he pretty much taught himself, always attracted to high intensity color. “I like my paintings to pop off the wall.”

And they pop off the wall in more ways than one. Since he started painting in the 1970s, “I’ve gotten a lot thicker,” Smith says.

Subject matter varies — from koi fish and landscapes to bison, sunflowers and florals. Smith is drawn to the natural world and organic shapes. He paints on cradled wood panels he builds himself, as he enjoys the rigidity of a panel surface to paint versus the flexibility of canvas. The thick layer of oil paint creates a limitation, since his

works require enough time for the oils to dry sufficiently as his busiest art festival season approaches.

Smith is one of several local artists participating in Mayfest’s juried competition, which comprises more than 40 individuals spanning numerous media.

Heidi Kemp, a Tulsa transplant who moved to town three years ago from Mississippi, is a juried artist returning to Mayfest for the third time with her wire-woven and wire-wrapped wearable art.

“Weaving is a rhythm,” says Kemp, who is a selftaught jewelry maker and sculptor. Nature is a prominent theme in Kemp’s work, incorporating interesting stones, some even with what she considers a landscape within them, into her “Tree of Life” pendants. Her patience allows for intricate patterns to be created to hold and fasten the stone — all with a very fine wire — sculpting an intrinsically ornate tree on top of the stone.

Kemp’s weaving craft began with knitting and crocheting with her great-grandmother, Violet . She kept up the hobby as a way to calm her mind and refocus thoughts. Several years ago Kemp’s husband threw her a jewelry-making party, and eventually she found the method of wire wrapping and weaving. Similar in theory to fiber arts, this was something she could do with her family as they spent time together.

At her Violet Inspirations booth, festivalgoers also will find pendants, earrings and rings she silversmiths herself.

“I want my customers to feel that joy, that peace,” she says. After all, “you’re wearing nature.” — ANNE BROCKMAN

In early February, The University of Tulsa announced its acquisition of Mayfest and the Hardesty Arts Center.

Mayfest 2023, set for May 12-14 in the Tulsa Arts and Greenwood Districts, marks 50 years of bringing together art lovers and connoisseurs with respected national, regional and local artists, for a free celebration of visual and performing arts.

Bridging new and longtime traditions to the arts celebration, TU continues the custom of the annual poster, this year created by P.S. Gordon, a TU alum and longtime friend of Mayfest. Gordon’s 2023 poster was revealed in late April.

The first Mayfest — originally called Jubilee ’73 — took place in 1973 and was spearheaded by the Junior League of Tulsa. The name changed to Mayfest three years later. Over the years, management shifted to Downtown Tulsa Unlimited and the Arts and Humanities Council of Tulsa. In 2016 Tulsa International Mayfest became a fully independent nonprofi t organization. In March 2020, the overseer of the long-running festival became ahha Tulsa, which ceased operation in November 2022.

VISIT TULSAMAYFEST.ORG FOR MORE DETAILS.

Left, Stephen Smith is a painter who has competed in the juried contest of Mayfest since 2010. Working from his home studio, Smith’s work focuses on organic settings like landscapes, animals and florals. Right, Violet Inspirations owner Heidi Kemp designs and creates jewelry using wire wrapping and wire weaving techniques she taught herself. Now in her third year as a juried Mayfest artist, Kemp is looking forward to the annual festival.

TWO LOCAL MAYFEST JURIED ARTISTS BRING THE NATURAL WORLD INTO THEIR WORKS.

BY J. D. MYER

MAY 5-6

CINCO DE MAYO STREET FESTIVAL

Two days of luchadores, kids activities and more — including a chihuahua costume contest — at this annual fiesta. Don’t forget the margaritas and puffy tacos. Elote Cafe and Catering | 514 S. Boston Ave. | elotetulsa.com

MAY 5-7

GERMANFEST

From schnitzel to soft pretzels, this family friendly event celebrates all things German with authentic food, music and merch.

German-American Society of Tulsa | 2301 E. 15th St. | gastulsa.org

MAY 12-13

BLACK WALL STREET RALLY

In its second year, this motorcycle rally celebrates the historic past and vibrant present of the Greenwood District.

Greenwood District | 131 N. Greenwood Ave. | blackwallstreetrally.com

MAY 13

WATER LANTERN FESTIVAL

Paper lanterns are lit and released to float across the water for a magical nighttime experience for all ages with food vendors, games and live music.

Broken Arrow Events Park | 21101 E. 101st St., Broken Arrow | waterlanternfestival.com

May 18-21

ROOSTER DAYS

Carnival, vendors, games, races and family fun await visitors to this festival in its 92nd year. Central Park | 1500 S. Main St., Broken Arrow | roosterdays.com

May 19-20

BIXBY BBQ AND BLUES

Nothing welcomes in the summer quite like a family festival with slow simmered barbecue and bodacious blues.

Washington Irving Memorial Park | 13700 S. Memorial Drive, Bixby | bixbyrotarybbq.com

Aug. 25-27

OKLAHOMA FESTIVAL OF BALLOONING

Over 30 hot air balloons will rise over Muskogee County, creating a beautiful panorama of the dotted sky. Festivities take place from 5-9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Flights begin at 7 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. A glow will be held Friday and Saturday at sunset. The festival, located at Love Hatbox Field, features tethered balloon rides, food trucks, children’s activities, live music from Western Horn and the Hush on Friday and King Cabbage Brass Band on Saturday. 4000 Border Ave., Muskogee | muskogeeparks.org

THE SUMMER FESTIVAL SEASON IS UPON US. HERE’S A ROUNDUP OF SOME CAN’T-MISS EVENTS TO CHECK OUT THROUGH LABOR DAY.

May 20

ASIAN AMERICAN FESTIVAL

Celebrate and learn about Asian American cultures and traditions through live performances, local vendors, arts and crafts, and more.

Martin Regional Library | 2601 S. Garnett Road | tulsalibrary.org

May 20

MUSIC FEST

Dubbed "United We Stand" this second-annual festival celebrates Tulsa's community spirit of inclusiveness through musical performances.

Temple Israel | 2004 E. 22nd Place | templetulsa.com

May 21

IRONMAN 70.3 TULSA

Competitors run, cycle and swim during this one-day sporting event.

Portions of Osage and Tulsa counties | ironman.com/im703-tulsa

May 24-26

RECONCILIATION IN AMERICA NATIONAL SYMPOSIUM

The 14th annual Symposium — History of Hope: Building Greenwood — creates new knowledge in areas of reconciliation to advance equality, racial justice and social harmony.

John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation | 535 N. Greenwood Ave. | jhfcenter.org

May 27

BLACK WALL STREET LEGACY FESTIVAL

A collection of curated experiences to reflect, learn and inspire the community.

Historic Greenwood District | blackwallstreetlegacyfest.com

JUNE 3

AMPS ON ADMIRAL

A community outdoor concert for your family and friends in the Kendall Whittier District, featuring an exciting lineup of music, local food, beer and more. Whittier Square, 1 S. Lewis Ave. | visitkendallwhittier.com

JUNE 8-12

OKM MUSIC FESTIVAL

This year’s festival headliner for the Woolaroc concert is renowned singer and songwriter Lee Greenwood. A full lineup of artists, vendors and festival amenities is available online.

OKM Music | 415 Dewey Ave, Suite 100, Bartlesville, | okmmusic.org

JUNE 9-11

TULSA TOUGH

Saint Francis Tulsa Tough is a three-day cycling festival experience for racers, riders and spectators in downtown Tulsa and along the banks of the Arkansas River. tulsatough.com

June 10

BIG RIDE AND BIG BITE

Part outdoor concert, part food festival — a celebration of music, gastro, art and tech. Tulsa Arts District | bigridetulsa.com

JUNE 15-17

JUNETEENTH

This festival celebrates freedom dating back to June 19, 1865, when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to ensure all enslaved people be freed. Enjoy numerous concerts, vendors, food and fun activities. Oklahoma State University lawn | 700 N. Greenwood Ave. | tulsajuneteenth.org

JUNE 22-24

GREEN CORN FESTIVAL

Bixby’s biggest event of the summer dates back to the area’s agricultural heritage. Enjoy ongoing live music throughout the festival, which will feature food, craft booths, games and contests.

Charley Young Event Park | 50 W. Dawes Ave., Bixby | bixbyoptimist.com/events/green-corn-festival

JUNE 22-25

MUSCOGEE NATION FESTIVAL

Carnival rides, cultural exhibitions, sports events, live entertainment from local and national acts, and more await visitors to this weekend celebration.

Claude Cox Omniplex | 2950 Warrior Road, Okmulgee | creekfestival.com

June 23-25

ROUTE 66 ROAD FEST

A classic car show, interactive exhibits, kids’ activities, vintage RV tours and vendors await visitors to this threeday festival.

Expo Square, 4145 E. 21st St. | route66roadfest.com

JUNE 23-25

TULSA PRIDE

Three days of festivities — from live music, drag shows and the Rainbow Run to a family- and pet-friendly gathering — celebrate Tulsa’s LGBTQ+ community and its allies.

Dennis R. Neill Equality Center | 621 E. Fourth St., | tulsapride.org

June 24

TASTE OF SUMMER

Hosted by Blue Bell Creameries. Festival goers can enjoy over 24 flavors of ice cream, water activites, shopping and more.

Central Park on Main | 1500 S. Main St., Broken Arrow | tasteofsummerba.com

JULY 4

FOLDS OF HONOR FREEDOM FEST

Spectators can experience the full effect of a 25-minute fireworks display by tuning into radio sponsor KRMG (740 AM and 102.3 FM) to listen to the accompanying musical

ROCKLAHOMA

WINE AND JAZZ FETE

OKLAHOMA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL

score. Don’t miss the games, musical performances and food trucks either!

River West Festival Park | 2100 S. Jackson Ave. | Dream Keepers Park | 1875 S. Boulder Park Drive | freedomfesttulsa.com

JULY 14-16

AN AFFAIR OF THE HEART

Shop hundreds of artists, crafters, boutique owners and small retailers over three days.  Expo Square | 4145 E. 21st St. | aaoth.com

JULY 14-16

TOKYO, OK

The state’s largest Japanese, Anime and pop culture festival returns to downtown Tulsa for its 15th iteration. There will be more than 300 hours of programming, along with vendors, artists and exhibitors from all across the country.

Hyatt Regency Hotel | 100 E. Second St. | Cox Business Convention Center | 100 Civic Center | oklahomaculture.org

JULY 15-19

CIRCLE CINEMA FILM FESTIVAL

Circle Cinema turns 95 and is celebrating with five days of the best new independent art, music and film from Oklahoma.

Circle Cinema | 10 S. Lewis Ave. | circlecinema.org

JULY 27-29

BLUE WHALE COMEDY FESTIVAL

It’s been nearly a decade since the comedy festival began, and in that time over 200 comedy acts have made us laugh. This year fans can expect to see more big names and local up-and-comers take the stage. Tulsa Arts District | bluewhalecomedyfestival.com

AUG. 22-23

TULSA INDIAN CLUB 71ST ANNUAL POWWOW

This celebration of Indigenous traditions and culture features ceremonial Native American regalia, music, drums and dancers.

Cox Business Convention Center | 100 Civic Center | facebook.com/tulsa.powwow

AUG. 26

WILD BREW

Enjoy food from some of Tulsa’s best restaurants and wash it down with first-rate local beers, spirits and wines from Oklahoma and beyond all in support of George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center. Cox Business Convention Center | 100 Civic Center | wildbrew.org

SEPT. 1-3

CHEROKEE NATIONAL HOLIDAY

Cherokee Nation’s annual celebration of its history and heritage draws tens of thousands of visitors each year for the State of the Nation, Inter-Tribal Powwow, parade, market, entertainment and more.

Tahlequah | thecherokeeholiday.com TP

SPOTLIGHT

April 29-June 4

OKLAHOMA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL

Hear ye, hear ye, the 27th annual Oklahoma Renaissance Festival returns for another royal conquest set in England 1569, welcoming lords and ladies of all ages into a whimsical adventure of dancing, music, feasts and merriment. Experience the royal quest for knighthood with a full-contact jousting tournament, birds of prey exhibitions and travelling acrobats. Open from 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays, and May 29 (Memorial Day).

Castle of Muskogee | 3400 W. Fern Mountain Road, Muskogee | okcastle.com

June 1-3

FIFTH ANNUAL WINE AND JAZZ FETE

Jazz master Delfeayo Marsalis and internationally renowned clarinet adventurer Anat Cohen headline this celebration of jazz and world music taking place at LowDown. Attendees can participate in wine and local cuisine tastings, as well as other festivities. Public Radio Tulsa’s “All This Jazz” host Scott Gregory is the emcee. LowDown | 108 N. Detroit Ave. | okrootsmusic.org

June 1-Aug. 3

SUMMER’S FIFTH NIGHT CONCERTS

Nothing shines quite as brightly as seeing the Tulsa community come together in appreciation of quality music, friends, food and future fond memories to look back on. For 30 years, Fifth Night has been a staple of Tulsa’s summers where kids young and old listen and dance to local musical talents ranging from rock, jazz, funk, pop and country all while soaking up the evening sun each Thursday from 7-9 p.m. R&B artist Tony Mason kicks off the season on June 1.

Utica Square | East 21st Street and South Utica Avenue | uticasquare.com

Sept. 1-3

ROCKLAHOMA

Returning for its 16th year in Pryor, the three-day rock festival brands itself as “America’s biggest Labor Day Weekend Party.” Rocklahoma began in 2007 and sees over 100,000 people gathering each year for this outdoor festival with camping, food and killer music performances. 2023 promises to be another musical landmark with headliners who including Godsmack, Pantera, Rob Zombie, Bush and more.

1421 W. 450 Road, Pryor | rocklahoma.com

SUMMER’S FIFTH NIGHT

DIRECT DESTINATIONS

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

SUMMER TRAVEL IDEAS ABOUND IN THESE 5 CITIES — ALL WITH NONSTOP FLIGHTS FROM TULSA.

BY RHYS MARTIN

Tulsa’s International Airport features more than a dozen locations around the country with nonstop service. at makes it easier than ever to take a quick hop across the sky and experience someplace new, even if you only have the weekend.

Tulsa’s newest nonstop neighbor is the Big Apple via LaGuardia Airport. So much has been written about reasons to visit New York City, but there are a few places an Okie might want to seek out speci cally. Part of Mermaid Avenue on Coney Island has been signed Woody Guthrie Way; this is near where the songwriter lived when he recorded, “ is Land Is Your Land.” While you’re there, stop at Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs. If you’ve never had one at the original restaurant, you’re missing out.

To stay in a Woody frame of mind, stop in at McSorley’s Old Ale House in Manhattan. Connecting “Ghostbusters” to Oklahoma may be a tenuous hook (the latest movie did purport to take place in the Sooner State), but I always stop by Hook and Ladder Co. 8 when I’m in the area. e famous rehouse was the exterior lming location for the original 1984 lm and seeing it in person always brings a smile to my face. It’s still a working rehouse, too.

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

You’d be surprised at what you can see a short drive away from Utah’s capital city. A little over an hour to the west lies the Bonneville Salt Flats. It’s like nowhere else on Earth, which is why you’ll meet people from around the world who have come to see it for themselves. Speed records have been set here due to how at and barren it is, and there are other events taking place all the time.

Park City, Utah, is a modernized mining town in the Wasatch Mountains a short drive from downtown SLC. It’s popular in the winter thanks to the region’s participation in the 2002 Winter Olympics, but it’s a great place to relax in the summer, too. e Alpine Coaster is especially fun. Grab a bite and a local beer at the Wasatch Brew Pub and check out a show at the restored 1900s-era Egyptian eatre. But if you’d rather just hang out in Salt Lake itself at Temple Square, the Planetarium, or one of their many museums, you’ll still nd plenty to enjoy.

Continued on p. 56

The Wonder Wheel is an icon of Coney Island, which has a deep relationship with Oklahoman Woody Guthrie.

focused solely on Mexican artist Diego Rivera in over 20 years.

Diego Rivera’s America is co-organized by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

This project is supported in part by a grant from the Arkansas Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Chicago is the starting point for Historic Route 66 and Lou Mitchell’s Restaurant on the Mother Road has been serving up great breakfast/lunch since 1923. Women and children are given complimentary Milk Duds on entry as a symbol of the family’s Greek hospitality. It’s hard not to have a great time wandering e Magni cent Mile with its abundant shops, restaurants and activities at Millennium Park.

For an Oklahoma connection, walk around Tribune Tower and look at the embedded pieces of other famous buildings from around the world. On the north side, there’s a little bit of Tulsa in a brick from Boston Avenue United Methodist Church.

If you lament the loss of Tulsa’s one-time beloved My Pi Pizza, have heart: there’s one left in Chicago, still run by the original family that franchised Tulsa’s location all those years ago. It’s a small location on Damen Avenue near Interstate 94, but the delicious deep-dish pizza is the same as it always was.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA

ey say the heat of summer isn’t as bad if it’s a dry heat. Test that theory for yourself with a nonstop ight to Phoenix, Arizona. e area is an outdoor-lover’s paradise with many options for rock climbing, ATV rental and desert hikes. Take in a show at the grand Orpheum eatre, built in 1929, and tour the stunning street art in downtown Phoenix. e Desert Botanical Garden o ers a microcosm of western ora spread out over multiple themed trails. ere’s a worldrenowned Children’s Museum in town if you need a cool place to spend the day with the little ones. But, if you spent the weekend in Phoenix and just hopped from eatery to eatery so you could experience the exquisite Southwestern cuisine, I wouldn’t blame you. I prefer local hole-inthe-wall joints and recommend Rito’s — it’s been around since 1977 and has a few locations in the metro. Its green chile burrito is excellent. Finally, if you’re an architecture fan you should check out Taliesin West in Scottsdale. is UNESCO World Heritage Site was Frank Lloyd Wright ’s winter home.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

Charlotte has a lot to o er as a quick getaway. It’s probably best known for the NASCAR Hall of Fame, which is a great place to visit if you’re into racing. It covers all aspects of the sport, from the drivers to the pit crews to the personalities that broadcast it to homes across the country for decades. ere’s a simulator ride, too.

e U.S. National Whitewater Rafting Center is on the west side of town and boasts the world’s largest recirculating arti cial whitewater river. For more family fun, make time for Carowinds, a 400-acre amusement park on the North/South Carolina border that is sure to satiate thrill-seekers with its 13 roller coasters and robust waterpark; Camp Snoopy is great for kids and kids-at-heart. Just like Tulsa, Charlotte has a minor league baseball team with a stadium in the heart of downtown. North Carolina is also known for its barbecue. Midwood Smokehouse in Charlotte is a good place to start, but there are many spots to nd a meal that will bring you back to the Queen City again and again. TP

The lone remaining My Pi Pizza waits for diners in Chicago.

Straddling the North/South Carolina border, Carowinds amusement park has 13 rollercoasters.

Park City, Utah, entices guests year-round. Phoenix’s Desert Botanical Garden boasts 50,000 plants spread over 140 acres in the Papago Buttes.

Explore the Ozarks this Summer!

Dogwood Canyon Nature Park, located in Lampe, Missouri, is 10,000acres of paradise just waiting to be explored. This ultimate family summer getaway nestled in the Ozark Mountains features breathtaking views, cascading waterfalls, towering bluffs, handcrafted bridges and an abundance of wildlife. An outdoor playground for all ages, activities range from hiking, biking and fishing to wildlife tours, horseback riding and kayaking.

Hop aboard an open-air wildlife tram to tour the canyon and cross over the Arkansas border into a sprawling pasture where you will get to see the park’s largest residents: American Bison, Rocky Mountain Elk and Texas Longhorn cattle. Keep an eye out for baby bison and elk in the summer months!

To take your adventure to the next level, book a private educational guided tour or a kayak tour. During guided tours, you’ll experience the

park’s unique ecosystems with your very own park interpreter while observing and investigating all the wonders Dogwood Canyon has to offer. Or, venture off the pavement and explore where Little Indian Creek and Table Rock Lake meet. Wildlife Kayak Tours combine hiking and kayaking to see aquatic wildlife along with Bald Eagle and Great Blue Heron nest sites.

At the end of your day, take in breathtaking views of a four-story tall waterfall while dining and drinking at the Canyon Grill Restaurant. Before you head out, don’t forget to visit the working gristmill and two-story treehouse built by Animal Planet’s “Treehouse Masters.”

Get outdoors and find your next great adventure at Dogwood Canyon this summer! VISIT

TODAY.

EXPL or E THE o UT door S THIS SUMME r

Explore 10,000 acres of the Ozark Mountains this summer at Dogwood Canyon. Experience nature in bloom with countless outdoor activities including horseback riding, fishing, kayaking, wildlife tram tours, hiking and biking.

dogwoodcanyon . org

If you’re going to catch the sunset in Dallas, White Rock Lake is the place to do it. Just a few minutes east of Downtown, spend the day walking, biking or sailing then grab a blanket and a friend and head to the Dallas Arboretum & Botanical Garden for live music with a view. Whatever your all is, you’ll find it here.

To plan your trip, go to VisitDallas.com

Dallas Arboretum & Botanical Garden, White Rock Lake

Adventures aplenty in Springdale

There’s a lot you may not know about Springdale! For starters, it’s the largest city in Northwest Arkansas. It’s also the home of three-time Country Music Association Musician of the Year winner Jenee Fleenor and the NWA Naturals baseball team, the AA-affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.

Springdale has an amazing culinary scene. Did you know the city is home to one of the largest Spanish-speaking populations in Arkansas? You can find incredible authentic food from across Latin America here. There’s also the only hard cidery in Arkansas –Black Apple, located in downtown Springdale.

You can spend a whole weekend in Springdale without leaving, but it’s also the best home base for any excursions in Northwest Arkansas. Springdale straddles Interstate 49, just 10 minutes away from concerts at the Walmart AMP, 20 minutes from the renowned Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and 15 minutes away from the University of Arkansas campus and athletic venues.

LEARN MORE AT EXPLORESPRINGDALE.COM!

Face A Face Aalto 1 in black with gradient gray tinted lenses, $590. Hicks Brunson Eyewear Courtney JS-311 in white with polarized gray lenses, $350. Courtesy Hicks Brunson Eyewear, 2020 Utica Square.

Bling boutique

TULSA STAPLE GETS A NEW NAME.

BY KENDALL BARROW

Independent jewelers Andy Johnson and the late Bruce G. Weber had two things in common: a love for jewelry and a passion for taking care of their customers.

When Weber was ready to sell his eponymous jewelry store, he turned to Johnson, his longtime friend within the independent jeweler industry. “Weber did not want to sell to a corporation or conglomerate because he wanted a family owned, independent jeweler to continue his love for Tulsa and the importance he placed on taking care of Tulsans,” says Don Lewis, market director for the store. After a quick visit to Tulsa, Johnson purchased the jewelry store in 2016 and expanded his Columbus, Ohio-based business, known as Diamond Cellar.

In 2020, the store moved from Utica Square to a newly constructed showroom on Cherry Street, which allowed the jeweler to offer dedicated boutiques from brands including Rolex and David Yurman, as well as expanded room to showcase diamonds and bridal jewelry.

SHOP FAVORITES

The store continued to operate under Weber’s name until recently. “Diamond Cellar opened a store in Nashville in 2020. Once they expanded, it made sense to bring everything under the same umbrella,” Lewis says.

In addition to Nashville and Tulsa, as well as two Columbus locations, the 76-year-old family owned company also operates Store 5A in Columbus, which features pre-owned luxury items, including jewelry and purses. “It started as an outlet for people to trade-in and trade-up,” Lewis says. Since then, the concept has become so popular that each Diamond Cellar includes Store 5A merchandise. Clients are encouraged to bring their fine jewelry and luxury leather goods for an offer of store credit or a check. A jeweler refurbishes the items as needed and then they are offered for resale in-store and online.

Longtime customers will be pleased to see familiar brands remain, including Marco Bicego, Penny Preville, Elizabeth Locke and a newly added Gucci jewelry line, all of which are exclusive to Diamond Cellar in the Tulsa area. In addition to being the only authorized Rolex jeweler in Tulsa, Diamond Cellar now carries Tudor, a watch line owned and operated by Rolex. TP

Diamond Cellar

1523 E. 15TH ST. | 918-749-1700 | DIAMONDCELLAR.COM

9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Monday-Saturday

This 18-karat yellow gold link chain and pearl necklace is Penny Preville, another designer exclusive to Diamond Cellar in the Tulsa area. $7,000.

Bridal boutique offerings include this 4-carat round brilliant diamond center stone set with six round brilliant diamonds in the mounting. $73,108.

Designer Roberto Coin’s latest take on his Love in Verona collection features this 18-karat yellow gold bangle. $16,900.

Also part of the bridal boutique is this 1.09-carat oval diamond with 1.01-carat of round brilliants set in 18-karat white gold. $11,140.

David Yurman Elements collection ring featuring black onyx set in sterling silver. $550.

From left, Lynn Redwine, Store Director Michelle Holdgrafer, Donna Grant, Barrett Brobst, Administrative Store Director Sasha Patterson, Salome Smith, Market Director Don Lewis

Proven plants

4 SELECTIONS PERFECT FOR OKLAHOMA’S GROWING SEASON AND CONDITIONS.

BY ALLEN ROBINSON

From rookies to seasoned gardeners, Oklahoma gardening can be a challenge for many of us. Fortunately, there are folks out there to help us locate plants, shrubs and trees that not only survive our challenging climate, but ones that actually thrive. Each year, horticulturists from around the state choose plants for the Oklahoma Proven program that are appropriate for Oklahoma landscapes. Now in its 24th consecutive year, the Oklahoma Proven program has chosen a tree, shrub, perennial and annual that have been proven to grow well in Oklahoma’s diverse climate.

TREE: Trident Maple ( Acer buergerianum) — a small, slow-growing, deciduous tree, reaching 20-25 feet tall. It’s easily grown in average to medium moisture and well-drained soil. While it prefers full sun, it can be placed in partly shaded areas of the landscape. It can tolerate some drought as well as soil compaction and air pollution. Leaves are glossy green on top and pale green underneath. is tree features aky bark that reveals an orange-brown inner bark on mature trunks.

SHRUB: Winterberry Holly (Ilex verticillate) (dwarf cultivars: Little Goblin, Berry Poppins, Red Sprite) — a deciduous holly that doesn’t feature the sharp teeth on the leaves commonly found on other hollies. Bright red berries remain on the branches throughout the winter, adding a splash of color in the landscape. Winterberry is a globular, medium-sized shrub that grows to 10-20 feet tall. e dwarf cultivars that have been developed are perfect for those with limited outdoor space.

PERENNIAL: Turk’s Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii) — has bright red owers resembling a hibiscus ower that never fully opens. e overlapping petals form a loose tube that resembles a Turkish hat. ese owers appear later in the summer heat and early fall. While a good ornamental for shady landscapes, it can be adapted to thrive in full sun and heavy soil. e hotter Oklahoma sun can cause the leaves to become rougher, smaller, darker and puckered. However, once established, it is very drought tolerant. As a bonus, hummingbirds, butter ies, moths and other insects bene t from the plant’s nectar.

ANNUAL: Cape Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata) — a weak-stemmed perennial evergreen shrub. While it can grow 7 feet tall and 8-10 feet wide in its native habitat, it is treated as an annual in Oklahoma where it generally reaches only 2-4 feet high and wide each season. It is a great choice for patios and decks as it can be grown in containers. is plant is kept compact in the landscape by periodic pruning. Hard pruning will encourage new growth for the coming season. It can overwinter indoors. It grows best in organically rich, fertile and well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. If planting in the landscape, select a spot that is protected from strong winds. While it thrives in consistently moist soils, established plants are moderately drought tolerant. TP

VISIT OKLAHOMAPROVEN.ORG TO SEE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE 2023 SELECTIONS ALONG WITH PHOTOGRAPHS FROM COLLECTIONS OVER THE PAST 24 YEARS.

ank you to Tulsa County Master Gardeners for their expertise. Allen Robinson has been a Master Gardener since 2010.

Trident Maple Turk’s Cap

Cape Plumbago

Winterberry Holly

A dream home indeed

LOCAL GENEROSITY BENEFITS ST. JUDE.

One local neighborhood’s generosity has led to great fundraising success for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Every year, for the past 15 years, the Stone Canyon development has donated the lot for the dream home.

“Pete Kourtis , Greg Simmons and David Charney, the developers of Stone Canyon, all had a heart for St. Jude and their mission to defeat childhood cancer,” says Brian Rose, director of Stone Canyon. “When the opportunity to partner with St. Jude came along, they did not hesitate.”

This year’s corner lot is located in the Deer Creek IV development in Stone Canyon.

“It’s unheard-of generosity,” says Jillian Bolding , the St. Jude regional development director for Oklahoma. “This is not common in other markets that have Dream Home. It’s a huge blessing that Stone Canyon is there for us each year.”

This year’s St. Jude Dream Home, located in Owasso at 19244 E. White Willow Pass, is a single-story, four bedroom, three and a half bath home situated on a half-acre lot. It features an open floor plan, vaulted ceilings and soaring windows, while a game room, a study and a covered patio provide additional living space. The house has a value of $620,000.

“It’s a beautiful neighborhood,” Bolding says. “The landscape is so natural. When you say Stone Canyon, that’s what helps us sell these tickets.”

Nature remains central to Stone Canyon living. Of the 3,000 acres in the development, 650 will remain open for common use. Stone Canyon features miles of walking trails, a lake and activities for residents, including their very own farmers’ market.

St. Jude also benefi ts from the generosity of many other local sponsors. In particular, the builder, Shaw Homes, donates their time and expertise every year. They find many trade partners who donate their time and supplies for the building of the home.

“(Shaw Homes) is essential to make this happen,” Bolding says.

All proceeds from the home go to St. Jude. Over the past 17 years, the Tulsa St. Jude Dream Home campaign has raised over $13 million to allow the hospital to continue free treatment for children suffering from cancer. Each year, it has raised a little more money, and this year, St. Jude expects to raise $1.5 million from the Tulsa campaign.

Bolding says 15,000 tickets will be sold, and the winner will be announced June 25 on Fox23. Tickets cost $100 each and are available at dreamhome.org or by calling 1-800-853-1470.

View the home during its open house events 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturdays, and noon-5 p.m., Sundays, May 13-June 18. — ABIGAIL SINGREY

Progress is being made on the St. Jude Dream Home, currently under construction in Owasso’s Stone Canyon community.

Gift of sight

OPTOMETRIST TREATS THOSE WITH CORNEAL DISTORTIONS.

STORIES BY LAURA DENNIS

Twenty Twenty Eyecare provides general care for patients, but Lynsey Bigheart, O.D., provides treatment for patients with corneal disease and/or damage. “ e cornea is like a clear window that we look out of,” she says. “If you damage it, it might feel as though you’re looking through a shower door. It’s rigid and clouded.”

Bigheart speci cally ts a specialty device, called a scleral lens, for those with a corneal distortion. ese distortions can occur by accidental injury, infection, corneal disease or failed refractive surgeries (LASIK or radial keratotomy).

e scleral lens is like a prosthetic cornea that sits on the white part of the eye, or the sclera, and provides the smooth round surface needed for clear vision. “ ere are di erent materials but all are manufactured with a high oxygen permeable plastic such as uorosilicone acrylate,” Bigheart says. She notes a lot of her patients have not been able to work or perform daily tasks for years because they weren’t able to see. “ ere is a level of depression that comes with the loss of sight,” she says. “We’ve only got two eyeballs, and they’re not replaceable. I think a lot of people take their vision for granted.”

Bigheart found that she enjoyed helping people with corneal distortions regain their vision. After ve years of re ning her skillset working for other doctors, Bigheart and her colleague Shannon Morgan, O.D., opened Twenty Twenty Eyecare in 2013.

While treatment can be a lengthy process — scleral lens development can sometimes take months — Bigheart says the lengthy process is always worth it. “Every patient’s eyes are shaped di erently and each eye on a single patient can be shaped very di erently. When tting a patient with a scleral lens, the lens needs to t the shape and contour of the sclera (white part of the eye) or the lens can cause ocular damage,” Bigheart explains. “Also, if a scleral lens is not t perfectly, the patient will feel it. e eye is very sensitive and measurements in microns can make a di erence on the shape of a scleral lens. Just like a tiny piece of sand in the eye can be felt.”   rough the process, she sees a shift in some patients. “What I like to see throughout the tting process is how they change as people,” she says. “ ey become full of personality; they’re more talkative. I like to see the transformation that the gift of sight adds to somebody’s life.” TP

There are several things you can do to maintain and even improve your eye health. Even if your eyes seem healthy, the National Eye Institute recommends yearly eye exams because many eye diseases have zero symptoms or warnings. Here are a few tips on maintaining healthy vision.

EAT A BALANCED DIET.

Leafy greens like spinach, kale and collard greens and certain fish, such as salmon, tuna and halibut, are rich in vitamin A, vitamin C and omega-3s, which are crucial to eye function.

BE AWARE OF VISION CHANGES. Maybe your vision is blurry at times, or you notice yourself squinting more often than usual. Getting a checkup for even subtle changes in vision can help prevent the problem from progressing.

FOLLOW THE 20/20/20 RULE. Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds when on a computer. This will give your eyes a break and reset.

WEAR QUALITY SUNGLASSES. Choose shades that block 99% or 100% of both UVA and UVB sun rays to protect your eyes.

STAY ACTIVE.

Moving your body and maintaining a healthy weight can help you prevent diabetes and other diseases and conditions that can impair your eyesight.

Lynsey Bigheart, O.D., specializes in treating patients with corneal diseases and damage.

Chenoweth Eye

A 27 year veteran of eye care, Dr. Chris Chenoweth, previously with the Eye Institute, purchased Vision Source Sapulpa in March 2022. In his practice, Chenoweth and his team focus on vision, laser eye surgery and aesthetics. Chenoweth wants patients to know there are more options to see clearly than just glasses and contacts. “For adults who want to see well without glasses and contacts, I suggest and perform procedures commonly known as PRK and LASEK. These are advanced non-cutting laser vision correction techniques that are safer than traditional bladed LASIK; in fact, LASEK has been shown to be safer than wearing contact lenses,” he says.

When it comes to pediatric vision correction, Chenoweth prescribes CRT therapy to nearsighted children, which can greatly improve their eyesight

non-surgically, allowing most children to attend school or play sports without the need for glasses or daytime contact lenses. CRT therapy also stabilizes the vision, a term called myopia control, so the vision doesn’t continue to worsen year over year.

Of all the advanced technologies he employs, Dr. Chenoweth is most excited to offer a new dry eye treatment called Lumenis OptiLight IPL. OptiLight is a novel, FDA approved light-based therapy, similar to laser, that restores the function of tear producing glands in the eyelids, thus improving the dry, scratchy and itchy symptoms of dry eye disease. FDA studies report a 630% increase in tear lubrication production following the four recommended sessions. OptiLight is a painless procedure that is administered to the facial skin and eyelids, taking

approximately 10-15 minutes per session and can significantly improve patients’ dry eye disease. In addition to improved eye comfort and vision, patients are very excited about OptiLight’s “happy side effects” which include improved tone and texture of the face and reduction of facial redness, spider veins, freckles and sunspots. Dr. Chenoweth explains that this type of technology has been used in dermatology for several years and has now crossed over into the eye care space.

Summer is upon us, and with it comes the sun’s sweltering rays of ultraviolet radiation. Whether you’re mowing the yard or are boating on the lake, Julie Holmes , O.D., owner of Downtown Tulsa Eyecare, says UV eye protection is vital, especially during the summer months.

Prolonged UV damage can increase your risk of developing cataracts, eye cancer and other growths, such as pteryiums, which can cause blurred vision and require surgical intervention to remove. Other conditions linked to prolonged UV exposure include macular degeneration, a disorder that damages the retina and destroys central vision, and photokeratitis, a sunburn to the eye’s surface.

Holmes recommends choosing sunglasses that block 100% of both UVA and UVB sunrays to protect your eyes from the summer sun.

Other protection measures to consider include wearing swim goggles in the pool and practicing good hygiene if you’re a contact lens wearer, particularly if you are participating in water activities this summer. Holmes stresses you should never sleep in your contacts after a day at the pool or the lake because these are places you are likely to pick up bacteria that can lead to eye irritation, dryness and infection. She suggests removing your contacts each night and storing them in a cleaning solution but advises selecting daily disposable contacts, if possible. “Daily disposable contact lens wearers are 12 times less likely to develop (eye) infections,” she says. Poor hygiene when it comes to contacts can lead to a condition called microbial keratitis, which can cause blindness or the need for a corneal transplant.

To prevent dry eye that is caused by excessive heat or dry and windy conditions, the American Academy of Ophthalmology suggests wearing wrap-around glasses to keep the wind from your eye’s surface. Using artificial tears, preferably those that are preservativefree, also can help keep your eyes moist and refreshed.

Lastly, Holmes stresses the need for safety eyewear, such as goggles or a face shield, when working in the yard to avoid injury to your eyes. More than half of all eye injuries occur at home, yet only one out of every three people wears protective eyewear when working outdoors, according to the AAO.

Visit aao.org/eye-health to learn more. — LAURA DENNIS

T Henri Continental in Santorini with deep blue indigo tinted lenses, $738; Gotti Sabia in ruby with rose gradient tinted lenses, $392. Courtesy Hicks Brunson Eyewear,

‘SO,’ I SAID ...

BY CONNIE CRONLEY

“So,” I said to Peter, “that’s very nice of you to invite me to a lunch party. And that restaurant is very classy. But, I’ve been hearing a lot about personal choice from some of our alleged politicians and I think I’d rather do that.”

“Do what?” he said.

“Exercise my personal choice. Send me a voucher — make it cash — and I’ll go eat wherever I want to. My choice.”

“You’re missing the point,” he said. “It’s a lunch party. A social thing.”

“Plus,” I said, “that is a very pricey restaurant so for the cash you send me, I can have two lunches at cheaper places.”

“By yourself? e point is to get together, socialization. Meet new people. Expand your horizon.”

“I know everybody I need to know. I like my horizon just like it is, close and comfortable.”

“But if I’m paying for it, shouldn’t I get to choose the venue?” It wasn’t a question. It sounded like a sad declarative sentence.

“You’re twisting my words. I want to go to lunch, but not there and not with those strangers. I just want free choice. And my cash voucher.”

“So,” I said to the librarian, “please direct me to the DUI books.”

She looked at me but did not answer.

“And to the bespoke literature. And the band books.”

Again, no answer.

I spoke more slowly. “I want to see for myself the books the purported politicians identify as liberal indoctrination. Band. Bespoke.”

Contact. “I think you mean banned , not band. And woke, not bespoke. DEI stands for diversity, equity and inclusivity. And what some people call ‘woke’ usually means history and other subjects with information about racial discrimination and injustice. ere’s not a special section.”

“Where are the banned books?”

“Well, some books are age-appropriately restricted, but I think you’re old enough to read any of them.” (Was that a nervous laugh? Or an incredulous one.)

“Physically, yes. Mentally and emotionally? Who’s to say.” Let her think about that!

“So,” I said to whomever answered the phone at the lawmaker’s o ce, “I want to know more about the laws to ban drag races.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Why is it so hard to communicate with people in charge? “ e new bills that want to prohibit drag races that are dangerous for children. Men racing around in high heels and dresses, giving performances and reading stories to little children.”

“Um. I think what you’re asking about ma’am isn’t drag races but the senate bill that would prohibit lewd acts in public. Or maybe the house bill about adult cabaret. Some people do think this

is aimed at prohibiting drag queen story hours. And it’s true the 2S LGBTQ+ community feels threatened by them, but the purpose of both bills is to protect our minor children.”

“Speaking of which, what about the transitive bills?”

“Transitive?”

“Transformation. Something like that.”

“Oh, I think you mean transgender. e senate bills to ban the use of public money for gendera rming medical care for youth transitioning from one sex to another. at’s also to protect the child.”

“Even if the child’s parents and doctors approve?”

“Especially then.”

“So,” I said to Isabelle, my cat, explaining these conversations. “On the one hand the lawmakers want the parents and not the state to choose the children’s school. And on the other hand, they want the state and not the parents to decide the medical treatment for transgender youth. And they don’t want educators and librarians to decide school curriculum or library books. ey do want anybody to pack a gun anywhere and they’re really scared of drag queens. It doesn’t make sense to me.”

“So,” Isabelle the cat said to me, “sounds complicated. I’m sure everybody thinks they’re doing the right thing. Personally, I wouldn’t trust some of the humans in public o ce to hold my beer.”

Cats are such cynical creatures. TP

LUXURY PROPERTY GROUP AT

MCGRAW REALTORS

TIM HAYES

918-231-5637

thayes@mcgrawok.com

GORDON SHELTON

918-697-2742

gshelton@mcgrawok.com

GRAND LAKE

The Lodge in North Point on Grand Lake, this custom, large and beautiful lake home has a grand entry into 24 foot vaulted ceilings in the living room, kitchen and dining area, with bridge timbers from upper New York state throughout the home, river rock fireplace with gas logs, special chandeliers in almost every room, hardwood floors on main level and stained concrete in the walk-out basement. This home was designed for a large family. There are two main suites on the main level with full baths and walk-in closets, an office, tons of storage, utility room with sink, half bath, mud room and even a room designed to have an elevator. There is a large screened-in porch just off the dining area. Nothing was left out in the kitchen, Wolf oven and range, an additional sink on 7x11 foot beautiful wood island, cement counter tops, two dishwashers, just lots of room for many cooks! The basement has a game and theater room. There are 3 bedrooms, with two very unique ones, the girl’s bedroom will sleep 6 with 4 built-in bunks, TV’s in each, two showers, three sinks and two toilet rooms and is incredibly designed. The boy’s room has three bunks and like the girls it has TV’s too with the bathroom offering a large sink with three faucets! There is a 24’ x 20’ (more or less) unfinished room above the 3-car garage with an indoor or outdoor entrance. Last but no least, take the gentle slope to a 3-slip covered boat dock with storage, tanning deck and treks flooring. This place has it all and is ready to be enjoyed. $1,900,00

MIDTOWN

All brick, well-built, home located on a quiet street in Midtown Tulsa. Master bedroom downstairs, combo living/dining, den with a wood burning fireplace, screened-in patio, and additional living space looking over backyard. Ready for cosmetic updates.

3,393 sq. ft. $390,000

SHERRI SANDERS

918-724-5008

ssanders@mcgrawok.com

DIANA PATTERSON

918-629-3717

dpatterson@mcgrawok.com

OAK COUNTRY ESTATES

One owner custom gated estate situated on approx 2.44 acres in Oak Country Estates. Gorgeous corner lot with mature trees & full iron fencing. Grand entry has soaring ceiling & sweeping staircase. Formal living & Dining. Great room with fireplace opens to granite/ss kitchen with huge island. Master suite with study private bath with separate tub & shower, walk-in closet. Upstairs bedroom with private bath plus 2 additional bedrooms with pullman bath. Game room & inside storage. Oversized 4+ car garage with safe room. Inground Pool. Located near 71st & Highway 75, west of Tulsa Hills by Oaks Country Club. $775,000

ROCKWOOD HILLS PARK

Rockwood Hills Park is a 22 home development near ORU. Gated access, serene surroundings and one level living are primary attributes of this community. Huge master bedroom w/ an upgraded bathroom with walk-in whirlpool tub is near a 2nd bedroom or TV room. A 3rd bedroom is next to another newer bathroom in the hall. The kitchen is open to the living room and exits to a covered patio. The separate dining room could be an office or 2nd living rom. An atrium is accessible from multiple rooms and is perfectly used a breakfast/indoor garden room! (See floor plan). Refrigerator, washer/dryer remain with the home. Roof was new in 2021 with new gutters in 2022. HOA dues are only $100 per month. $329,000

MIDTOWN LOT

Secluded Midtown lot in Bolewood Glen just off 47th & Lewis. Lot is situated on a corner at the end of the cul-de-sac surrounded by beautiful mature trees. Easy access to Riverside Drive, River Parks, Brookside & I-44. Approximately .27 acre per Court House. Come build your Midtown dream house! $325,000

2200 S. Utica Pleace #7C | Located in one of Tulsa’s most luxurious high rise buildings across from Utica Square. Exclusive penthouse community with limited number of residences for low maintenance elegant living . Fabulous views and extreme privacy. 24 hour security provides residence comfortable secure living. Dramatic ceiling height and abundant natural light fill the rooms. Views of Cascia Hall and Utica Square. Large outdoor terrace with outdoor kitchen. Gardening space on balcony. Architecturally the building is stunning. Highest level finishes throughout the building and residence. 2 Bed | 2.5 Bath | 2 Car

sunroom or office. Large kitchen that overlooks backyard and offers living or dining space in kitchen. Laundry on the first floor. Finished basement (531 sq feet) not part of the reported house square footage plus additional 525 unfinished basement space for storage. Large 0.33 lot. Surrounded by beautiful homes close distance to Utica Square. New roof 2022 Class 4 impact resistant. New Gutters 2021. Whole home Generac generator 2022. Fridge conveys with home. 4 Bed | 2 Bath | 2 Car Garage | 3,467 Sq. Ft. $950,000

4106 S. 12th Place | One level like new Broken Arrow home build in 2017. Full brick home with top quality finishes. 3 bed 2 bath with 3 car garage. Spacious primary suite with three level closet. Open concept kitchen/living/dining. Stainless appliances and walk in pantry in kitchen. Office and bonus room. Large laundry room with locker area drop zone. New carpet. Exterior offers covered and uncovered patio spaces. Large field behind offers privacy, peace and quiet and views of wildlife bird/deer. Neighborhood pool. 3 Bed | 2 Bath | 3 Car Garage | 2,592 Sq. Ft. $385,000

A POOL MAKES A PERFECT SO YOU CAN ENJOY LIFE

STEPHANIE MINGUEZ 918.671.7193

sminguez@mcgrawok.com

Are you ready to jump into the lifestyle you deserve? Whether you are interested in buying, selling, or building contact me today so you can enjoy life!

10 acres for a cabin, hunting or your own private camping oasis. Do you have a cabin in Locust Grove, Cedar Crest or on Spring Creek? Have your own private hunt on this acreage and drive home for dinner with a deer! A 14 point Buck and 2 mature Does harvested from this property in 2022!

Completely updated, ranch style home in Patrick Henry Neighborhood on a quiet street. 3 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, and 2 car garage. Open kitchen to living room, quartz countertops, newer appliances, new master shower, indoor laundry, sprinkler system, large back patio, complete with a front porch swing. Move in ready, don’t miss this one!

McGraw Realtors

Photographed by: Sydney Jumper Photography

2803 South Harvard | 918-624-2600 | dogdishtulsa.com

Open 10-6 Monday–Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday

Play Day

BENEFIT

Experience the fun of playing Mah Jongg , the 19th century game developed in China and popular in the United States since the 1920s.

Our event—a benefit for the Alzheimer’s Association of Oklahoma—will include lunch, a silent auction, favors and prizes. Suggested donation: $50.00. Come and have fun...for a great cause!

Questions? Email jenelle.schatz@gmail.com.

Thursday, June 15, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Oaks Country Club

THE HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION OF GREATER TULSA PROUDLY PRESENTS:

|

May 4-21, 2023

The 2023 Designer Showcase located at 3226 E. 62nd St features 38 spaces transformed by some of Tulsa’s top interior designers! Tickets available at TulsaHBA.com or at the door.

May 20-21, 2023

Featuring nine newly remodeled homes by expert Tulsa HBA Home Remodeling Council members.

$10 tickets available at the door of each home on the tour. For a full listing of homes, visit www.TulsaHBA.com/HRS

Mah Jongg

“Why does watching a dog be a dog fill one with happiness?”

Float Coat™

READ MORE ABOUT HELEN OF TROY, AS WELL AS THREE OTHER FAVORITE SPOTS FOR MEDITERRANEAN FOODS ON P. 80.

CRAZY FOR KABOBS

At Helen of Troy, Greek and Mediterranean fare has been luring customers for more than 16 years. One of the most popular items on its menu is the beef kabob (available in both lunch and dinner portions). Served on a bed of rice, seasoned beef is grilled to perfection alongside freshly made sides like tabbouli, hummus, baba ghanoush or Greek salad. TP

CLUB MED

4 LOCAL SPOTS FOR YOUR MEDITERRANEAN FOOD FIX.

BY NATALIE MIKLES

Tulsa’s food culture has long bene tted from the in uence of families with Middle East and European ties.

e footprint of Mediterranean food extends from the chili at Coney Island to cabbage rolls and hummus at Lebanese steakhouses to a new breed of Mediterranean restaurants with light, fresh craveable food.

Mediterranean food is one of the most popular and fastest growing cuisines. From established restaurants like Helen of Troy to the arrival of the new chain Cava, Tulsans ock to these spots where they can nd gyros and chicken kabobs, shawarma and dolmas.

Palmyra Mediterranean Grill

A native of Jordan, Faisel Abdelsamad set out to create a restaurant with the foods he grew up eating.

Eating at his Palmyra Mediterranean Grill, 2623 E. 11th St., feels like being invited to someone’s home. Food is fresh and avorful in a casual atmosphere.

One standout is the falafel wrap with cucumber, mint, hummus, tahini and tomato. Palmyra also is a good place to stop for a simple and a ordable lunch of lentil soup. is delicious soup is packed with lentils and veggies in a tasty broth. Many customers order it to go and even freeze it to enjoy later.

Palmyra also is known for its unique baba ghanoush with big avor from the roasted eggplant and peppers. When ordering, you may do a mix-and-match of any one protein and three side items. is gives diners a chance to sample many of the tasty sides, including the basmati rice, Mediterranean salad, tabbouli, grape leaves and hummus.

Falafel balls are wrapped with cucumber, hummus, mint, tahini sauce and tomato at Palmyra.

Saffron

Shadi Afshari moved from Iran to the United States in 1999, but once here, life wasn’t always easy. Afshari worked di erent jobs, including in her young son’s cafeteria until she eventually began working in restaurant kitchens.

Opening her own restaurant was a dream come true. In 2020, she welcomed customers to Sa ron, 3313 E. 32nd Place, in the space formerly held by Bangkok ai, a Tulsa cult favorite. Many of those Bangkok customers, as well as many new faces, came to Sa ron when Afshari opened.

You’ll nd traditional Middle Eastern food at Sa ron, but you’ll also nd dishes truly unique to Tulsa. Sa ron’s Persian specialties include fesenjoon, a walnut stew with a sweet and sour avor from pomegranates and ground walnuts. Or ghormeh sabzi, an herb stew some say is the national dish of Iran. is is a soup rarely found in Tulsa.

Another favorite is Sa ron’s falafel, which is light and crisp. It’s delicious when ordered as a sandwich on freshly made pita bread with tahini.

Helen of Troy

Helen of Troy rst opened more than 16 years ago in Tulsa and was a bright spot of Greek food among a sea of hamburger and fried chicken restaurants.

It’s still a bright spot, a cozy and comfortable dining space in the Farm Shopping Center, 5213 S. Sheridan Road. Here customers can depend on reliably good cabbage rolls and beef kabobs, among other great items. e cabbage rolls are particularly delightful — lled thick with beef and rice in a avorful tomato sauce. e tomato sauce for cabbage rolls can sometimes end up watery or tepid, but Helen of Troy’s is nicely seasoned.

We’re also fans of the gyros platter. It comes as expected — a lling plate of beef and lamb meat with minty tzatziki sauce and basmati rice, as well as two additional sides.

Shawkat’s Mediterranean Grill

For some of the best pita bread in Tulsa, it’s got to be Shawkat’s, 4123 S. Sheridan Road. Pita bread is made fresh in a brick oven. Shawkat’s does so many authentic Lebanese dishes well, but for many, it’s the pita bread that’s the showstopper.

A small, unassuming restaurant, Shawkat’s is a favorite of many, with some saying it has the best falafel in town. It’s the kind of place that for many feels like “their place.” And the owners treat customers as such.

One unique item on the menu is the mana keesh — pita baked with toppings. e zaatar or cheese avors are both excellent. e pita pies also are super good. Try the feta cheese lling with onion and cayenne, the spinach with feta or the ground beef with pine nuts, onion and spices. ese little hand-held pies are great for lunch, but also are perfect for a party or catered event. TP

Pita bread is made in-house at Saffron, a recent newcomer to Tulsa’s Mediterranean food offerings.

Mediterranean staples like cabbage rolls have drawn customers to Helen of Troy for more than 16 years.

Shawkat’s has perfected the kabob, along with other Mediterranean delicacies like falafel and pita bread.

Alfresco fresh I

f you’ve lived in Tulsa for any length of time, you know May in T-Town is beautiful.

It’s the perfect time to have friends or family over because you can often enjoy dinner outside. Or sit around the dining room table and then take a walk afterward.

Here are a couple of our favorite Mediterraneaninspired recipes for May entertaining. Everyone has their favorite style of tabbouli, so you may want to add more parsley and mint and less bulgur wheat. Or if you prefer it heartier, do the opposite. —

NATALIE MIKLES

TABBOULI

1 cup uncooked bulgur wheat

1 cup boiling water

2 tomatoes, chopped

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Place bulgur in a large bowl, and add 1 cup boiling water. Cover and let stand 30 minutes.

Stir in tomato and remaining ingredients. Chill at least 1 hour before serving.

GRILLED CHICKEN WITH FETA AND OLIVES

Serves 4

4 tablespoons lemon juice

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

4 garlic cloves, crushed or finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 ⁄2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 boneless chicken breasts

1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed

In a large zip-top bag, combine lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, garlic, paprika, oregano and salt and pepper. Add chicken. Marinate at least 30 minutes in refrigerator.

Grill chicken over medium-high heat about 5-6 minutes per side or until fully cooked through.

In a large pot of boiling water, boil green beans just 1 minute. Add cooked green beans to grill for 3-5 minutes for extra flavor.

ACCOMPANIMENTS:

2 cups Greek olives, sliced

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 cup chopped tomato

To assemble, plate chicken and green beans on a platter. Sprinkle with olives, feta and tomato. Serve with yogurt sauce.

YOGURT SAUCE

1 cup Greek yogurt

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon oregano

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pinch salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, whisking until blended. TP

Grilled chicken with feta and olives

NEW MIDTOWN MARKET

The latest venture from the Three Sirens Group is Market 31 — a great spot for grab-and-go food, fresh veggies, bread and eggs. It’s a welcome midtown neighborhood market for a quick visit in-between big grocery store hauls and a place to stop when you have no answer to the question, “What’s for dinner?”

James Beard Award semifinalist Johnna Hayes of Three Sirens Group is a concept queen, sprinkling her foodie love across Tulsa and Broken Arrow with Bird and Bottle, Bramble, Holé Molé and Shaky Jake’s. We talked to her about Market 31, 3324 E. 31st St.

WHAT CAN PEOPLE EXPECT WHEN THEY WALK IN TO MARKET 31? Right off the bat they’ll notice coolers full of grab-and-go foods, ready to be heated up easily for dinners or other meals. Fresh breads, granolas, farm-fresh eggs and accompaniments for all your meal needs.

IT SEEMS LIKE THERE’S A LOT OF INTEREST IN TULSA FOR THIS TYPE OF SMALL, EASY-TO-NAVIGATE MARKET. Honestly, COVID changed the entire game of dine out and even more so, dine in. Being able to get a restaurant-style meal at home became something people really enjoyed and after the pandemic, wanted to continue. Being able to feature some of our favorite restaurant items to take home seemed like a no-brainer.

TELL US ABOUT THE LOCATION YOU CHOSE FOR MARKET 31. We love Ranch Acres and our landlord, Mary Stewart , and her daughter, Emily, who have become a part of our Three Sirens family. When the salon decided they were going to close, we knew we wanted to do something there, and this market made the most sense for the area. Bird and Bottle being close is obviously fun, but this market will be featuring all of our concepts, so I think being able to bring them all to one spot is most exciting. —

NATALIE MIKLES

Garden-to-table dining

Modern Grandma: at’s how Aimee Hunter describes her style of cooking.

Picture a plate of warm buttermilk biscuits with eggs, bacon and — here’s the surprise — kimchi. Yes, Modern Grandma is the vibe at Prism Cafe, a new breakfast and lunch spot in e Heights neighborhood.

Hunter has been a personal chef for 14 years. She’s cooked everywhere from New York City to rural Maine, and was part of several restaurant opening strategy teams where she honed her skills in curating current comfort food.

It was when Hunter came to visit friend Lindsay Aveilhé, who had returned to Tulsa through the Tulsa Remote program, that she decided to put down roots in T-Town. rough her connection with the Aveilhé family, she discovered e Heights neighborhood and immersed herself in the area, literally digging in the dirt to start a community garden.

She discovered Tulsa suited her. As she met neighbors and made friends through her community garden, she began planning for something more — what is now Prism Cafe, 217 W. Latimer St.

“I’ve been dreaming of doing something like this,” Hunter says. “ e idea was for something wholesome. It’s made-from-scratch food

for a regular palate in its approach, but trying to add fresh and surprising ingredients.”

Quality of ingredients is super important to Hunter, who makes everything from scratch, including aiolis, soups and bone broth.

She loves the idea of throwing curveballs to traditional plates. One of the cafe’s customer favorites is a Jasmine Rice Kimchi Plate. It’s steamed rice with a side of kimchi, sliced avocado, fresh lime and microgreens with two baked eggs on top.

“A lot of people say it feels nourishing,” Hunter says.

Simple. Nourishing. In other words, Modern Grandma.

In the afternoons, neighbors stop in for a selection of sandwiches and soups. And as the word gets out, Prism Cafe is lling up with people from across the city. e weekend cinnamon buns are one of the big attractions. Prism Cafe also does catering and private events.

Hunter has continued her work on the community garden, located on the same block as the cafe. e garden helps support the cafe’s needs, as well as its apothecary items made in-house, including teas, tonics and moisturizers available for sale. Prism Cafe is open 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m., ursday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Sunday. — NATALIE MIKLES

The Jasmine Rice Kimchi Plate is on the menu at Prism Cafe, a new dining concept in The Heights neighborhood.

Gorditas

FROM CALAVERAS MEXICAN GRILL

2636 E. ADMIRAL BLVD. | 918-592-1771 | CALAVERASMEXICANGRILL.COM

MENU CLASSIC

Diners choose the protein, which is sandwiched between two homemade corn masa patties, served with beans, onion, cilantro, cotija cheese and crema. $10.99.

REOPENED, REFRESHED

The Kendall Whittier restaurant reopened in fall 2022 with a revamped menu and the adoption of weekend breakfast, served from 8-11:30 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

LINGER WITH A LAGER

Broken Arrow’s Rose District has a new place to drink Oklahoma’s craft beers and spirits. The Lodge on Main opened its doors in early March at 118 S. Main St.

Kevin and Donna Kashwer opened the taproom and event center when they saw a need for a family friendly community hang-out space where you could get a pint, play games and enjoy live music or get together with friends.

Sixteen taps are filled with local brewery selections, and locally produced Red Fork spirits are available.

“We love the many Oklahoma crafted breweries in our great state, and wanted to celebrate them in one central place,” Kevin says. “Here you are can enjoy trying a selection from several amazing local breweries.”

Naming it The Lodge came from Kevin’s collection of hunting trophies — deer, elk, ducks, turkeys and bears.

“I’ve got a good collection of my personal sporting trophies, as well as friends who have donated, and it gives the space an outdoorsy, lodge feel to it.”

SWEET TOOTH

Along with a selection of Mexican sodas, Calaveras’ dessert options include arroz con leche ($4) and chocolate flan ($6.99) — perfect for sharing or treating oneself after lunch.

The Lodge is available for group rental for celebrations, receptions, rehearsal dinners, and business or social events. It also offers live music on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

“Main Street has become so lively,” Donna says, “and we are just hoping to add something to it where we can bring the community together.”

Find out when The Lodge is open this week on social media or thelodgeonmainba.com. —

TOM GILBERT

Donna and Kevin Kashwer

Cool comforts

3 FAVORITES FOR ICED COFFEE

BY NATALIE MIKLES

Coffee lovers, here’s your dream line up: LAURANNAE BAKING CO.’s flight of four iced coffee drinks. You can choose any four you like, from a Vietnamese Iced Coffee to a Blueberry Matcha. If it were up to us, it would be the fabulous Butterscotch Latte, Dirty Coconut Chai, a Lavender Honey Latte and a Bride’s Cake Latte — all iced. This is such a fun idea for a date night or meetup with friends. A coffee flight is a delicious and fun ice breaker and conversation starter. While there, try one of Laurannae’s treats, like the oatmeal cream pie or a mixed berry scone. 112 W. COMMERCIAL ST., BROKEN ARROW | 918-2585744 | LBCOTULSA.COM

The people at 918 COFFEE know what we want. We want sweet, caffeinated, shakable iced coffee. And if it tastes like a Girl Scout cookie, all the better. The Samoa Frappe has that chocolatey, coconutty, caramelly Samoa profile mixed with plenty of strong coffee flavor. When you’re not in the mood for sweet but need an energy boost, try the Super Charged Cold Brew. We’re big fans of this highly caffeinated double shot of espresso shaken into a cold brew. 2446 E. 11TH ST. | 918-949-3221 | TULSA918COFFEE.COM

CIRQUE ’s citrusy Espresso + Tonic is the best of both worlds. It’s the richness of Cirque’s famous Weirdo espresso with sparkling, house-made tonic. The result is a fi zzy delight. Cirque is home to experimental and unique flavors, and one of the only local places you’ll find a latte on draft. As Cirque puts it: “Espresso and milk in a keg, chillin’ together in our walk-in, just waiting for you to ask for it off the tap.” Cirque recently opened its second app-only drive-thru and still has its Pearl District storefront. 1317 E. SIXTH ST.; 1404 S. UTICA AVE.; 2809 E. 101ST ST. | CIRQUECOFFEE.COM

MEXICAN

The winners of TulsaPeople’s annual A-LIST Readers’ Choice Awards are where to fi nd authentic, south-of-the-border fl avor.

Los Cabos LOSCABOSOK.COM

Chimi’s CHIMISMEXICAN.COM

El Rio Verde

FACEBOOK.COM/ELRIOVERDETULSA

El Rancho Grande

ELRANCHOGRANDEMEXICANFOOD.COM

El Tequila

918-459-7677

3 Tequilas 3TEQUILAS.COM

Bravos Mexican Grill BRAVOSMEXICANGROUP.COM

Cafe Olé CAFEOLEBROOKSIDE.COM

Señor Tequila

SENORTEQUILAOK.COM

El Rancho Grande

Laurannae Baking Co.

918 Coffee

Cirque Coffee Roasters

ROPER HISTORY

STORY AND COMPOSITE IMAGE BY PATRICK MCNICHOLAS

In August 1936, Tulsa Public Schools purchased 27 acres of land on the eastern edge of the city that would become the site for Will Rogers High School, 3909 E. Fifth Place. At this time, the open pasture was inhabited by cattle and lacked adequate access to the property, despite Route 66 being blocks away.

By late 1937, construction was underway on one of the newest high schools in Tulsa. e school was named in honor of “Oklahoma’s Favorite Son,” Will Rogers, who climbed to national fame during the early 1900s. e multi-talented entertainer and in uencer died in August 1935 in an airplane crash with famed Oklahoman and aviator Wiley Post

Leon B. Senter and Joseph R. Koberling, signi cant Tulsa archi-

tects, designed the building as an inspirational memorial to the famed American. e building was partly funded by the federal government under the umbrella of the Works Progress Administration.

e school opened to students in September 1939 but was o cially dedicated in November to coincide with what would have been Rogers’ 60th birthday. e building has been in continuous use as a school since opening.

Rogers has many notable alumni like musicians Leon Russell and David Gates, cartoonist Russell Myers and author S.E. Hinton who wrote the book “ e Outsiders” while attending in the late 1960s. When the book was made into a movie in 1983, the school was featured in a scene. TP

Will Rogers High School seen from across the street. The school, which now houses grades 6-12, was put on the National Register of Historic Places in September 2007.

SIENA COLLECTION