On-demand therapy.
Brewing success for women.
Recent music releases and art displays.
festivities and events abound.
Spooky scents.
Supporting others with breast cancer.
destinations to celebrate Oklahoma women.
Tune in to the Meat and Cheese Show.
New class enters the Tulsa Hall of Fame
BY GAIL BANZET-ELLISmonth.
Celebrating 50 years of Tulsa’s Little Light House
kids be kids.
BY SARA PLUMMERSharing the Hindu festival of lights with family and friends is one Tulsa family’s tradition.
BY NATALIE MIKLES
Longtime Girl Scouts program ensures incarcerated moms stay connected to their children.
BY KRISTI EATON
Women
Holiday
THE COVER:
Tiffany Taylor is the chef de cuisine at the new Brookside restaurant, Freya, which bears the name of a Norse goddess.
Freya is Brookside’s newest hot spot.
Pancho Anaya bakes up traditions.
Fall for apple pie.
Botanic Garden inspires a new spirit.
It’s important for women to get a yearly mammogram, beginning at age 40.
if you have a mother, sister or other close relative who has been diagnosed with breast cancer, ask your doctor at Ascension St. John if you should schedule a screening even earlier.
At Ascension St. John, we deliver the comprehensive breast imaging that’s right for you, including:
Screening mammograms
mammograms
Digital 3D mammography
Find a location near you at ascension.org/StJohnMammogram
ultrasound
MRI
Can you feel it?
Autumn is nipping at our heels.
As I sit down to write this in mid-September, the city is preparing for what seems to be its busiest weekend in a long time. Festivals are back at full strength. Music venues and clubs are welcoming visitors far and wide. Restaurants are bustling.
There’s football at the University of Tulsa campus, fall get-togethers are on the books and soon I’ll be strolling the midway at the Tulsa State Fair.
It’s the best time of the year.
After we’ve slogged through a hot summer, it seems like most of us welcome the cooler season like a big bear hug, all while donning a favorite flannel shirt and drinking a pumpkin-spiced something.
Here at the office, the turn of the leaves means it’s time for another annual celebration: TulsaPeople’s Women’s issue.
This month, we celebrate women.
Two fearless females are the foundation of the Little Light House, which has educated children ages 0-6 for the past 50 years. When Marcia Mitchell and Sheryl Poole were confronted with no local early learning and intervention services for their daughters who were born legally blind, the pair took it upon themselves to create a Tulsa program. Today Anne McCoy serves as the school’s executive director and is looking forward to what lies ahead for Little Light House. Read more about these women and the remarkable programs at East 36th Street and South Yale Avenue on p. 47.
Three outstanding Tulsa women will be inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame this month. Read more about them and the three men included in this year’s class on p. 40.
For 20 years, Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma has been providing a way for incarcerated women to spend one-on-one time with their children each month through the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program. Over the past two decades, thousands of participants have benefitted from this landmark endeavor. On p. 42, meet a mother and daughter whose participation over the past 17 years meant a solid foundation post-incarceration.
Other strong, passionate and savvy women are profiled throughout the magazine. There’s artist May Yang, whose love of screen printing has grown into a thriving 10-year-old business (p. 14). Chef Ti any Taylor is leading the culinary team at Brookside’s newest hotspot, Freya, which bears the name of the Norse goddess (p. 90).
Two women are helping fellow young cancer patients navigate the ups and downs of treatment (p. 80). At She Brews Coffee House, women transitioning from incarceration and other difficult circumstances are provided a guiding source to garner work experience, housing and mentorship (p. 20). The Anaya sisters are continuing a legacy of Mexican baking that has lasted generations (p. 93).
These are just a few. I hope you make your way through the issue and take a moment to think of the amazing women in your life.
For me there are too many to count. From family members to longtime friends to colleagues in the office and in my volunteer roles — you inspire me every day. TP
Volume XXXVI, Number 12 ©2022. 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
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Anne Brockman EDITOR CREATIVE DIRECTOR Madeline Crawford ART DIRECTOR Georgia Brooks GRAPHIC DESIGNER Ashley Guerrero MANAGING PHOTOGRAPHER Michelle Pollard VIDEOGRAPHER Greg Bollingerthe weather turns cool and crisp outside, She Brews Coffee House is more than just a cozy space to sip on a warm drink. With two locations in Claremore and one in Tulsa at 1 N. Lewis Ave., She Brews provides women transitioning out of incarceration and other difficult life circumstances with work experience, residential housing and mentorship.
When a new theater organ arrived on Aug. 5 to the Will Rogers High School campus, it was a long-awaited homecoming of sorts — built during the Great Depression and opening in 1939, the school was originally designed to have a theater organ, but its last console had been inoperable since 1985.
“This project is not just about completing the original architectural plan for Will Rogers High School,” says Richard Risk, founder of the Will Rogers Stage Foundation. “The addition of this Allen 42-rank, 3-manual (model TH323) theater organ will mean another dimension to Tulsa’s culture ... It will instill pride among the students in their school and enhance recruitment. Students will be exposed to the performing arts. Concerts at Will Rogers will bring back alumni to their alma mater, allowing them to reconnect with classmates while rekindling school spirit.”
The first public performance will be Nov. 6 and is free to attend. Esteemed theater organist Mark Herman will perform his improvised accompaniment to the 1922 silent film “The Ropin’ Fool,” starring Will Rogers. Seat reservations are required; get tickets at willrogersstage.com. Herman’s appearance is made possible by the Allen Organ Co., manufacturer of the Rogers’ theater organ.
In conjunction with October being Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Domestic Violence Intervention Services will launch a new series called DVIS Community Talks: Conversations to Confront Violence. These monthly talks will focus on a variety of topics — including sexual and domestic violence, stalking and human trafficking — and are geared toward exploring, understanding and responding to different types of interpersonal violence in our communities.
The first talk will take place at 8:30 a.m., Oct. 20 at Hodges Bend, 823 E. Third St. Coffee and pastries will be provided, and the conversation will focus on identifying the signs of abusive relationships, what to do and say if you or someone you love is affected and where to go for support. Community members, survivors and advocates are invited to attend. Future talk locations and dates will vary (see dvis.org for more information).
Modus also recently launched a new partnership with DVIS to provide those exiting abusive relationships — and therefore potentially not having access to their own car — with assistance in getting to legal appointments, medical visits, school or work.
“Twenty percent of Tulsans have challenges with transportation, and we want to do everything we can to help the most vulnerable in this group,” Modus Executive Director Leslie Neal-Emery says. “We hope to be a bright spot for those served by DVIS who are forging through a difficult time in life.”
Anyone interested in helping this effort is encouraged to learn more about being a volunteer Modus driver or make a donation to Modus. Learn more at modustulsa.org.
Experiencing domestic or sexual violence?
Text SAFE to 207-777 to discreetly communicate with a
“What I always say to parents is that you should be so proud and so pleased that your child has given you the gift of honesty. You have raised this child to be honest with you and open with you. Now when this child says to you, ‘Mom and dad I’m gay,’ they are being honest. And I hope that you will accept that even though you may not understand it, that you will embrace your child and love them because now you know the whole truth about them. And that you will take it upon yourself to educate yourself and in this case, work for equal rights for them because they do not enjoy the equal rights that our straight children do, and affirm who they are.”
McDonald
community
More than 60 brewers from across the nation descend on downtown Tulsa for guests to sample new, specialty and hard-to-find beers at this 21-and-up event.
ONEOK FIELD, 201 N. ELGIN AVE. MCNELLIESGROUP.COM
OCT. 1, 7-8, 14-15, 21-22, 28-29
Each weekend this month, the Castle of Muskogee offers a collection of fun and frightening activities. New this year: Jester’s Revenge, a fun house with a sinister twist.
CASTLE OF MUSKOGEE, 3400 W. FERN MOUNTAIN ROAD, MUSKOGEE | OKCASTLE.COM
OCT. 9
Gifts, flowers, prepared foods, seasonal produce and original works from local artists await shoppers at this monthly market.
WHITTIER SQUARE, EAST LEWIS AVENUE AND EAST ADMIRAL BOULEVARD TULSAFARMERSMARKET.ORG
OCT. 13-15
A festival celebrating German music, food and drinks returns to the midtown shopping center.
UTICA SQUARE, EAST 21ST STREET AND SOUTH UTICA AVENUE UTICASQUARE.ORG
The legendary comic visits Tulsa to present his newest stand-up routine.
TULSA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, 110 E. SECOND ST. TULSAPAC.COM
Brats, carnival rides, shopping and beer, of course, await guests at the 2022 festival along the banks of the Arkansas River.
RIVER WEST FESTIVAL PARK, 2100 S. JACKSON AVE. TULSAOKTOBERFEST.ORG
The puck drops on the Oilers’ 2022-2023 season with a game against Allen Americans.
BOK CENTER, 200 S. DENVER AVE. TULSAOILERS.COM
Create a one-of-a-kind autumn masterpiece and then treat yourself to a planetarium show. Ages 8 and up are welcome to attend.
TULSA AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM, 3624 N. 74TH E. AVE. TULSAMUSEUM.ORG
It returns! The family-friendly event convenes in Brookside with a parade, costume contests, giveaways and activities.
ALONG SOUTH PEORIA AVENUE FROM EAST 49TH TO 33RD STREETS. TULSABOOHAHA.COM
HAUNTED HISTORY ON THE HILL
Hear stories of legends past, make Halloween crafts and participate in a flashlight candy hunt for those ages 0-12. CHANDLER PARK COMMUNITY CENTER, 6500 W. 21ST ST. TULSACOUNTY.ORG/PARKS
Hear the Oklahoma author discuss her latest book, “Prize for the Fire,” in this special afternoon event.
MAGIC CITY BOOKS, 221 E. ARCHER ST. MAGICCITYBOOKS.COM
Gather six of your friends to compete in a night of trivia — from local legends to scary movies. Costumes encouraged.
CENTRAL LIBRARY, 400 CIVIC CENTER TULSALIBRARY.ORG
It’s Homecoming at the University of Tulsa campus as the Golden Hurricane take on the Southern Methodist University Mustangs. Festivities, including TU on Tap, surround gameday. H.A. CHAPMAN STADIUM, 3112 E. EIGHTH ST. TULSAHURRICANE.COM AND TUALUMNI.COM
Each year, thousands of participants take on this 15K challenge with a course that winds through downtown and nearby neighborhoods.
EAST THIRD STREET AND SOUTH BOSTON AVENUE TULSARUN.COM
MCNELLIE’S, SEINFELD, CASTLE OF MUSKOGEE, UTICA SQUARE, BOOHAHA: COURTESY; PLANETARIUM, SECOND SUNDAY: ANNE BROCKMAN; ASKEW: SHEVAUN WILLIAMS;
It’s less than a month after therapist and Booker T. Washington High School grad Jordan Green, 30, has launched her mental health app, Remble. With a master’s degree in social work from the University of Oklahoma, she is eager to discuss how the app came to be and her goals for her new company at DoubleShot Coffee Co., 1633 S. Boulder Ave.
GREEN’S PARENTS ALWAYS EMPHASIZED SERVICE OR HELPING OTHERS, WHICH LED HER TO SOCIAL WORK AND BECOMING A THERAPIST IN 2017 ... I did individual counseling, couples counseling, family counseling, and I really loved doing it. I was able to truly have an impact and help people to change their lives, to heal their traumas, to heal their relationships. But I realized I can only have so much impact through doing one-to-one therapy with people, and I wanted to reach and help more people.
IN NOVEMBER 2019, GREEN LAUNCHED @THE.LOVE. THERAPIST ON INSTAGRAM, WHERE SHE SHARED EDUCATIONAL AND INSPIRATIONAL CONTENT. IT NOW HAS 248,000 ENGAGED FOLLOWERS ... I started getting all of these direct messages from people, women specifically, who are struggling in their relationships and didn’t know how, what, where, who to turn to and where to go to get help. That led me to start asking questions like, “Why aren’t these women and other people getting help through the current existing services that are on the market?” I started to ask myself, “How can I serve these women better? How can I help them?”
THEN CAME THE CREATION OF REMBLE ... I started a subscription-based membership community called The Love Group to get feedback from women to really understand what their pain points were, what they’re struggling with and what they needed. I created courses. I partnered with other therapists for live workshops and events, and I found that people were loving it. They were finding it to be really helpful. All of the feedback I received from that directly informs the model for Remble.
THE ORIGINAL WEB-BASED MODEL WAS TOO LIMITED. SHE NEEDED A MOBILE APP TO ACCOMPLISH HER GOALS ... My vision was to bring therapists from around the world, some of the best minds in mental health together, under one app to create educational and inspirational content. To help people and to empower people with the tools they need to become the healthiest, best version of themselves and to have healthy relationships.
EARLY DATA SHOWED PEOPLE WERE MOSTLY INTERESTED IN DATING ADVICE ... My relationship posts would do three or four times as well as the other posts. I realized there are a lot of people struggling with relationships right now, and I think that’s probably been exacerbated since COVID19. That’s where I saw the greatest demand ... Relationships are kind of our foot in the door, and it’s a fairly unsaturated market. So a majority of the content on the app right now is relationship courses, but we will be expanding our content categories over time to parenting, anxiety, depression, trauma — all based on the demand and where we see a need.
THE PROCESS TO CREATE REMBLE STARTED IN SUMMER 2020. SHE BEGAN LOOKING FOR INVESTORS
AND TALKED TO A VENTURE CAPITAL FIRM IN CHICAGO THAT POINTED HER TO AN OKLAHOMA CITY FIRM. THAT FIRM THEN TOLD HER ABOUT TULSA-BASED ATENTO, WHICH FUNDED HER IN NOVEMBER 2021 ... I had no idea there was a VC here in Tulsa. From the moment I connected with Atento, I knew I had found my people because of their philosophy and their approach — their heart for helping people. I felt like it was really important for me to find investors who cared about people more than anything, and who I felt understood the problem, who aligned with our mission and my vision for the company and who just really care about the work we’re doing. When I connected with (Atento Founder) Mike Basch, his wife was a therapist, his mom was a therapist, so it just felt like he had that understanding of mental health. And I really appreciated that. He treated me like family almost immediately, and it’s just been amazing working with them.
May Yang, owner and founder of Flash Flood Print Studios, discovered her love for screen printing while pursuing a graphic design degree at Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. “I have always been interested in art ever since I was very young and I knew I wanted to do something creative with my life,” Yang says.
Though she grew up in Tulsa, Yang wanted to move to Baltimore to experience life away from Oklahoma. The idea for a print studio stemmed from her desire to continue printing after college, but first she felt a pull to return to her roots.
“Turns out that a little bit of separation from Tulsa really made me understand what is special about this city, because all I wanted to do after college was move back,” Yang says. “I established my business here because there were so many new and exciting things happening at the time and the general attitude made starting a business feel accessible.”
Flash Flood has evolved from a small start-up out of Yang’s garage to a 4,000-square-foot design studio located at 2421 E. Admiral Blvd, in the historic Kendall Whittier neighborhood. The team of dedicated artists at Flash Flood offers a variety of services including custom printed T-shirts, posters, art prints and other merchandise.
Flash Flood operates from four guiding principles — art, collaboration, progress and balance — and at the end of July celebrated its 10th
anniversary since opening in 2012. To commemorate its first decade, Yang and the rest of her team launched an inaugural printmaking festival called Printer Jam on Sept. 17-18. The celebration included print and zine vendors, a showcase exhibition and workshops in the studio and other areas around Kendall Whittier.
Throughout the past 10 years, Flash Flood has operated several fundraising web stores, including one in 2020 for Cain’s Ballroom. The online store raised over $13,000 for the music venue by selling a combination of T-shirts, posters and face masks. “Everyone on the team was just sitting around at home feeling really restless, and I think everybody was feeling inspired to pitch in and do as much as we could do to help all our local businesses,” Yang says.
In January 2003, Kathleen Coan was named TulsaPeople’s “Tulsan of the Year.” At the time, Coan was in her 19th year serving as president and CEO for Tulsa Area United Way, and under her leadership the organization had just raised a total of $300 million.
But with her standards and high heels always aimed at the heavens, Coan wasn’t finished yet. By the time she retired amidst the chaos of the December 2007 ice storm, TAUW had raised a total of $425 million under her career tour.
“I’m proud to go around Tulsa and see all these agencies that flourished during her time,” says Coan’s daughter, Jennifer Thompson. “They’ve got these huge buildings now and can serve so many more people. And I can look at them and say to my children, ‘That’s something that Grandma directly helped to build.’”
As a grandmother to four granddaughters, Coan has played a hugely supportive role in their artistic and recreational pursuits — a “grandma endowment,” Thompson calls it, laughing. Until she moved into Montereau retirement community in 2014, Coan also loved to purchase and remodel homes, and she and Thompson had a 30-year tradition of holding Christmas open houses in whichever home Coan had redone that year.
Outside of Flash Flood, Yang is also a bold and vibrant painter and muralist, creating under the name Electrofervor. This year she was one of only two recipients of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition Fellowship Award, which recognizes both an artist’s past achievements and future promise.
more about the
TP
Flood
of Yang’s creations on her Instagram
After moving into Montereau with her standard poodle pal, Teddy, it didn’t take long for Coan to start hosting parties out of her stylish apartment, appearing in marketing campaigns, serving on committees and chairing events. She currently enjoys singing, attending church, going out to lunch with Thompson — Ri Le’s is a favorite — and watching her Green Bay Packers play while decked out in sequined fan regalia.
Plans for Coan’s grand 85th birthday celebration are currently in the works.
— TIFFANY HOWARD
T enacity.That’s the word that comes to mind for volunteer and coordinator Sarah Hicks when she thinks about Sustainable Tulsa, a nonprofit focused on empowering people and businesses to implement sustainable practices.
Founder Corey Williams created Sustainable Tulsa in 2002 after attending a sustainability conference in Oklahoma City. This month, the organization celebrates its 20th anniversary.
“We wanted to make it a safe place for anyone at any level of sustainability, any type of person, any type of organization, to be able to say, ‘I want to learn more about this,’ know(ing) they’d be welcomed in,” Williams says.
Their mission centers on the three P’s: People, Planet and Profit. People, to promote quality of life for all; planet, to encourage environmental stewardship; and profit, to foster responsible economic growth. Over the years, this mission has taken many forms, from creating “green directories” that compile information about local sustainable resources,
to promoting sustainability in schools, to hosting community events.
In 2015, Sustainable Tulsa implemented its most significant program, Scor3card.
“(Scor3card) is a tracking and educational tool program for organizations, businesses and agencies to look at how they can save and engage their employees to reduce waste,” Williams says.
Hicks, who was the first Scor3card coordinator, saw the program’s impact over the years. “I saw a lot of people soften to these ideas and change their daily habits and mindset,” she says.
Hicks also attributes the overall success and impact of Sustainable Tulsa to its founder.
“Corey was relentless, really trying to make (sustainability) something that people could approach in their day-to-day lives. So much was born out of her drive and hard work,” Hicks emphasizes, noting that of Sustainable Tulsa’s 20 years, only about eight of those have been with the support of full-time staff. “Sustainable Tulsa is really built on the back of her conviction.”
As for Williams, she is especially grateful to the volunteers throughout these past 20 years.
“I’m just reminded that it takes a lot of people and patience,” Williams reflects. “When I start thinking about all the people involved, that makes me emotional. It’s such an incredible group of generous and kind people that are really looking toward how to make things better.”
Because of Williams’ tenacity and her volunteers, Scor3card has expanded into seven states and 16 cities. The 20th anniversary also comes along with a new change: Since its Recharge fundraising event Sept. 8, the organization has rebranded and is moving forward as the Sustainability Alliance.
“We wanted to have our name reflect that larger footprint,” Williams says. “We wanted to update our name to be able to meet that demand, and we’re thrilled (for the change.)” TP
To learn more about the Sustainability Alliance, visit thesustainabilityalliance.org.
BY LAURA DENNIS
Local artist Dalvay (Daria DeValve) has had a curiosity for fashion and style since she was a young child, ever expressing her bold and outspoken personality through her wardrobe.
“In elementary school I started to come into my own fashion sense,” she says. “(I) wore tutu dresses, mismatched polka dots and stripes, zebra arm warmers and sequin hats.”
Born in Hartford, Connecticut, and raised in Lone Grove, Oklahoma, until eighth grade, Dalvay found art and creativity wherever she lived, which also included Arizona, Wisconsin and Michigan. Her mother, encouraging and supportive of her creativity from the start, signed her up for sewing lessons when she was 10 years old.
A natural seamstress, Dalvay attended her first overnight fashion camp at Texas Woman’s University at age 11, where she was introduced to clothing construction, design and color theory. From 2014-2019, she attended the Chickasaw Arts Academy, where she really honed her craft of design and learned new skills like weaving and dyeing.
Many of Dalvay’s fashion ideas come from nature. For example, she was inspired by the shaggy and rough texture of the Joshua Tree to create a jumpsuit comprised of more than 10,000 toothpicks that she glued on one by one. Dalvay also loves the challenge of creating something wearable out of unwearable things, which led to a handsewn dress constructed from Chick-Fil-A cups, straws and lids.
Dalvay’s creations have won awards in both the Chickasaw Nation’s Artesian Online Arts Market — her toothpick jumpsuit took first place in the textiles division — and the RT 66 Native Arts Alliance art show competition, where her outfit,
titled “The Mother Road: A Never Ending Journey,” won the Route 66 Purchase Award.
Despite her success, Dalvay says to never expect a fashion line with her name on it. “I have little to no interest in mass producing things I create. I find joy in the happiness someone expresses when I create something specifically for them,” she says. “I’ve started to find my own footprint and style within the fashion design community and hope to continue to cultivate and solidify my craft.”
Dalvay graduated high school in 2020 in Las Vegas and currently attends Oral Roberts University to study another of her passions: dance.
“I became more interested in dance once I started figure skating during my sophomore year in Michigan in 2017,” Dalvay says. “I learned to love interpretive skating while I was on the Las Vegas Theater on Ice team for their first two seasons. I’ve made a few costumes for dance/skating and hope to create even more during my time at ORU.”
Can you make the world better using yarn?
Tulsa’s Knittin’ Kittens proves it’s possible.
Established in the ’90s, the Knittin’ Kittens are a group of seniors, mostly women, who gather weekly to knit and crochet items to donate to various organizations and causes.
They establish a quarterly calendar of projects, which often includes lap robes, scarves and hats for Vintage Housing and other local senior living facilities and nursing homes.
“The ladies who participate take it very seriously — they want to impact lives,” says Carrie Clevenger, volunteer manager for LIFE Senior Services. “They put their heart and soul into their pieces. I think we sometimes dismiss these types of volunteer roles, but it’s love energy — human energy — for the people who receive these handmade items. The isolation of the pandemic has made these types of pieces even more meaningful, in my opinion. When you get something handmade that’s completely unique, it is just that much more special.”
There are two groups of knitters who meet once a week in Brookside at Southminster Presbyterian Church. They bring snacks, supplies and stories to share, all while using their skills to help people in their community.
“They are fun, amazing ladies,” Clevenger says. “Sitting with them often gets me great book recommendations and life recommendations as well.”
Want to get involved? Reach out to LIFE Senior Services to learn about the Tuesday and Friday knit groups.
Rhonda Bear, founder and owner of She Brews Coffee House and Transition Program, used to attend AA meetings in the very building she now roasts her own coffee in at 1 N. Lewis Ave., the Tulsa location for She Brews Coffee House. With two other locations in Claremore, She Brews provides women transitioning out of incarceration and other difficult life circumstances with housing, educational resources, spiritual connection, mentorship and employment at the coffee shops.
In 2002, well before becoming a coffee connoisseur, Bear was newly released from incarceration under the supervision of Stand in the Gap — a nonprofit that has a mentoring program for incarcerated women — which helped her get her children back into her life. Bear’s life-changing experience with Stand in the Gap and desire to help children motivated her to start her own program to help formerly incarcerated women in Claremore transition back into society.
“How can you save a child? The only way I know how to save a child is by saving the mom,” Bear says. “We started with one transition home and a plan … I would lead them to a community that would accept them, provide them safe housing, a Stand in the Gap team and eventually employment through She Brews.”
Bear and her husband began the transition program in 2008 to provide living accommodations, mentorship and, ultimately, a different way of life for the women. Then in 2012 the first She Brews
Coffee House was opened as an opportunity for them to build their resumes and lives upon.
No one knows the impact of the She Brews Coffee and Transition Program better than Tisha Boyd, current wholesale manager for She Brews. After entering the program, Tisha’s goal was to get her children back. “Rhonda just told me ‘Be consistent. Be consistent in communication,’ so I did everything she told me to do,” Boyd explains.
Boyd’s efforts were rewarded in May 2020, when she regained regular visitation rights. Now her youngest son, Tyler, lives with Boyd part time and her two adult children, Addison and Randy, pay regular visits.
“Today, we are all very close and have a great relationship,” Boyd says. “She Brews paved the way for me to have the flexibility to be a mom and a full-time student (at Rhema Bible College) while transitioning from incarceration into a productive member of the community. She Brews gives me great stability and the income needed to care for my children.”
Since the opening of the She Brews Coffee and Transition Program in 2008, Bear and the team have helped over 200 women and over 250 children.
She Brews was recently awarded the Impact Grant from Matt Stansberry, founder and CEO of Nominee brand consultancy, which will give the business a new logo, branding, website, strategic marketing strategies and more. Bear is excited to see where this will lead them.
Starting this month, 35 aspiring and new business owners will participate in Grow Academy, an inaugural program put on through the Tulsa City-County Library. This series of free classes will focus on the elements needed to build a business plan, while also providing a clear idea of what is needed to start and operate a small business.
Grow Academy’s goal is to empower small business owners as they take the massive first step of starting their own business. “Tulsa has a really incredible business ecosystem, and I want to continue and strengthen that sense of connectivity amongst the library, new entrepreneurs and seasoned business owners,” says Heather Lozano, economic and community development librarian, and creator of Grow Academy.
Throughout this 10-month program, participants’ class times are split between speaking with industry experts and librarians. This allows students to learn about each session’s topic with an industry professional before implementing library resources to find the data needed. The first session will include speakers from Tulsa Economic Development Corp., the Oklahoma Small Business Development Center, and economic development librarians who will discuss the tools and funding needed to make small business dreams come true.
As for resources, the library has many extensive databases filled with crucial assets, such as Mergent Intellect, Gale Small Business Builder, BizMiner, Data Axle, D&B Hoovers, Plunkett Research and Demographics Now. Another service unique to TCCL is Research Wizard, which provides in-depth business research to those without the time or expertise needed for specific problems.
Grow Academy applications will be accepted through October 15, and those interested can apply by going to tulsalibrary.org/growacademy. Individual sessions may also be attended by registering as a “pop-in” guest.
The Abbey Mausoleum at Rose Hill Cemetery has had four additions since its conception, the last completed in 1967. Inset, Mausoleum Ambassadress Lola Palazzo.
COMING UP ROSES
BY TIFFANY HOWARD
Designed in the art deco style by California architect Clarence Lee Jay and constructed in 1926, the Abbey Mausoleum at Rose Hill Cemetery is 72,000 square feet of marble and granite opulence. Among those interred within its 4,000 crypts spread over two floors are prominent names most Tulsans would recognize including William G. Skelly, oil tycoon; Adah Robinson, Boston Avenue Methodist Church designer; and Clara Palmer, infamous madam of the May Rooms.
The mausoleum’s every detail — from the Tiffany-style stained glass windows to ornate bronze and iron fixtures — was originally installed in service to creating a worthy “House of Remembrance,” as it was first referred to.
As the cemetery changed hands over the years and eventually fell into receivership, the mausoleum also fell into a state of disrepair. In 2013, when current owners and operators Hal and Karyn Ezzell purchased Rose Hill Funeral Home and Memorial Park of Tulsa, 4161 E. Admiral Place, one of the first issues they wanted to address was the mausoleum’s failed roof.
“It was very disconcerting to the families because every time it would rain, the bottom floor in two hallways would fill with water 2 inches deep,” Hal says.
Besides replacing the roof in 2019, repairs to the mausoleum over the past nine years also have included significant electrical rewiring, scraping peeling paint and plaster, repainting the ceiling,
polishing the floors, and replacing windows and stained glass, among other projects.
In addition to physical repairs, the mausoleum also started to experience a renaissance of vision when longtime Tulsan and creative Lola Palazzo approached the Ezzells in 2019 with an idea.
“For years I’d gone to the Dia de Los Muertos celebration at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery (in Los Angeles, California),” Palazzo says. “I was at the 2019 celebration and also had recently discovered the Rose Hill Mausoleum. I had an epiphany to take this concept back to Tulsa.”
So Palazzo came home and pitched her vision to the Ezzells to turn the mausoleum (or “Mausie,” as she affectionately refers to it) into a respectfully nuanced institution of community and culture. She was officially hired in August 2020 and has been the Abbey’s Ambassadress ever since, heading up the restorative, creative, preservation and outreach efforts. So far she’s put on a summer film screening series and hosted a Grateful Dead celebration event this past spring.
All of this is part of the overarching vision to recast the grounds of Rose Hill as a historically rich spot not just to preserve memories, but to make them as well.
“What Lola and I are trying to accomplish with everything that we’re doing is changing the feel of the cemetery from a traditional cemetery and giving it more of a park-like feel, where people look at it as a community space,” Hal says.
Remaining mausoleum repairs include extensive plumbing work and eventually replacing the $60,000 in bronze handrails that have been stolen. Palazzo is currently conducting research to get the mausoleum placed on the National Register of Historic Places, which would open up funding opportunities for larger capital projects.
If you’d like to glimpse the splendor within the walls of the mausoleum for yourself, you can set up a time to do so with Palazzo by calling 918-835-4421. Make sure to ask her about the fascinating Tulsa history behind the chapel murals, which she worked to hand-restore herself. TP
Attend one of the Mausie’s upcoming events
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS CELEBRATION
6-10 P.M., OCT. 29
$20 at the door, children under 12 free.
VIRGIN MARY WATERCOLOR EXHIBIT BY ARTIST ROMNEY NESBIT DEC. 9-31
Opening night is Dec. 9, 5-8 p.m. and will include cello music and a cash bar.
To find out more about the Mausie’s events, funding, restorative projects and how you can donate, visit theabbeyatrosehill.com, and facebook.com/theabbeymausoleum.
LYRICAL LEGACY
STORIES BY LINDSEY NEAL KUYKENDALL
According to the Cherokee Nation Language Department, there are only 2,000 uent speakers, and over 400 rst language speakers have died in the past three years. With this in mind, Cherokee lmmaker and producer Jeremy Charles was deeply inspired to produce music in the Cherokee language to contribute to keeping the language alive. In September, that dream was realized with a collaborative album.
Produced through Horton Records, the album, titled
(Anvdvnelisgi — pronounced Ah Nuh Duh Nay Lees Gi — translates to “performers”), launched in conjunction with the 2022 Cherokee National Holiday over Labor Day weekend.
e debut album is all original music performed entirely in Cherokee, by Cherokee citizens.
“I had this idea, it’s never been done before,” Charles says. “As far as I know, there is very little to no contemporary music being made in the Cherokee language. ere’s a tradition of gospel in Cherokee and some cover songs, but very few if no original new ones. I was hooked on this idea. I knew it would be very important.
“A lot of people have an idea of what they think Native American music is, but my friend Roy Boney Jr. said, ‘It’s Cherokee if a Cherokee does it.’ It doesn’t have to have utes and drums to be Indigenous music. It’s Indigenous if an Indigenous person does it.”
Charles hopes the album — which features original songs by 12 artists, the youngest being only 14 years old — will inspire more cultural contributions in Cherokee.
“ e biggest deal is the purity of the language performed as the top priority,” he says. It doesn’t do any good if the language isn’t performed well — it’s actually harmful. So from the get-go, working with the translators all the way through the process was important.”
Diversity, culture and continuation of the language was the core mission of the record. “Every artist on the album is a Cherokee citizen and that was a priority of course,” Charles says. He also wanted to represent as many genres as possible, so the album ranges from pop, folk and indie rock to old-time country, rap, heavy metal and even a reggae song.
“ e point is to inspire young people and other people to do this,” he says. “Singing along with it, you absorb the language.” TP
Agalisiga “Chuj” Mackey, 19, is one of the 12 artists featured on “ᎠᏅᏛᏁᎵᏍᎩ.” Participating in the album with an original song and performance was a meaningful way for him to utilize his skills in the Cherokee language — it’s the first he’s written in both English and Cherokee.
“It was inspired by Jimmy Rogers. He’s the grandfather of country music, the roots. I wanted to give tribute to that idea,” Mackey says, citing the yodeler’s bluesy working songs as inspiration.
Mackey wasn’t afraid to sing about dark topics. “One of my favorite lines from the song we did is, ‘You’ll be in a black box.’ That kind of refers not only to a coffin but could also be a space in your mind — a not so happy place,” he says.
Working with his Cherokee-speaking father, Wahde Mackey, to create and translate the song was an important experience for him. The song took about a day to write, Mackey says, but learning the language is a much longer process. “My dad has been learning Cherokee for about 21 years and he knows a lot. It takes quite a lot — even full blood language speakers say they learn things every day,” he says. “The language is so complex, it’s like art.”
Mackey is part of the Cherokee Language Master Apprentice Program, which teaches participants how to converse and carry on the language to future generations. “I hope to inspire other people to learn the language,” he says. “If you want to make movies and shows in Cherokee, you can do it. It’s something that we need and it’s doable. It’s absolutely doable.”
Weed and a woman are at the heart of Los Angeles musician Jorel Decker’s recent move to Tulsa. The lure of Oklahoma’s accommodating cannabis laws and his engagement to Erin Danyelle, owner of Brookside’s Wildflower Market, made the decision to relocate an easy one for the founder and frontman of preeminent nu-metal band Hollywood Undead. With the purchase of a midtown Tulsa home this summer, Decker now has put down some serious Okie roots.
“Tulsa is amazing. I fell in love with it,” he says. “There’s so much art, music and culture out here. We can go watch live music any day, and there are festivals revolving around the community every weekend. Everybody’s very involved; everybody helps each other.”
Two years ago, Decker began to explore the possibility of creating a cannabis business in Oklahoma after a frustrating attempt to establish one under California’s more restrictive and financially burdensome regulations. This year, he launched Ramshead, his Lindsay, Oklahoma-based cannabis cultivation company, with business partner Richard Yarber and bandmate/business partner George Ragan.
“Oklahoma leveled the playing field. It’s basically the Gold Rush all over for people like myself,” Decker says.
When he’s not on tour, Decker, who’s selftaught in every aspect of the business, is deeply involved with Ramshead.
“I have no background in science or horticulture, and I stopped going to school when I was 13, but I fell in love with the science of it,” he says. “Building rooms, horticulture, plumbing, electricity, irrigation — I fell in love with everything about it. I spent all my free time doing it or reading about it.”
Decker’s spent a lifetime discovering and pursuing his passions and encourages others to do the same.
“My advice to everyone, for music or anything else, is find something you’re so obsessed with that you can’t stop,” he says. “I think everybody needs to find that spark inside of them.”
Signature Symphony at Tulsa Community College is one of Tulsa’s many cultural blessings. Established as a small, professional chamber orchestra in 1978, it now includes over 70 professional musicians who teach, coach and perform out of their home base at TCC’s VanTrease Performing Arts Center for Education. This season, Scott Seaton joins the organization as the new artistic director and conductor after a two-year, pandemic-interrupted national search.
Seaton will split his time between Tulsa and California, where he’s in his eighth season as music director of the North State Symphony, a professional, regional orchestra performing in Chico, Redding and northern California.
He’s excited to expand the orchestra’s community presence in dynamic and creative ways. “I think my job as a cultural leader is to show just how impactful symphonic music can be and how ‘not stuffy’ it can be, and how accessible it should be,” he says. “I want to dig in to the community.”
Some of his efforts will focus on education and outreach, collaborating with other community organizations, unique venues and schools to create experiences that integrate the symphony and its music more fully into the city itself.
“Tulsa is such a vibrant city in a relatively compact space, if you think about how many people live here,” he says. “Considering how fantastic the orchestra is, and that essentially 90% of them are from Tulsa, and there’s all this immense talent here — the possibilities are endless. I’m very excited to be part of whatever that future is for us.”
The first concert of the season is “Rachmaninoff and the Dance Floor” on Oct. 1. The deadline to apply for Tulsa Sings!, the Signature Symphony’s vocal talent competition, is Oct. 3.
From its new home near East 18th Street and South Boston Avenue, Radio IDL is blasting the blues across the globe. The internet radio station created by Shannon Moudy — aka Poppa Night — in 2013 has survived a tough few years to emerge with a clearer sense of purpose and an eye to the future.
“Our mission is to preserve, educate and promote,” says eLiz Hollis, the station’s CEO.
Hollis and Moudy have plans to expand the station’s programming to include a wider range of genres and to eventually create a parallel nonprofit. The Radio IDL partners are caretakers for Tulsan Kerry Kudlacek and his extensive blues collection — countless compact discs, records, publications and sheet music amassed over 60 years (see sidebar).
Hollis and Moudy helped the blues scholar, and his impressive archive, recover from a devastating house fire in 2019.
“My goal is that we would have a museum at some point, but more of a listening and educational center for musicians and fans, a place where you can come and stay for a week and just study this music,” Hollis says.
Hollis would tell you the fact that she’s making plans and looking forward to the future is a miracle. Moudy was diagnosed with cancer in January 2021. Since then, the pair has navigated his treatment and a slew of related health challenges while trying to keep their business afloat during a pandemic. It’s been a tremendous challenge, but according to Hollis, there is a light at the end of this long, dark tunnel.
“Two months ago, they told us to get his stuff in order,” Hollis recalls. “But recently they did a CAT scan, blood tests and a DNA test, and there’s not a cancer marker in any of them. It’s a God thing and a doctor thing.”
As Moudy began to regain his health, Radio IDL moved its broadcasting headquarters from its temporary pandemic base in Moudy’s home to the new “SoBo” location at 1918 S. Boston Ave., just a stone’s throw away from the Mercury Lounge.
“We’re kind of slow and steady wins the race, but I can’t do it without him,” says Hollis of her partner in business and life. “For him to live and still want to continue working is such a joy.” Visit radioidl.com for more information.
Kerry KudlacekThousands of records — 78s, 33s, CDs and even Edison wax cylinders for phonographs — make up the collection started by blues historian Kerry Kudlacek. In 63 years, the Tulsan has saved posters and memorabilia telling the story of blues, born from Black Americans in the South and an inspiration to jazz, R&B, rock ‘n’ roll and country music songs popular today.
Kudlacek, 80, has a brick from Muddy Waters’ original home and tells the story behind the Mississippi-born blues musician’s real name, McKinley Morganfield, after President William McKinley
Kudlacek recalls hearing blues music for the first time. “I had relatives that left me an old record, and it was Black music,” he says. It piqued his interest. “I just worked my way backwards.” He started the blues archive while growing up in Oklahoma City, when he was around 14 years old. “My dad would take me to the north part of the city, which is where the Black population lived ... I’d go door to door and offer to buy old records.”
The expansive collection includes articles, sheet music and promotional materials — which Kudlacek copied, clipped and saved bound into books — that date back to 1811. Many of the books are housed at Radio IDL’s studio, but CEO eLiz Hollis says there are rows of stacked boxes in storage that include even more of Kudlacek’s collection. The Radio IDL team is going through the process of inventory now. — BLAYKLEE FREED
BY JULIE WENGER WATSON
With close to 150 artists from about 50 tribal nations, the annual Cherokee Art Market will take place Oct. 8-9 inside the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Tulsa. A world class experience in art, this year’s schedule of events features five live artist demonstrations per day, in media varying from pottery and painting to Native fashion and storytelling.
“That’s our job as artists. We’re visual storytellers,” says multidisciplinary artist Bryan Waytula, who will showcase his talent in colored pencil drawing as one of this year’s live demonstrators. “I try to educate others who might not know that much about Native American history. I try to learn more myself and pass some of that on to those who enjoy and admire the work we do as Native American artists.”
Waytula’s range of media includes colored pencil and charcoal, and he is known for combining traditional culture with contemporary art. This year, he’ll bring a variety of pieces to CAM, from small acrylics and canvas prints to larger competition works. He’ll also have his limited edition, original resin cast “Yona” (which means “bear” in Cherokee) sculptures, that are only available for purchase in person.
For Waytula, a third-generation Cherokee artist, art is more than a profession — it’s a family legacy. His grandmother, Betty Scraper-Garner, and mother, Vivian Cottrell, are both Cherokee National Treasures in the art of basketry. Waytula and his mother often share a booth at CAM.
Deborah Fritts, CAM coordinator, is thrilled this year’s event will be in person after two years of a virtual market.
“It’s like a family reunion every year,” she says. “I really love the feel of CAM. The artists sit out there, talking to each other and talking to the public. It’s nice and relaxing, and kind of homey.”
Fritts emphasizes that CAM is welcoming to everyone.
“You don’t have to be Native to enjoy Native art, and you don’t have to be a big collector,” she says. “At CAM, you can talk to the artists directly and get to know them and learn about their art.” TP
For more information, visit cherokeeartmarket.com.
Lunchtime on a workday. You’ve got a sandwich you made the night before, maybe also a piece of fruit or bag of chips. You might’ve gone a little crazy and thrown in a mini cupcake. You have two options: sit with your meal in the break room and stream Netflix on your phone, or sit with your meal at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second St., and enjoy a free, 40-minute concert.
Such is the experience offered by the PAC’s Brown Bag It concert series. A staple since the 1990s, Brown Bag It concerts are open to the public, entirely free, informal and friendly to lunch eaters.
“The series allows us to open our doors and to create and deepen relationships with both the audience and music artists that may otherwise not attend or perform in our facility,” says Terri McGilbra, the PAC’s director of programming.
After a brief pandemic hiatus, Brown Bag It returns to the PAC on Oct. 5 with a performance from Monica Taylor and Travis Fite, who will play songs from “Anvdvnelisgi,” the Cherokee-language album recently released by Horton Records. (See p. 24 for more on this.)
The next concerts in the series are Dec. 7 with the Festival Bell Ringers (“an annual holiday favorite,” McGilbra says); followed by March 1 and JazzThis! with duo Carl and Elizabeth Curtis playing beloved jazz standards; then May 3 with a celebration of musical theater legends Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II by a multifarious team of performers.
Visit tulsapac.com/brown-bag-it for times and more information.
Cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Kryston Boyer loves OSU’s culture of care so much, she came back to practice here after her fellowship at Harvard’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
An alumna of the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, she is delighted to be back home and working with the cardiovascular team at OSU Medicine.
“The people at OSU Medicine and the relationships I developed during my training and residency are what brought me back to OSU. There is truly no place like it.”
Learn more about our culture of care at osumedicine.com.
How a brilliant cardiothoracic surgeon followed her heart back to
The identities and histories explored in Osage and Cherokee artist Joe Don Brave’s paintings encompass this year’s theme for the sixth annual Tulsa Native American Day celebration — “Our Journey Continues.” That’s why the Pawhuska resident will provide the themed art for the events on Oct. 10.
His painting “Under the Arbor” depicts the dance arbor in Hominy, the heart of Osage County where Brave grew up. “At age 9, my parents relocated our family to Osage County, Oklahoma, home to my Osage people, where I remained until I left for college,” he says. “I grew up immersed within the traditions and customs of the Osages and, for 40 years, (have actively participated) in our annual traditional ceremonial dances.”
Brave was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in
1965. His father, an artist and graphic designer, nicknamed a young Brave “Joe Don” after University of Oklahoma football legend Joe Don Looney. Brave credits his father for inspiring his art career, which includes work in regional and national museums.
Find Brave and many more Indigenous artists on Oct. 10 at Dream Keepers Park, 1875 S. Boulder Park Drive. Events kick off at 9 a.m. and include artists and vendors with merchandise, a parade at 11 a.m. and exhibition dancing from 2:30-4 p.m. Visit facebook.com/tulsanativeamericanday for more information.
Brave learned “the fundamentals of art and museum studies” at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and began his career in the early ’80s as a museum technician at the Osage Nation Museum in Pawhuska. His career continued at the National Museum of the American Indian Smithsonian Institute in New York City, where he was an integral member of the team that moved the collection from Harlem to the Bronx in New York and then to Maryland.
Through his art, Brave shares his identity as well as the history of a people. “I am the son of the Osage, part of its history and a product of its many changes, endured over time,” he says. “I am a citizen of the world (and) seek to define my identity and place within these two worlds — which are but one.”
ALTHOUGH CURRENTLY CLOSED, GILCREASE MUSEUM LOOKS TO CONNECT ITS COLLECTION TO LOCALS THROUGHOUT THE CITY. STORIES BY BLAYKLEE FREED
Gilcrease Museum is closed for reconstruction, but staffers are installing the first round of select works around Tulsa to bring parts of the collection to local neighborhoods and partner sites through the Gilcrease in Your Neighborhood program.
One reproduction from the collection will be on display in 31 Tulsa-area locations for three months, explains Alison Rossi, Gilcrease director of learning and community engagement.
“Forest Scene” by Pop Chalee (Taos Pueblo) is the first of three installments and will be on display through Jan. 21. Each of the three installments will be on display for three months, with a month in between each installment to swap out the art.
Locations span the city and include parks, libraries, shops and community centers. Partner locations weighed in on the order each piece would be displayed. “We chose them in order of seasonality, because our partners told us a lot of them are thinking about programming that relates to seasons,” Rossi says. “(‘Forest Scene’) is perfect for late fall and winter.”
Chalee’s “Forest Scene” is one of her many depictions of a quaint, perhaps magical, forest. “(Chalee talks) about this childhood memory — I feel like so many of us could probably relate to this — of laying on the ground in the forest and looking up,” Rossi says. “She could see the animals around her, she could see the canopy of trees, she could see the birds flying above her and the butterflies and (shared what a) time of peace that was for her.”
“Forest Scene” by Pop Chalee (Taos Pueblo) is tempera on paper and a part of the Gilcrease Museum collection that will be on display as part of the Gilcrease in Your Neighborhood program. High-quality collection reproductions will be framed like one would see at a museum, and depending on the location will either hang on a wall inside, or be attached to posts outside. Be on the lookout for at least one location at which the art will be reproduced on cling film and attached to an outside facing set of windows and doors.
While the project is educational, Rossi notes it’s largely about community engagement — with art, with the museum and with each other. “I hope it can be a place, whether that’s a virtual place or physical space, where people can have some shared experience,” Rossi says. “We might be totally opposite ends of the political spectrum, or age groups, or we live in different parts of the city … but maybe we’re creating together, maybe we’re talking about something together.”
Museum staff worked with the public to select the three final works for display through a voting process that took place both online and in-person. The aspect of community engagement is key to this project, and to the museum’s mission, Rossi says. “We want to make sure to be responsive to what people are saying, because this is the city’s museum,” she says.
Gilcrease in Your Neighborhood is an effort to engage Tulsans while the physical museum is
closed, Rossi says. It’s also a chance to show pieces in the massive collection that might otherwise not see the light of day.
“We have these 400,000 objects in the collection. We can never access all of them at the same time. Part of the reason why we got the Vision package from the City to be able to rebuild the museum is to have more of our collection on display,” Rossi says.
No construction completion date has been set, but the museum is estimated to reopen in late 2024 or early 2025. TP
The city-wide pop-up art experience officially kicks off with the Forest Festival from 1-5 p.m., Oct. 23 at Central Library, 400 Civic Center. By then, Rossi expects “Forest Scene” to be installed at all locations. Find the full list of installation locations at TulsaPeople.com.
A full day of live music and football is scheduled for Oct. 8 at Fur Shop for the inaugural Fur Fest, spotlighting local bands like headliner Manta Rays. Fur Fest Director Carter Combs got the idea for the festival because he frequents Fur Shop, 520 E. Third St., which has an indoor stage and two outdoor stages, but he noticed the stages were largely unused. So Combs and Fur Shop partnered to fill the stages with acts from Brother Rabbit, Knipple, Oklahoma City alt-rockers Pabu and more for a day of music. Tickets are $16.50, a price Combs is pleased with. “We’re trying to take pride in doing this, like let’s just make this a cheap full-day event for everyone,” he says.
The doors open at 11 a.m. ahead of the University of Oklahoma-University of Texas game, which will be projected on the big screen inside the local bar and music venue. Afterwards, the festival’s 10 acts — eight bands and two acoustic artists — take the stages inside and out. Local singer/songwriter Dan Martin kicks off the music with an acoustic show indoors around 1:30 p.m. after the game. “That’s the first step and everything will follow suit,” Combs says. Find tickets at fansub.com/e/furfest, or purchase them at the door.
BY BLAYKLEE FREED
If you hang out long enough at The Center for Individuals with Physical Challenges, you might run into Ms. Mamie on her way to one of her many activities, or giving a tour of the complex where she works out, plays sports and creates a vast portfolio of art.
“She’ll catch people in the hall and bring them in here to paint,” says Lisa Zarrow, The Center’s visual arts instructor. Members of The Center can attend art classes with Zarrow, who uses her art history degree and background teaching to connect students with the right resources to hone their talents.
While the Hardesty Family Adaptive Sports Complex offers a gym, pool and other fitnessbased physical therapy facilities and classes, Zarrow notes art can be beneficial in similar ways, exercising fine motor skills and strengthening artists’ hands, wrists and arms.
This summer, the Achieving Dreams Art Gallery — which runs the span of the corridor between The Center’s main facility and into the Sports Complex — opened to showcase artwork from The Center’s members. In the studio, Ms. Mamie, aka Mamie Byas, who has been a member of The Center since 2018, notes that visitors and potential new members notice the paintings that pack the walls. When they say they like the art, she tells them, “All the art on the walls is done by the students in the art room,” and encourages visitors to make something, too. When they say they can’t make art, Ms. Mamie tells them: “There’s no such word as can’t.”
As Ms. Mamie, who fostered her creative skills for decades as a preschool teacher, shares her experiences with new artists, fellow artists Keith Kern and John Olivas agree — “Don’t say can’t,” echos Kern. He’s been making art for about
a year and became a member at The Center after a motorcycle wreck. Olivas had a stroke in 2015, which caused him to retire. He moved to Tulsa from California a few years ago — because his kids live here, and the economy is more manageable — but he’s also found a vital community at The Center.
Like the newbies Ms. Mamie describes, Olivas didn’t think he could draw. He’d never been an artist before, and the stroke damaged his dominant (right) side. “I learned how to draw and develop motor skills I did not have,” he says. Now his portfolio is vast, and many of his creations decorate the studio. He shows a textured painting with straight, solid black lines dividing vibrant and pastel hues.
Olivas is colorblind, so he sees color more in tones of bright and dark than different hues. “But I know what colors to mix because of that lady right there,” he says, pointing to Zarrow. “That is what she does. She teaches us skills we don’t have. I had a hard time with color. Now I (read the bottles) and mix my own paint.”
All three artists credit Zarrow and previous instructor Sally Ramirez for connecting them with adaptive tools like tape and no-slip grippers that slide under paper and hold it in place. Some paintbrushes have tennis balls as a handle.
See work by these artists and others at the Achieving Dreams Art Gallery, 1707 E. 11th St., by calling 918-584-8607 to schedule an appointment. All of the artwork is for sale, with 80% going back to the artist and the remaining 20% to replenishing The Center’s supplies. Find Ms. Mamie’s art 24/7 in her online gallery, mamiebyas.com, and find work from dozens of artists at The Center’s annual Holiday Mart from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
4-7 P.M., OCT. 6
Be a part of Tulsa’s iconic movie theater — learn all about the perks of Circle Cinema membership at a free afternoon of entertainment. Courtesy snacks and drinks will be provided, meet other movie lovers and Circle members, and get a sneak peek at all the great films and events coming to Circle Cinema this fall and winter, including major awardcontending films. Free admission.
Celebrate the 100th anniversary of the silent classic that kickstarted the horror genre with special screenings throughout October. F.W. Murnau’s “Nosferatu” stars Max Schreck as the vampiric Count Orlok, and the feature will be presented with different styles of live scores to see it like never before.
9 P.M., OCT. 15, 16:
“Nosferatu” with live score by Tulsa composer Dustin Edward Howard with support from Play Tulsa Music. Dustin’s eerie looping synths mixed with ethereal lights and fog will highlight the horror aspects of the film, accentuating all the things that go bump in the night.
8 P.M., OCT. 29:
“Nosferatu” with live score by Austin-based experimental folk rock band the Invincible Czars. The six-piece band will transport viewers back 100 years via an age-old tale accompanied by a chilling, tastefully modern score featuring an impressive blend of traditional acoustic and present-day electric instruments.
7:30 P.M., OCT. 5; 3 P.M., OCT. 9
In celebration of 50 years of Billy Joel, the piano man comes to the big screen for a special two-night fan event. Joel’s legendary 1990 concert at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx stands as one of the greatest concert films of all time. Shot in 16mm color film, the original concert has been meticulously remixed and edited in stunning 4K with Dolby Atmos audio. The newly edited version includes a never-before-released performance of “Uptown Girl” along with interviews from Joel and behind-the-scenes footage from the event’s production.
Dario Argento, legendary Italian horror director of “Suspiria” and “Deep Red,” returns with his first feature in 10 years. Diana, a young woman who lost her sight, finds a guide in a Chinese boy named Chin. Together they will track down a dangerous killer through the darkness of Italy.
See the film that inspired “Star Wars.” Akira Kurosawa’s 1958 action classic “The Hidden Fortress” returns for one night only with the CineDOOM series sponsored by the Tulsa Artist Fellowship. Special introduction by Blackhorse Lowe (CineDOOM curator, Tulsa Artist Fellow and award-winning writer, director and producer). In the film, two greedy peasants lured by gold unknowingly escort a princess and her general across enemy lines.
Compiled by Circle Cinema’s Ryan Thomas. Visit circlecinema.org for pricing and more information.
F or local author Julia Bryan omas, writing has been a lifelong love that began with swapping poems and stories with her grandmother via snail mail when she was young.
Born and raised in Tulsa, she grew up studying literature, and becoming an author always felt like a matter of when — not if — to the Nathan Hale graduate. Now she’s working on her fourth novel, writing full time after a 25-year career teaching first grade.
Thomas’ latest book, “For Those Who Are Lost,” tells the story of a woman’s split-second decision that will affect a family for decades following World War II.
“So much has been written already about World War II, and I tried very hard to tell an accurate, interesting tale using an angle that had not already been covered,” she says.
During her research process, Thomas came across the staggering fact that over 5,000 children were evacuated from the English Channel Island of Guernsey in a single day, not long before the Nazis invaded. “For months afterwards, I couldn’t stop thinking about what it must have been like
for those families to make a snap decision to send their children away,” she says.
“For Those Who Are Lost” begins shortly before the Nazi occupation of Guernsey, when a mother and father reluctantly decide to send their children, Catherine and Henry, to England with their teacher. However, on that fateful day at the docks, the teacher’s sister takes her place, and upon docking in England decides to take Catherine with her, leaving Henry to fend for himself.
Thomas finished the first draft of her novel in only three months during the pandemic lockdown. Now she looks ahead to her next book, “The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club,” which tells the story of “four students at Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and their experiences during their first year of college,” she says. The novel is set to come out June 6, 2023.
When the Tulsa local isn’t writing, she can be found reading, baking or dabbling in her garden. TP
Grimm’s latest children’s book is about an intriguing and mysterious little woman who, upon turning age 105, does something completely out of the ordinary.
This eye-catching thriller follows Herb, a social media manipulator specializing in blackmail and character assassination as he descends into a dark world of celebrity sociopaths and murder. Herb might be trying to develop a conscience — but that won’t stop him from getting his money.
BY DANNY FREEMAN
This Tulsan’s first novel spins the classic coming of age storyline into a more modern struggle as it weaves through the sexual awakening of two gay teens as they journey to find self-acceptance in the 1990s.
— ALEXA MOSTROM
COMPILED
1
CREATE Gala
Benefits ahha Tulsa.
CREATEGALA.ORG
Autumn in the Botanic Garden
Benefits Tulsa Botanic Garden.
TULSABOTANIC ORG
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RibCrib Pitmasters Golf Tournament Benefits local charities.
RIBCRIBGOLF
Tulsa Hall of Fame
Benefits Tulsa Historical Society and Museum.
TULSAHISTORY ORG
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Cooking for a Cause Benefits Iron Gate.
IRONGATETULSA ORG
Silver Link Awards
Benefits Public Relations Society of America.
PRSATULSA.COM/SILVER LINK AWARDS
Benefits Lindsey House.
LINDSEYHOUSE ORG
Benefits Little Light House.
LITTLELIGHTHOUSE ORG
Benefits Parkside Psychiatric Hospital and Clinic.
PARKSIDEINC ORG
Human Nature Benefits Up With Trees.
UPWITHTREES ORG
Pink Ribbon
Benefits Oklahoma Project Woman. OKLAHOMAPROJECTWOMAN ORG
Benefits Pathways Adult Learning Center.
PATHWAYSOK ORG
Benefits Kendall Whittier Main Street.
Benefits Zarrow Pointe programs.
Benefits Teen Challenge Oklahoma.
Benefits Resonance Center for Women.
28-30
Tulsa Zoo.
Sky High for Kids, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting children undergoing treatment for cancer and other life-threatening conditions, hosted its inaugural Tulsa Ladies Who Brunch event on May 15 at the Mayo Hotel. The 300 guests in attendance were welcomed by guest of honor Shagah Zakerion, pediatric cancer survivor and patient advocate, and the guest speaker was Dr. Kayse Shrum, president of Oklahoma State University. Event attendees were treated to brunch, a fashion show put on by pediatric patient survivors and rousing live and silent auctions in which Tulsa firefighters assisted with enlivening the crowd.
In conjunction with the inaugural Tulsa Golf Tournament on April 26 at the Patriot Golf Club in Owasso, $426,000 was raised in total to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and 32 patients attending Saint Francis’ Camp Strong, a one-week overnight camp for children with cancer and heart conditions and their siblings.
2. Event Emcee Brittany Franklin, Sky High for Kids CEO and founder
3. Hollace Costello, patient fashion show participant
4. Matt Lay, union president for the Tulsa Fire Department, assists with the live auction.
5. Artist Tracy Jennings, right, with her piece titled “One in a Million” and Ashley Hughes, who purchased the painting in support of Sky High.
Around 200 guests gathered at Catoosa’s Bella Donna Event Center on July 8 in support of the RT 66 Native Arts Alliance, a nonprofit that creates opportunity for the education, display and promotion of Native art and artisans on Route 66. Attendees enjoyed a buffet-style feast that included a roasted pig by Walkie Meats and additional sides provided by Reasor’s. The gala honoree was Victoria Mitchell Vazquez, recognized Cherokee National Treasure for her skill and knowledge in pottery and traditional Cherokee art forms. The evening’s activities included live music, a fashion show and both a live and silent auction. Overall, a total of $17,500 was raised to go toward the events, classes, art shows, artists’ support and operating costs of the RT66NAA and Vault Gallery in Catoosa, where visitors can view art and Native artists creating live on-site daily.
1. Gala Honoree Victoria Mitchell Vazquez, RT66NAA Vice President Crystal Hanna, RT66NAA President Betsy Swimmer and RT66NAA Treasurer Angie McAfee
2. Keith Austin, Cherokee Nation tribal councilor and Angie McAfee auction a painting by Cherokee artist Traci Rabbit.
3 Among the guests in attendance were members of the Cherokee Nation Honor Guard.
4. Live music was provided by the Rosie Gorrell Band.
1. Guest of Honor Shagah Zakerion, Co-Chair Ashley Whitby, Co-Chair Lilac Guzman and Ari Guzman, Lilac’s daughter
BY GAIL BANZET-ELLIS
The Tulsa Historical Society and Museum will honor its 36th class of Hall of Fame recipients with a black-tie dinner and induction ceremony on Oct. 3 at Southern Hills Country Club. The signature fundraising event for THSM is an opportunity to recognize champions of Tulsa who have made a positive impact in multiple ways across the city.
“It’s not about being the best in your field,” says Maggie Jewell, THSM development and special projects director. “We’re looking for people who step out of that role, whatever the industry segment might be, and do other things for the betterment of the community.”
THSM members nominate potential recipients, and an anonymous annual committee selects the class from the list of candidates. Jewell says the 2022 class represents a cross section of Tulsa’s inspiring leaders and civic servants.
Siblings Donna Dutton, Peggy Tanner and A.H. “Chip” McElroy II are the third generation of their family to call Tulsa home. Their great-grandfather arrived in Indian Territory in the 1880s, and their grandfather and father were born in the city. When the siblings’ parents, Art and Panny McElroy, established McElroy Manufacturing in the family garage in March 1954, it launched a family dynasty that is still going strong today.
“By the time our dad died in 1988, my brother and sister and I were already back at the company working full time,” Dutton says. “My mother stayed on as CEO and chairman of the board until 1996 and paved the way for a strong transition to the next generation.”
Through 2016, the three siblings worked together daily, along with their spouses, who were also involved in McElroy Manufacturing.
“The six of us are all very good friends,” Dutton says. “We work together and play together, and for that we are eternally grateful.”
Each of the siblings has volunteered for causes and organizations related to interests outside of the business, but McElroy Manufacturing also has supported several philanthropic endeavors.
“We have touched quite a few boards and nonprofits, and they’ve all been wonderful people to work with — great staff s, dedicated to their missions,” Dutton says.
McElroy Manufacturing has sponsored the Make a Difference Monday and Community Spotlight programs at ONEOK Field during Tulsa Drillers games, and it encourages employees to read with Tulsa school children through Reading Partners. The siblings’ involvement in various organizations such as Girl Scouts and the United Way reflects their company’s priorities in the community.
“Giving back was always part of our family culture,” Tanner says. “As a company, we’ve been able to support the development of Gathering Place and the Gilcrease Museum renovation. We’ve also had the opportunity to see our employees participate alongside us in activities with the Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma, Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Tulsa Area United Way,” as well as Teach for America, the Pencil Box and Global Gardens. Other organizations the siblings have supported include University of Tulsa, Indian Nations Council of Boy Scouts of America, All Souls Unitarian Church, and Tulsa Historical Society and Museum.
The siblings view their hometown as a city of kindness. Dutton says Tulsa’s current renaissance has unveiled the city’s potential to expand cultural and educational opportunities that encourage young professionals to stay in Tulsa and raise their families.
“It’s always been our privilege to share the history of Oklahoma and Tulsa with our visitors,” Tanner says. “I love how the Tulsa Historical Society and Museum continues to tell the stories
of Tulsa and is a repository of historical artifacts for the city.”
A Ponca City native, Neill set the tone for his civic engagement in 1977 as an associate at Tulsa’s Conner and Winters law firm, often conducting free public service representation. Later, he held executive roles at Samson Investment Co., which led to 37 years of service with the Schusterman Family and its Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies. Neill retired in 2018.
“The family was very encouraging and helpful as we developed what would become a thriving LGBTQ support network that works not only in the Tulsa area but throughout the state,” he says.
Neill cofounded Oklahomans for Equality in 1980 and served as the organization’s first president, advocating for equal rights for the LGBTQ community while providing important support services and programs. The Dennis R. Neill Equality Center, 621 E. Fourth St., is named in his honor.
“We live in a very divided society, but my hope is Tulsa can be a great example of coming together as a whole to address critical needs of its citizens in what will be a truly diverse and inclusive community,” he says.
Neill’s board involvement has included Tulsa Regional Chamber, Tulsa Regional STEM Alliance and the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice, among others. He also has served on the boards of Tulsa Area United Way, Youth Services of Tulsa, ACLU of Oklahoma, Reading Partners, Teach for America and the Tulsa Human Rights Commission. His current volunteer responsibilities are with the American Red Cross, the Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corp. and Oklahomans for Equality.
Looking forward, Neill and his partner of 34 years, John Southard, plan to remain committed to direct volunteer service.
“I’m honored and overwhelmed to join the current and past inductees who have done so much to help our community and state address important needs and overall quality of life,” he says.
Turnbo is a legend among public relations professionals in the Tulsa area.
He played baseball at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College, before earning a scholarship to play at the University of Tulsa. His TU bachelor’s degree launched a career in communications, serving as the university’s sports information director and later becoming a public relations account executive and vice president at one of the state’s largest advertising agencies. He created his own public relations firm in 1981.
Turnbo eventually merged with Schnake and Associates Inc., now Schnake Turnbo Frank,
where he serves today as chairman emeritus in Tulsa. He remains involved in client management including strategic planning, consulting, executive coaching, community outreach and media relations.
Turnbo’s community engagement involves 45 years of service to organizations such as TU, the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice, John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation, Tulsa Community College Foundation, Domestic Violence Intervention Services, Tulsa Regional Chamber, LIFE Senior Services and Will Rogers Memorial Foundation.
As Turnbo built his life in Tulsa, he says his beloved late wife, Norma, served the community alongside him through their 41 years of marriage.
“She was very active in the Assistance League, the Iron Gate ministry at Trinity Episcopal Church and many other things that made me incredibly proud of her,” Turnbo says.
For four years, Unterman and her family survived deprivation, disease, forced labor and the confiscation of their belongings while living in Lodz, Poland during Nazi occupation. In 1944, she was transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, then moved to a labor camp in Dresden, Germany, before liberation in 1945.
“I’m so fortunate to have survived as a child,” says Unterman, who turns 90 this month. “I feel it’s my obligation to remember the past and work with teachers on Holocaust education.”
Unterman married Herb Unterman , an American soldier she met in Germany. When his job relocated from Midland, Texas, to Tulsa in 1961, she knew the community would become an important part of her life.
“Our son, Steve, had just turned 5 and was starting kindergarten,” she says. “I had moved so many times as a child, and I wanted for him to have a place we could call home.”
The family later welcomed daughter Michelle, and Unterman gradually found her voice as one of Tulsa’s foremost Holocaust educators. Her resilience and strength are known far and wide after four decades of speaking to Tulsa area schools.
“Tulsa is growing, and our economy is good, but the city has a sad history when it comes to race relations,” she says. “I hope we can all get along, for goodness’ sake.”
Unterman also is passionate about protecting the environment, combating climate change, preserving human rights and addressing Oklahoma’s teacher shortage. She is a longtime board member at The Synagogue/Congregation B’nai Emunah in Tulsa and received its highest honor in 2019. Unterman has been recognized by the Jewish Federation of Tulsa, the National Conference for Community and Justice, the Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry Interfaith Understanding and the Mayor’s Commission on the Status of Women.
The candles are lit. The smell of saffron and cardamom is in the air.
A lantern path lights its way to the front door. It’s time for Diwali. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is a major holiday in India and among Hindus worldwide, including in Tulsa. This year the celebration begins Oct. 24.
It’s an important day for the Sood family (Drs. Sanjiv and Alka Sood and their daughter, Dr. Umang Sood), known and loved by many Tulsans through their pediatric medicine practice, Birth and Beyond Pediatrics.
TulsaPeople was invited to take a peek into the Sood family’s Diwali celebration — to experience the lights, the gifts, the food and the magic that all make it so special.
Umang credits her parents for instilling the traditions that are now so important to her and her children, 6-year-old Naina and 3-year-old Sahil
“It was very clear to my parents they were raising kids in America, but it was also very clear they were raising Indian kids,” Umang says. “And I understand that — it’s up to me to instill Indian culture and values in my kids.”
Diwali is a five-day festival, a celebration of light over darkness. For some, it is a more cultural holiday, but for others it has deep religious meaning, rooted in the story of Rama, who returned to his kingdom after defeating an evil demon and serving 14 years of exile.
In symbolic preparation for his return, many Hindus will clean house, buy new clothes and decorate in the days leading up to Diwali.
Umang says some families will buy new cookware for the kitchen, turn on
all the lights in the house, shoot fireworks or light sparklers.
“There’s a general feeling of celebration of good conquering over evil, of light over darkness,” Umang says. “As a little kid, it’s a fun and exciting time.”
Umang says that while she has always celebrated Diwali with her family, having children of her own has made her appreciate it even more.
“In some ways, we became more intentional about it. We tell the kids, ‘Diwali is coming!’ My daughter likes to read her book about Diwali and help my mom decorate her house,” Umang says. “More than anything, it’s taken on a bigger presence. There’s the joy of experiencing it through my kids’ eyes. We’ve become more intentional about lighting the candles, decorating the house, getting sweets and getting presents to exchange.”
Food is a big part of the holiday. For the Soods, they celebrate with a vegetarian meal of Indian favorites, including lots of snacks and sweets.
“If something good happens, you start a new job or something like that, you’re supposed to have something sweet in your mouth. Sweets are a big part of Diwali,” Umang says.
One of the Sood family’s favorite Diwali treats is gulab jamun — little warm pieces of fried dough, like doughnut holes, in a rose water syrup.
Other Diwali sweets include jalebi, a spiced sweet bread, shaped into a spiral and fried, then soaked in sugar syrup; laddu, a sweet bread often made with chopped nuts or raisins; barfi, a cookie-like sweet often made with pistachios; and halva, a candy-like treat made with semolina flour.
It wouldn’t be Diwali without rangoli, one of the Sood children’s favorite
Various Indian sweets make up a family-style Diwali celebration.parts of the holiday. Rangoli is an art form of colorful patterns made on the floor or table using colored sand or quartz powder. Her children use vibrant colors and stencils to make fun designs.
Umang says Diwali has become more mainstream in the U.S., making it easier to find decorations like banners and wall decorations to hang. All of that is part of the fun for the Soods, who often give an open invitation to friends and neighbors to celebrate Diwali together with dinner and sweets among colorful decorations.
“Traditions are what ground us. We use them as our code of conduct, our coat of arms. It’s what makes you, you,” Umang says. “With modern families, we don’t sit down at the table as much as we used to. But we have these family traditions to bring us together.
“Especially for us, as minorities in this country, being able to grasp onto something that makes you unique in a positive way is important. It anchors you, grounds you, gives you a good foundation. In a world where it’s so easy for people to get lost, family traditions are important — and they bring color to the world.”
Melonie Totty participated with daughter Ariana in the Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma’s Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program, which is marking 20 years in operation. Over its two decades, the program has served thousands of children and moms through its monthly meetings where bonding, learning and supportive activities take place.
Longtime Girl Scouts program ensures incarcerated moms stay connected to their children.
BY KRISTI EATONriana Totty was just 2 years old when her mom went to prison. Melonie Totty would spend the next 17 years behind bars watching her toddler grow into a young adult. Fortunately, Melonie became aware of a program of the Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma that would provide an opportunity to see her only child on a regular basis without distractions from other family members. As a participant of Girl Scouts Beyond Bars, “We got to spend one-on-one time together each month,” says Melonie, who was released earlier this year. “It was important to our relationship.”
Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of women in prison in the U.S. The Children of Incarcerated Parents Task Force reports an estimated 4,600 children in the state have an incarcerated mother — and most of those children previously only lived with their mother.
Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma’s Girl Scouts Beyond Bars has served as many as 500 children each year. It is a childhood-long program, as long as the mother is incarcerated, that provides comprehensive services, transportation and programs. While it is not the first nor the only council to conduct the program, the Eastern Oklahoma program does serve the most children per year, and local leaders have been called upon to share best practices with other Girl Scouts councils.
Data shows children who have an incarcerated parent are about three times more likely to become incarcerated themselves. In the 20 years Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma has been running the program, not a single girl who has participated has been sentenced to incarceration in the state of Oklahoma. Several thousand children and moms have participated over the 20 years.
“I think it’s hard to be a girl today,” says Regina Moon, president and CEO of Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma. “I think it’s hard to be a parent today. And we know some of our girls face multiple hardships. This program, Girl Scouts Beyond Bars, really speaks to that very specific audience of girls whose mothers have been incarcerated. We know this program is needed.”
Moon added Oklahoma currently ranks among the highest in the nation in terms of ACE scores — which stands for adverse childhood experiences — for young people.
“So we know there are a lot of issues out there that we, being on the frontlines with girls from pre-K up through high school, can have an influence on and can make their lives better,” she says. “When we are able to offer this program, with the ultimate goal being reunification of the mother and daughter and the building of the relationship, we know that we are contributing to this breaking the cycle of intergenerational incarceration.”
The Eastern Oklahoma chapter of Girl Scouts Beyond Bars started 20 years ago, with a grant from Girl Scouts USA.
“With Oklahoma being so high in the numbers for incarcerating women, we submitted for the grant
and received the seed money to be able to support these children and these families,” says Program Manager Shannon Luper, who was working with a prison ministry when she heard about the new program. She started volunteering, doing so for more than a year before she joined as a staff member.
The program initially had five girls enrolled with two mothers at the Turley Correctional Center in Turley, Oklahoma, she says. The program expanded to Mabel Bassett Correctional Facility in McLoud and Dr. Eddie Warrior Correctional Center in Taft, and currently provides programming at these two sites.
The program is not only open to Girl Scouts, but also to siblings of girls in the program. The kids are picked up around town and then make the drive to one of the two facilities, Luper says. Once at the facility, there is a lot of singing and activities. Moms are told about the day’s events at a prior meeting ahead of their kids coming. Moms also deliver words of wisdom. Throughout it all, the moms and children are monitored to make sure everything is in order.
Luper says the program also provides a safe space for children to ask questions, like, “How did mom get to where she is?” It gives the opportunity for kids to learn how some decisions have severe consequences. “It gives them an open door to be able to stop and think about what decisions they’re making, and if they’re going to end up on a bad path or not.”
For some of the children, the once-a-month meetings are the only opportunities they will have to see their mothers. Along with bonding activities,
visit topics can range from how to handle anger and building a support system, to understanding how mom became incarcerated and developing a positive identity.
“The majority of our children actually lived with mom, prior to them being incarcerated,” she adds. “Imagine not only the traumas that the child is faced with on that particular day — seeing their mom handcuffed and arrested and escorted away — but also that you’re automatically homeless. So you have no say in what’s going on in your life, who you’re going to live with, if you’re going to be with your siblings, if you’re going to be separated. All of these things happen instantly for these children.”
Reconnecting with mom, Luper says, gives the children the opportunity to learn it’s not their fault.
For Ariana, one of the activities she remembers the most during her time in the program was creating a recipe book that incorporated different recipes from the moms. Melonie included a recipe for a cake — a cookie and soda concoction that cooks in the microwave.
As Ariana determines her next steps, Melonie has started cosmetology classes. There continues to be firsts for the two — like a recent visit to Gathering Place — with a strong relationship evident as the pair experiences the world around them. Today the two are learning to live together as mom and daughter after nearly two decades apart. Thanks, in no small part, to the interaction they were able to have as part of Girl Scouts Beyond Bars. TP
Regina Moon, president and CEO of Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma, outside the Hardesty Leadership Center with Girl Scouts Beyond Bars Program Manager Shannon Luper. The council is recognizing 20 years of its landmark program that connects incarcerated women with their children for monthly one-on-one visits.
he Little Light House can simply be described as an amazing place. The moment a child walks in, he/she will be greeted with nothing but acceptance, kindness, and unwavering love. This is truly the perfect place for children with various forms of special needs to excel and thrive in a warm and nurturing environ ment. The Little Light House is special in many ways. One of the greatest gifts it provides is an education for children with special needs completely free of charge. There are few, if any, places like this in the nation, and it sets the bar by helping its students reach their full potential.
The Little Light House also provides the best educators, therapy teams, and administrative support staff in town. The facility is second to none, and
significant financial resources have been utilized to accomplish all of the goals set each year for its students. As a 501(c) non-profit organization, The Little Light House relies heavily on fundraising events and financial sup port from individuals and businesses throughout the region. Without this financial support, The Little Light House would not be able to provide the miracles they do on a daily basis. Please consider donating to this great orga nization. Every donation received goes towards making the education for a special needs child possible, and each child can attain that goal with your financial support. Your donation will make a difference.”
NICK LARBY Father of Connor Larby – Current LLH Student LLH student Connor Larby and proud father Nick STORY BY SARA PLUMMER
PHOTOS BY MICHELLE POLLARD
Nearly two decades ago, Monica and Tom Barbour were moving across the country from Georgia to Tulsa, searching for a home before their son, Sullivan, was born. While looking at houses with a Realtor, Monica felt moved to tell her about her unborn baby’s recent Down syndrome diagnosis.
“We were looking at houses and I had this overwhelming feeling to tell her,” she says. “She happened to be a volunteer at Little Light House, and she told us about it.”
Little Light House is a Christian development center for children ages 0 to 6 who have developmental or physical special needs.
“When you come into the building, you feel the Holy Spirit,” Monica says. “We’ve been blessed by the families who have come before us. You get that feeling of you’re not the only one dealing with this.” Little Light House was one of the first places where people congratulated the couple and told them about the adventure their family was about to embark on.
Little Light House opened in Tulsa 50 years ago and was founded by two Tulsa mothers — Marcia Mitchell and Sheryl Poole — who both had daughters born legally blind and were looking for early learning and intervention services for their daughters in Tulsa but couldn’t find any.
“I was a retired school teacher and, as an educator, I knew 80% of what we learn is visual and the first six years of life is critical to learning,” Mitchell says. “I searched all over Tulsa for services, and I found nothing.”
Both girls were accepted into a deaf and blind program in Oklahoma City, and Mitchell says the amount of information she and her husband learned about raising a blind child was staggering.
She and Poole talked about how Tulsa needed a program like the one in Oklahoma City. After all, they couldn’t be the only parents seeking services for their children.
“We met with doctors and therapists, and everyone said they didn’t have the staff or space or funds needed to operate a program like the one we needed,” Mitchell says. “I was ready to give up, but Sheryl encouraged me to go to one more pediatrician. (That pediatrician) said, ‘If you want this school or center, you’re going to have to build it yourself.’”
So that’s exactly what they did.
Little Light House opened in October 1972 with five children, five volunteers and one teacher. Within nine months, enrollment had tripled. Less than a year into operation there was a waiting list.
The location of Little Light House has grown and changed several times in the past 50 years, from meeting in rooms in Tulsa-area churches to its own facility on the southeast corner of South Yale Avenue and East 36th Street.
In 2016, Little Light House expanded its facilities. Now there are 10 Developmental Center classrooms with nearly 200 children enrolled in
the program with a waiting list that totals nearly 300. There also are more than 90 part-time and full-time employees.
Mitchell served as executive director for more than 40 years before retiring in 2013 and now serves on the board of directors. Her daughter, Missy, went on to attend Holland Hall and Metro Christian Academy in Tulsa before graduating from Oklahoma Baptist University with a degree in music.
“The only reason I believed Little Light House would be here for 50 years is because of God,” Mitchell says. “If we continue to put Him first and continue to give our best to these children, it will continue into the next 50 years.”
The Developmental Classroom model at Little Light House is a team approach where physical, occupational and speech therapists work alongside teachers, parents, assistive technologists, vision therapists, nurses and volunteers to help children learn how to best navigate their environment, as well as prepare them for public, private or home school.
“We all work together and collaborate. We’re all
working together for the kids,” says Anne McCoy, who worked as an occupational therapist for Little Light House for 11 years before becoming the center’s executive director three years ago. “Under the age of 6, the children don’t really think they have a disability. They just want to do what their friends are doing; they want to be independent. We help them get there.”
Families with children on the waiting list can take part in the Early Intervention program consisting of weekly parent-child group classes with a team of therapists who coach parents on how best to care for their child.
The Barbours’ son Sullivan was accepted into the Developmental Classroom program at Little Light House when he was 1 year old.
“I never worried dropping him off, I knew he was loved and cared for,” Monica says. “Doctors told us he would never walk. (Little Light House therapists) got him walking. They saw his ability and not his disability.”
McCoy says any child of any religious, ethnic and socio-economic background and with any kind of developmental or physical need is welcome at Little Light House. The teacher and therapist care team work together to ensure every child is getting what they need to succeed, whether that is adaptive equipment or specific and targeted therapies.
Marcia Mitchell, left, founded Little Light House with Sheryl Poole in 1972. Mitchell served as executive director for more than 40 years before retiring in 2013 and now serves on the board of directors. Anne McCoy, right, worked as an occupational therapist for Little Light House for 11 years before being named executive director three years ago.“Each child has individual needs. They’re like a puzzle and you have to figure them out so they can be as independent as possible,” she says. “We don’t look at what they can’t do, we look at what they can do.”
Tom says he and his family learned just as much as Sullivan during his time at Little Light House. His teachers and therapists also worked with them so they could help Sullivan at home and know what to expect during his development.
“They taught us what to do,” Tom says. “What they’ve done for our family, we will never be able to repay them.”
And equipping Sullivan to be more selfsuffi cient and independent also brought their family closer together.
“They gave us the ability to not only give Sullivan what he needed, but freed us up to be with our other kids more,” he says. “Without Little Light House, Sullivan wouldn’t be where he is now, his brother and sister wouldn’t be where they are now.”
Sullivan is now 18 and is in his senior year at Bishop Kelley High School. He also volunteered at Little Light House over the summer, and it allowed him to remember a little of what it was like when he was a student.
“Babies can learn. Little Light House taught me how to be strong and how to be smart. And I
learned about God,” Sullivan says.
The Barbours’ oldest son, Joseph, is attending Rice University and their daughter, Margaret, is attending Berklee College of Music.
Monica says she tries to tell everyone about Little Light House and what it has meant to her family.
“I cannot count the number of people I’ve told to get their kids on the waiting list,” she says. “More people need to know what’s here and the miracles that happen here.”
Since its earliest years, Little Light House has been tuition-free for the children attending its programs.
“The children are so deserving of every opportunity, and these families are my inspiration. They dedicate themselves 24/7 to these kiddos,” Mitchell says. “Little Light House is a testimony to the love and power of God. It’s also a testimony of the love of people. We are sitting in the most extraordinary community.”
The $15 million building expansion more than five years ago, and the annual budget this year of $4.2 million, which will grow with more students,
shows the kind of support the community has for Little Light House.
“What it says is our kids with special needs are worth it. They’re worth the time and effort and money,” McCoy says. “The community support is really amazing and humbling and needed. It means so much and makes a big difference. I feel so much gratitude to the Tulsa community. Without that support we wouldn’t be able to offer the services we offer.”
Little Light House receives funding through contributions from individuals and foundations, donated materials and services, and several fundraising events including the Garden Party, the Miles for Milestones 5K, Links for Little Ones golf tournament and Mini-Laps.
This year’s annual gala, A Night of Legacy, will honor and recognize Little Light House’s 50th anniversary on Oct. 8 at the Mabee Center.
“This has been a fun year celebrating our 50th anniversary. We had a big alumni reunion and 600 people attended,” she says.
And McCoy and the rest of the leadership team and board are already looking toward the next 50 years.
“There’s so much room to grow. I’d like to see a Little Light House in every state,” she says, noting the existing Little Light House affiliate programs in Shelbyville, Kentucky, and Jackson, Mississippi.
The Little Light House model also is being taught and recreated in countries across the world through the organization’s Global Classroom program, which sends teams to countries and communities to help train and equip parents, caregivers, teachers and professionals with the educational and therapeutic tools they need to care for children with disabilities. Little Light House also welcomes international delegations to come and train at U.S. centers. Operating donations are not used for international training or centers — only those earmarked to benefit its international programs, Mitchell notes.
Everyone at Little Light House is certified or licensed in their respective areas or has the appropriate degrees. “We have week-long trainings, so employees and volunteers are versed in our teaching approaches and safety procedures,” McCoy says, and throughout the year Little Light House also holds training and education conferences for further professional development.
College students studying speech, engineering, nursing and other health-related fields from 33 different colleges and university departments (including the University of Tulsa and Oral Roberts University) also come to work and train at Little Light House.
McCoy says looking forward, Little Light House will focus on training and affiliate development, building and developing international partnerships, and expanding Little Light House’s footprint in Oklahoma with possible additional centers in north Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
“We want to be a model, a center of excellence,” she says. “We want to be the ones who change the paradigm of how children with disabilities are taught and cared for.”
Occupational therapist Jordan Miller, right, leads a therapy group with students, including Quinn Simerly.
Amy Vaughan, Dr. Shannon Gulbranson, Amanda Simcoe, Mary Beth Babcock, Lauren Woolery, Jill Croka, Kelly Fiddner, Melanie Richardson, Ashley Bible, Cassie D’Alonzo, Lisa Wakefield, Lori Moore, Becky Wheelus, Marcia Richards, Amber Southern, Mariah Richards, Deb Worthington and Jackie Rago. INSET: Michele Wright and Amy Ethridge. NOT PICTURED: Heather Linville
Owned by Johnna Hayes and Debra Zinke, Three Sirens Restaurant Group spans six concepts throughout Tulsa, Jenks and Broken Arrow.
“Each one of our restaurants is managed by a woman,” Hayes says. “That isn’t on purpose, but it has organically grown into this and proven, for us at least, women get stuff done.
“I had the amazing fortune of a woman investing in me, and in return, not only do I want to invest in all my employees, but I want to highlight the women who have grown into leaders of Three Sirens Restaurant Group.”
Operations Director Meghan Zich has been by Hayes’ side since before Three Sirens existed, growing not only as friend and confidant but pulling this restaurant into the place it is now. She is irreplaceable both as an employee and soon-to-be Three Sirens Group operations partner.
Tarin Roberts serves as the general manager of Bramble Jenks. Loyal, commit ted and hardworking, she has consistently been a dependable and friendly face in Jenks — and not just for management and staff — but her many regulars, some whom she sees multiple times a week. Hayes says Three Sirens has been lucky to have her since the company’s conception four years ago.
Ali Keller holds down lunches, manages and has become caregiver to not only employees but the many guests who come solely to see her at Bird and Bottle.
Stephanie Bradley, a Stillwater girl whose hustle and infectious work ethic has led her to running Three Sirens’ largest endeavor, operates Bramble Broken Arrow and Shaky Jakes in one building. Her positivity and ambition to be better has taken that store and evolved it to what ownership envisioned.
Mandy Lauck is Three Sirens’ own beam of light. With a culinary-trained palate and incredible sensory for how a restaurant should look and feel, she has helped transform her store, Bramble Pearl District, into one of the most fun spots in town. She also oversees Holé Molé in the same building.
Andi Martin is the group’s newest addition as general manager of Bird and Bottle. Not only has she managed some of the busiest places in town, she also has training in all aspects of the restaurant, which is vital to her new role.
Last, and certainly not least, Kaylee Ellyson, who is soon leaving Three Sirens to venture into a new life in New Jersey. She opened every single Bramble and has accomplished many things to make her a vital piece of Three Sirens becoming what it is. She will be sorely missed, but who’s to say there can’t be a Bramble in New Jersey?
Bramble Breakfast and Bar & Shaky Jakes: 121 N. Ash Ave., Broken Arrow | Bramble Breakfast and Bar & Holé Molé: 1302 E. Sixth St. | Bramble Breakfast and Bar: 400 Riverwalk Terrace, Suite 100, Jenks | Bird and Bottle: 3324-A E. 31st St. | On instagram: @ birdandbottletulsa @bramblebreakfastandbar @Shakyjakekesok @ HoléMolétulsa
When owner Francie Cawiezell opened Hello.Salon in July 2017 she was looking to create something she had not found in her 20 years in the hair care industry.
“I felt that the people who were making an honest commitment to this craft and trade deserved the best work environment, the best training available and the best culture, all while being able to chase what is most important to them as an indi vidual outside of work,” Cawiezell says. “Here at Hello.Salon we have a saying, ‘This is the beginning of anything you want.’”
Hello.Salon is nestled on Cherry Street in a home-like atmosphere. Now with three additional full-time stylists, a barber and makeup artist/brow specialist, Cawiezell’s team can provide customers a full-service experience in a boutique salon that caters to the whole family. Hello is a Davines Concept salon that prac tices numerous sustainable initiatives, too.
Always wanting to help clients inspire and present their best self, the staff is always ready to consult with clients on how to incorporate new looks or trends into their hair care. “Being a boutique salon allows our stylist’s individuality to shine all while creating a space with fantastic hair and a relaxed attitude,” she says.
Cawiezell’s professional career has taken her behind the chair in Colorado, Arkansas and Oklahoma. When she decided to open her own shop in Tulsa, she knew it was the right place. “Tulsa’s a big city with a small-town feel, which allows a small business to really interact with customer in a special way,” she says.
One of Oklahoma’s largest automobile dealerships began as a used lot with only five cars. The business, named Chris Nikel’s Auto Haus, is now Chris Nikel Chrysler-JeepDodge-RAM- Fiat. The humble car lot that opened in May 1973 by Chris Nikel and partner Karl Schmid now sits on over 12 acres at 2920 North Aspen in Broken Arrow, just north of the intersection of the BA Expressway and 145th Street.
Nearing a 50 years-in-business celebration in 2023, the Chris Nikel franchise is the oldest and largest Jeep dealership in Oklahoma.
“My dad was raised in Austria,” says daughter Tina Nikel, vice president of the dealership. “He arrived in Tulsa in 1971 to be the general manager of the Tulsa Datsun BMW franchise. After opening Chris Nikel’s Auto Haus, he acquired the Alpha Romeo franchise and Renault line and later the AMC Jeep product lines.”
The growing dealership was located at 3737 S. Memorial Drive (still home to Oklahoma’s largest pre-owned Jeep store, Chris Nikel Used Jeeps) before moving to the Admiral and Mingo Circle and then to 11th and Lewis with the purchase of the former Cox Chrysler Plymouth dealership. The move to Broken Arrow off 145th Street and the BA occurred in 2005.
“I’m very proud to be in this business to preserve a legacy created 50 years ago,“ notes Tina, who has been a leader in the company since 2002. “I am grateful to come to work each day to experience our business culture, work with our team, and see our employees take pride in serving all customers well.”
The dealership recently finished major renovations to its service drive and the sales and customer lounge. “We really believe the customer experience is impor tant,” Tina says. “One thing that will never change here is Chris Nikel’s passion for customer service and satisfaction.” The dealership’s mission statement says it all: “Making it hard on ourselves to make it easy on our customers”.
Other members of the Chris Nikel family involved in the management of the dealer ship are grandsons Dallas Nikel, General Manager, and Mitch Nikel, Fixed Operations Manager.
Yesterday, today and tomorrow, we are purpose-driven in our work for Cherokee Nation and its citizens. CNB is an economic engine driving opportunity and one of Tulsa’s largest employers: Cherokee Nation Businesses (CNB).
CNB does business in three core areas: gaming and hospitality, federal con tracting and cultural and economic development. It operates companies in diverse industries across 25 northeast Oklahoma locations, and our annual revenue totals nearly $2 billion.
Employee’s health and well-being come first at CNB, and that is reflected in the competitive benefits it offers. For example: professional certification and education al reimbursement; retirement savings; maternity leave as well as separate parental and adoption leave; and robust health, dental, vision and life insurance.
More than a quarter of CNB’s 7,500 employees live and work in the Tulsa metro area, like Molly Jarvis, senior vice president of marketing, communications and
cultural tourism. “As a native Tulsan, one of the best things about doing business here is the close-knit personal networks,” she says. “Going almost anywhere, doing almost anything, I see friends and connections and I love that. Next is the support for our philanthropic community which is such important work and dependent on those close networks.”
In Tulsa, our employees have volunteered thousands of hours at organizations like the Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma, Iron Gate and Junior Achievement in a coordinated effort as Community Impact Teams. We believe this is essential to our growth — bettering the communities where we live and work. This community impact will continue to expand alongside CNB’s current trajectory.
“My advice for women in business is to stand firm in your decisiveness,” Jarvis said. “Don’t wait for opportunities to come to you. Seize one for yourself, and let the world know you can do this.”
Since FTCC’s inception in 1985, we have had one mission: to serve. We love serving our clients, our staff members, and our community. We are passionate about Tulsa and all our community partners. We consider our clients to be family and have long lasting partnerships with each of them.
‘We are a team of professionals with a proven track record in this region that performs our work with integrity to successfully exceed our clients’ expectations,’ says Sandra Mullins, founder and owner of the business that cleans more than 10 million square feet each night. ‘Our team is comprised of more than 280 experi enced staff members who have worked together for many years, including veterans with 30+ years of experience. Their expertise and hard work have provided us with many successful partnerships.’
Final Touch employees use sustainable products and practices to clean for health and safety, and produce long-term benefits. They were the first cleaning service organization headquartered in Oklahoma to achieve the Cleaning Indus try Management Standard Green Building (CIMS-GB) certification with honors... recognition that has been renewed in 2022. The honor spotlights Final Touch by the American Institute for Cleaning Services (AICS)
E. 55th Pl., Suite C | 918.663.1919
diverse economic
Tulsa Regional Tourism, an initiative of the Tulsa Regional Chamber, is Tulsa’s only official and northeast Oklahoma’s premier accredited destination marketing organization. As its president, Renee McKenney leads a team that markets the city to local, regional, national and international organizations that cover four distinct pillars.
Visit Tulsa promotes leisure travel to regional audiences. Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau services meetings, conventions and professional events for the region. Tulsa Sports Commission develops relationships with pro and amateur sporting events for site-specific competitions. Tulsa Office of Film, Music, Arts and Culture promotes Tulsa as a music, film and creative destination and serves as the official film commission.
McKenney began her role in Tulsa in August and brings with her more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality, entertainment and travel industries. “The best part about working in Tulsa has been working with this community’s incredible can-do spirit,” McKenney says. “There are so many passionate and supportive entities in the region that really want to be impactful and transformative. It’s infectious!” To fellow women in business: “Surround yourself with those you are comfortable sharing early stages of your vision, because great ideas don’t start out ‘complete,’” she says. “A group of trustworthy champions who can see your initial thoughts through an honest lens and provide feedback is priceless for career confidence.”
As a small business owner, the job requires one to wear many hats. One minute you may be dealing with a building maintenance issue, the next you are the CEO preparing a client presentation, or going on a sales call. Or likely focusing on a bookkeeping requirement.
The reality is business owners can be pulled in many directions during any business day. It is the reason more and more small business leaders outsource their company’s bookkeeping function to keep their business running ultra smoothly.
Founded in 2007, LUXA Enterprises provides small businesses — and non-profit agen cies — the accounting, human resources and payroll services to help alleviate some of the headaches of running a business operation…and “stay on track”...in an increasingly complex part of managing a company.
“More than 80% of the Tulsa business community is comprised of small businesses,” says LUXA owner/CEO Frauke Petersen. “Unfortunately, many such businesses experience difficulty — or even fail — because they cannot keep-up with their bookkeeping or need ongoing guidance on payroll and other HR laws. Our goal at LUXA is to help small business
owners better execute the complex functions of business accounting, including cash flow management and forecasting.”
Petersen brings 25 years of experience in accounting, auditing and business leader ship to her work at LUXA. “We’ve structured LUXA to work alongside our business clients to make sure important aspects of running a business — such as accounting, human resources, and payroll management — are managed and done correctly,” she said. “Otherwise, these critical functions can be pushed to the wayside and create problems… and much stress…for the business owner.”
A small business owner herself, Petersen says LUXA Enterprise’s vision is to guide and support small businesses to a point of growth they can then hire their own professional personnel. “In a real way, our job is to work ourselves out of a job.”
K&M Shillingford, Inc. (KMS) is a long established Tulsa company specializing in the design, install and service of heating and cooling systems, including conventional systems, geothermal systems, water heaters and more. The company has been providing innovative solutions for residential and commercial uses for over 40 years.
Darlene Adkins, an employee of the company for 13 years, acquired KMS in 2021 from its founders. The local company is now 100% woman and minority owned.
“We are proud to be trusted heating and cooling experts who are skilled at installing, repairing and maintaining a variety of commercial and residential HVAC systems,” Adkins notes. “We are proud to be locally-owned and operated. It was very important to the founding owners that the company remain locally-owned, and I’m incredibly proud to continue honoring that legacy.”
Over the years, KMS has gained national recognition for being the innovators of several designs and procedures used in the industry today, particularly in geothermal design and installation. “Our dedicated team of experts work with our customers to create customized solutions that are right for the need and budget,” adds Adkins.
The owner says the company takes pride in being a small business with a big heart. “We believe in integrity and excellence in every aspect of our work,” says Adkins, “and it’s that passion that keeps our clients coming back time and time again...for years and years.”
P31 Development is a boutique performance coaching firm, led by Nicole Bator, teaching business owners, leaders and teams how to dig deep and uncover potential in all areas of their business. When working with clients, the P31 team starts from the inside, helping the owner and leadership examine themselves moving through key areas like their client base, team performance, overall business growth and profitability. “We love Tulsa because it is an epicenter allowing for reasonable start-up and revolving cost base, but still being a hub for all things big business,” Bator says. P31 Development offers direct one-on-one coaching with owners, operators and key leadership members, as well as training and development courses for team members, and speaking to direct leadership or conference-based audiences. “We look at all areas of your business and help you succeed in reaching your goals,” she says. “If you’ve been wanting to grow and take you or your team to the next level, or you’re a business owner, executive leader, content creator, freelancer, or just very passionate about self-growth, P31 is here to help you.” Bator offers this advice for fellow female entrepreneurs: Equity starts with you, valuing who you are and what you bring to the table cannot be required from others if you don’t do it for yourself first.
Helping businesses pursue sustainable growth with purpose, passion and productivity.
Owner Sarah Gould is proud that KKT has been a Tulsa-based, Oklahoma-focused firm for over three decades.
“The amount of philanthropic engagement combined with Tulsa’s passion for improvement across public and private sectors make it an ideal location for business,” Gould says. “That combination also aligns with our design philosophy that architecture is about people and their experiences within a designed space, not just about buildings and beautiful architecture.”
Gould leads a KKT team that believes in supporting the communities in which they engage — whether that’s serving them as design professionals or encouraging KKT employees to participate in volunteer efforts, committee service or board commitment. Keeping a local focus affords KKT the dedication to fully serve its clients, as well as the joy of being an active part of building community.
To fellow female entrepreneurs, Gould offers this advice: “Women (myself included) need to stop trying to fit in with the business world of the last century. As entrepreneurs and business owners, we have the opportunity to rewrite the rules. It’s not about coloring outside of the lines, it’s about redrawing the map.”
One of Oklahoma’s oldest moving and storage companies was started in Tulsa and is now under same family ownership in its 83rd year of business.
Accent Moving & Storage & Logistics was established in 1939 at 9 North Detroit as Tulsa Terminal Warehouse as an agent for Mayflower Transit. Lelia and Seth Davis opened the business to provide local, intra-state and inter-state moving services for household goods.
Today, the diversified company is owned by Joann “Jody” Davis, the granddaughter of the founders. Her parents, Joan and Jack Davis, followed the founders in ownership of the growing company in 1976. They changed the name to Accent Moving & Storage, Inc., and significantly diversified the company’s offerings to include moving high value electronics, plus tradeshow and commercial goods.
“The business enjoyed tremendous growth and diversification under Joan and Jack Davis which necessitated moving the company to our current location in Broken Arrow to enable us to expand our offerings to include record storage and establish warehouse and distribution operations, “ said Jody Davis, the third generation owner of the company.”
Since 1999, Jody Davis, as the third generation owner, has lead further expansion and diversification to the company’s offerings. “We expanded into home delivery and retail appliance delivery services,” she noted. “Accent also offers the local, intra-state, inter-state and international moving of household and commercial goods for relocation, storage of goods and records, warehouse distribution, home delivery, interior designers’ storage, delivery and set-up, and hospitality FFE.
“It has been my joy and honor to build on the Accent’s foundation which was initially created by my grandparents and then carried forward by my parents,” says Jody Davis. “We take great pride in providing quality services to our varied clientele, and also in looking for new and better ways to service customers when we identify needs to apply to our team’s skills and the company’s equipment or storage capacity.”
Saletha Fuller and Karen Bruns are investment executives who share a devotion to putting a client’s best interests first and providing personalized, supportive financial planning services.
“We are an independent practice that provides investment guidance, retirement planning, small-business retirement plans, college savings guidance and financial plan ning for short-, mid- and long-term goals,” Fuller says.
Our passion is to help women who are widowed or going through divorce understand investments, retirement and their financial future. We have many female clients who are business owners, newly widowed or divorced who look to us for guidance and education as they plan for themselves and their children,” Bruns says. “We work with women, men, couples, retirees and others to get them on a track to a successful plan for their future.”
2530 E. 71st St., Suite E. Tulsa, OK 74136 | 918-496-0777 | dchfinancial.com
Karen Bruns, Investment Executive | karen.bruns@raymondjames.com
Saletha Fuller, CFP ®, Investment Executive | saletha.fuller@raymondjames.com
Annual trips, theme travel a
for full-service agency
Lin Kobsey’s passion for travel led her to turn that interest into a business when she created Kobsey Travel, L.L.C. 20 years ago.
“I truly believe Americans suffer from time depravation,” she says, “meaning that while people in the rest of the world enjoy 4-6 weeks of vacation each year, we are lucky if we take two weeks. I started my travel business to make it easier by providing advice and service, largely because getting info from computers is often confusing and difficult to navigate…which can result in costly mistakes.”
Kobsey Travel, a full service agency, has developed a specialty in offering themed tours including an annual “on your own” group trip to Paris in February, an annual wine trip in the Loire Valley of France, and garden tours and shopping trips to Europe.
“We believe in educating and preparing our travelers to take the stress out of trip planning and to help avoid costly mistakes,” says Lin. “Our motto is: ‘We are the com pany that will make you a traveler, not a tourist.’”
Kobsey says she is fortunate to have been to all five continents. “I love travelling,” she says, “so much so a friend tells me it is my equivalent to a Vitamin B12 shot.”
9505 S. College Court | 918.747.0077 | lkobsey@sbcglobal.net
versus quantity, all day and every day
The Dolphin Fine Linens is a luxury retail boutique offering a curated selection of bed, bath, loungewear and gifts. Beloved by designers and homeowners alike, it is known for impeccable service, top-tier brands and quality customized linens. Customers enjoy a personalized experience when shopping at The Dolphin.
“Many of our client’s grandparents and parents were patrons of The Dolphin. That type of loyalty is earned by continually offering quality products and exceptional service,” according to owners Cristina Woods and Kitina Woods Bartovick.
Beyond quality products, the staff takes pride in offering the rarest of luxury commodities: true personalized service since 1994 (27 years). Custom in-house design services also are available. “In the era of internet shopping, we’ve continued to thrive and be graciously supported by our city and region,” they say. “This is proof to me that we have created a special place in Tulsa for our clients and for ourselves.”
The conversion of a former longtime appliance store in the Meadow Gold District is now the contemporary home of The Beauty Shop at 1019 South Quincy Avenue. The luxury boutique salon was opened in 2012 by stylists and owners Michele Wright and Amy Ethridge.
“Our business is about making each of our customers look amazing, and to bring Tulsa the very best our industry has to offer,” says Wright. “Our industry is always changing and is an extension of fashion, which makes it exciting and fun,” adds Ethridge.
Each stylist at The Beauty Shop is a master stylist with multiple years of experience. Services offered include, facials, waxing, microdermabrasion, makeup application, all color, cuts, blowouts, Great Length extensions, special event styling, editorial styling and runway. Exclusive brands include Oribe and Goldwell. The Shop employs 13 stylists and an esthetician. Call 918-779-7887 to make an appointment.
S. Quincy Avenue
13 is a historic fire station serving as a unique event venue located only 3 miles from downtown. From wedding ceremonies and receptions to birthday parties and retire ment celebrations, to staff retreats, and fundraisers, the Station is so versatile and able to host a variety of events indoors and outdoors.
the clients I work with to help plan their events, to the vendors that make it all happen, to our Station 13 neighbors, I’m so thankful to be in the Tulsa community, where we all want to see each other succeed,” says owner Jackie Potter.
Tulsa is home to Celebrity Attractions, which has been bringing nationally touring Broadway productions to Tulsa other regional markets for 39 years. Owned by Kay and Drew Payton, Celebrity Attractions is a relationship-driven enterprise focused on its corporate and media partners, venues and, most importantly, its subscribers and patrons. “Tulsa loves Broadway,” Kristin says. “Our patrons are so supportive of the Broadway tours and in turn, Celebrity Attractions is able to be a big contributor to the local economy and quality of life in Tulsa.” Celebrity kicks off its upcoming season in
Tulsa
St.
Photo was taken by
mission to ensure customer satisfaction
Fine wine, spirits, craft beer and related accessories can be found all under one roof: Tulsa Hills Wine Cellar.
The 12-year-old business boasts a huge selection of whiskey, including Scotch, bourbon, ryes and more. “We continually have single-barrel picks in-store that we have specially selected to carry our name,” says General Manager Andrea Gardner. “Our new Oak and Eden Single Barrel Select Bourbon, aged with a Brazilian amburana wood spire, was selected by myself and Store Manager Jennifer Edgerton-McGrew.”
Custom gift baskets are available for the holidays. Next door, Tulsa Hills Cigar Cellar and Market carries premium cigars, pipes and pipe tobacco, accessories and gifts.
S. Olympia Ave. | 918-445-8804 | tulsahillswinecellar.com
As we embark on the holiday season, there is one trend that continues to reign supreme as a must for any soiree: a cheese and charcuterie board. Local experts weigh in on what makes up a good platter, how much to plan per person, and other tips for gathering this season.
1. A formula for meat and cheese. There’s a science to what goes on a cheese board. Reggie Carmon, Reasor’s director of deli and bakery, says it’s appropriate to have two to three meats (such as salami, ham, prosciutto, capocollo or pepperoni) paired with two to three cheeses (one hard, like gouda or cheddar, one soft, like brie or goat cheese, and one special, like gorgonzola or flavored).
“If you’re putting it on a cheese board you should be able to eat it all together,” says Shiraya Pro tt, owner of Charcuteray, a specialty cheese shop at 1207 S. Lewis Ave. She recommends choosing cheeses from different milk sources — cow, sheep or goat — as they’ll provide different textures.
Next add a condiment or spread, a briney element like olives or pickles, as well as nuts, seasonal fruits and chocolate.
“I always add something sweet,” Proffitt says. “I love dark chocolate, as it plays with acidity.”
2. Make it beautiful. At Charcuteray, Proffitt teaches her team to compose boards with a natural and organic sensibility while embracing asymmetry. She creates movement on her platters with what she calls a “salami river,” where she folds each disc of meat into quarters and stacks them together. She also stresses that everything on a board should be edible, as well as in bite-size pieces.
3. Know your crowd. When it comes to portions, Proffitt follows the rule of 2-3 ounces of cheese with .5-1 ounce of meat per person. “But know your crowd,” she says. If you’ve got a heavy snacking bunch, plan accordingly.
For libations, Carmon says to follow the estimation of one drink per person, per hour of the event.
To pair wines with your board, Proffitt suggests choosing wines that come from the same region as the cheese — eating French cheese, choose a French wine.
5. Don’t be scared.
“We love walking people through it if they feel intimidated,” Proffitt says. “I love to be a resource for someone.” Charcuteray regularly hosts workshops on how to make cheese and charcuterie boards. Follow the shop on social media for a complete schedule.
At Reasor’s, Carmon recommends talking with the on-site cheese masters who can help pair flavors to match any theme. TP
Visit TULSAPEOPLE.COM/DIRECTORIES for our updated Venue and Catering Guides.
1324 S. Main Street (918) 382-6028 Ambassadortulsa.com
Event rental contact: catering@thechalkboard-tulsa.com
Capacity: 10 to 60
COX BUSINESS CONVENTION CENTER
100 Civic Center (918) 894-4257 coxcentertulsa.com
Event rental contact: Jennifer Thornton, Director of Sales
2950 S. John Williams Way 918-947-6237
gatheringplace.org/rental-venues
Event rental contact: ostafford@gatheringplace.org
Capacity: indoor: 112; outdoor: 300
LIVING ARTS OF TULSA
307 East Reconciliation Way (918) 585-1234 livingarts.org
Event rental contact: Gallery Manager, info@livingarts.org
Capacity: 260
3450 South 137th West Avenue, Sand Springs (918) 494-6000 • meadowlakeranch.com
Event rental contact: Susie Warren, manager@meadowlakeranch.com
Capacity: Up to 200. Indoor & Outdoor Venues.
2636 East 11th Street
(918) 744-5500
EventsAtCampbell.com
Event rental contact: Diane Morrison
Capacity: 225
3123 S. Riverside Drive Tulsa, OK 74105 (918) 295-8144 discoverylab.org
Event rental contact: Rentals Coordinator
Capacity: Rooftop Terrace ‘Thirty-One Twenty-Three’-450; Amphitheater-250; Exhibit Hall-500; Mezzanine-150
HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO TULSA
777 West Cherokee Street Catoosa, OK 74015
(918) 384-5946
hardrockcasinotulsa.com/amenities/meeting-and-events
Event rental contact: Laura.asbil@hardrockcasinotulsa.com
Capacity: 900
8330 Riverside Parkway, Suite A (918) 995-8080 margaritavilletulsa.com
Event rental contact: kristalw@margaritaville.com
Capacity: 30-800
201 North Elgin Avenue (918) 744-5998 tulsadrillers.com
Event rental contact: events@tulsadrillers.com
Capacity: 10 – 8,000+
Broken Arrow, Cherry Street and Riverwalk locations (918) 893-6447 (BA); (918) 794-7333 (CS); (918) 518-5433 (RW) pinotspalette.com
Event rental contact: Contact desired location
Capacity: Broken Arrow-56; Cherry Street-48; Riverwalk-60
732 East 116th Street, Jenks (918) 691-3040 spainranch.com
Event rental contact: Cecily Tawney
Capacity: 100
3924 Charles Page Boulevard (918) 810.6765 station13tulsa.com
Event rental contact: Jackie Potter, info@station13tulsa.com Capacity: 500 Indoor/Outdoor
2435 South Peoria Ave. 918-576-5155 tulsagardencenter.org
Event rental contact: kbutts@tulsagardencenter.org Capacity: 10 to 250
57301 East Highway 125, Monkey Island, Oklahoma 74331 (918) 257-7714
shangrilaok.com/groups-events
Event rental contact: dana.able@shangrilaok.com
Center
- 9,000
732 East 116th Street, Jenks
(918) 691-3040
spainranch.com
Event rental contact: Cecily Tawney
Capacity: 200
115 East Fifth Street
(918) 582-5722 tulsaclub.com
Event rental contact: Marianne McCann, ext. 7101
Capacity: up to 250 reception style
TULSA ZOO
6421 East 36th Street North (918) 669-6605
tulsazoo.org
Event rental contact: Nicolas Stolusky, Amy Watson
Capacity: 100-600 indoor; 4,000 outdoor
5 Tulsa Metro Locations
Catering Capacity: TBD
Additional Information: Contact Johnna Hayes for catering from any of the Three Sirens Restaurant Group johnna@3sirensgroup.com. Private rooms and spaces available for rent. Off-site catering also available.
1324 S. Main Street 918-382-6028 chalkboardtulsa.com catering@thechalkboard-tulsa.com
Catering Capacity: 10-60
Additional Information: All Room Rentals include tables, chairs, flatware & glassware, white or black linens/napkins and free parking on the property and across the street.
3 Tulsa Metro Locations
Catering Contacts: Matt Peel, (918) 949-7299, or Brittany Shaw, (918) 549-5339 loscabosok.com
Catering Capacity: Unlimited
Additional Information: Let us cater your next event and bring the party to you with award-winning Mexican food for any occasion.
3 Tulsa Metro Locations 918-747-4799
Catering Capacity: 10-1,000
Additional Information: Let Albert G’s do the cooking for your next party or office luncheon. We serve groups of all sizes. Order from our packages or call for a custom quote today!
1502 East 15th Street 918-779-6137
chocstulsa.com
Catering Capacity: 100
Additional Information: The Coffee House on Cherry Street has been providing the heart of Tulsa with the best coffee, breakfast, pastries, and gluten free options for 16 years.
608 East 3rd Street
(918) 442-2993
catering@mcnellies.com
Catering Capacity: Unlimited
Additional information:
McNellie’s Group Catering is Tulsa’s go to catering service that offers full-service catering and event planning that specializes in weddings, corporate events, special events, and non-profits.
8922 S. Memorial Drive (918) 994-7000
olivetobistro.com
Catering Capacity: 10-1,000
Additional information: Unchain yourself from the ordinary. A unique variety of fresh appetizers, salads, and pastas that are sure to make your next party special.
120 Aquarium Drive, Jenks
Catering Contacts: Brittany Shaw, (918) 549-5339, or Matt Peel, (918) 949-7299
waterfrontgrilljenks.com
Catering Capacity: Unlimited
Additional Information: Our delicious menu choices are perfect for any occasion and can be fully catered or dropped off at your event.
PARKING
ROOM OPTIONS
Find Mr. Bones from Blair Hollow Candle Co. exclusively at the Oct. 1 Meadow Gold Market Days or Buck Atom’s Cosmic Curios, 1347 E. 11th St.
autumn, Blair Hollow Candle Co. customers clamor for Mr. Bones
hand-poured,
wick.
burning candle featuring an untreated
Laura Blair says the limited-edition candle is one of her best-
with
fall’s
scents in 8-ounce ($20)
16-ounce ($40)
cedar, autumn spice, fall orchard
MORE ON INSTAGRAM @BLAIRHOLLOWCANDLES.
BY HADLEY DEJARNETTE
The Meat and Cheese Show faced a somewhat uphill battle attempting to kick off amid the pandemic, but the store is now open to give Tulsa a taste of all kinds of gourmet products.
Co-owner Amanda Simcoe became known as the “Cheese Wench” while working as the cheesemonger in the grocer component of the D’Novo Lean Gourmet Restaurant. Simcoe went to cheese school in San Francisco and began traveling the world in search of different cheeses, food and wine. After deciding she wanted to open her own cheese shop in Tulsa, Simcoe reached out to Joel Bein, owner of Rub food truck, to see if he wanted to open a specialty food market together. The pair worked well with one another in the past catering for several charity events, making the collaboration a no-brainer. Through Bein’s passion for cooking meat and Simcoe’s knowledge of all things cheese, the Meat and Cheese Show was born.
The Meadow Gold District shop not only has a rare collection of gourmet meats and cheeses from all over the world, but it also sells locally made products and kitchen staples. “It’s kind of a destination if you’re looking for something really cool and really different, or if you’re looking for education behind the product,” Simcoe says. Customers are encouraged to sample different products and can even enjoy a glass of wine or a beer at Tulsa’s self-proclaimed tiniest bar.
The front of the store has a gourmet grocery setup with a grab-and-go cooler and plenty of meats, cheeses, wines, spices and other accompaniments to choose from. The back of the store consists of a large kitchen where the pair can prepare meals for dinner events and host public and private classes.
“I do French cheese and wine, Spanish cheese and wine, beer and cheese, bubbles and cheese, just anything and everything,” Simcoe says referring to the classes she teaches. All information about classes and events can be found at facebook.com/themeatandcheeseshow. TP
Heather Matheson has found a recipe for success in her business Peace, Love and Cookies: One helping of scrumptiousness mixed with a sprinkling of smiles added to a foundation of helping others.
The longtime Tulsan started her cookie business nine years ago out of her kitchen while a timely sermon at All Souls Unitarian Church inspired her to “give zealously” and incorporate a giving angle to her business plan. She soon outgrew her home kitchen and that’s when an unexpected invitation came from Family and Children’s Services. “Baking cookies is happy, fun and people love to receive them,” Matheson says. “But mentoring the women in the program is the best.”
Matheson employs participants of Women in Recovery, a program of Family and Children’s Services that is an intensive outpatient alternative for eligible women facing long prison sentences. Every morning, from 4:30-7:30 a.m., Matheson and her team bake fresh cookies that will be delivered that day to customers. During those three hours, Matheson says she learns so much from the women, many of whom have never had female friends. A participant once told her, “I keep this job because I need this — being here with you and these other women.”
Several times a week Matheson hosts pop-ups with her cookie cart at retailers such as Southwood Landscape and Garden Center, Lululemon and Williams Sonoma. Follow @peaceloveandcookiestulsa on Facebook and Instagram to see where the cart will be next.
Along with providing employment, Peace, Love and Cookies donates 10% of all its sales to Women in Recovery. The cookie delivery company also is participating again in Care Card, a 10-day shopping incentive that benefits Family and Children’s Services. More than 200 retailers will give discounts to Care Card shoppers — a great start to holiday shopping.
The holidays are a busy time for Peace, Love and Cookies. Matheson expects to bake 30,000 cookies in November and December. Orders can be made at peaceloveandcookiestulsa.com.
The upcoming holiday season is also a busy time for Empire Optical as customers rush to use their flexible spending accounts for new glasses before the end of the year. Care Card tends to kick off this busy season, according to owner Brooke Hargrove. “There’s a handful of people we know we’re going to see every year that week,” she says.
Hargrove is the third generation of owners at Empire Optical, which was started in 1964 by her husband Christian’s grandparents. Along with sales, the shop at 3220 E. 21st St. has an experienced repair department that services any brand.
In its more than 50 years of service, the shop has provided eyeglasses to several nonprofits, including Tulsa Day Center, Catholic Charities, and Family and Children’s Services. “It’s what we choose to do,” Hargrove says. “What we’re really good at is helping people see.”
And Hargrove has seen the difference it makes in a person’s life. Many times, it has helped them get a job or removed them from a difficult situation they happened to be in. She says some past recipients have returned to the shop to thank them for the free eyewear and to purchase glasses as Empire customers. “I think that’s the biggest reward. We are such strong believers in giving someone a chance and giving opportunity.”
Bixby
Twisted Soul Sisters
13160 S. Memorial Drive, Bixby 918-943-3246
Broken Arrow
1907 115 E. Fort Worth St., Broken Arrow 918-806-8579
J. Spencer
831 E. Kenosha Ave., Broken Arrow 918-872-9517
Johnson Floor and Home Carpet One
6551 S. Garnett Road, Broken Arrow 918-254-9200
Moody’s Jewelry
2013 W. Kenosha Ave., Broken Arrow 918-251-3340
Papa John’s Pizza
904 N. Elm Place, Broken Arrow 918-258-7272
Papa John’s Pizza
6323 S. Elm Place, Broken Arrow 918-321-7272
Southern Agriculture
1034 E. Lansing St., Broken Arrow 918-251-0267
Southern Agriculture
1746 S. Elm Place, Broken Arrow 918-258-8080
The Succulent Shop *
319 S. Main St., Broken Arrow 918-200-2827
Brookside/Peoria Avenue
Black Optical
3524 S. Peoria Ave., Suite D 918-794-0383
Freya: Nordic Kitchen *
3410 S. Peoria Ave., Suite 200 918-779-4413
The Haley Boutique
3515 S. Peoria Ave. 918-280-0177
Ida Red General Store
3336 S. Peoria Ave. 918-949-6950
Jara Herron Salon and Medical Spa
3410 S. Peoria Ave., Suite 300 918-742-3223
Joie de Vie Interiors
4224 S. Peoria Ave., Suite 2 918-938-6021
Lambrusco’z Deli 1344 E. 41st St. 918-496-1246
Mecca Coffee Co. 1330 E. 41st St. 918-749-3509
Pure Barre Midtown 3807 S. Peoria Ave., Suite M 918-933-6006
Ribbons on Peoria 3525 S. Peoria Ave. 918-743-7599
RK ALL DAY * 3636 S. Peoria Ave. 918-313-5212
Stash Apparel and Gifts 3636 S. Peoria Ave. 918-933-6893
Total Pilates 3749 S. Peoria Ave. 918-744-9499
Utopia Boutique 4817 S. Peoria Ave., Suite C 918-712-7355
Cherry Street/ 15th Street Area Ascent 1309 E. 15th St. 918-557-3747
CYCLEBAR 1515 E. 15th St. 918-872-0443
Diamond Cellar 1523 E. 15th St. 918-749-1700
Duvall ATELIER 2204 E. 15th St. 918-592-1225
Emerge Medical and Well Spa Midtown * 1713A S. Peoria Ave. 918-895-6272
Luminate Clinic 1723 E. 15th St., Suite 100 918-340-7090
Luxe Nail Bar 1302 E. 15th St. 918-938-6027
Magnolia Soap Tulsa * 1325 E. 15th St., Suite 102 918-779-6006
Modern Cottage 1325 E. 15th St., Suite 106 918-933-5488
Pinkeasy Sips and Sweets * 1340 E. 15th St. 918-582-7465
Pinkitzel Cupcakes and Candy * 1345 E. 15th St. 918-582-7465
Q Clothier | Rye 51 1343 E. 15th St. 918-346-6487
Rustic Cuff 1325 E. 15th St. 918-804-8404
slade - apparel + home 1506 E. 15th St. 918-995-0594
Spexton Fine Jewelry 1609 E. 15th St. 918-699-0030
Claremore
The Cozy Cottage 514 W. Will Rogers Blvd., Claremore 918-283-2232
The District on Main 406 W. Will Rogers Blvd., Claremore 918-283-4637
Papa John’s Pizza 502 S. Lynn Riggs Blvd., Claremore 918-343-8282
Downtown Area
Dilly Diner
402 E. Second St. 918-938-6382
Dracula Sandwich *
608 E. Third St., Suite B 918-727-8696
Dust Bowl Lanes and Lounge
211 S. Elgin Ave. 918-430-3901
Elgin Park
325 E. Reconciliation Way 918-986-9910
Fassler Hall
304 S. Elgin Ave. 918-576-7898
Ida Red General Store
208 N. Main St., 208A 918-398-6700
Ihloff Salon and Day Spa 100 E. Second St. 918-587-2566
James E. McNellie’s Public House 409 E. First St. 918-382-7468
Juniper Restaurant 324 E. Third St. 918-794-1090
Made 219 E. Archer St. 918-665-1478
Magpie
415 E. 12th St., Suite B 918-340-5945
Mr. Kim’s *
119 S. Detroit Ave. 918-856-6456
Prhyme
111 N. Main St. 918-794-7700
Red Light Chicken *
332 E. First St. 918-986-7733
The Tavern
201 N. Main St. 918-949-9801
Yokozuna
309 E. Second St. 918-508-7676
East Tulsa
Papa John’s Pizza 10829 E. 31st St. 918-628-7272
Visions Tile and Stone inc. 6801 E. 14th St. 918-592-1234
Greenwood District Cheyenne’s Boxing Gym Inc. 918-430-8239
Rose Tax Solutions 107 N. Greenwood Ave. 855-818-2937
Gunboat District FC Tulsa * 1155 S. Elgin Ave. 918-297-6808
Harvard Corridor Dog Dish + 2803 S. Harvard Ave. 918-624-2600
Ed Beshara’s Fine Clothing 3539 S. Harvard Ave. 918-743-6416
Empire Optical 3220 E. 21st St. 918-744-8005
iidentity salon 2731 S. Harvard Ave. 918-747-2566
The Inviting Place
3215 E. 21st St. 918-488-0525
Kiddlestix Toy Store
3815 S. Harvard Ave. 918-749-8697
Moody’s Jewelry
1137 S. Harvard Ave. 918-834-3371
Papa John’s Pizza 2802 E. 11th St. 918-599-7272
Papa John’s Pizza 5111 S. Harvard Ave. 918-744-7272
Pierpont’s Bath and Kitchen
1914 S. Harvard Ave. 918-747-2284
Rustic Cuff
5202 S. Harvard Ave. 918-804-8404
Signs Now
3229 S. Harvard Ave. 918-712-7446
Southern Agriculture
2610 S. Harvard Ave. 918-747-6872
Ted and Debbie’s Flower and Garden 3901 S. Harvard Ave. 918-745-0011
The Top Drawer
3303 E. 32nd Place 918-747-2886
Cookiedoodle
377 E. Main St., Jenks 918-528-6766
Kitch Cafe * 377 E. Main St., Jenks 918-528-6766
T.A. Lorton 555 S. Zunis Ave. 918-743-1600
Umber *
1640 E. Third St., Suite B 918-764-8319
Ziegler Art and Frame
6 N. Lewis Ave. 918-584-2217
Lewis Corridor/ The Plaza
Saint Amon Baking Co. * 8156 S. Lewis Ave., Suite E 918-364-2143
Memorial Corridor C & J School Uniforms Inc. 4984 S. Memorial Drive 918-610-7470
Mother Road Market Area
Eleanor’s Bookshop
1102 S. Lewis Ave., Suite D 918-279-2665
The Gadget Co.
1207 S. Lewis Ave. 918-749-9963
Gambill’s Wine + Coffee
1102 S. Lewis Ave., Suite C 918-521-6295
Howdy Burger
1124 S. Lewis Ave., Suite 109 918-550-4299
Mother Road Market
1124 S. Lewis Ave. 918-984-9009
Mythic City
1102 S. Lewis Ave., Suite E 918-516-8255
Willamina
1207 S. Lewis Ave., Suite 100 918-850-0615 willaminatulsa.com
North Tulsa
Habit Boutique
1717 N. Peoria Ave., Suite 12 918-986-9500
Owasso
Johnson Floor and Home Carpet One
9000 N. Garnett Road, Owasso 918-272-3003
Papa John’s Pizza
12402 E. 86th St. N., Owasso 918-376-9292
Southern Agriculture
9255 N. Owasso Expressway, Owasso 918-274-3770
Surceé Gifts and Home 9455 N. Owasso Expressway, Suite CB, Owasso 918-272-4005
Wild Ivy
201 S. Main St., Suite 180, Owasso 918-928-4554
Wilder Brothers
201 S. Main St., Suite 160, Owasso 918-376-6168
Pearl District Family and Children’s Services Thrift Store
724 S. Utica Ave. 918-340-5040
Garden Deva Sculpture Co. 1326 E. Third St. 918-592-3382
Howdy Burger
1516 E. 11th St. 918-742-0845
Jenkins and Co. 1335 E. 11th St., Suite E 918-794-7844
Phone / Online Airco Service aircoservice.com 918-252-5667
Nielsen’s Gifts nielsensgifts.com 918-298-9700
Peace, Love and Cookies peaceloveandcookiestulsa.com 918-519-5131
Timeless Standards Luxury Drivers * 918-260-3670
Promenade Mall/41st Street Area The Chizel 3310 S. Yale Ave. 918-551-7986
Johnson Floor and Home Carpet One 3940 S. Sheridan Road 918-664-9200
Perini Eyecare * 4002 S. Yale Ave., Suite B 918-663-3937
Renaissance on Memorial Ihloff Salon and Day Spa 8343 S. Memorial Drive 918-587-2566
J. Spencer 8303 S. Memorial Drive 918-250-5587
Peek a Boo Baby 8283 S. Memorial Drive 918-298-0070
Riverside Area/Kings Landing
Emerge Medical and Well Spa RiverSpirit Casino * 8330 Riverside Parkway 918-995-8909
J. Cole Shoes 9930 Riverside Parkway 918-392-3388
Sapulpa
Papa John’s Pizza 12174 S. Waco Ave., Sapulpa 918-227-3232
Sheridan Corridor/ The Farm Black Sheep Boutique 5219 S. Sheridan Road 918-561-6079
MAC Collection Boutique 5111 S. Sheridan Road 918-574-8847
Moody’s Jewelry 5045 S. Sheridan Road 918-665-7464
The Silver Needle
6068 S. Sheridan Road 918-493-1136
Theraganics 6552 E. 51st St. 918-828-7335
The Uniform Shoppe Inc. 6044 S. Sheridan Road 918-494-7682
Shops at Seville
Canterbury Lane Gifts 10021 S. Yale Ave., Suite 107 918-299-0022
Glacier Chocolate 10051 S. Yale Ave., Suite 103 918-701-3786
Nelson’s Clothier 10051 S. Yale Ave., Suite 105 918-299-6565
SoBo Area Cohlmia’s 1502 S. Cincinnati Place 918-582-5572
Davidson’s Mens Shop 1701 S. Boston Ave. 918-861-4994
The Velvet Willow 1645 S. Cheyenne Ave., Suite B 918-849-0809
South Lewis Corridor Moody’s Jewelry 7015 S. Lewis Ave. 918-749-4644
South Tulsa Abelina’s Boutique 11083 S. Memorial Drive 918-398-8175
Ediblend Superfood Cafe 10115 S. Sheridan Road, Unit C 918-900-1717
Emerge Integrative Medicine Clinic * 9122 S. Sheridan Road 918-922-9122
Emerge Medical and Well Spa South Tulsa * 9130 S. Sheridan Road 918-392-8606
Learning Express Toys 7891 E. 108th St. S., Suite X-8 918-970-6999
Luxe Furniture and Design 10545 S. Memorial Drive, Suite A 918-459-8950
Marcum Mercantile 6305 E. 120th Court, Unit E 918-808-9678
Moody’s Jewelry 10031 E. 71st St. 918-461-8777
Papa John’s Pizza 8010 E. 106th St., Suite 105 918-279-7272
Perini Eyecare * 7104 S. Sheridan Road, Suite 4 918-496-2900
Reading Glasses To Go 7123 S. Yale Ave. 918-492-2722
Southern Agriculture 6501 E. 71st St. 918-488-1993
Twenty Twenty Eyecare 7408 S. Yale Ave. 918-794-6700
Vincent Anthony Jewelers 10038 S. Sheridan Road 918-291-9700
Tulsa Hills Johnson Floor and Home Carpet One 7841 S. Olympia Ave. 918-982-6164
Southern Agriculture 7836 S. Olympia Ave. 918-794-7387
Utica Square Area Boxworks 1956 Utica Square 918-749-3475
Cariloha 1760 Utica Square 918-340-5446
Coach 1846 Utica Square 918-742-7533
The Dolphin Fine Linens 1960 Utica Square 918-743-6634
Ediblend Superfood Cafe 2050 Utica Square 918-991-1717
Gearhead Outfi tters 1948 Utica Square 918-878-9966
Glacier Chocolate 1902 Utica Square 539-424-5992
Hicks Brunson Eyewear 2020 Utica Square 918-743-6478
Ihloff Salon and Day Spa 1876 Utica Square 918-587-2566
J. Spencer 1730 Utica Square 918-749-2919
Kendra Scott
1842 Utica Square 918-770-8303
L’Occitane En Provence
1844 Utica Square 918-742-4431
The Lolly Garden
2046 Utica Square 918-742-6300
Margo’s Gift Shop
2058 Utica Square 918-747-8780
Moody’s Jewelry
1812 Utica Square 918-747-5599
Muse Intimates
1876 Utica Square 918-392-3430
New Balance Tulsa 2030 Utica Square 918-744-8334
Pavilion 1826 Utica Square 918-743-8601
Pendleton Woolen Mills 1828 Utica Square 918-742-1723
SALT Yoga at Utica Square 1708 Utica Square 918-392-7888
Wild Fork 1820 Utica Square 918-742-0712
Walnut Creek Area Kathleen’s Kids
8212 S. Harvard Ave. 918-742-2697
Woodland Hills Mall Area Coach
7021 S. Memorial Drive, Suite 180 918-307-0155
Get Stitchin’ + 6022 S. Memorial Drive, Suite A 918-481-1055
Kendra Scott
7021 S. Memorial Drive, Unit 0156 918-615-2721
Magnolia Soap Tulsa *
7021 S. Memorial Drive, Suite 182 539-367-1308
MetroShoe Warehouse
8802 E. 71st St. 918-938-6389
Moody’s Jewelry 8140 E. 68th St. 918-252-1696
Sun and Ski Sports
6808 S. Memorial Drive, Suite 200 918-254-0673
Visions Unique Eye and Sun Wear
6837 S. Memorial Drive, Suite F 918-254-1611
Yale Corridor/ KingsPointe Village Bella’s House
4830 E. 61st St., Suite 210 918-442-2244
Ella + Orchid
6010 S. Yale Ave. 918-530-2507
Luxe Nail Bar 4820 E. 61st St. 539-867-1688
M c Nellie’s South City
7031 S. Zurich Ave. 918-933-5250
Rags and Riches
Lifestyle Boutique
6056 S. Yale Ave. 918-574-8472
Row House South Tulsa 4820 E. 61st St., Suite 120 918-805-6527
Travers Mahan
Men’s Apparel 6034 S. Yale Ave. 918-296-4100
Wild Birds Unlimited Nature Shop 5960 S. Yale Ave. 918-477-7408
Yale Village Area Amber Marie and Co. 4932 E. 91st St., Suite 106 918-576-6001
The Cook’s Nook
9146 S. Yale Ave., Suite 110 918-933-6767
CYCLEBAR
9110 S. Yale Ave., Suite B 918-346-9399
Ida Red General Store + 9146 S. Yale Ave., Suite 215 918-949-6950
Jara Herron Salon and Medical Spa 9168 S. Yale Ave. 918-982-2362
Pardon My French
9168 S. Yale Ave., Suite 160 918-728-7250
Pure Barre South Tulsa 8921 S. Yale Ave., Suite C 918-494-4977
Yokozuna South 9146 S. Yale Ave., Suite 100 918-619-6271
BY LAURA DENNIS
In March 2018, Krista Dunzy, now 29, was diagnosed with stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma. Despite the 16 rounds of chemotherapy, six weeks of radiation and multiple surgeries she endured, the cancer continued to grow. By August 2019, her breast cancer had metastasized to her spine, and she was now looking at a stage 4 diagnosis.
“I did an additional six rounds of a more intense radiation,” says Dunzy, citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. “My current treatment plan still involves daily medications, monthly injections and multiple scans twice a year.” Fortunately, her scans have been stable since the recurrence.
Dunzy’s initial diagnosis prompted her to find community — people who could relate to this life-altering event at such a young age. In her search, she found the Young Survival Coalition, an international organization that offers support and resources for women ages 40 and under who are diagnosed with breast cancer. She made many connections through the private YSC Facebook group and found a great deal of encouragement, advice and support among the other members. Dunzy says the group helped her tremendously, so much so that she decided to start a Tulsa chapter earlier this year. “I know the importance of
having a support system in hard times,” she says. “Starting this group gives me an opportunity to be that source of support for others, and it’s such an exciting thing.”
The Tulsa YSC group now has 13 members. And though they haven’t met in person just yet, (a tentative date has been set for Nov. 5) the group’s Facebook page has become a protected space where people can ask difficult questions and get honest feedback. Dunzy adds there’s an extra level of security because the group is private, so regardless of the inquiry, it’s met with people who have a baseline understanding of what it’s like to be a young person with cancer. The easiest way to get connected is to search “YSC Tulsa Face 2 Face” on Facebook. As the group admin, Dunzy says all accepted members can comment, post and invite others to join.
In 2021 after her recent breast cancer diagnosis, Jenni Jones, a 38-year-old board certified behavior analyst, stumbled upon the Tulsa YSC group and requested to join. She says in the beginning, the group was a safe place for her to face her fears regarding her illness. “I was too scared to Google anything related to my diagnosis and too scared to actually have a conversation with people who had been through it,” she says. The Tulsa YSC
Facebook page was a place where she could scroll through candid conversations with relative anonymity and find hope and sometimes “a hard dose of reality.” Whatever phase of treatment she was in, Jones always could find someone who would relate to her experience.
Although breast cancer mostly occurs among older women, about 9% of all new cases in the United States are found in women younger than 45 years of age, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Cancer presents several challenges, regardless of age, but Dunzy says that no matter the type of cancer, younger adults are more likely to face challenges with infertility. Not long after her breast cancer diagnosis, she had to decide whether or not to harvest and freeze her eggs before beginning chemotherapy. “This isn’t an option every young person diagnosed with cancer gets,” Dunzy says. “But it should be.”
For both Jones and Dunzy, the online community is a supportive and generous space. “Now I have people I know by name to celebrate the victories and setbacks with,” Jones says. “I am very much looking forward to attending an in-person conference in the future.” TP
dropped off, it is past its prime and will not last through the season.
Cover your poinsettia when bringing it home, especially if temperatures are below freezing. Remove or poke holes in the foil or pot cover to ensure the plant is not sitting in water. Water sparingly when dry to the touch, then let it drain completely in the sink. Keep away from drafts. Proper care will ensure it lasts through one entire holiday season.
These often come in kits or as loose bulbs with a planting medium. Once potted, plan on enjoying the fragrant blooms in two to three weeks.
Keep in a cool, sunny location. Warm locations will cause leggy growth. As soon as the flowers emerge, you can tie the stems to a decorative stake to prevent them from toppling over. Water regularly so that the soil stays evenly moist.
These delicate-looking plants are not as fragile as they appear and will bloom for months with little care, well into spring. They are typically planted in a soilless planting medium.
The holidays will be here before we know it. While most think of family and tradition during this time, don’t forget there are a few plants that can help brighten up the season even more. Because these plants spend most of their time indoors, they have specific needs.
The Christmas cactus has become a recent favorite of all holiday plants. It is a succulent houseplant with petals that bloom in a kaleidoscope of colors including red, white, pink, cream and fuchsia. They are very hardy and long-lived. Many will produce bountiful blooms for 20 to 30 Christmases to come.
To trigger blooming, starting in early October, provide at least 14 hours of darkness for six weeks. Then, starting in early November, subject it to cool nighttime temperatures of 50-60 degrees. Once blooming begins, place in a bright window. Water when dry, but do not let the plant sit in water.
To get flowers to set next year, take the plant outdoors for about three weeks in late summer to early fall, then bring it back indoors before temperatures dip into the mid-40s and the blooming cycle will start again. These prefer to be pot-bound, so no need to repot for years to come. Fertilize monthly during the growing season from April to October.
One word of caution: There are varieties that bloom at other times of the year, so be sure you truly have a Christmas cactus.
Prized for its ability to bloom indoors, these exoticlooking flowers can be purchased at any stage of development. However, most amaryllis bulbs are sold already potted and with complete growing instructions. Once watering is started, you can expect magnificent, lilylike blooms of red, pink, white or orange in about four to six weeks. Note that some varieties send up the flower first before the foliage.
Once the flowers fade, cut the stalk, but keep the leaves to help replenish the nutrients in the bulb. Move outside in a shaded area when the danger of frost is past. In late summer or early fall, let the plant go dormant and place in the garage or basement. Cut off the yellowed leaves and ignore it (no water!) until November when you begin watering and start the growing cycle again.
Did you know those red blooms are not actually flowers? They are bracts, or modified leaves. Native to Mexico, these plants are considered tropical, which allows them to be grown in greenhouses, although the average homeowner will have a tough time getting them to rebloom after that first year.
Choose plants that have little yellow flowers (called cyathia, which is Greek for “cup”) in the center of the colored leaves. If you choose a plant that is shedding pollen or the yellow flowers have
Give orchids bright, indirect light. They prefer it on the cooler side indoors. Avoid sudden temperature changes which will cause buds to drop. Water once a week until water comes out the bottom of the pot.
With upswept petals and pretty foliage, the cyclamen comes in cheerful red, as well as white and pink. These plants like bright, mediumdiffused indirect light and need to have their soil kept moist, not soaked. These cool-season plants tolerate temperatures into the 40s, which is why they’re popular in the winter months. Avoid drafts and warm temperatures, as they will stop blooming and drop foliage. Deadhead spent flowers and yellow leaves. Water from the base by setting it in a saucer of water and letting it absorb for 15-20 minutes, then let the plant drain. Avoid splashing water onto the leaves. With the right conditions, they can bloom for more than eight weeks.
This kitchen staple makes a hardy indoor or outdoor bush, often sheared into a topiary or pyramidal shape to mimic a Christmas tree. Its fresh piney scent is invigorating in the middle of a dreary winter and makes a savory addition to roasts. You can also bake with it or use it to infuse salt.
Place in bright light in a south- or westfacing window. The lighter, the better. Keep the soil evenly moist and do not let it dry out completely.
Move it outside as soon as the area is frost-free, typically sometime in May. Fertilize every few months with a slow-release pellet-type product and let it grow naturally. TP
ank you to Tulsa County Master Gardeners for their expertise in this subject matter. Allen Robinson has been a Master Gardener since 2010.
As the temperatures turn cooler and night arrives earlier and earlier, there’s nothing quite like the aroma of mulled cider to usher in fall.
Whether you’re looking to make your home smell like the season, or creating a sensational beverage for your upcoming autumnal soiree, we like this recipe — adapted from acouplecooks.com — for its versatility. It can be made on the stovetop or in a slow cooker. Add a helping of spiced rum for a lovely adult beverage.
— ANNE BROCKMANMULLED CIDER Serves 8
allspice berries
cloves
star anise
cinnamon sticks
gallon apple cider
orange,
garnish
cranberries, for garnish
For the stovetop:
a large pot, add the allspice, cloves, star anise and cinnamon, and toast over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
Turn heat to low and pour in apple cider. Bring to below a simmer. Warm for 1 hour on low heat (without a simmer). Remove any particulate if desired or stir to re-incorporate it.
Garnish with orange slices and cranberries.
For the slow cooker:
a skillet, add the allspice, cloves, star anise and cinnamon, and toast over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
Pour the apple cider into the slow cooker and add the spices. Cook on low for 3 hours.
with orange slices and cranberries.
BY RHYS MARTIN
Oklahoma has had many strong leaders and community advocates in our 115-year history. The achievements of Oklahoma women have not always been celebrated as they should, however there are several spots around the Sooner State paying tribute to women — some specific, some general — that make for great local travel destinations.
Outside of the State Capitol in Oklahoma City is a statue of a Native American woman titled “As Long as the Waters Flow.” Inside the Capitol sits a statue of Kate Barnard, the first woman elected to state office in Oklahoma. If you haven’t been inside lately, make some time for a visit. The lengthy building renovation project is complete and includes a museum showing the history of the Capitol. The nearby Florence’s Restaurant, owned and operated by Florence Kemp, makes for a nice companion stop, as it is Oklahoma’s first James Beard Foundation Award Winning restaurant.
Do you know the name Alice Robertson? The Muskogee native was Oklahoma’s first congresswoman. She also founded a boarding school that eventually became Henry Kendall College, which today is known as the University of Tulsa. The Three Rivers Museum in Muskogee has a display that tells the rest of her story and more. Guided tours are available.
The town of Luther was the home of Elizabeth Threatt The Threatt family was well-known in the region thanks to their farm and service station on Route 66 that became a known refuge for Black travelers. She and her husband ran the station for decades, but she is best known locally as an educator. She started her teaching career in 1932 at 21 years old. She was one of the first five Black students to graduate from the newly integrated University of Central Oklahoma in 1959. She won many awards for her community engagement over the years and the local library carries her name. Check out the Threatt Filling Station next time you’re cruising Historic Route 66 (currently under renovation) and get a bite to eat at the Farmstead Cafe — a great locally sourced eatery run by friendly folks.
A towering statue of a woman in a bonnet, titled “Pioneer Woman,” stands outside of the Pioneer Woman Museum in Ponca City. The bronze sculpture portrays a mother of confidence, leading her son into the frontier. It was commissioned by famous oilman E.W. Marland and erected in 1930; the museum came along a few decades later. The facility provides a showcase to those early days of Oklahoma settlement, including craft demonstrations and a Pioneer Woman Walk of Fame. It’s a great place to learn more about the many women that have been influential throughout Oklahoma’s history.
Ithink I’d be good at writing an advice column.
This hasn’t been tested because nobody asks me for advice.
To get around this obstacle, I’m taking some of my own advice: Don’t wait for other people to give you the chance. Make the opportunity you want.
I’ll offer more than advice. I’ll be a mentor, especially to young people interested in communications. I’ll be wise and patient and kind.
Here are some questions surely someone wants to ask me. Here, too, are answers I know they will welcome.
Question: I’m new at radio, but if you’ve heard my show, what do you think?
Answer: Oh, honey. I wasn’t going to bring it up and I wish you hadn’t, but since you have, let me start by saying a little constructive criticism is good for the soul. And your soul is about to cowgirl up.
I can tell from the content that you’re smart, thoughtful and well prepared, but are you familiar with the word “screech?” Or the term, “fingernails on a blackboard?” There’s a Spanish word for it — grima. It means unpleasant to the point of shivering.
Try lowering your voice an octave. Or two.
Question: What about me? When I’m being interviewed on the air? When I’m explaining something I know a lot about?
Answer: There’s your problem right there. You make every sentence a question. That makes you sound timid, like a little girl eager to please. You are an adult; use your adult voice. Stake your statements to the ground. Step into your authority and claim it. Picture yourself as the “Fearless Girl” on Wall Street, except grown up.
Question: Not everybody is in broadcast. Some people, like me, communicate in print.
Answer: And badly, if that is an example. Get a grammar book. Look up “proper use of pronouns.” Go to YouTube and watch Elvis sing “A Fool Such As I.” (Please note that he isn’t singing “such as me or myself.”) Even song writers use proper grammar.
Question: What about Eric Carmen’s “Hungry Eyes” with “I feel the magic between you and I?” What about Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” with “You and me could write a bad romance?” Isn’t there a place for colloquial speech?
Answer: Oh, shut up.
Question: What happened to your being kind and patient?
Answer: I’m over that.
Question: Don’t you care that this kind of picky stuff makes you old fashioned and fussy?
Answer: No. Does anyone have a sensible question?
Question: Well, this may not be, like, sensible, you know, but it’s kind of like, you know …
Answer: Next question, please.
Question: What about those of us who want to communicate on social media?
Answer: Then do it. But posting photos of your foot or your food or your dog or your face — over and over — is not communicating. That is like blowing bubbles in your milk cup and calling it Shakespeare.
Question: What else are you cranky about?
Answer: Courtesy and politeness, to name two. I believe we should say “thank you” when we receive a gift or a kindness. I know a true gift has no strings attached, but we could make this one exception. Too often — and I confess, this is not a polite thing to do — I have to ask if somebody has received the (whatever) I sent. The answer is, “Oh yeah. I should have thanked you but I’ve been so busy…”
We’re all busy. I was busy doing something when I stopped to send the (whatever) to you and now I’ve interrupted my busyness again to ask you about it for fear that it has gone astray. This makes me cranky. Please don’t make me do it again. Just say thank you.
Question: Actually, you sound more than cranky. What is making you so grouchy?
Answer: What makes me grouchy? These days, pretty much everything. Thank you for asking.
Large and beautiful 5 Bedrooms, 3.5 Baths, is ready to be enjoyed by a large family. It offers 165 feet of shoreline in Party Cove, gentle slope to the water, nice roadside yard, large outdoor living space with upper deck and lower patio, outdoor fireplaces on both levels. Granite, tile and carpet throughout. Oversized garage. Great views of Grand Lake from almost every room and just 5 minutes from Ketchum. 3,157 sq.ft. $1,650,000
Come see this red brick home on a corner lot in Fairway Estates. 5 bedrooms, 3 full and 1 half bath. Gunite swimming pool. 2 bedrooms down. 2 car attached garage & a carport. The large family room overlooks the pool and backyard. 5,110 sq. ft. $499,000
This 1946 vintage home is built on 2 lots with a frontage of 127’ and a depth of 146’. The home has a newer roof in 2020, Heat & Air was installed in 2016, and a tankless hot water system. Vaulted ceilings in the den and master bedroom. A woodburning fireplace in the family room lends old-world charm. Hardwood floors throughout all rooms.
$400,000
Elegant gated estate situated on approx 2.44 acres. Gorgeous setting on corner lot with mature trees. Grand entry has marble floors,soaring ceiling & sweeping staircase. Formal living & Dining.Great room opens to kitchen with huge island. Master suite with study (or exercise). Upstairs has bedroom with private bath,2 additional bedrooms with pullman bath. Game room. Safe room. Inground Pool. Located near 71st & Hi-way 75 So. just west of Tulsa Hills by Oaks Country Club. $895,000
Beautiful home on a quiet cul-de-sac in Preston Woods Subdivision in Jenks Southeast School District! True 5 Bedroom home with formal dining, formal living & study. Kitchen opens to den. Master suite with double closets & stunning brand new master spa bath. Large game room + bonus room (could be media or exercise) & 4 spacious bedrooms upstairs with 2 full baths. Extensive hardwoods. Newer paint, carpet & roof. Covered Pergola overlooks a beautiful park-like yard.$589,500
Braeswood is an exclusive neighborhood conveniently located close to Southern Hills Country Club, St. Francis Hospital, shopping, restaurants, and more. The owners have carefully allowed updates to this 1983 vintage home: Newer Grand Manor shingled roof, kitchen with new surfaces/appliances. Wonderful newer master bathroom with a jetted tub, huge shower, and walk-in closets. Enjoy the privacyfenced backyard from the covered patio overlooking mature trees! $469,000
Large Master suite, a great outdoor deck area, and large rooms. There are several recent updates, new gutters, a new deck. Enjoy your wooded setting in complete privacy! $379,000
4005 E. 120th Street S. | Tulsa | Beautiful home in a fantastic neighborhood! 4 bedrooms (2 down including primary suite) each with their own private bath, plus powder bath down. Office, game room, exercise space. Lovely, private backyard with patio and outdoor fireplace. Central vacuum. Gorgeous neighborhood pool, kids’ pool, clubhouse, stocked pond, and trail access. Jenks Southeast Elementary. 3,951 sq. ft.
2821 S. 90th East Avenue | Tulsa | Darling single-story home near Skelly Elementary! Corner lot. Three bedrooms and two full baths. Kitchen open to living. New granite countertops. Fresh paint. Wonderful laundry room. Fenced backyard. Attached two-car garage. Lovely! 1,446 sq. ft.
2920 E. 103rd Place | Tulsa | Beautiful Riverview Park
Estates home with so many extras! Built-in 2016 with a fabulous + flexible floorplan. Amazing kitchen with butler’s pantry. Outdoor kitchen. Upstairs living area with kitchenette and separate movie room. Primary suite with separate closets. Formal dining is currently being used as an office. Additional office space available. Tornado shelter. 3 car garage. Outstanding neighborhood pool and clubhouse. Jenks Southeast Elementary. 3,582 sq. ft. $549,900
Magnolia Heights is a professionally planned neighborhood with large, minimum half acre lots, quick access to major highways, and located in the Bixby Public School District (West Elementary). Plans for the neighborhood include a natural stone waterfall, and more!
Buffalo Springs is a Cozort Custom Homes private subdivision on 30 acres at 161st & Yale. The neighborhood features seven homes on two-acre tracts. There are five homes left for sale
Elwood Crossing
Torrey
Throughout the month of October, customers at local bakery Pancho Anaya can find pan de muerto ($3.29), a specialty sweet bread only made this time of year.
Approximately 6-inches wide, all parts of the bread are symbolic. First, its roundness represents the circle of life, according to KATIA ANAYA, whose family has been operating Pancho Anaya in Tulsa for more than 20 years. In the middle sits a raised ball, signifying the heart, and four lines radiating from the center represent bones.
After a dusting of sugar, the bread is ready for eating or adorning a deceased loved one’s altar. Katia’s family constructs Dia de los Muertos altars at each of the bakery’s locations for patriarch FRANCISCO ANAYA GALVEZ. See p. 93 for more on Pancho Anaya and pan de muerto. TP
BY NATALIE MIKLES
Freya, the ambitious new Nordic concept by Justin ompson, is a restaurant that’s both elegant and cozy, inviting but refined. This is possible because even with interesting and beautiful dishes, the concept of hygge is at the heart of the restaurant.
Hygge (pronounced hue-guh) — related to the English word hug — has long been at the root of Scandinavian culture, but gained popularity in the United States five to 10 years ago as the Danish idea of cultivating comfort and well-being caught on in the U.S.
So while the white walls and sparse aesthetic of many modern restaurants can give a cold feeling, Freya is warmed with home-like touches. Candlelight, linen napkins and shelves with pottery, books and plants take away the intimidation sometimes felt in upscale dining. “It feels like an understatement to say that there has been incredible attention to detail in this restaurant,” chef de cuisine Ti any Taylor says. “Literally every inch of the building has been assessed to maximize the ‘hygge’ concept — a place to feel comfort and welcomed.”
You might wonder how a Scandinavian-style restaurant could do well in Oklahoma. But it has two things in its favor. One, Tulsans crave something new. We remember the cool restaurant we happened upon while traveling in a larger city and wish there was something like it in Tulsa. So, when it comes, people line up. Two, Tulsans trust Thompson. He has earned his reputation as a firstrate restaurateur with his other concepts Juniper, Prhyme and Farrell Bread and Bakery.
Nordic cuisine was researched extensively by Thompson’s team, including Director of Restaurant Operations Derek Hillman, who says Thompson was excited and driven, explaining how excellent the cuisine looked and that it was perfect for bringing it to Tulsa. “It turned into a passion for a potential concept,” Hillman says. Staff includes general manager Ashlin Gustin, chef de cuisine Taylor and sous chef Kelsey Ihm
The menu at Freya offers dining options you won’t find anywhere else in Tulsa. Words like gravlax, skagen and torske kugler can be confusing
at first, but our waiter explained there is familiarity in this menu. For instance the beef tenderloin filet ($45) is a loved and familiar dish, but has a Scandinavian touch with a dill-caper butter, rye crisps and crisp parsley potatoes.
Flavors from dill, parsley, rye, crème fraiche and pickled vegetables and fruit are featured prominently. Hints of Scandinavian style are sprinkled in each dish.
Before dinner, rye rolls were served with salted butter. Rather than serving a traditional loaf of super dense rye bread, the decision to make a softer, lighter roll was a smart one. All the rich rye flavor — with hints of nuttiness and dark molasses — comes through in this wonderful bread.
Shared plates are the perfect way to try something different without having to make a full entree commitment. We liked the mushroom and goat cheese bake ($16), which comes in a cozy crock that helps keep the dish warm and is served with rye crisps — a slightly sweet, crisp version of the rye bread.
We also loved the gravlax ($17), a beautifully presented dish of beetroot and aquavit-cured salmon with fried capers and dill mustard sour cream with radish on rye crisps.
A gorgeous shareable plate is the skagen ($15) — little toasts with shrimp, crème fraiche, preserved lemon and golden caviar.
For entrees, the Swedish meatballs ($23) are a popular comfort food with a classic sauce and punches of fresh flavor from lingonberry, pickled cucumber and caramelized onion. The egg pasta is rich and wonderful. Vegan meatballs and pasta also are available.
Entrees range from vegetarian — like the golden beetroot risotto ($24) with asparagus, dill crème fraiche and three-seed crunch — to game like an elk chop ($43) with a bright cloudberry demi-glace, roasted radish and an herbed goat cheese sauce. Chef Taylor says the dish has become one of Freya’s signature plates. “I think it’s very representative of the balance that we’re looking for in every bite,” Taylor says.
Seating is not communal, but is cozy enough to make friends with other diners if you’re in the mood. A man sitting next to us was so impressed with his Nordic mussels ($26) that he wanted to share them with us. The mussels were served in an enameled cast iron pot, coddled in a horseradish broth with an herb emulsion, parsley potatoes and rye and sourdough bread for soaking up the delicious broth.
We also tried the Swedish hasselback chicken ($31). The bone-in chicken breasts were tender and juicy, stuffed with herbed goat cheese and placed on an asparagus velouté with puff pastry. Some dishes may need a bit more explanation, which waiters are quick to offer. Many diners may assume hasselback chicken to be sliced hasselback-style, like the popular potato dish, or to be enveloped in puff pastry. But this dish is deconstructed, with puff pastry on the side.
Don’t skip dessert. Like the rest of the menu, dishes are seasonal and will change. But we loved the chocolate fudge cake ($12) with pickled raspberry sauce and whipped cream. Pickled raspberries make the sauce extra tart, which cuts the sweetness of the cake. Don’t expect an Americanstyle chocolate cake — this is more like a flourless
chocolate torte than cake.
We also caught a glimpse of our neighbor’s honey baked pear ($10) — an elegant dish of a half pear, baked until tender and served with an almond crumble and cardamom crème.
Freya’s bar is a great spot for Brookside peoplewatching. Rather than being tucked at the back of the restaurant, as is often the case, the bar is at the front with views from the front to the back of the restaurant. There’s an extensive cocktail, wine and beer list. And zero-proof beverages have their own page, with many good mocktail options. The sparkling Scandinavian sangria has flavors of citrus, pear, cinnamon, almond and alcohol-free prosecco. Or, try the Yggdrasil (the sacred tree) with lemon, spruce and seltzer.
To further the feeling of hygge, waiters sometimes drop by little hygge cards to their tables. These conversation starters have questions like, “At what age would you say people are generally happiest?” or, “If you could be guaranteed an honest answer, what would you ask and to whom?” These questions are perfect for a first date or a multigenerational table. We noticed several people talking and laughing while reading the cards.
Dining out in the fall is the ultimate time for all those hygge feelings of warmth and coziness, and there’s no doubt you’ll find it at Freya.
Lunch: 11 a.m.-2 p.m.,
Dinner: 4 p.m.-10 p.m.,
Go to a pumpkin patch.
Watch a high school football game under the Friday night lights.
Hike Turkey Mountain.
Eat a corndog at the Tulsa State Fair.
Get lost in a corn maze.
Drink beer from a stein at Oktoberfest.
Take your kids and pets to the Brookside BooHaHa Parade.
Make an apple pie.
We can’t help you make a koala bear costume for your chihuahua, but we can teach you how to make that apple pie.
Pick a lazy Saturday or Sunday so you can take your time making this pie. If making pie crust isn’t your thing, opt for pre-made dough — we won’t tell.
Apple pie is a pretty personalized pursuit. Some like it spiced, some more sweet, some loaded with apples and some dotted with raisins or cranberries. You can top it with lattice-cut dough or sprinkle with a crumble topping.
We love this recipe with just the right amount of sugar and spice. The topping is neither pastry nor crumble, but spiced nuts. This mixture of almonds and pecans is crunchy and delicious. — NATALIE MIKLES
Spiced almonds and pecans:
1/3 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon dark corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup chopped pecans
In a small saucepan, combine water, sugar, corn syrup, salt, ginger, cloves and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, then cook for 1 minute. Add vanilla, and fold in almonds and pecans. Spread on a jelly roll pan and let cool.
Pie dough to fit a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan
4 large Granny Smith apples
4 large red apples (Honeycrisp or Jonathan are good)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 stick butter
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place dough into pie pan. Set in refrigerator while making filling.
Peel and thinly slice apples.
In a large bowl, whisk dry ingredients together. Toss in apples, and coat evenly. Place apples in pie pan. Slice butter into pieces and dot evenly over apple filling. Top pie with spiced nuts.
Bake 50-55 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. TP
Tulsa Botanic Garden is the inspiration behind Red Fork Distillery’s newest spirit, Botanic Vodka — the latest collaboration refined by the local distillery.
Chuck Lamson, CEO of Tulsa Botanic Garden, met with Dana and Mike Hoey, owners of Red Fork Distillery, and experimented with numerous botanic essences found in the garden until they found the perfect combination: juniper berries, angelica root, orange peel and coriander seeds. Thus, Botanic Vodka was created. Lamson describes it as “a fragrant spirit with a smooth finish.”
A portion of the proceeds from each bottle sold will benefit Tulsa Botanic Garden, not to mention the exposure the Garden will gain from having its logo on the bottle, Lamson says. Botanic Vodka will be bottled and sold through Red Fork Distillery’s distributor, LDF, to local liquor stores, bars, restaurants, Red Fork’s retail store and, of course, Tulsa Botanic Garden. — MADISON WALTERS
Umberto’s, 3147 S. Harvard Ave., is known for its huge pieces of New York style pizza by the slice, extra-large (20-inch) pizzas, garlic knots, calzones and sausage rolls. During the lunch hour, many customers come for a quick slice, made to order.
Thin, crisp-edged pizza is the style here, and the magic quality of Umberto’s crust is it can withstand a load of toppings without getting soggy. The not-too-sweet sauce is made in-house.
There’s a reason Umberto’s has been successfully slinging pies for over two decades, and many name it a favorite for New York style pizza in a city with many options for a slice of pie. — NATALIE MIKLES
Pancho Anaya fans know October is the time to pick up pan de muerto at the bakery. All month long, leading up to Dia de los Muertos — “Day of the Dead” — on Nov. 1, bakers at Pancho Anaya make the bread. Last year Katia Anaya says they made 1,300 loaves.
Pan de muerto (bread of the dead) is a tradition around this Mexican holiday that reunites the living with their deceased family members for the day. Many honor their deceased loved ones with altars bearing gifts of food, including pan de muerto.
The soft, sweet bread is round with symbolic shapes on the sides and top. It has a richness from egg yolks and is flavored with sugar, anise seed and orange juice and zest.
Anaya says pan de muerto is a tradition now expected by customers — even those who don’t celebrate. Look for it all month long at Pancho Anaya’s three locations: 2420 E.
E. 21st St., and 40 S. Garnett Road.
BUZZLESS BEVERAGES Mandy Lauck, general manager at Bramble and Holé Molé, 1302 E. Sixth St., wants everyone — drinkers and non-drinkers alike — to enjoy the fun of having a specialty cocktail with their meal. Enter her slate of fabulous mocktails on the menu at Bramble, which debuted late last year. From the Sweet Nothings, made of non-alcoholic gin, pineapple juice and lime, to the secret standout (and Lauck’s favorite) the Cold Fashioned, these sans-alcohol drinks have been a hit.
Being a non-drinker herself, Lauck has a clear passion for making the dining experience just as fun for everyone, regardless of drinking status. “I remember when I quit drinking, going out with friends wasn’t as enjoyable. It’s not fun being limited to a water or a soda.”
Lauck is already crafting new mocktails to add to Bramble’s menu, as well as alcohol-free offerings for Holé Molé, the new concept restaurant opening soon at the same location.
— GEORGIA BROOKS
to eat
Aloisio family
Mondo’s
a new, expanded space
one block
its original Brookside
amenities and patio seating
just some of the new site
It’s pricey at $24, but Charleston’s French dip is worth it. Shaved prime rib is the star on a toasted French roll spread with mayonnaise and served with au jus. Charleston’s crispy French fries are an excellent sidekick, or try the coleslaw or fried okra. This French dip is big enough to split, so that will cut the cost if you share lunch with a friend. 3726 S. PEORIA AVE., 918749-3287 | 6839 S. YALE AVE., 918-495-3511 | 251
E. HILLSIDE DRIVE, BROKEN ARROW; 918-355-9177 | CHARLESTONS.COM
Some say it’s the best drip beef in town. Take 2: A Resonance Cafe’s roast beef is slow cooked, then piled on a toasted French roll with melted Swiss cheese ($11.25). The au jus on the side is perfect for dipping. We couldn’t love this sandwich — or this restaurant — more. Take 2 employs women recently released from prison, giving them skills and opportunity. Don’t forget a slice of chocolate cream pie. 309 S. MAIN ST. | 918-861-4555
| TAKE2TULSA.COM
If you like a ton of flavor, R Bar and Grill has a rich French dip ($16) that fits the bill. This juicy, tender, braised short rib is placed on a toasted baguette with Gruyere cheese and a grilled jalapeño aioli. Au jus comes on the side, but you may not even need it with all the juicy decadence coming from this sandwich. Try it with chips, R Bar’s great mac and cheese or truffle fries. 3421 S. PEORIA AVE. | 918-392-4811 | RBARTULSA.COM
NATALIE MIKLES
On the Sept. 7 episode of Tulsa Talks: A TulsaPeople podcast, Lindsey Gifford shares how in less than a decade she went from part-time server to managing partner for McNellie’s Restaurant Group. In her role, Gifford oversees operations at The Tavern and Bull in the Alley in the Tulsa Arts District, plus Wild Fork and soon Bar Serra in Utica Square.
ON HER EVOLVING ROLE: I started out just solely at the Tavern for many years. I helped open it almost 12 years ago. Then almost seven years ago, we did Bull in the Alley in the same building. That was a fun restaurant opening. Then we took over Wild Fork. It’s the first time we’ve ever taken over an already established restaurant. So, I moved out of the (Tavern) building into more of an overseeing role and helped do that. So those are my three core restaurants right now. We’re working on another spot in Utica Square. Bar Serra is under construction, and we hope to open this fall. That’ll be mine, too.
ON BAR SERRA: “Serra” is Italian for greenhouse. It’s sort of reminiscent structurally of a greenhouse. It’s a big glass and steel structure. The side walls will open so it’ll be sort of an open-air, indoor-outdoor feel. We hope for it to be Utica Square’s neighborhood bar. That neighborhood needs a bar, but obviously not a dive bar. It’ll be just kind of a nice, cozy neighborhood bar where you can get some good food, watch some sports on the TVs and relax without it being too stuffy.
The Tulsa Coliseum was an indoor sports and entertainment venue built in 1928 that spanned the entire block of South Elgin Avenue from East Fifth to Sixth streets. It was designed by Tulsa architect Leon Senter and funded by Walter R. Whiteside
Whiteside was an entrepreneur and vice president of Douglas Oil Co. who relocated to Tulsa from Minnesota. His love for the game of hockey, and the opportunity to share it with others, led to the construction of the Coliseum and the organization of the Oilers franchise.
Because Whiteside wanted the commemorating game to be on New Year’s Day, the Tulsa Coliseum didn’t officially open to the public until Jan. 1, 1929. The Tulsa Oilers played their first home game against the Duluth Hornets in the arena. The Coliseum featured 4,500 opera-style chairs, and the capacity to add an additional 3,500 in floor seating once the ice was removed. Over the years the venue would be utilized for many events and ceremonies.
Whiteside unfortunately lost ownership of the building and the team during the Great Depression, and a group of creditors eventually purchased the property in a sheriff ’s auction. It was sold to sports promoter Sam Avery in 1942, who helped revitalize entertainment at the venue.
Avery’s signature Monday night wrestling became a huge hit alongside hockey action; he also owned KAKC radio station that broadcasted from the basement.
On Sept. 20, 1952, lightning struck the dry wooden roof of the Coliseum and ignited a fire fueled by strong winds. A total of 150 firemen fought the flames that night, but sadly the building could not be saved.
Television station KOTV, located a few blocks away, carried a camera onto their rooftop to broadcast the event. However, many Tulsans arrived on scene to see it for themselves and to remember the Coliseum’s 23-year existence.
TP
Minutes from downtown, Miles from ordinary
Saint Simeon’s is a haven for those living with any stage of Alzheimer’s or other dementias. With tailored programming and individualized care, our excellent staff-to-resident ratio ensures stimulating engagement and personalized therapies designed to address every aspect of your loved one’s health and wellness. Our secure memory care neighborhood includes safe, beautiful outdoor walking paths in garden courtyards. In addition to assisted living and long-term memory care, we are pleased to offer short-term skilled nursing and rehab in the same secure environment.
Find out how Saint Simeon’s can meet your loved one’s needs. Call Mary at 918-794-1900 or visit us online.
