ECU Alumna Wins National Contest

ECU Alum Brings Home the Bacon

LEAH LYON WINS $5,000 PRIZE IN NATIONAL COOKING CONTEST

Leah Lyon kept her big secret for two months.

Lyon, an ECU graduate and the project director of two federal grants at East Central University, won another national cookoff last February, the Cacique Go Autentico Recipe Contest. Cacique Cheese announced the winner through a series of six vignettes about Lyon and the three other finalists on the Cooking Channel on Feb. 5. The actual competition was Dec. 7 and 8.

She probably will take the $5,000 cash prize because of scheduling conflicts with the other option, a week-long trip for two to Napa Valley and a five-day Culinary Institute of America Boot Camp vacation.

Meanwhile, Lyon, who had won her category three times in the biennial Oklahoma Beef Cookoff, took the $1,000 grand prize for the first time on Jan. 22 for her Steak Florentine Orzo with Warm Bacon-Tomato Vinaigrette.

She has been a serious competitor for about nine years and enters between 30 and 40 contests each year. So far, she’s won about $80,000 in cash, prizes and trips.

With little spare time, she had wavered on whether to enter the Cacique cheese contest. Then she realized she could put together an appetizer using the company’s panela cheese which she frequently uses.

“I had fried some of that cheese (earlier) for a softball dinner for my daughter,” Lyon said. “I realized I could just cut it really thin and enter that. I had made fried cheese with Leah Lyon on the set of the Cacique Go Autentico Recipe Contest, which aired on the Cooking Channel.

Lyon’s award-winning recipe, Shrimp Rajas Al Carbon Panela Tostadito.

Lyon and two of the other contestants getting ready film their cooking segments.

From the Kitchen ofLeah Lyon

Shrimp Rajas Al Carbon Panela Tostadito

10 oz. Cacique Panela Cheese 1/3 cup Cacique Crema Mexicana Agria 1 lb. medium-large shrimp, peeled and deveined 1/2 cup bottled mojo criollo 1 bunch green onions, stems only 2 tbsp. light olive oil 1 large poblano chile, roasted, peeled, and seeded 1 large tomato 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish if desired 1 large avocado, mashed 1/4 tsp. granulated garlic 1 tsp. fresh lime juice Black pepper to taste 3 tbsp. corn flour 2 tsp. adobo seasoning with black pepper 1/3 cup olive oil 4 strips fully cooked bacon, chopped

Preparation Method Marinate Shrimp in mojo criollo 15-30 minutes. Rub onion stems with oil. Place shrimp & onion stems on grill over medium high heat. Cook shrimp until just done, 2-3 minutes (they will continue to cook slightly after removing from heat). Onion stems should be wilted & even charred in places. Transfer shrimp & onion stems to a cutting board & chop coarsely. On same board, cut poblano into matchstick size strips & dice the tomato. Mix shrimp, onion, poblano, diced tomato, & cilantro in a bowl. Add salt to taste, cover & reserve. Mix crema agria with mashed avocado, garlic, & lime juice. Add a dash of salt & pepper (to taste). Reserve. Use a very sharp knife to slice the panela cheese into 6 slices (rounds). Mix the corn flour with the adobo seasoning. Heat a very thin layer of olive oil in a heavy skillet to medium high heat. Dredge the panela slices in the seasoned corn flour, coating both sides. Fry in the hot skillet, 2-4 at a time (depending on size of skillet), turning once, until very crispy & golden brown on both sides. Transfer to paper towels & repeat, adding a bit of oil as necessary, until all are fried. To serve, place fried Panel rounds (Tostaditos) on appetizer plates (1 each). Divide the Shrimp Rajas Al Carbon among the rounds & add a dollop of avocado crema on top. Sprinkle with chopped bacon. Garnish with cilantro if desired. Serves 6 as a hearty appetizer or with a salad for a light lunch.

shrimp salsa and everyone said it was good.”

So on the night of the deadline, she sat down with her laptop while watching TV and, using parts of recipes she had made before, typed up and submitted a recipe for Shrimp Rajas Al Carbon Panela Tostaditos. It wasn’t until late in the day before Thanksgiving that she got the call she was one of four finalists.

“I just started squealing,” she said.

She and her husband Bryan, the director of youth services for the Chickasaw Nation, flew to New York City on Dec. 6. The finalists prepared their dishes at 4 p.m. on Dec. 7 at Chef Aaron Sanchez’s restaurant, Centrico. Sanchez, a judge on the Food Network show “Chopped,” was one of four judges for this competition.

The finalists weren’t told who won, though. Instead, they had to be back at the restaurant early on Dec. 8 – at 2:30 a.m. – to recreate their dishes for a film crew and tape vignettes and Cacique product endorsements for national television.

“After we cooked,” Lyon said, “they told us to go to bed because we had to be at the filming at 2:30 a.m. My husband had bought tickets to the Radio City Music Hall’s Christmas Spectacular. We went to that and ate at Bobby Flay’s restaurant. I slept for an hour, then went to the filming.”

A cooking crew did most of the food preparations for the finalists and a culinary director handled the taping. They were told who won the contest before they left at 4:30 p.m.

“I had a blast. I really did,” Lyon said. “It’s so interesting to know how things are done (on cooking shows).”

Lyon said she wins contests with desserts, quick-andeasy recipes and other types of dishes. Sometimes her family gets “sick of it” when she’s preparing for a cookoff.

“Maybe my specialty is appetizers,” she said. “I like a little gourmet, international foods, spicy stuff. ‘Spicy’ is my trademark.”

People want more spice in their food and are willing to try more things, she said. She uses a lot of chili peppers in her recipes. In fact, 90 percent of her dishes use poblano chiles, peaches, bacon, basil, avocado or corn.

Lyon is always searching for new things to try. She looks for trends and what high-end restaurants are serving. Eventually they will trickle down to other restaurants and home cooks.

“It’s a really fun hobby,” Lyon said. “It really is not an easy hobby. It seems easy at face value, but it’s not. Sometimes the win is not in a prize. It may be a recipe you use forever. You make a lot of really good friends, and it keeps my mind creative. I use a part of my mind I don’t use at work. I get to exercise my mind and stay creative.”

Still, she admits, she sometimes has a problem figuring out what to cook for dinner.

“For me, it’s whatever sounds good,” she said.

“After we cooked they told us to go to bed because we had to be at the filming at 2:30 a.m.”

“Sometimes, nothing sounds good. That may be because I cook all the time.

“My husband would be happy with a hamburger and my daughters with pasta.”

The largest prize she has won, in addition to cash and trips to California, Florida, Tennessee, Disneyworld, Disneyland, San Antonio and trips to New York, was a $25,000 Kitchen-Aid kitchen makeover.

“It’s awesome, if I do say so myself,” Lyon said of her new, larger kitchen. “But it stays dirty a lot because I cook a lot. I have to work really hard for it to look like a kitchen in a magazine for more than a few hours.”

Lyon said she goes to the grocery store more often than she should. She’s always missing some ingredient, but that may be because her daughters also cook. She has four daughters, Desiree, 19, an ECU student majoring in biology/pre-medicine; Devin, 17, a student at Latta; Dominique, 14, a student at Byng; and Dawsyn, 10, a student at Homer.

“I try to have them cook one evening a week,” Lyon said. “The 14-year-old is just starting. I want them to understand what it takes to put a dinner together. I may drop them off at the store to shop for their dinner. I want them to understand how much a meal costs to prepare.”

Her husband likes to smoke ribs, chicken and turkey and they enjoy having people over for dinner.

She credits her parents for her love of cooking and trying new things. Her mother encouraged her daughters to cook, and Lyon helped her from the time she was a small child.

“My mother is from Alabama and I’m the youngest of eight children. We know how to cook southern,” she said. “Over the years we all developed our own specialties. My dad, a WWII Naval Veteran, used to like really adventurous foods.”

Today, Lyon and her sister, Mary Shivers, enter the same contests almost all the time, often with both of them

Leah Lyon (right) and her daughter Dawsyn offer their Ginger Snappin’ Turtle Cookies to a “judge” at the 2008 Airbake Extreme Cookie Challenge, a parent/child competition judged by the public at the FAO Schwartz Toy Store in New York City. They won a $1,000 savings bond.

placing and Mary winning many. They’ve never competed “live,” but that is a shared dream of the two sisters.

Lyon grew up in Stratford and her husband is from Sasakwa. She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration/marketing and a master’s degree in secondary education/educational technology, both from ECU. Bryan Lyon also is an ECU graduate. He received a bachelor’s degree in education and a master of education degree in secondary education/sports administration and is working on a master of education degree in secondary education/school principal.

At ECU she is the project director of two grants. The Regional University System of Oklahoma – Violence Prevention Project grant oversees individual campus violence prevention programs at ECU and the other five regional universities.

The Campus Law Enforcement Technical Assistance Program provides technical assistance in the field of campus law enforcement training and collaboration to more than 100 campus grant programs across the United States through the Office on Violence Against Women.

Kristen Cambell, director of programs and new media Her organization, the NCoC, measures and promotes at the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC) and civic participation and engagement while focusing on East Central University alumna, attended a forum at the ways to enhance history and civics education, encourage Oklahoma State Capitol regarding the national and community service and state’s civic health. promote greater participation in the

The event, which was held in political process, according to its December, served as the release of official Web site. the Oklahoma Civic Health Index. It Cambell’s role with the informed the public and media about organization is researching, the key findings on civic engagement developing, and implementing in Oklahoma, including volunteering programs, including the Annual and political involvement. It also Conference, the Civic Health Index included plans for possible policy portfolio, and NCoC.net, in addition to approaches to encourage even greater new programs and initiatives. civic involvement in the state. The Prior to joining NCoC, Cambell report is available for download at was an associate at the Case http://NCoC.net/OK. Foundation, where she helped

“As a state, Oklahoma has faced develop and administer Foundation many great challenges, but one of our initiatives, manage social investments, greatest assets is the civic compassion conduct partner marketing and of our residents,” said Cambell. “It’s maintain grantee and partner great to see the Oklahoma Civic relationships. She has been involved Health Index reflect what our state has in the Make It Your Own Awards long known to be true - the importance grant program, focused on using of helping each other and giving citizen–centered dialogue to create back to our communities. Oklahoma community change. Other programs has a strong foundation on which to Kristen Cambell, ECU Alumna to which she has contributed include continue building the critical tenants Director of Programs & New Media, America’s Giving Challenge, an of robust civic participation, social National Conference on Citizenship initiative which used Web 2.0 and connectedness and economic vitality.” social media tools as platforms for

Cambell, a Norman native and current resident of online giving to nonprofit causes, and Social Citizens, Washington, D.C., was present to provide a national which aims to take an in–depth look at how a new perspective on America’s civic health. Customized reports, generation of young leaders is using digital tools and similar to the one produced for Oklahoma, were created for technology to create social change. 12 other states and four cities this year.

ECU Student Crowned Miss Ada

Congratulations to the 2011 Miss Ada, Lacy Newport. Newport is from Ada and is currently a sophomore at ECU majoring in family and consumer sciences.

TIGER TRACKS See What’s Happening With Your Fellow Alums - 1960s Patsy West (’66, ’75, ’88) retired as elementary superintendent from Pickett-Center School in 2008 after teaching 39 years. She has two daughters, Stacie West Carroll and Stephanie West Coulson, both of whom attended ECU. She is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International (sorority for women educators), Pontotoc County Literacy Coalition and Pontotoc County and Oklahoma Retired Educators organizations.

- 1980s -

Todd Graham (’86) has been named the head football coach for the University of Pittsburgh. Graham went to Pitt after a highly successful head coaching tenure at Tulsa, where in four years he had three 10-win campaigns and three bowl victories. He compiled a 36-17 overall record with the Golden Hurricane, including a 10-3 mark this year highlighted by a 28-27 victory at Notre Dame and decisive 62-35 win over 24th-ranked Hawaii in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. Tulsa’s win over Notre Dame was called the biggest upset of the year by ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit.

Keith Patterson (’86) worked the past eight years at Tulsa, including five as co-defensive coordinator. He also tutored the linebackers at Tulsa and oversaw the development of Nick Bunting, the 2006 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year, and Chris Chamberlain, one of the top tacklers in school history and a member of the St. Louis Rams the past three seasons. Tulsa

ranked third in the country in turnovers forced this past season with 36, including a national-best 24 interceptions. Before joining Tulsa in 2003, Patterson was an accomplished coach on the prep level in Oklahoma and Texas. Patterson has now joined Todd Graham at the University of Pittsburgh. He was a four-year letterman at defensive back for ECU.

Darrell Hall (’89) coached Booker T. Washington to a 2010 state championship. Coach Hall led Star Spencer to a 2009 State Championship. - 1990s -

Steven B. Denson (’91) has been asked to continue to serve as a council member on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Native American Employment and Training Council. The council is an advisory committee to the U.S. secretary of labor. It has approximately 21 members, each appointed for a term designated by the secretary. The council provides advice on the overall operation and administration of Native American employment and training programs.

Chickasaw Nation Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Bellefeuille-Gordon (’91) administers the oath of office to newly appointed Chickasaw Nation District Court Judge Dustin P. Rowe of Tishomingo.

Valley View Regional Hospital announces Todd Essary (’91, ‘97) as Valley View Regional Hospital Foundation executive director. Essary graduated from ECU with a bachelor of science degree in mass communication with a radio/TV concentration and received a master’s degree in human resources administration in May 1997. For the past four years he was the director and career coach in ECU’s newly formed Career Development Center which grew from 33 clients to more than 1,700. Prior to that he was a director of high school/college relations at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah where he led the recruitment efforts to three all-time freshman record classes. Essary is married to Tina who works at ECU. He has two stepsons Shane West, 17, and Chase West, 12, who attend Ada City Schools.

Daniel M. Meziere (’93) has been promoted to vice president and treasurer of Atmos Energy Corporation. Meziere will be responsible for all treasury functions including procurement and risk management. He had been the company’s director of accounting services since 2002. Meziere holds a master of business administration degree in finance from the University of Dallas and a bachelor of science degree in accounting from ECU. He is a member of the Oklahoma Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Stanford Who’s Who welcomes Robin N. Smith (’94) to the ranks of leading professionals as a result of her outstanding work on the internet. As co-founder of WeGoLook.Com, she has routinely demonstrated the vision, dedication and diligence necessary to be successful in the business world. She is responsible for overseeing the entire operation of the company as well as the marketing of the business. She earned a bachelor’s degree from ECU in 1994. She is a member of the Hugh O’Brien Youth Foundation. In the time away from her busy schedule, she greatly enjoys spending time with her two sons.

Rhonda Swindle and Tyler Bradley (’95) exchanged wedding vows October 22, 2010, on the rooftop of Michaelangelo’s Italian Restaurant. Rhonda is a graduate of Jonesboro High School and a graduate of the University of Central Arkansas with a master of science degree in counseling psychology. Tyler is a graduate of Norman High School and a 1995 graduate of ECU.

Jeannie (Savage) Forneris (’96) received the 2010 Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. Chairman’s Award for Excellence. - 2000s -

Meagan Brooking (’01) and Christopher Tomlinson exchanged wedding vows Dec. 18, 2010, at Ada Lodge at Falls Creek in Davis. Meagan is a graduate of ECU with a degree in English; she graduated in 2004 from the University of Oklahoma College of Law with juris doctorate. She is employed as an attorney in Ada. Christopher graduated from Ada High School in 1998 and is employed by Ryan Construction.

Matt Lee Sanders, (’02), an ECU history graduate, is teaching middle grades at the NICS school in Seoul, Korea. NICS is a network of 20 international Christian schools located in 16 countries. Its students represent more than 100 countries and are primarily the children of businessmen, military personnel, missionaries, diplomats and embassy staff. The schools are K-12, use American curriculum and English as the instructional language. Jenny Affentranger (’03), who serves as lower elementary principal for Bethel Schools in Bethel, Okla., has been selected to serve on a 12-person National Board for Professional Teaching Standards committee that will revise the Literacy: Reading-Language Arts Standards. Affentranger, who was selected from more than 500 applicants, will travel to the Washington, D.C., metro area five times between October and February for committee work. She started her master’s degree at ECU a month after graduating from OBU, and earned a master’s of education degree in elementary school principalship in 2003. She completed the National Board process in December 2006. Now in her 10th year in education, she is starting her second year as Bethel’s lower elementary principal. She is married to Mike Affentranger, vice president for BancFirst in Shawnee. They have one daughter, Marlee, 4.

Cindy Capps (’05) and Brent Greenwood exchanged wedding vows Oct. 10, 2010, at Center Free Will Baptist Church. Cindy graduated from Ada High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in education from ECU. She is the children’s minister at Center Free Will Baptist Church and works at Pre-Paid Legal, Inc. in Ada. Brent graduated from Vanoss High School and is employed by Wal-Mart in Ada.

Cristin Miller (’09) and Kyle Pitman exchanged wedding vows July 31, 2010, at Birdsong Wedding Cottage. Cristin graduated from Velma-Alma High School and earned her special education degree for K-12 at ECU. She is a third-grade special education teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Ardmore. Kyle graduate from Dickson High School and received an associate in applied science degree in high-voltage electrical construction and maintenance at OSU-Okmulgee. He is a lineman with OG&E in Ardmore.

Suzan Smith (’09) and Arron Manuel exchanged wedding vows Nov. 6, 2010, at Trinity Baptist Church of Ada. Suzan is a

graduate of Latta High School, and she graduated from ECU in 2009 with a bachelor of science degree in accounting. She is an accountant at Vision Bank. Arron is a graduate of Latta High School, and he owns and operates Manuel Collision Inc.

- 2010s -

Kelcie Hisaw (attending) and Chance Branscum (’10) exchanged wedding vows October 16, 2010, at Lovelady Baptist Church of Ada. Kelcie is a graduate of Latta High School and is pursuing a degree in business administration in finance at ECU. She is employed by Kellogg and Sovereign Consulting of Ada. Chance is a graduate of Ada High School and graduated from ECU in 2010 with a degree in business administration. He is employed by Vision Bank, Ada.

- Attending -

Kirsten Manuel (attending) and Montana Sutton exchanged wedding vows Sept. 18, 2010, at Church of the Nazarene, Ada. Kirsten graduated from Byng High School and is majoring in nursing at ECU. She is employed by Lillian’s Bridal. Montana is a graduate of Latta High School; he is employed by Scissortail Energy.

Gena Leann McCraw (attending) and Christopher Tyler Hatton (attending) exchanged wedding vows Dec. 19, 2010, at The Chickasaw Community Center. Gena is a graduate of Vanoss High School. She is employed by WalMart of Ada. Christopher is a graduate of Byng High School. He is employed by the Chickasaw Nation. Both currently attend ECU. IN MEMORIAM Sharon L. Adams, attended Anita Sue Lasley Allen, 1975 Don Alexander, 1977 Stephen Daniel Bates, 1986 Bob Eugene Bennett, 1955 L.Z. Black, 1955 Olive Lillie Pearson Bonner, attended Virginia Greenwood- Boston, 2003 Linda Branscum, 1975 & 1998 Kelly Ann Payne Brewer, 1988 Bridget Bruner, attended Vercie Alice Bryant, attended Alfred Burgess, 1953 & 1960 Carl “C.R.” Cantrell, Jr., 1959 Keena Lynn Cookson, attended Shirley Lou Crowl, attended J.D. Haney, attended Ora Bonham Helterbrand Dawson, 1952 James Lee Dixon, 1996 Roger Escue, 1974 Helen Gore, attended Nash A. Gough, 1948 Eula Greenlee, attended Oleta Ruth Guilliams Harlin, attended Burl Harris, 1949 Bryce Dale Hill, 1952 Leota Jo Hill, 1950 Charlotte Ross Hollis, attended Earl Lee House, attended Jo Hughey, attended Ruby Gayle Jackson, attended Lorraine Johnson, attended Donald Wayne Johnston, attended Jack Wayne Jordan, attended Frank Lee Kennon, 1951 Rena G. Bonham Kerr, attended DJ “Pete” Lafon, former faculty Lois W. Williams Lowe, 1951 Meredith Starr Marquard, 2010 Margaret Mary (Johnson) Maxey, attended Wendall Wayne Mayo, attended Georgia Mae (Lindsey) McCarty, 1963 Alton Ray McCurley, attended Donnie Meeks, attended Ruth E. Minton, 1951 Helen Virginia Yingling Nowlin, attended Tommy Wayne Quaid, 1961 Beatrice Penrod Quick, attended Jo Ann Rains, attended Janie Sue Lang Reed, attended Joe E. Riley, attended Alfred Leon Roach, 1953 & 1959 Mary Sue Roberts, attended Martha Rudd, 1998 Jimmy Rutherford, attended W. Dale Stone, 1949 Mary Steiner, 1967 and 1970 Jan Sturdevant, 1973 Jo Tipton, attended Winston Lee Tolbert, attended Joy Trujillo, attended Julius Edward J.E. Walker, 1951 Glenn Watson, 1939 Herbert Whelchel, attended Ila Faye White, 1970 Donna Wiggins, attended Nannie Lee Stidham Winchester, 1963

2010 ECU Quick Facts

Enrollment – 4,893 (highest enrollment ever!) States/Countries Represented: 31/36 Average Class Size: 21 Student-faculty ratio – 20 to 1 Male/Female Ratio: 6:10 Campus Size: 38 buildings, 140 acres Total faculty – 278 Full-time faculty – 177 Part-time faculty – 90 Percent of faculty with advanced degrees – 68% * * * * * *

There are several ECU alums who

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