McGIRT DECISION: O N E Y E A R L AT E R
T O P W AT E R G E TAW AY S
F O O D S T H AT W I L L C H A N G E YO U R L I F E
YOUR TEAM OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS Our practice brings continued opportunities to provide Oklahoma City with the best in holistic healthcare at Optimal Health Associates. Our commitment to aging medicine and care for multiple maladies – including pelvic floor disorders and complex gynecologic conditions – continues to define what’s possible. I plan to continue my commitment to medical education and the training of our future physician leaders. I am excited to continue to expand my knowledge base through new learning opportunities. Our clinic is committed to our patients’ health and wellness in all phases of life. Thank you for your continued trust in our commitment to patient wellness in all phases of life and our dedication to medical education and training of our future physician leaders. We look forward to caring for you,
Ben Barenberg, MD, MS, FPMRS
405.715.4496 OptimalHealthAssociates.com N O R T H O KC L O C AT I O N Broadway Ext Suite 200, Oklahoma City, OK 73114
Noel R. Williams, MD
Cassie Smith, MD
Gynecologist
Endocrinologist
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Cool Getaways
McGirt v. Oklahoma
We Are What We Eat
As summer heats up,
Tribal sovereignty is being redefined
Food that will change
Oklahoma’s shorelines provide
following 2020’s landmark Supreme
your life now.
an inviting escape.
Court decision. 405MAGAZINE.COM
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D E PA R T M E N T S In the 405 16 WHAT’S ONLINE A look at social media in the 405
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18 TRENDING Pastels bring an welcome sense of comfort to 2021 wardrobes 20 SOCIAL HOUR People and events in the 405 22 PERSON OF INTEREST Adam and Toni Ely’s Hard Luck Automotive provides free vehicle service for those who can’t afford it 24 FASHION The season’s swimwear goes beyond the pool or beach
Dining 64 GOOD TASTE A veteran culinary team at Piatto provides the concept’s recipe for success 66 DISH Burrata is popping up on menus in OKC and is as delicious as it looks 68 DRINK A toast to the 405’s best happy hours
Out & About
70 LOCAL FLAVOR A guide to OKC’s best restaurants
90 ARTS & CULTURE Inside the world of Chickasaw artist Steven Paul Judd
Home
92 ONE MORE THING Oklahoma’s Spiro Mounds offer a look inside the nation’s largest collection of prehistoric Mississippian artifacts
80 ENTERTAINING 101 Candlelight brings warmth to a table, no matter the occasion 82 IN CONVERSATION WITH A chat with Maddie Cloud about her Made by Maddie jewelry line and other projects in the works
94 LOOKING BACK 96 LAST LAUGH
84 DESIGN Marissa and Tommy Adler punctuate their Scandinavian-style home with accents that reflect their lifestyle 4
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O N T H E C OV E R Rowers glide along the Oklahoma River at sunset. Photo by Matt Payne
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405 Magazine Volume 7, Number 6, June 2021. 405 Magazine is published monthly by Hilltop Media Group at 1613 N. Broadway, Oklahoma City, OK 73103, 405.842.2266. ©Copyright 2021 Hilltop Media Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction of 405 Magazine content, in whole or part by any means, without the express written consent of the publisher is strictly prohibited. 405 Magazine is not responsible for the care of and/or return of unsolicited materials. 405 Magazine reserves the right to refuse advertising deemed detrimental to the community’s best interest or in questionable taste. Opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of ownership or management. Basic annual subscription rate is $14.95. U.S. single-copy price is $4.95. Back issues are $9.50 each
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FROM THE EDITOR
Marking the Days une is known for a number of things – Juneteenth, the anniversary of D-Day, Flag Day – but it also marks more obscure observances. For instance, June 1 is Flip a Coin Day. Not sure how that one got on the calendar, but the tradition of flipping a coin dates back to Roman times when it was called “navia aut caput” or “heads and ships,” referring to Caesar’s likeness on one side and a ship’s prow on the other, according to the Royal Mint. It was used to settle disputes and bets. Tradition has it that neither party made a prediction of the outcome of the toss; rather a “heads” determination was always the winner since it was believed it came with the emperor’s blessing. The practice traveled to Britain where it was called “cross and pile,” taking its inspiration from the design on each side made by the hammer that was used to strike the coin. Aberrations do occur with a coin toss, but perhaps none so strange as the 2013 football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Detroit Lions in which the coin landed perfectly on its side. The chances of that happening are about one in 6,000, which is about as odd as devoting an entire day to celebrate the flipping of coins in general. June also holds a number of days honoring foods like National Chocolate Éclair Day and National Onion Ring Day, both on June 22; National Jerky Day, June 12; or National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day, June 9. Other June holidays are designed to inspire admiration of the things we take for granted. Take Ball Point Pen Day, June 10; Sewing Machine Day, June 13; National Yo-Yo Day, June 6; and my personal favorite: VCR Day, June 7. Oddly enough, while video cassette recorders were widely used in the 1980s and 1990s, the first VCRs were commercially available in 1956 – something to remember in your celebrations of obsolete technologies. The best holidays, however, are June’s observations of days that incite action. Take Eat Your Vegetables Day, June 17 – a very good thing to honor with its own day – or, National Weed Your Garden Day, June 13 – again, this is a celebration for the good of mankind, or at least your neighbors. Others may be a little more frivolous – for instance, National Bubba Day, June 2. Fun fact: “Bubba” is the Yiddish word for grandmother. Who knew? Or, Repeat Day – I said, “Repeat Day,” June 3. And, National Hollerin’ Contest Day, which shares the spotlight with World Sauntering Day on June 19. Perhaps my favorite on the list is International Panic Day, June 18. The fact that it’s an international observance is notable. Ever
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think about that stealthy asteroid that will pop out from behind the sun and slam into the Earth? Or, alien invasions? Yeah, this is the day to meditate on those possibilities. Here at 405 Magazine, we’re setting aside the entire month to celebrate 405 Home and its editors Christine Eddington and Sara Gae Waters. The magazine received this year’s top national ranking for magazines of its kind by the City and Regional Magazine Association. It’s a prestigious honor and well deserved. And don’t forget to go to 405 Magazine online June 4 for our observance of National Doughnut Day. Spoiler alert: There may be free doughnuts involved. Happy June, 405.
Melissa Mercer Howell EDITOR IN CHIEF
THE OCULIST by Vision Source 405.504.3660 theoculistokc.com 1 NE 2nd St. Suite 104 Oklahoma City, OK 73104
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Physicians Optical
FORMA OPTICS AND ART Pride Kickoff Celebration & Drag Show June 24th - 7-10 at Forma
Pontiac Building . 1100 N Broadway Ave, Suite 102 . Oklahoma City, OK 73103 (405) 768-4295 . formaopticsandart.com Sabine Be modeled by @blackcoalwhitediamond
@formaopticsart
In the 405 All Dressed Up
SHEVAUN WILLIAMS AND ASSOCIATES
Swimwear takes center stage both in and out of the water. Page 18
Straw hat by Bonanza from Mode; large cat eye sunglasses by Dita from TSO Optical; Bissy Swim green velvet suit by Oklahoma designer Allie Ayers, bissyswim.com; and bracelets from Mode.
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IN THE 405
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T R E N D I N G
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Comfort Colors BY EMILE Y SE X TON
C O M F O R T A N D B E I N G C O M F O R T E D have never been more popular than in 2021. This idea also extends to color with a rise in pastel hues across the board in fashion. Runways and online look books are featuring an array of pastel-colored garments – think cotton candy, Care Bears and perhaps your childhood bedroom. There is just something calming about the nature of a pastel that fosters a sense of comfort and nostalgia.
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1. LoveShackFancy Gwen dress, Gretta Sloane 2. Ulla Johnson top, Cayman’s Clothiers 3. Nike Dunk Low in Pearl, The Laboratory OKC 4. Lutz Morris bag, Gretta Sloane 5. Gucci sunglasses, Balliets 6. Bond No. 9 Gold Coast fragrance, Balliets 7. Seychelles sandal, Betsy King Shoes 8. Stony Clover cosmetic bag, Cayman’s Clothiers 9. Palm Beach Assouline book, Cayman’s Clothiers 18
JUNE 2021
Balliets, 6443 Avondale, OKC, balliets.com Betsy King Shoes, 3001 Paseo, OKC, betsykingshoes.com Cayman’s Clothiers, 2001 W Main, Norman, shop-caymans.com Gretta Sloane, 6476 Avondale, OKC, grettasloane.com The Laboratory OKC, 1145 N Walker, OKC, thelabokc.com
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IN THE 405
S O C I A L
H O U R
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Forever Yours Spring Barket Dog lovers turned out April 11, 2021 to enjoy a day at Scissortail Park with their canine pals. The Spring “Barket” featured microchipping, contests, games, food and pet goodies. 1. Angie & Brad Cockings, Tucker, Marley 2. Taboo 3. Mckenzie Savage, Colby Smith, Freya 4. Shannon Vaughn, Anderson
5. Kim Noyes, Trish Liscom, Skye 6. Matthew Starke, Lori Craig, Chaos, Pandora, Karma 7. Steven Cummings, Riki Phillips, Skye
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FRAN KOZAKOWSKI
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ED RUSCHA: OKLA
ON VIEW THROUGH JULY 5
Admission is always free OklahomaContemporary.org 11 NW 11th St., OKC, OK 73103 Installation view of Ed Ruscha: OKLA. © Ed Ruscha.
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Driven to Do Good Adam and Toni Ely of Hard Luck Automotive Services motor forward with generous, talented partners B Y E V I E K L O P P H O L Z E R | P H O T O B Y C H A R L I E N E U E N S C H WA N D E R
Litahni “Shawshank” Shawhan, Adam Ely, Toni Ely and Monte Huffman comprise Hard Luck Auto.
hile swiping through Match.com in 2010, Toni Ely stopped short on one image. “He had a picture of himself lying on the ground with his daughter lying on his back,” she says. “He was covered in tattoos, he had facial hair and he was loving on his kid. It just won me over.” The two discovered much in common. Both served in the military. Both were parenting daughters. Both had visible appreciations of art – Adam Ely in his tattoos and Toni Ely in her paintings
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and graphic designs. She felt there was something magnetic about him, and the two married two years exactly after the day they met. Others have been curiously drawn to him, too. In 2017 the couple started Hard Luck Automotive Services, a nonprofit providing free car repairs. Their mission states if you can afford the parts and they can fix it, they will. Their charitable work has garnered local, national and international media attention; more than 20,000 Facebook followers; and incredibly generous partnerships, with all eyes on Adam Ely.
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It’s like a family. You’ll have 10 people watching us fix a car. Of those 10, only three are there because they have something wrong with their car. Everyone else just comes to hang out. It’s an amazing place.”
“I don’t call businesses because no one wants to hear, ‘Hi, I’m Toni, part owner of Hard Luck. I’m Adam’s wife.’ They want to hear from Adam, so we almost pimp him out,” Toni says. “It’s not ‘almost,’” Adam chips in with a laugh. “We pimp him out,” Toni continues. “The guys do the mechanical work. I’ll answer any questions or phone calls, but he is our pretty face in front of the camera. He’s our money maker. Everyone wants to talk to and meet Adam.” Adam Ely has a strong desire to help others, and Toni Ely is wholeheartedly along for the ride. “I spent 39 months in a combat zone,” Adam says. “I saw the true evil of the world, and it has changed the way I look at my life now. If I don’t go to bed fulfilled every night, trying to put a smile on someone else’s face and making someone else happy, I feel like I haven’t lived that day to the fullest.” Before Hard Luck, the Elys organized food and clothing drives. Then one weekend they helped their daughter’s coworker – a Domino’s delivery driver – fix her car for free. “When that little girl drove off, that was my lightbulb moment,” Adam says. Hard Luck provides the ideal vehicle for the Elys to give back to their community. The concept has caught on and demand has increased. A few years ago, volunteer mechanics Litahni Shawhan and Monte Huffman joined the team. “We get along really well – being all combat vets, being all gear heads, and
having kind of a united mission,” Adam says. “It’s not just 9 to 4. We kind of do life together, too.” The four partners have equal say in the future of Hard Luck. Right now, that future includes filming a reality television show at Redemption Speed Shop in Choctaw, the donated space where Hard Luck currently operates. “It’s like a family,” Adam says. “You’ll have 10 people watching us fix a car. Of those 10, only three are there because they have something wrong with their car. Everyone else just comes to hang out. It’s an amazing place.” The Hard Luck crew is also fundraising $723,000 to build their own shop on land donated by Midwest City. Others have come forward to contribute services to the construction effort, including Rhino Heat and Air, Kudron Concrete, Smith Roberts Baldischwiler engineering firm and the Association of General Contractors for the State of Oklahoma. The outpouring of support continues to astonish the Elys. “We’ve quit dreaming,” Adam says. “If you would’ve told me two years ago, ‘Dude, you’re going to have your own place. You’re going to have donated land. You’re going to have all these amazing people in your community wanting to step up and help you,’ I’d laugh right in your face.” “I told Adam to quit predicting what’s going to happen, because we never saw any of this coming our direction,” Toni says. “When we see something coming up, he instantly stresses. I tell him, ‘If it’s meant to be, it will happen.’”
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Suit Yourself Taking swimwear beyond the pool BY LINDA MILLER P H O T O S B Y S H E VA U N W I L L I A M S A N D A S S O C I AT E S
wimwear’s primary function is apparent. But like so many other pieces of clothing, it can take on different forms and roles in a wardrobe. First, a closer look at some of the trends that make this season’s styles so appealing. Swimwear brands always deliver a few givens such as figure-flattering and timeless black, stripes and florals, highcut bikinis and classic tanks. This year, add to the mix high-waisted bottoms, feminine ruffles, subtle animal prints, ruching, waist-accentuating belts and ties, keyhole and strategic cut-outs, one-shoulder styles, defined underwires, retro-inspired prints, fresh florals, soft fabrics and triangle bikinis. Colors range from bubblegum pink and all shades of green to soft nudes and creamy pastels. With so many interesting styles and details, it’s not surprising that some swimsuits are working their way into daily wear, especially since women are eager to switch things up and refresh their look by mixing and layering unexpected pieces. Why shouldn’t a favorite swimsuit be dressed up and go out more often than the yearly beach vacation or weekends at the backyard pool? Think of it as a wardrobe builder. A tank or maillot can do double duty as a bodysuit when worn with a maxi skirt, shorts or jeans. Consider a bikini or bandeau top under a sheer blouse and paired with flowy wideleg pants for al fresco dining. Finish the look with a stylish straw hat, sunglasses and interesting bracelets and necklaces. Oklahoma swimwear designer Allie Ayers’s new Bissy Swim collection includes a minimalist cowhide print one-piece suit, with black fringe detail on the shoulders that adds a sophisticated touch, taking the suit from water play to date night when styled with miniskirt or relaxed trousers and high-heeled sandals. This summer, suit yourself, whether you’re in or out of the water.
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Olive & Pique hat, Amuse Society high-waisted swimsuit, Sans Souci blouse and accessories, all from Mode.
Photography: Shevaun Williams Model: Triana Browne, Tabb Agency Hair and makeup: Ashley Tabb, Tabb Agency Styling: Samia Moses Creative Location: Crystal Bridge Conservatory at Myriad Botanical Gardens Bissy Swim, bissyswim.com Gretta Sloane, 6476 Avondale Dr., OKC, grettasloane.com Mode, 1227 N Walker Ave., OKC, shopmode.fashion TSO Optical, 3840 S Boulevard, Edmond, tsooptical.com
FA S H I O N
Carolina K tropical print suit and bracelets from Gretta Sloane; earrings, belt and sunglasses from Mode. 405MAGAZINE.COM
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IN THE 405
Bissy Swim cowhide print swimsuit with fringe shoulder detail by Oklahoma designer Allie Ayers; earrings, necklace and belt from Mode.
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FA S H I O N
The Painters of Pompeii Roman Frescoes from the National Archaeological Museum, Naples
Opening June 26 Reserve your timed ticket today. This exhibiton is organized by the National Archaeological Museum, Naples and MondoMostre.
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5 WAT E R G E TAWAY S TO BEAT THE SUMMER HEAT Looking to re-center or refresh your mind, body and spirit? Few things are as energizing as a good meal, a room with a view, and a dip in Oklahoma’s cool waters. To help you find your “new start” and catch a few waves and rays, we’ve put together a list of some of the state’s most relaxing waterside retreats. As the old song says, “Come down to the water,” for the perfect place to reconnect with nature, family and yourself.
BOATING
WATERSPORTS
SWIMMING
CAMPING
PHOTO PROVIDED
GOLF
Located at the base of the Ozarks, Grand Lake offers activities on and off the water in a beautiful setting.
F ISHING
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By Melissa Mercer Howell
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PHOTO CREDIT
G R A ND LAK E
Grand Lake is a meandering collection of rivers and splintering inlets that wind through 1,300 miles of shoreline in northeast Oklahoma. Formally called Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees, its serpentine shape and soaring limestone bluffs make for excellent views, fishing and water sports. Home to the Pensacola Dam – the world’s longest, continuous multiple arch dam – the lake and its tributaries provide hydroelectric power to much of the area. The dam and its spillways, built in 1940, represented the state’s first hydroelectric facility. The lake and its dam fall under the auspices of
Wake surfing is among Grand Lake's most popular water sports.
the Grand River Dam Authority, a state agency established in 1935 to oversee the “conservation and reclamation district for the waters of the Grand River.” (Fun fact: As Oklahoma’s largest public power utility, it has continued to expand its energy portfolio; in 2017, the GRDA launched its newest power generation facility, inaugurating the most efficient 60-hertz power plant in the world.) W H AT
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Fishing is a popular pastime at Grand Lake – it’s known for its large population of paddlefish, which can live as long as 50 years and grow as long as 7 feet, and whose eggs are highly prized for caviar production. Off the water, trade in those skis for a trusty steed at the Royal Horse Ranch, which offers horse camps, a trail and hayrides on Monkey Island. And you can grab a glass of wine at the end of the day’s ride at the Monkey Island Winery, which is located on the ranch. At the tip of Monkey Island – which isn’t an island, but a peninsula – the Shangri-La complex includes a 119-room resort hotel, three nine-hole championship golf courses and a marina providing boat and personal watercraft sales and rental, yacht charters and parasailing. Set to open in late spring or early summer, The Anchor activity park adjacent to the hotel will feature 11,000 square feet of virtual-reality golf, shooting simulators, games and an escape room. Its racquet club facility will include outdoor tennis courts, pickleball, sand volleyball and more.
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A view of Grand Lake's Honey Creek area.
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Grand Lake offers a variety of lodging, from RV parks to Airbnbs and other owner-based rental options. For those looking to be pampered, it’s hard to beat the Shangri-La. The indoor pool and fitness center offers personal trainers, steam room and sauna, while its medical spa provides Botox, IV therapy, acupuncture and massage. If group lodging is a must-have, Dream Catcher resorts offers two options. Dream Catcher Point features 12 bedrooms, four living areas, three kitchens, a dining room and six waterfront decks. It sleeps 30 guests and offers a three-slip dock and boathouse with enclosed
Shangri-La on Monkey Island offers three championship golf courses in a lakeside setting.
heated fishing well, large swim dock, 20-foot water trampoline and floating mats. Its sister resort, the Dream Catcher Grand, features nine bedrooms and a kitchen, a large hot tub, three outdoor decks, a fire pit, jet ski slips, two-slip boat dock, water trampoline and water mats.
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What’s on the menu when you come to Grand Lake? Steaks, pizza, drinks and, yes, fish. For a night on the town – all in one place – try The Shebang. Located on Monkey Island, the restaurant includes five unique dining rooms and a standing-roomonly bar. The menu boasts prime rib, seafood, pasta or pizza. Big Shots Rhythm & Booze dance club is next door to The Shebang, and karaoke is offered outside on the deck. For those with kiddos, The Parrot Steakhouse & Grill in Grove offers a tropical atmosphere punctuated by Jake, the restaurant’s colorful macaw. The menu is broad enough to suit a variety of palates and won’t break the bank. The restaurant also offers a full bar that continues serving even after the kitchen closes. Shangri-La has varied dining options, from fine dining to lakeside patio service. And for those planning to visit Grand Lake often, it may be worth looking into membership at one of the lake’s yacht clubs. The Cherokee Yacht Club and Arrowhead Yacht Club offer wine-tasting and special chef’s dinners, as well as bars with live music and events. 405MAGAZINE.COM
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B RO K E N B OW LA K E AND LOW ER MO U NTAI N FO RK RI VER A view of Beavers Bend State Park.
Beavers Bend State Park is home to Broken Bow Lake and portions of the Mountain Fork River. An established destination for campers and boaters for decades, the area has also become a haven for glampers over the past several years, thanks to beautiful “cabins” that are actually lavish country homes with as many as six bedrooms, wi-fi, fireplaces and outdoor
By Greg Horton
and Okie Girls offers a full coffee service, including espresso and lattes. For the area’s best barbecue and burgers, head over to Buffalo Grill, where they serve house-made fried pork skins piping hot, and yes, you can get a bison burger. Broken Bow is a few minutes south, and in addition to dozens of dining options, you can also book a wine tasting at Girls Gone Wine, a boutique wine shop and winery. They make the wine onsite, and have a “sassy” gift shop where you can buy the wines you love.
recreation areas. The setting is breathtaking, with dense forest growing to the edge of the lake in many places along the shoreline. TO
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The lake is perfect for waterskiing, fishing and boating, but it’s also clear enough to allow for scuba diving. For a much different view of the lake, hit up Rugaru Adventures for a zip line tour. They have several length options, and all feature beautiful canopy tours and stunning lake views. Beavers Bend is one of the few places in the state that boasts excellent fly fishing. If you’re an expert already, head for the Lower Mountain Fork River to enjoy excellent trout fishing. For the beginner or the curious, Beavers Bend Fly Shop carries a full line of equipment, and they also offer a guide service for those new to the area.
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Lakeview Lodge is a popular choice for overnight stays if rustic camping isn’t your thing. The lodge features comfortable rooms and suites, with gorgeous lake views from their balconies. For a more refined stay, check out Pine Lake’s inventory of luxury cabins. The properties offer resort-style amenities within a secluded, wooded terrain.
Beavers Bend Lake offers canoeing and kayaking for both beginners and experienced rowers who enjoy more of a challenge.
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Nearby Hochatown on the southwestern side of the lake has quickly developed into an entertainment district, featuring Hochatown Distilling and Beavers Bend Brewery, as well as excellent dining options like Grateful Head Pizza Oven & Tap Room and Okie Girls Coffee & Ice Cream. Frequent campers will recognize the value of a quality coffee shop nearby, 32
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The El Diablo Siesta Burger is as spicy as it is delicious, so be warned, the heat is real.
Lake Murray State Lodge offers waterside views of the lake.
By Greg Horton
The beautiful, 5,700-acre lake just outside Ardmore is situated in Lake Murray State Park – Oklahoma’s largest – and its clear water makes it ideal for a day at the beach.
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There are several beaches to choose from, including Sunset – on the east side of the lake – which is a popular day-use beach (no camping) with plenty of picnic tables. An 18-hole golf course, great fishing and recreational boating are all available. Tucker Tower is one of the state’s most interesting architectural destinations. It’s located on a rocky outcropping, and now accessed through the Nature Center. Originally built by the WPA in the 1930s, Tucker Tower’s original purpose is a bit of a mystery, but it’s a lovely peek into the state’s past.
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Ardmore is just about 30 minutes up the road from Winstar World Casino, a resort casino with multiple dining options, including a jointly branded Mickey Mantle’s/Kirby’s Steakhouse. The name will be familiar to OKC steak lovers, and the same quality and service found in Bricktown are also featured at the casino. The wine list is easily the best in southern Oklahoma. Closer to the water – on the edge of the lake, in fact – is Foggy Bottom Kitchen, a project of the Swadley’s Bar-B-Q company. The country-style eateries are popping up in state parks all over Oklahoma, and they typically represent the best dining options we’ve seen in those locales. Featuring a scratch kitchen and a menu full of country cooking and comfort food, Foggy Bottom delivers on flavor and quality at breakfast, lunch and dinner. The delicious, hand-breaded zucchini chips are one of the most popular items, and once you taste them, you’ll
understand why. They have a stellar array of dishes, including the spicy El Diablo Siesta Burger and a fantastic chicken fried steak with jalapeno sweet corn and mashed potatoes and gravy. The fried honey bun is decadent deliciousness, if you have room for dessert.
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Foggy Bottom is adjacent to the new Lake Murray Lodge, a beautiful new facility with 32 rooms and beautiful lake views. The park also boasts 56 cabins, mostly rustic and close to the lake, equipped with fire pits and picnic tables for cooking out. The cabins don’t have lake views, but the shoreline is a very brief walk from the front door.
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One of only two sets of man-made rapids in America, these high-speed water channels offer exhilarating experiences.
Relax and chill or feel the thrill through a wide range of activities at Riversport. OKC’s home to water sports and more, Riversport is open to ages 8 and up and can be scaled to fit any skill level, beginner to expert. It also can accommodate those with disabilities through adaptive water sports programs. Discover diverse experiences at each of its three locations: the Boathouse District east of downtown, Lake Overholser and Lake Hefner. B OAT H O U S E
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Ski OKC – Riversport’s newest attraction is “snow” skiing, in which a thin layer of water glides over special turf with a treadmill-like rotation. The downhill angle can be adjusted to mimic any slope – from bunny to black diamond and anything in between. Ski gear is available onsite, or you can bring your own, but leave the ski bib at home; temps here remain above freezing. 34
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By Evie Klopp Holzer
Surf OKC – Like the ocean, but without the sharks. Surfers start out on their bellies and work their way up to balancing on a board. Soft surfaces, shallow water and hands-on guidance make this a safe place to learn and practice the sport. Minimum height requirements are 42” tall to ride a boogie board and 48” tall for a surfboard.
hop aboard, but check the schedule first, since a few days are reserved for faster water speeds and expert-level conditions. Whitewater kayakers can mix into the eightmillion-gallon course as well. At 2 p.m., Love’s Tubing opens in a separate channel, with individual and family tubes available.
Whitewater Sports – One of only two sets of man-made and controlled-water rapids in America, these high-speed water channels offer exhilarating experiences. Be warned: You will get wet. Whitewater rafting begins with an orientation covering safety protocols, and even first-timers are encouraged to
Rowing – Come watch a regatta on the Oklahoma River – like the International Canoe Sprint Super Cup this August – or row the river yourself. The Boathouse District is home to several university and corporate teams who are training for competitions, but it’s open to
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individuals too. For a different experience, check out the Riversport indoor rowing tank.
The Illinois River offers family or group float trips and camping experiences.
Dragon Boating – In this ancient Chinese rowing sport, paddlers move in unison to a drummer onboard, propelling the colorful boat forward. Dragon boating is one of the fastest-growing watersports in the world, especially among seniors. Gather a group of five to 10 people, and move to the beat. Discover Series – Understandably, some are nervous to try a new sport, especially one involving water. Have no fear. Riversport offers one-hour introductory classes for each of its watersports. In a small group setting, you can ease into the experience with a knowledgeable guide leading the way.
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Flatwater Sports – For a tranquil excursion, opt for a canoe, kayak or stand-up paddle board. Children ages 5 and older can ride along, as well as dogs. Just be sure to bring the required portable flotation devices for these precious passengers. (Adult sizes available onsite.)
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Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge – Kayaking is an immersive way to explore the flora and fauna of this area near the Route 66 bridge. In addition, it holds group paddling events, such as Moonlight Paddles and Autumn Color Paddles. Trailhead Café – This breakfast and lunch destination serves up power foods – fuel for your body to enjoy all the lake activities. Try its Jam Band Bowl, a hearty steel-cut oatmeal topped with berries, peanut butter, trail mix and peach-habanero jam, or breakfast burritos filled with sausage, egg and loads of roasted veggies. Pair with local Eote coffee, and you’ll be ready to roll.
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Sailing Camp – In addition to the flatwater sports, Lake Hefner offers sailing for kids. These waters host sailing camps, in addition to other watersport camps, throughout the summer. Details are posted online, and camps fill up quickly. Don’t delay to sail away.
The Blue Doors at Lake Tenkiller is dedicated to sustainable living with well-appointed lodging and pollinator projects such as beekeeping.
Lake Tenkiller's shoreline provides scenic views of the lake.
Want to see more? Go to 405magazine.com to read about more summer getaways.
Dragon boating has become a popular group activity at Riversport.
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Travertine Creek runs through Chickasaw National Recreation Area, providing a mineral water soak for those who want to take a dip.
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Chickasaw National Recreation Area – In 1902, the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations and the federal government collaborated to protect aquifer-fed springs, streams and lakes, resulting in the creation of a 15-square-mile national park. In 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps enhanced the area, adding pavilions, trails, roads, dams, swimming holes and waterfalls. The park contains unique waters with sensory experiences you’ll only find in Sulphur. Few places in the world provide easy access to “fossil water” – water that’s 11,000 years old. For centuries, people have hauled jugs to Vendome Well, which is more than 700 feet deep, to sip the ancient agua. While the National Park Service says it can’t confirm or deny the water’s therapeutic values, the water is drinkable … though it’s an acquired taste. It’s so laden with minerals such as sulfur, calcium, sodium and magnesium, locals recommend leaving jugs uncapped for 24 hours before drinking. For more water attractions with an interesting past, visit the park’s fresh and mineral water springs in the northeast corner of the area. Each spring contains its own history: Buffalo Springs was once where wild bison bathed and rolled in the mud, while Black Sulphur Springs (the most fragrant of all) is where Lincoln Bridge was built in 1909, providing a safe passage for horses to cross the stream. Consult signs and park rangers to determine which springs are currently safe for drinking and wading. Little Niagara Falls – or any of the named falls – offer pure refreshment. The waters are a cool 65 degrees year-round. Arrive early on a summer day; parking is known to fill up by 10 a.m. If being on the water and not in it is your preference, Veterans Lake and the Lake of the Arbuckles are popular destinations for fishing and boating. Buckhorn campground on the Lake of the Arbuckles includes beaches for swimming and picnicking. 36
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The 81-room Artesian Hotel is designed to honor the original Artesian, which was built in 1906 but burned down in 1962. Water lovers will delight in the bathhouse – designed to mimic the hotel’s historic spa – and the heated indoor-outdoor pool. The facility also has a full-service spa. The Echo Canyon Spa Resort is an adults-only retreat featuring five cottages and 10 suites, all with Jacuzzi tubs and private patios. Surrounded by 27 acres of wilderness, guests soak in views of fields, forest and rock formations. The resort’s Aloha Spa and Baron of Beef restaurant are for guests only.
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The fried pork rinds may still be crackling when they hit the table at Springs at The Artesian. Other favorites include the Monte Cristo sandwich, served with homemade blackberry sauce, and the grilled bone-in pork chop topped with pickled red onions and roasted apples. Staying at Echo Canyon Resort Spa grants you entry into this exclusive five-star restaurant. With a seasonal and ever-changing menu, entrees could include prime beef filet, fresh Alaskan halibut, organic elk or roasted duck breast. Peaches and blackberries picked from the resort’s orchard are incorporated into sauces, cobblers and cocktails.
Entrance to the historic Artesian Hotel.
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By Evie Klopp Holzer
FAC E S of the 4 0 5 COMING BACK AUGUST 2021
Reserve Your Space Now and Lock in Your Exclusive Faces Title! It’s not what you know; it’s who you know. Make sure everyone knows your “face” with this exclusive opportunity to brand yourself or your team in the metro area. Executed in a highly artistic, editorial style, this advertising opportunity will include a portrait of the face or faces of your company by one of 405 Magazine’s professional photographers. Reserve your space now to shine a light on the person or people who make your company what it is! For more information about this issue and to discuss a comprehensive advertising plan that includes our other platforms, email info@405magazine.com or call 405.842.2266.
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McGIRT V. OKLAHOMA: ONE YEAR LATER Groundbreaking decision is poised to upend boundaries between the state and its tribal nations BY BR ANDON KING
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at a tangled intersection of law, culture and a history of broken promises and distrust. But a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on a series of crimes committed on tribal land is shifting discussions over the future of tribal sovereignty involving the Five Tribes of Oklahoma, consisting of the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Creek and Seminole Nations, and the state of Oklahoma. The Supreme Court’s July 9, 2020 ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma concluded that tribal lands and jurisdiction granted to the Muscogee (Creek) tribe in an 1866 treaty were never disestablished by Congress, therefore the tribe retains jurisdiction in criminal cases that, until now, have fallen under the state’s purview. The McGirt decision came on the heels of a similar case, Sharp v. Murphy, that asserted the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s authority over major crimes. Due to Justice Neil Gorsuch’s recusal, the Sharp case remained deadlocked. It eventually was used as a template for McGirt v. Oklahoma, in which Jimcy McGirt, an enrolled member of the Seminole tribe, was seeking an appeal in his conviction of three sex crimes committed on Muscogee (Creek) lands. McGirt was sentenced in 1997 to life in prison without the possibility of parole by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals in Indian Country. In a 5-to-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of McGirt, with Gorsuch delivering the majority opinion of the court as follows: “The federal government promised the Creek a reservation in perpetuity. Over time, Congress has diminished that reservation. It has sometimes restricted and other times expanded the Tribe’s authority. But Congress has never withdrawn the promised reservation … If Congress wishes to withdraw its promises, it must say so.” This ruling applies to those currently convicted under state law and to future tribal members who may be arrested for crimes included in Oklahoma’s Major Crimes Act, including murder, manslaughter, rape, assault with intent to kill, arson, burglary and larceny. As a result, thousands of cases that were adjudicated in state court are set to be reviewed by federal courts. The effect of the decision felt instantaneous to those directly involved in the case’s aftermath. For citizens of the Five Tribes,
specifically the Muscogee (Creek), the Supreme Court affirmed the tribe’s position that jurisdiction inside Indian Country belongs to the sovereign nations of each tribe. “The decision affects every Muscogee (Creek) citizen very emotionally because it’s a promise kept of a homeland – that we have jurisdiction over land that had wrongful jurisdiction for over 100 years,” said Jason Salsman, press secretary for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. “I’m not finger-pointing, that’s just a matter of fact. The state was acting lawlessly in the fact they didn’t have the jurisdiction over the reservation. There’s been over 100 years of a broken system that wasn’t supposed to be in place, and it’s going to take a lot to fix that, but you can’t do it overnight.” Although the McGirt decision is confined to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Native American tribes have watched reverberations from the ruling play out in lower courts throughout Indian Country. Oklahoma’s remaining four of the original “Five Civilized Tribes” – those that were removed from their ancestral lands on the East Coast to assigned reservations in Oklahoma – are seen as ground zero for tribal challenges to existing laws. Since the McGirt ruling, the Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole and Choctaw Tribes have seen a succession of rulings coming out of the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals that have overturned convictions and buoyed their position on tribal jurisdiction. “Since the McGirt ruling came down, we essentially sharpened our pencils, rolled up our sleeves, and started looking at how to start investing in aspects of the tribal government to catch the football when it comes our direction,” said Stephen Greetham, senior counsel for the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma. That moment came on Mar. 11, 2021 with Bosse v. State – an Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals case in which the conviction of death row inmate Shaun Bosse was overturned, applying the tribal sovereignty precedent of McGirt. Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby responded to the Bosse ruling, “Our hearts remain steadfast with the family this man victimized. We are in communication with the United States Attorney and appreciate his assurance that federal charges will be timely filed. We will continue our efforts to see justice done for the victim’s family.” 405MAGAZINE.COM
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ABOVE LEFT: Second Chief Del Beaver, National Council Second Speaker Darrell Proctor, National Council Speaker Randall Hicks, Principal Chief David Hill, former Secretary of Education Greg Anderson and Muscogee (Creek) Nation Ambassador Jonodev Chaudhuri traveled to Washington D.C. to assist in Supreme Court arguments. BELOW LEFT: An 1892 map of tribal nation boundaries in Oklahoma.
Bosse, who was sentenced to death in 2012 for the murders of three Chickasaw Nation members on tribal land, is set to receive a new trial. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals recently rejected Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter’s claim that the state also had jurisdiction over the Bosse case. At the time of this reporting, Hunter is asking the court to reconsider. “When we celebrate McGirt, we celebrate the intellectual honesty and principle that the court brought to bear in construing travel treaties and federal Indian law. We don’t celebrate what it means for the individual case, and Bosse illustrates that,” Greetham said. During the McGirt case, Hunter advocated for the opposite position, a stance best summarized by the dissenting opinion of Chief Justice John Roberts, “As the Creek, the State of Oklahoma, the United States, and our judicial predecessors have long agreed, Congress disestablished any Creek reservation more than 100 years ago. Oklahoma therefore had jurisdiction to prosecute McGirt.” 40
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Since the case’s decision, Hunter wrote in a series of statements to 405 Magazine that the state’s position is to ask Congress for “federal legislation to allow for optional compacting between the state and the tribes on criminal matters.” In response to how the state and tribes have cooperated in terms of criminal jurisdiction since the McGirt decision, Hunter said, “The state, local governments, the federal government, and tribes have all cooperated by entering into cross-deputization agreements and doing their best to ensure smooth transfer of criminals between state custody and federal or tribal custody. In addition, the Cherokee Nation and Chickasaw Nation have joined our call for federal legislation to allow compacting between these tribes and the state on criminal jurisdiction issues.” Hunter and those who opposed the McGirt ruling have expressed concern over a growing number of cases to be retried, straining already thin federal resources, and “the re-victimization of victims, who have already endured one trial by the state,” Hunter said. In addition to consequences arising from criminal cases, McGirt has become the catalyst for new questions concerning civil jurisdiction for the tribes. Lindsay Robertson is the faculty director for the Center for the Study of American Indian Law and Policy at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Robertson said the immediate impact is on the criminal jurisdictional side, however, McGirt’s effect on civil jurisdiction could be in the works. “If McGirt is to apply on the civil side as well, the impact will be felt more broadly for some people,” said Robertson. “For instance, Muscogee (Creek) tribal citizens who live in the Muscogee (Creek) Nation will find that those who have regulatory authority in some instances will now be the tribe and not the state. This might be things as mundane as where to get a car tag or where to pay income and sales taxes to. Those are issues that will be worked out as the question of civil jurisdiction is resolved.” Robertson acknowledges that Oklahoma has been a model on the national level for state-tribal relations, referencing years of inter-communal compacting in a variety of jurisdictional gray areas. “Because of that practice, I think that the state, federal and tribal governments will hold to this sort of relationship,” Robertson said. “If anybody could do it, we could come up with some sort of a jurisdictional solution that works; and I’m sure this could serve as a national model when it comes to these sorts of resolutions.” Talks of civil jurisdiction among the tribes have sparked debate on a number of issues including tribal gaming compacts and taxation. Most legal experts agree that civil jurisdiction is something that has the potential to be discussed in the near future. In the meantime, tribes including the Muscogee (Creek) continue to focus on the implications involving and following McGirt.
“We are just here saying the Supreme Court is right, the reservations were never disestablished, so what can we do moving forward?” Salsman said. “The tribes aren’t pursuing these cases or putting strain on the system. We’re Muscogee (Creek) citizens, but we’re Oklahomans too. We want Oklahoma to thrive like anyone else, and we believe that relationship has to be hand-in-hand.”
TOP AT TOR N EYS 2 0 2 1
Your Guide to Local Attorneys and Practices W H E N Y O U N E E D A N AT T O R N E Y, Y O U WA N T S O M E O N E W I T H a strong reputation and a proven track record. The annual Top Attorneys list provides the names of the 405 area’s attorneys recommended by their colleagues. DataJoe Research conducted an extensive peer-review survey asking established local attorneys to name top practitioners in their particular fields. The 2021 list contains over 250 top attorneys listed alphabetically and sectioned by specialty area.
405MAGAZINE.COM
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ADOPTION LAW
T O P AT T O R N E Y S 2021 Summary. To create the list, the magazine contracted DataJoe Research to facilitate an online peer-voting process and Internet research process. DataJoe Research is a software and research company specializing in data collection and verification, and conducts various nominations across the United States on behalf of publishers. To create the list, DataJoe Research facilitated an online peer-voting process. We paired this with an Internet research process to identify success characteristics. DataJoe checked and confirmed that each published winner had, at time of review, a current, active license status with the appropriate state regulatory board. If we were not able to find evidence of a lawyer's current, active registration with the state regulatory board, that lawyer was excluded from the list. In addition, we checked available public sources to identify lawyers disciplined for an infraction by the state regulatory board. These entities were excluded from the list. Finally, DataJoe presented the tallied result to the magazine for its final review and adjustments.
Denielle Williams Chaney
Chaney Law Firm PLLC Edmond, OK 405-595-1751
Robyn B. Hopkins Hopkins Law & Associates PC Piedmont, OK 405-373-4792
Jack H. Petty
energy to ensure fair voting, although we understand that the results of this survey nomination and Internet research campaign are not an objective metric. We certainly do not discount the fact that many, many good and effective lawyers may not appear on the list.
Disclaimers. DataJoe uses best practices and exercises great care in assembling content for this list. DataJoe does
The Law Office Of Celeste J England Oklahoma City, OK 405-767-9907
Shannon Taylor
James L. Gibbs, II
Law Office Of Shannon D Taylor Oklahoma City, OK 405-602-8446
Meredith A. Tipton
Blaney Tweedy Tipton & Hiersche PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-8445
Melisa L. Van Meter
Van Meter Law Office PC Norman, OK 405-310-0452
Jennifer Yowell Adoption Attorney Jennifer Yowell Oklahoma City, OK 405-615-5150
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7755
Bryan N. B. King Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
D. Kent Meyers
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7729
Mary H. Tolbert Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6672
APPELLATE LAW Charles F. Alden, III
not warrant that the data contained within the list are complete or accurate. DataJoe does not assume, and hereby
Andrew M. Bowman
caused by errors or omissions herein whether such errors
Foliart Huff Ottaway & Bottom Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-4633
or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other
Matthew Frisby
mation in this list may be made without written permission
Gary J James & Associates Oklahoma City, OK 405-521-9900
from DataJoe.
Scott A. Hester
cause. All rights reserved. No commercial use of the infor-
Questions? For research/methodology questions, contact the research team at surveys@datajoe.com. 42
JUNE 2021
Boaz & Associates PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-946-3232
Stoddard Morris PLLC Edmond, OK 405-509-6455
Miller Dollarhide PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-8541
disclaims, any liability to any person for any loss or damage
ARBITRATION AND MEDIATION
Celeste J. England
Andrew M. Coats
ions of responding lawyers in the region. We take time and
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Rachel Stoddard Morris
Final note. We recognize that there are many good law-
within the region. Inclusion in the list is based on the opin-
Jay P. Walters
Stephen S. Boaz
only a sampling of the huge array of talented professionals
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7714
The Bethany Law Center LLP Bethany, OK 405-787-6911
ANTITRUST LAW
yers who are not shown in this representative list. This is
Melanie Wilson Rughani
Hester Schem Hester & Dionisio Edmond, OK 405-705-5900
Goolsby Proctor Heefner & Gibbs PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-524-2400
William D. Greenwood
Greenwood Mediation Edmond, OK 405-642-0181
Joe M. Hampton Hampton Barghols Pierce PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-702-4346
Steven M. Holden Holden Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-2694
Harry J. Kouri, III
AVIATION Maria E. Gonzalez McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2358
Allison C. McGrew McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2262
Will E. van Egmond
Hampton Barghols Pierce PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-604-2611
ATTORNEYS FOR NON PROFITS Sharon Wigdor Byers
Oklahoma Guardian Ad Litem Institute Edmond, OK 405-888-5449
Cynda C. Ottaway Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7736
Wyatt Worden
Worden Law Firm Norman, OK 405-360-8036
BUSINESS LAW
Travis E. Harrison
Johnny G. Beech Spencer Fane LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-844-9900
Joel W. Harmon Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6637
Kari Hoffhines
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7709
J. Mark Lovelace Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Donald A. Pape
Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Lynn A. Pringle
Pringle & Pringle PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-848-4810
Justin L. Pybas
Amy J. Pierce
Travis Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-5400
BANKING AND FINANCIAL
Kevyn Gray Mattax
PHM Law Group PC Norman, OK 405-329-3307
Margaret Travis
Ryan J. Duffy
Richard P. Propester
Catherine Holland Petersen
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-5415
Harry J Trey Kouri Attorney At Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-630-4129
Kevyn Gray Mattax Attorney/Mediator Oklahoma City, OK 405-943-1965
Craig M. Regens
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7784
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5711
William H. Whitehill, Jr. Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621 Ward & Glass LLP Norman, OK 405-253-4031
Arthur F. Hoge, III Mee Mee Hoge & Epperson Oklahoma City, OK 405-848-9100
John “Jake” M. Krattiger
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
James K. Larimore Durbin Larimore & Bialick PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9584
James W. Larimore Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6643
Jordan LePage
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6988
E. Parker Lowe
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6803
Isai Molina
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2290
Armand Paliotta
Hartzog Conger Cason Oklahoma City, OK 405-996-3320
Joshua D. Smith
BANKRUPTCY AND WORKOUT
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2301
Warren Alarkon
John H. Sparks
Debt Solutions Law Center Oklahoma City, OK 405-702-7795
Odom & Sparks PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-1863
Daniel V. Carsey
Roger A. Stong
Hall Estill Oklahoma City, OK 405-553-2313
Matthew D. Craig
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5711
Elaine M. Dowling Dowling Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-842-8005
George M. Emerson
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
William H. Hoch Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6692
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6614
CIVIL LAW LITIGATION John E. Barbush John E Barbush PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-212-4011
Joshua J. Conaway Calvert Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-607-3082
Jack S. Dawson
Miller Dollarhide PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-8541
Seth A. Day
Hall Estill Oklahoma City, OK 405-553-2869
Derrick DeWitt
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
Melanie Dittrich
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
Patrick Lane
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6977
Dakota C. Low
The Law Office Of Dakota Low Oklahoma City, OK 405-601-8899
Byrona J. Maule Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Robert A. Nance
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
Thomas Paruolo
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
Jacob Rowe
Fulmer Sill Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-510-0077
Peter L. Scimeca Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
Bryan E. Stanton
Pierce Couch Hendrickson Baysinger & Green LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-5289
Amy M. Stipe
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Chad C. Taylor
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
John M. Thompson Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7774
Joe E. White, Jr.
White & Weddle PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-858-8899
CIVIL LAW TRANSACTIONAL Charles C. Callaway, Jr.
A. Michelle Campney Cheek & Falcone PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-286-9674
Daniel G. Couch The Law Offices Of Daniel G Couch Oklahoma City, OK 405-602-8839
Monica J. Hoenshell Calvert Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-607-3074
COMMERCIAL LITIGATION Jennifer K. Christian Durbin Larimore & Bialick PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9584
Jared D. Giddens
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5721
Joshua C. Greenhaw Mee Mee Hoge & Epperson Oklahoma City, OK 405-848-9100
William A. Johnson Hartzog Conger Cason Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7000
David Morse
Reynolds Ridings Vogt & McCart PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-8131
CORPORATE COUNSEL James R. Webb
Chesapeake Energy Corporation Oklahoma City, OK 877-245-1427
CORPORATE FINANCE MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS John Edwards
Hartzog Conger Cason Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7000
Danae V. Grace
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-270-6017
C. Ray Lees
Porter Hedges LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-254-5725
Brett P. Merritt
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2384
CRIMINAL DEFENSE
Kiran A. Phansalkar
Lorenzo Banks
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5711
Thomas G. Wolfe Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
CONSTRUCTION Evan B. Gatewood Hayes Magrini & Gatewood Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9922
Robert L. Magrini Hayes Magrini & Gatewood Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9922
Joseph E. Stall
Pierce Couch Hendrickson Baysinger & Green LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-1611
Evan G. E. Vincent Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6696
Minal Gahlot
Rawls Gahlot PLLC Moore, OK 405-912-3225
Randall K. Calvert
M. Kathi Rawls
Rawls Gahlot PLLC Moore, OK 405-912-3225
Jacqui Ford Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-604-3200
Miguel Garcia
Miguel Garcia PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-850-5878
Robert Don Gifford Gifford Law PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-810-5406
Chavers & Guhl LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-609-2929
Evan King
Evan King Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-655-8529
Donald C. Macarthy Donald Macarthy Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-673-1097
Mack K. Martin
Martin Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-8888
Jaye Mendros
Mendros & Stout Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-605-8639
Joi E. Miskel
The Law Office Of Joi E Miskel Oklahoma City, OK 405-840-7783
Banks Gillett & Gillett PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-607-4800
Laura Neal
Adam R. Banner
J. Patrick Quillian
Warhawk Legal Oklahoma City, OK 405-429-3023
The Law Offices Of Adam R Banner PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-778-4800
J Patrick Quillian PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-896-9768
Eric Bayat
Swain Law Group Norman, OK 405-546-1292
Bayat Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-413-2100
Ed Blau
Blau Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-2528
Corey Brennan
Law Firm Of Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK 405-608-4990
Bret Burns
Zack Simmons
Matt Swain
Swain Law Group Norman, OK 405-546-1292
Frank A. Urbanic
The Urbanic Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-633-3420
Gary W. Wood
Burns Law Firm Chickasha, OK 405-320-5911
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
Darlene Carbitcher
Andrea Worden
Worden Law Firm Norman, OK 405-360-8036
John W. Coyle, III
CONSUMER DEBT
Jacquelyn Leslie Ford
Graham Guhl
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6802
Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621 Calvert Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-607-3085
James Vogt
Coyle Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-583-3909
Clay Curtis
Clay Curtis Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-250-6769
Casey Davis
Jacqui Ford Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-604-3200
ELDER LAW Stephanie Alleman
Alleman Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-252-0472
Donna J. Jackson
Kaitlyn Allen
Oklahoma Estate Attorneys PLLC Midwest City, OK 405-880-8960
Abritton Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-601-7034 Henry + Dow Trial Lawyers Norman, OK 405-605-0681
Anita F Sanders Attorney At Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-2525
The Law Office Of Courtney Lee PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-400-9066
Chris Smith
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6804
Lindsey Vanhooser Sherwood
Sara Murphy Bondurant
Lindsey W. Andrews
Graft & Walraven Oklahoma City, OK 405-253-6444
Law Office of Lindsey W. Andrews, Oklahoma City, OK 405-760-5855
Sarah Stewart
Glenn Brown
Sarah D. Willey
Monica A. Dionisio
Sajani Ann Zachariah
Solid Serenity Legal Solutions Edmond, OK 405-548-5763
EMINENT DOMAIN Kraettli Q. Epperson Mee Mee Hoge & Epperson Oklahoma City, OK 405-848-9100
Jeff L. Todd
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2269
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6994 Hester Schem Hester & Dionisio Edmond, OK 405-705-5900
Allyson Dow
Henry + Dow Trial Lawyers Norman, OK 405-605-0681
Ashley B. Forrester
Expunge Oklahoma PLLC Oklahoma City, OK
Nichole Gillett
ENERGY OIL AND GAS Matthew J. Allen
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5712
Zachary T. Ball
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6801
Dale E. Cottingham GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Melissa R. Gardner Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
William J. Houser
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6812
Lewis T. LeNaire
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Laura J. Long
Irish & Sherwood Edmond, OK 405-285-2776
Courtney Lee Schamel
Terrell Monks
EDUCATION
Jennifer E. Irish
FAMILY LAW Tamra Albritton
Caron Loffland
The Center For Education Law Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-528-2800
Anita F. Sanders
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7783
Donna J Jackson & Associates PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-767-0333
Worden Law Firm Norman, OK 405-360-8036
Laura L. Holmes
L. Mark Walker
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6970 McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2372
Leo J. Portman
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Jim A. Roth
Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Banks Gillett & Gillett PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-607-4800
Amber M. Godfrey Godfrey Law & Associates PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-525-6671
Holly Hefton
Holly Hefton Law Offices Oklahoma City, OK 405-312-3366
Nicholle Jones Edwards
Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Kelli D. Kelso
Kelso Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-317-6560
Laura McConnellCorbyn
Hartzog Conger Cason Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7000
April J. Moaning
Simmons & Associates Oklahoma City, OK 855-973-8877
Irish & Sherwood Edmond, OK 405-285-2776
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6921
Mazaheri Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-414-2222
GENERAL PRACTICE Sam Talley
Talley, Turner, Stice & Bertman Norman, OK 405-467-2858
GOVERNMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE Robert G. McCampbell
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Michael C. Turpen
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
HEALTH CARE LAW Elizabeth L. Dalton McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2217
Janet S. Dumont
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
Kevin D. Gordon Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6619
Jama Pecore
Mary Holloway Richard
PHM Law Group PC Norman, OK 405-329-3307
Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Tommy J. Pfeil
Terra Lord Parten
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6939
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2324
Ashley D. Rahill
Karen S. Rieger
Rahill Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-286-9619
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7788
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T O P AT T O R N E Y S 2 0 2 1 IMMIGRATION LAW Michael L. Brooks
The Brooks Law Firm LLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-840-1066
Michael BrooksJimenez Michael BrooksJimenez PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-9393
Michelle L. Edstrom
Ross Chaffin
Kristin M. Simpsen
Kelly Kress
Chelsea Celsor Smith
Tomlinson McKinstry PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-606-3350 Tomlinson McKinstry PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-606-3350
David M. Sullivan Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-234-3236
Edstrom Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-401-1213
LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
Kelli J. Stump
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Kelli J Stump PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-217-4550
T. Douglas Stump
Stump & Associates PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-879-0800
INSURANCE David B. Donchin Durbin Larimore & Bialick PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9584
Simone Fulmer Gaus Fulmer Sill Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-510-0077
Paul Kolker
Roberson Kolker Cooper & Goeres PC Edmond, OK 405-606-3333
Lance Leffel
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Lane R. Neal
Durbin Larimore & Bialick PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9584
Larry D. Ottaway
Foliart Huff Ottaway & Bottom Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-4633
Leasa M. Stewart
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Doug Terry
Doug Terry Law Edmond, OK 405-463-6362
Rex Travis
Travis Law Office Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-5400
Ron Walker
Tomlinson McKinstry PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-606-3350
Jace T. White
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS Sasha L. Beling McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-270-6011
44
JUNE 2021
Ellen A. Adams
Lauren Barghols Hanna Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Elizabeth Bowersox McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-270-6019
Rachel L. Bussett Bussett Legal Group Oklahoma City, OK 405-605-8073
Andre’ B. Caldwell
Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-546-3774
Casey T. Delaney
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2395
Hall Estill Oklahoma City, OK 405-553-2304
Paula M. Williams
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE DEFENSE Randall L. Sewell Wiggins Sewell & Ogletree Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-1211
R. Gene Stanley Walters Stanley & Natarajan LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-3800
Hilton Walters
Walters Stanley & Natarajan LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-3800
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE PLAINTIFF Shea Bracken
Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
Maples Nix & Diesselhorst Edmond, OK 800-539-0652
Sam R. Fulkerson
David Bruner
Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-546-3774
Paige Hoster Good McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2340
Melvin C. Hall
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
Gary James
Gary J James & Associates Oklahoma City, OK 405-521-9900
Scott Kiplinger
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Katherine Mazaheri Mazaheri Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-414-2222
Jillian Mershon
Mazaheri Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-414-2222
Cara Nicklas
McAlister McAlister Baker & Nicklas PLLC Edmond, OK 405-359-0701
Leah M. Roper
Center for Employment Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-252-1180
Glendell D. Nix Maples Nix & Diesselhorst Edmond, OK 800-539-0652
Michael Whiting
Whiting & Bruner PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-525-6671
Robert Tomlinson
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5762
Rob F. Robertson
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
Roberto L. Seda
Seda Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-759-0678
Paul D. Trimble
Trimble Law Group PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-594-7100
PERSONAL INJURY James J. Biscone
Johnson & Biscone PA Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-6490
Susan Carns Curtiss Carns Curtiss Law PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-525-0337
D. Sharon Gentry
Benjamin Grubb
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
Clayton T. Hasbrook
Maples Nix & Diesselhorst Edmond, OK 800-539-0652
Hasbrook & Hasbrook Oklahoma City, OK 405-451-4989
Gerald E. Durbin, II
Fulmer Sill Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-510-0077
Danielle P. Fielding Martin + Fielding Oklahoma City, OK 405-673-2377
Woodrow K. Glass Ward & Glass LLP Norman, OK 405-253-4031
Spencer B. Housley Housley Injury Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-601-4017
Pete Marrs
Butts & Marrs Lawyers Oklahoma City, OK 405-608-0098
Brent L. Neighbors Neighbors Law Firm Norman, OK 405-928-0091
Amy Sherry Fischer
John R. Reeves
Ben Butts
Durbin Larimore & Bialick PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-9584
GableGotwals Counsel Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-5500
OIL AND GAS
Whiting & Bruner PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-525-6671
Jacob D. Diesselhorst
Jeffrey A. Curran
Foliart Huff Ottaway & Bottom Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-4633
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
Butts & Marrs Lawyers Oklahoma City, OK 405-608-0098
PRODUCT LIABILITY
Chad W. P. Kelliher
Ashley Manning Manning Law Firm Edmond, OK 405-445-6155
Austin S. Pieratt Pieratt Law PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-551-5109
Andrea Rust
Fulmer Sill Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-510-0077
Travis Charles Smith
TCS Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 405-701-6016
Geoffrey Tabor
Ward & Glass LLP Norman, OK 405-253-4031
Tomlinson McKinstry PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-606-3350
PROFESSIONAL MALPRACTICE NON MEDICAL DEFENSE George S. Corbyn, Jr. Corbyn Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-7055
Ryan Dean
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
Justin Meek
DeWitt Paruolo & Meek Attorneys Edmond, OK 405-705-3600
REAL ESTATE Jacquelyn L. Dill Graft & Walraven Oklahoma City, OK 405-253-6444
John W. Funk
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5710
Sally Garrison
The Mortgage Law Firm Oklahoma City, OK 619-465-8200
Michael S. Laird Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6623
Myrna Schack Latham
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2278
Joe C. Lewallen, Jr. McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2370
SECURITIES LAW Bruce W. Day
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-7700
Clifford Hudson Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-239-6684
TAX LAW Valerie Devol
Devol & Associates Edmond, OK 405-225-2300
Barbara Klepper
Tiffany K. Peterson
Robert O. O’Bannon
Ashley Ray
McAfee & Taft Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-2249
Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Rachel Pappy Mathew
Polston Tax Resolution & Accounting Oklahoma City, OK 405-801-2146
Amanda M. Swain
Conner & Winters LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-272-5748
TRAFFIC LAW James D. Harvey, Jr.
Riggs Abney Neal Turpen Orbison & Lewis Inc Oklahoma City, OK 405-843-9909
TRIBAL LAW Victoria Holland Devol & Associates Edmond, OK 405-225-2300
Jennifer N. Lamirand
Crowe & Dunlevy Oklahoma City, OK 405-234-3227
Stephanie Moser Goins
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6979
WILLS Elizabeth K. Brown Phillips Murrah PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4100
Garrett A. Eller
Devol & Associates Edmond, OK 405-254-7526
Dawn D. Hallman
Hallman & Associates PC Norman, OK 405-447-9455
Sara K. Hawkins Mee Mee Hoge & Epperson Oklahoma City, OK 405-848-9100
Chantelle HickmanLadd
Munson & McMillin Edmond, OK 405-513-7707
McAlister McAlister Baker & Nicklas PLLC Edmond, OK 405-359-0701
Jennifer L. Wright
Ball Morse Lowe PLLC Norman, OK 405-701-6968
WORKER’S COMPENSATION Joseph C. Biscone, II Johnson & Biscone PA Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-6490
Emily Biscone
Johnson & Biscone PA Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-6490
Donald A. Bullard
Bullard & Associates PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-604-5000
John Colbert
Colbert Cooper Hill Oklahoma City, OK 405-218-9200
Christopher M. Crouch
Fenton Fenton Smith Reneau & Moon PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-235-4671
Milly Daniels
MD Law, LLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-768-2570
Michael A. Fagan Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
Alex Forbes
Forbes & Forbes Midwest City, OK 405-733-1990
Jerrod S. Geiger
Pierce Couch Hendrickson Baysinger & Green LLP Oklahoma City, OK 405-552-5253
Preston G. Hanner
Caldwell Funck Thompson & Hanner PC Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-1456
Blaine Nice
Alleman Law Firm PLLC Oklahoma City, OK 405-252-0472
Fellers Snider Oklahoma City, OK 405-232-0621
Cheryl Husmann
Ryan Polchinski
Cheryl Husmann PLLC Edmond, OK 405-285-1548
Dan Davis Law Oklahoma City, OK 405-694-4580
Cody Jones
Robert P. Powell
McAlister McAlister Baker & Nicklas PLLC Edmond, OK 405-359-0701
SPH Law Group Oklahoma City, OK 405-200-1911
Christin V. Mugg
SPH Law Group Oklahoma City, OK 405-200-1911
Mugg Winston Edmond, OK 405-705-2900
Lam Q. Nguyen
Graft & Walraven Oklahoma City, OK 405-253-6444
John L. Shears
J. Tyler Worten
Hornbeek Vitali & Braun Oklahoma City, OK 405-236-8600
PROMOTION
Attorney Profiles 2 0 2 1 Life’s most difficult situations often require the expertise of an experienced lawyer. From real estate to family turmoil, the legal professionals on the following pages can give you the guidance you need, when you need it most.
405MAGAZINE.COM
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ATTORNEY PROFILES
P RO M OT I O N
(L to R) Michael Fagan, Greg Castro, Mark Stonecipher, Bryan King, Ryan Duffy, Casey Delaney
Fellers Snider F E L L E R S S N I D E R , founded in 1963, has a longstanding reputation of excellence as zealous advocates and counselors, with an ever-present sensitivity to the attorney’s role in the bigger picture of clients’ business and personal success. With a rich history of preeminent trial attorneys, the firm has expanded its legacy of excellence over the last several decades to include virtually all practice areas – litigation, energy law, business transactions, estate planning, insurance defense and more. The firm’s president, Bryan King, explains, “What distinguishes a true ‘counselor at law’ is wisdom and discernment born of decades of experience. We understand that our role is to solve problems and overcome hurdles so our clients can make money rather than spend it. Of course, that requires thorough knowledge of what the law is, but it also requires the foresight to know what the law should be and where our clients’ industries and associated legal issues are heading. There is no substitute for this type of wisdom and legal advice.” Fellers Snider lawyers never lose sight of that mission, and their clients reap significant benefits as a result. As Oklahoma City’s business community has grown and diversified, so too has Fellers Snider. In the community, the firm supports countless local and national nonprofit organizations as volunteers, board members and officers. The firm offers financial support and pro-bono legal work to numerous organizations. Although much has changed in the legal landscape of the past six decades, Feller Snider remains steadfast in its commitment to excellence in the practice of law, to outstanding results for its clients and to true leadership and service in its community. 46
JUNE 2021
405. 232. 0621 FEL L ER S SN IDER.C OM 100 N. BROADWAY, SUITE 1700 OK L AH OM A CI T Y, OK 7 3 1 0 2
P ROM OT I O N
I N T H E M U S I C A L “Hamilton,” George Washington asks, “Who’s going to tell your story?” According to Bryan King, in the world of high-stakes litigation, the answer to that question is critical. Great trial attorneys are not commodities. Selecting the right one matters. King continues Fellers Snider’s rich legacy of trial lawyers with the understanding that a good lawyer might have a mastery of the law and the facts, but a great lawyer knows how to assemble them in a way that presents the client’s story in the best light. King has built his reputation on the premise that trial practice is about relationships – with juries, judges, witnesses, other lawyers and clients. Law is administered by people. The ability to settle a dispute early or prevail at trial depends on the lawyer’s ability to communicate effectively with the audience, orally, in writing and non-verbally. King is pictured here with one of his law partners: his piano. For King, music is not only his oldest friend, it’s also the blueprint of a lawsuit. Like music, every lawsuit has a rhythm; it requires tempo, phrasing and dynamics. Music is just noise until someone skillfully adds these elements. Similarly, complex business litigation is messy and nuanced – less like a mathematical equation to be solved than a song to be expressed. But in the hands of a skilled trial lawyer, the lawsuit, like music, culminates in satisfying resolution. Says King, “Confidence is forged, not bestowed. The one who is not afraid to announce, ‘Ready for trial, Your Honor’ has the advantage. And that’s who you want telling your story.”
ATTORNEY PROFILES
Bryan King FELLER S S NIDER 405. 232. 0621 FEL L ER S SN IDER. C OM 100 N. B R O AD WAY, SUI T E 17 0 0 OK L AH OM A CI T Y, OK 73102
405MAGAZINE.COM
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ATTORNEY PROFILES
48
JUNE 2021
P RO M OT I O N
Rachel Bussett R A C H E L B U S S E T T F O U N D E D Bussett Legal Group in 2015 on the principles of providing affordable, compassionate and strong legal representation. The firm is located in Oklahoma City and serves individuals, families and small businesses across the state in their time of need. The firm focuses its practice on litigation and business planning in the areas of employment law, family law, personal injury, cannabis law, probate and estate law and complex civil business matters. It provides its clients with a white glove experience, customizing its legal approach to fit each individual client’s specific needs. The attorneys have more than 40 years of combined legal experience and every case, regardless of size, is important to the firm. Bussett Legal Group strives to be a part of something bigger in every case. Rachel successfully challenged the Oklahoma Department of Health in the summer of 2018 when it engaged in improper rulemaking over the implementation of state question 788 and Oklahoma’s new medical cannabis program, and she is currently pursuing a lawsuit on behalf of multiple former DHS employees who allege they were fired for speaking out about failures within the system that endangered the lives of children. Bussett Legal Group clients know they can trust the firm to tackle their emotional and personal legal challenges in a friendly, compassionate and dedicated manner through personalized representation. When asked about their experience with the family law attorneys at Bussett Legal Group, one client said, “I could not have been more satisfied with the professional service I received. Every single individual that I had contact with throughout my custody issue went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable, confident and appreciated. This quality is what set the Bussett Legal Group head and shoulders above other attorneys I had dealt with in the past.” When not in the office or in court, the firm’s attorneys are passionately involved in the community. Rachel is a huge advocate for protecting the rights of children. She sits on the Associate Board for Oklahoma Lawyers for Children, which is a nonprofit organization providing volunteer legal representation to children in deprived DHS cases. She is also a volunteer legal advocate for individuals with diabetes lobbying in Washington, D.C., and Oklahoma for improved legislation for research and a cure for the disease. The firm is also dedicated to helping servicemen and women with their legal needs through the Oklahoma Lawyers for America’s Heroes Program. The program provides free and reduced-cost legal services to qualified active-duty reserve and veteran military members. The firm offers free and paid legal consultations based on a client’s legal needs. Let this group of ethical legal warriors fight for you and your family’s rights in your time of need.
B U S S E T T LEG A L G R OUP 405. 605. 8073 B U S SE T T L EG AL . C OM 2201 N. CL A S SEN B LVD . OK C 73106 405MAGAZINE.COM
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ATTORNEY PROFILES
Worden & Carbitcher 405.360 . 8 0 3 6 W O R DE NF I R M . C O M 124 E A S T M A I N S T NO R M A N O K 7 3 0 6 9
50
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P ROMOTION
P O L A R O P P O S I T E S , Y E T united in their Native heritage and commitment to justice. Andrea Worden and Darlene Carbitcher are an uncommon combination with a united purpose of doing what is right by the client, because it’s the right thing to do. Worden & Carbitcher’s values guide the types of cases they accept and the clients they serve. While Andrea and Darlene consider themselves criminal defense attorneys, the firm handles expungements, post-disposition criminal matters (post-conviction relief, commutation, modification, pardons), adoptions, divorce, custody, paternity, guardianships, victim protective orders, small non-profits and probate cases. Worden & Carbitcher is a legal team dedicated to creative, thorough and honest advocacy … navigating clients through what can be a confusing, intimidating and emotionally charged experience. With more than 50 years of combined legal experience, and a commitment to excellence, Worden & Carbitcher value the quality of representation over the quantity of cases, which means clients have access to an experienced legal team that will take the case seriously and fight for the best possible outcome.
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JAYE MENDROS BRINGS
30 years of legal experience to every client’s case, including experience in the Court of Criminal Appeals, Oklahoma County Public Defender’s Office and Oklahoma Indigent Defense System. She has a thorough understanding of complex criminal law issues, and her boutique law firm means clients receive excellent, personalized representation. Her trademark slogan is: “I will fight for you.” What that looks like depends on the client’s needs. Mendros works to find long-term solutions for her clients, helping to identify underlying issues that may have played a part in them entering the criminal justice system. It’s a teamwork-based strategy that serves the client well in court and in life. “I’m also a firm believer in professionalism,” Mendros says. “Having a good working relationship with the other side only helps the client in the long run.” She supports groups that fight for gender, racial, indigenous and LGBTQ+ equality. Her ultimate dream is to see “equality under the law” become a reality. She is also a supporter of the arts, and was instrumental in legalizing tattoos in Oklahoma. When she isn’t in the courthouse, you can find her sitting in a tattoo artist’s chair, adding to her massive collection of ink. Mendros’s list of accolades is long and distinguished, including the Michael Salem Civil Rights Award, William Grimes Civil Libertarian Award, publication in the OU Law Review and six-time Oklahoma Superlawyer. She teaches at OU Law in an adjunct capacity, so she keeps up on the latest developments in criminal law continuously. As important as her accomplishments, though, is what her clients say about her, and the most common feedback is “a talented, knowledgeable, down-to-earth fighter who works extremely hard for her clients.”
Jaye Mendros ME NDR O S L AW OFFICE, P L L C 4 0 5 .6 0 5 .8 6 39 J AYE ME NDR O S. C OM 405MAGAZINE.COM
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P R AC T I C A L , EX P ER I EN C ED
Goodwin/Lewis 420 N W 6 T H S T R E E T 2 ND FL OO R O K L AHO M A CI T Y, O K 7 3 1 0 2 405.900 . 5 7 0 0 G O O D W I NLE W I S . C O M 52
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and tenacious perfectly describe the elite commercial litigation firm of Goodwin/Lewis. Based in downtown Oklahoma City, the firm’s practice areas include litigation, banking, oil and gas, business support, real estate and construction law. The firm’s clients range from start-ups to regional and national businesses, including banks, construction companies, energy firms, trusts and other businesses or entrepreneurial individuals. Goodwin/ Lewis can assist clients in legal matters, transactions, litigation avoidance and more from the inception of their business to selling the business, and provide advice and assistance with every step in between. “As a boutique law firm, our clients experience a more personal, hands-on approach when it comes to their case, compared to larger, more commercial firms,” says partner Kyle Goodwin. “One of our greatest advantages, aside from our experience, is our ability to help clients from beginning to end because of the personal relationship and our ability to provide a tailored plan of action for each client.” Respected by opponents and admired by clients, Goodwin/Lewis provides creative strategies to achieve winning results. Its attorneys have received national recognition for their work on complex commercial matters, and have been ranked by peer institutions as elite in their fields of practice. Recent investments in technology have allowed the firm to continue to serve clients during these unprecedented times without missing a beat. “When designing this firm, we moved away from the old-style boxes of paper to gigabytes of data,” says attorney William “Billy” Lewis. “Our investment in technology allowed us to quickly adapt our practice to the evolving needs of our clients.” Equally important to these attorneys is involvement in activities with Oklahoma City’s nonprofit community. As life-long residents of Oklahoma, the firm’s members relish the opportunity to serve the state in both a professional and volunteer manner.
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F O R T H E P A S T D E C A D E , Jacqui Ford has helped her clients navigate the criminal justice system with honor, dignity and respect. Jacqui Ford Law Firm specializes in criminal defense, including DUI, domestic violence, gun charges, sex crimes and murder. Ford focuses on building the strongest possible legal defense for each and every client, while also empowering them to better themselves. “It’s important to fight for our clients in the courtroom, but we want them to succeed in life after we overcome their legal hurdles,” Ford says. “We want our clients to walk out of our services as a happier, healthier version of themselves.” With the help of professionals in the community, the firm helps each client face their obstacles head on, from addiction to mental health issues, education and healing damaged relationships. Clients of the firm say the team is known for being actively engaged in their clients’ success – fighting until the end for justice and always making sure their clients are heard and well informed. The firm has 30 years of experience, and Ford is an award-winning attorney. She is most proud of her Clarence Darrow Award for excellence in trial advocacy in 2011, which was voted on by her peers in criminal defense and awarded by the Oklahoma Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (OCDLA). Ford is also regularly called on as a legal expert by the media, is a faculty member of the prestigious Trial Lawyers College and teaches for OCDLA and the Oklahoma Bar Association. She is passionate about helping the next generation of attorneys to be fierce warriors for justice through mentoring and training young lawyers across the country. Ford is proud to support local activism by offering legal advice and services to people peacefully protesting and advocating for positive criminal justice reform.
ATTORNEY PROFILES
Jacqui Ford Law 405. 604. 3200 F OR D L AW OK C. C OM 1621 N CL A S SE N BLV D OK L AH OM A CI T Y OK 7 3 1 0 6
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O V E R T H E PA S T D E C A D E ,
Katherine Mazaheri Fo u n der & M a n a g ing A t tor ney
M A Z AH E R I L AW F I R M 405.414 . 2 2 2 2 M A Z A H E R I L AW F I R M.C OM 3000 W. M E M O R I A L R O A D, S UI T E 2 3 0 O K L A HOM A CI T Y, OK 73120 54
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Mazaheri Law Firm has built a reputation for excellence, providing creative counsel and compassionate yet assertive representation to clients across the U.S. and the globe. With a heart for social justice, the firm’s lawyers are passionate about serving families, individuals and businesses in crisis. The areas of law in which they specialize include employment law, family law, immigration law, real estate law and small business in-house counsel. Founded on the values of integrity, compassion and service, Mazaheri Law Firm has forged an incredibly responsive environment in which the focus remains on serving their clients’ legal needs whenever possible. Woman-owned and woman-led, Mazaheri Law Firm’s team of talented, award-winning female attorneys have multi-ethnic and multi-lingual backgrounds that bring a unique dimension to legal representation few other firms are able to provide. The attorneys are well-regarded throughout the legal community for their breadth of knowledge, legal insight and expertise through publications, teaching continuing education, acting as consultants on other attorneys’ cases and resolving cases. They pride themselves on their accessibility and relatability throughout the legal process, while also providing compassionate, high-quality representation. The close-knit, collaborative atmosphere of the firm allows each attorney to forge personal connections with each client. In fact, each client benefits from working one-on-one with an attorney who genuinely cares about their case and how it affects their lives. Mazaheri Law Firm approaches each case knowing that their smart decision-making and personalized strategies will help lift a burden so their clients can move forward with their lives. Whether Mazaheri Law Firm needs to defend your rights in the courtroom or keep you out of it altogether, their attorneys will take a proactive, responsive and client-focused approach to your case.
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Holly Hefton H O L L Y H E F T O N H A S always been a fighter, the type who just gets done what needs doing. She built a thriving business while attending the University of Oklahoma, and continued to work while in law school. She’s a doer, and she brings that tenacity and strong will to her legal practice for the benefit of her clients. An Oklahoma native, Hefton has lived in Rome, Naples, Washington, D.C., and Austin, Texas, so she’s comfortable with diversity – embraces it, in fact. She came back to Oklahoma in 1986, and has built a life and a firm here. After graduating OU Law, she went to work with the firm of Carter & Kirk PC, where she focused on defending municipalities in civil rights and governmental tort claims litigation. In 2004, Hefton expanded on her experience in civil rights and governmental tort claim litigation when starting her firm and added the practice areas of family law, including divorce and custody. “I believe we don’t just offer legal expertise,” Hefton says, “we offer honest and caring advice, and we represent our clients with solid professionalism.” In 2021, Kayla Townsend-Caudle joined the firm. Townsend-Caudle earned her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice at Texas A&M – Commerce before attending Oklahoma City University School of Law, where she completed her J.D. in 2019. In addition to receiving Martindale-Hubble’s highest rating, Hefton has been recognized for her work with children. She’s the recipient of the Mona Lambird Volunteer of the Year Award from Oklahoma Lawyers for Children, an organization for which she volunteers because she cares passionately about the wellbeing of children in DHS custody.
H OLLY H E F T ON, P. C . 405. 312. 3366 H OL LY H E F T ON.C OM 600 W SH ER ID A N AV E , OK L AH OM A CI T Y OK 7 3 1 0 2
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HENRY + DOW + MASTERS + AYCOCK + A L L E N does not run from
Henry + Dow + Masters + Aycock + Allen 405.605 . 0 6 8 1 H EN R YD O W L AW. C O M 1611 N. B R O A D WAY AV E O KC O K 7 3 1 0 3 56
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complicated cases. With more than 50 years of combined legal experience, the members of this team will fight for strategic solutions to any legal problem they encounter. They understand how to navigate the intricacies of the litigation process, delivering only the best service to clients in the areas of family law, adoption, guardianship, personal injury and criminal defense throughout Oklahoma. The firm has earned a reputation for hard work and success. Being team-oriented sets the firm apart from others; the more resources they employ, the stronger the case. They collaborate with each other and with clients. Henry + Dow + Masters + Aycock + Allen attorneys will never hesitate to fight for their clients in trial. “Allyson Dow and Kaitlyn Allen are truly exceptional,” said one client. “They are very professional while giving sound advice and being a voice of reason in a difficult time. They were very easy to talk to, and always able to be reached. I would choose Henry + Dow + Masters + Aycock + Allen over and over again.” Each of the attorneys is active in the legal community, regularly attending and teaching legal seminars. The team focuses on learning and improvement, because in this changing legal landscape, their clients deserve the best. Their award-winning attorneys have been recognized by the Oklahoma Bar Association, Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America and more as elite in their fields of law. If you are considering divorce, have been hurt or were charged with a crime, Henry + Dow + Masters + Aycock + Allen will do everything they can to resolve your issue.
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T H O U G H T F U L , A P P R O A C H A B L E A N D formidable are just three ways clients describe the law firm of Ball Morse Lowe. The firm originally built its reputation as a trusted resource in Oil, Gas and Natural Energy Law. To meet continuously increasing client demand, BML expanded its operations to include Business Law and Litigation, as well as Estate Planning and Probate services. Seeing the need in our community, Family Law was added and has grown to encompass a full team of talented attorneys, each one being awarded a 405 Magazine top attorney award. The attorneys at Ball Morse Lowe offer a unique combination of fresh perspectives and lifetime experience with a wide range of education and years in practice. No matter the client’s needs, BML has the right approach and the right attorney for the job. “They made the experience painless,” said one BML client. “They explained things as we went along and were clear in their expectation of what they would need from me to move the process forward. I am so glad I found them, and deeply appreciate all they accomplished on my behalf.” “Accomplished” doesn’t begin to cover the extent of recognition the firm has received. National, state and local legal organizations have consistently ranked the firm’s more than 20 attorneys as top in their fields of practice. Clients can expect the resources of a large firm, with the individualized attention of a small practice. Ball Morse Lowe is committed to communicating clearly and frequently from the first interaction until the legal matter is concluded. With this in mind, it’s no surprise the firm has earned its reputation as a trusted, respected, go-to resource for legal matters across the region.
Ball Morse Lowe 405. 701. 5355 B AL L MOR SEL O W E. C OM 531 C OUCH D R, S T E 201 OK C 73102
L E F T T O R IGH T:
Caron Loffland - Energy Oil & Gas David Morse - Commercial Litigation + Legacy Chris Smith - Family Law Parker Lowe - Business Law Jennifer Wright - Wills Patrick Lane - Civil Law Litigation Jordan LePage - Business Law Tommy Pfeil - Family Law + Rising Star Sarah Willey - Family Law + Rising Star Will Houser - Energy Oil & Gas Zach Ball - Energy Oil & Gas Stephanie Moser Goins - Tribal Law Not pictured: Glenn Brown - Family Law
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Devol & Associates 405.225 . 2 3 0 0 DE V O L L AW. C O M 15205 T R A D I T I O N S L A K E PA R K WAY EDMO ND , O K 7 3 0 1 3
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W H E T H E R Y O U N E E D estate planning you can rely on or expert legal advice on a business transaction, the law firm Devol & Associates can help. The firm provides clients with a unique combination of a small firm, family-type atmosphere with the experience and expertise of a larger firm. Its dedicated attorneys are laser-focused, giving clients personalized representation that is practical, straightforward and results-driven at a fraction of the price of larger firms. Devol & Associates handles complex legal and financial matters as well as routine day-today business planning and operations for clients across the Oklahoma City metro. The attorneys at Devol & Associates have more than 150 years of combined legal experience in the fields of tax law, estate planning, tribal law, economic development, business law, probate, guardianships and related areas. Clients describe the firm as caring, personable, focused and with a 24/7 focus on clients. Professional development is important to the firm, and its attorneys are award-winning. The Oklahoma Bar Association Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Section (EPPT) has recognized attorneys Farrah Burgess and Garrett Eller with the Award of Excellence for their efforts in the field. Attorney and founding partner Valerie Devol is treasurer of the International Intertribal Trade and Investment Organization, and attorney A. Daniel Woska was the OBA Outstanding Committee Chair 2020 for the Oklahoma Bar EPPT. Woska has presented oral arguments several times before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals and has been involved in numerous published opinions at both a state and federal level. Their excellence in the courtroom is matched by their commitment to the communities in which they live and work. Attorney Burgess was recognized as the Downtown YMCA Volunteer of the Year for 2020, and the attorneys volunteer with numerous churches and nonprofit organizations.
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W H E N Y O U O R a loved one have been injured in an accident, the emotional and physical aftermath can be overwhelming. Not only are you trying to recover from the traumatic experience, but attempting to navigate the legal repercussions can be paralyzing. That’s where Joe Carson at Warhawk Legal steps in. His team is dedicated, experienced and above all, honest about how they can help with your case. The firm has established a solid reputation for building creative, effective and valuable solutions for clients’ legal issues, and their attorneys have more than 45 years of experience successfully representing clients. Warhawk Legal will fight to get you the justice you are owed, while you can focus on what matters. “Joe Carson and his staff are unbelievable,” said one client. “I had no idea what to do or where to turn, and they calmed me down and helped me the entire time.” Warhawk Legal has successfully represented clients in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, medical malpractice, criminal defense and nursing home negligence, as well as oil and gas and environmental litigation. Clients receive free case evaluations/consultations, and most clients only pay if Warhawk wins the case. If Warhawk takes your case, they will prepare for trial from day one. Joe Carson and his firm have reached verdicts and settlements of more than 200 million dollars for clients. Joe Carson has received numerous prestigious awards from the legal community, including an AV® rating from Martindale-Hubbell® and inclusion in the exclusive list of SuperLawyers®. Having reached million-dollar and multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements, Carson has membership in the Million Dollar and Multiple Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Joe Carson is also a frequent speaker in the areas of litigation, personal injury and wrongful death matters. Hard-working, honest and accessible; that’s Warhawk Legal. Put your trust in them, and move forward with life.
Joe Carson WA R H AW K L EG AL WA R H AW K LEG AL . C OM 4 0 5 .3 9 7 .1 7 17 1 2 7 N W 1 0 T H S T R EE T O K L A HOM A CI T Y, OK 73103 405MAGAZINE.COM
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(Back to front, left to right) Lewis LeNaire, Craig Regens, Lance Leffel, Leasa Stewart, Scott Kiplinger, Jace White, Jay Walters, Jake Krattiger, Rob Robertson, Paula Williams, Jeff Curran, Amy Stipe, Robert McCampbell, Leo Portman
GableGotwals 405.235 . 5 5 0 0 G A BL E L AW. C O M O N E L E A DE R S HI P S QU A R E 1 5 T H FL OO R, 2 1 1 N. R OB IN S ON (Moving August 2021 to BOK Park Plaza, Suite 2200, 499 W. Sheridan Ave., OKC 73102)
F R O M I T S H U M B L E beginnings as the two-person legal team of Ellis Gable and Charles Gotwals in 1944, GableGotwals has grown to a nationally recognized, full-service law firm with 100 attorneys and 70 professional staff representing clients across the globe. The firm’s diversified client base includes Fortune 500 corporations, privately owned companies, individuals, foundations and entrepreneurs. Every day, clients trust GableGotwals with strategic management of their legal challenges. The firm and its lawyers are consistently recognized as the best in their industry. “They’re very responsive and understand the needs of my organization,” said one GableGotwals client. “They offer a lot of practical advice and understand the current state of the market, and they’re able to navigate complex matters with expertise in all areas of legal disputes.” GableGotwals also has a long history of community support, civil leadership and pro bono work; the firm totaled 4,000 community service hours to mark its 75th anniversary.
Donna Jackson W H A T W O U L D H A P P E N to your loved ones if something happened to you? It’s a tough question, but the legal team at Donna Jackson & Associates PLLC can help you answer it. Partner and owner Donna Jackson is a nationally recognized attorney, speaker, educator and authority on estate planning. She is a CPA, holds a master’s degree in elder law and has more than 30 years of experience, focusing on estate planning, elder law, special needs planning, probate and taxes. The firm’s personalized team approach helps clients feel confident and comfortable taking on difficult legal matters. Safeguarding your family’s financial future can’t wait. Working with Jackson and her team, including chief canine officers Rico and Zoe, will give you peace of mind to enjoy life to the fullest.
DONN A J. J A C K S ON A ND A S S OCI AT E S P L L C 405. 840. 1874 OK CE S TAT EL AW Y ER. C OM 10404 V IN E YAR D B LVD S T E. E OK L AH OM A CI T Y, OK 73120 60
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ATTORNEY PROFILES
Laura Sams Neal A T T O R N E Y L A U R A N E A L is passionate about fighting for her clients’ rights. As a member of the Warhawk Legal team, she delivers exceptional legal representation to her clients in cases of criminal defense, civil litigation and civil rights. She was born and raised in the UK, but came to the United States to work on death penalty cases in the public defender’s office. Neal has tried a multitude of cases from murder, rape, robbery and kidnapping to domestic abuse, child abuse and DUI cases. She is also an accomplished civil litigator trying cases in personal injury and property damage. She received the Liberty Bell Award in 2009 for defending her clients’ rights. Neal received her J.D. from Oklahoma City University School of Law and is a member of the Oklahoma County Bar Association and the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Inn of Court (Oklahoma Chapter), as well as giving back to the community in the Junior League.
WAR H AW K L E G A L 405.42 9 . 3 0 2 3 L A U R A NE A L L AW. C OM 127 N W 1 0 T H S T O K L AH O M A CI T Y, OK 7 3 0 1 3
WE DELIVER 405 connects you to the best of the Oklahoma City metro’s dining, events, travel and homes. Visit 405magazine.com to subscribe.
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THE ONE WITH BUILT-IN BOOKSHELVES. LET’S MAKE IT YOURS.
This is it. The place you’ll call home. We believe you should feel just as confident in the people helping secure your mortgage. Our experienced home lenders take pride in being your guide throughout the loan process. Having reliable, easily understood answers for every question. Putting you at ease and helping navigate every step along the way. Meet with us. Together, we’ll make it yours. We can’t wait to help you move
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Dining Rustic Elegance Piatto is creating new from old and making it work. Page 60
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Plating Excellence Savor and success at Piatto Italian Kitchen BY GREG HORTON PHOTOS BY LE XI HOEBING
nis Mullaliu arrived in the U.S. in 2000, a refugee from the Kosovo War. He and his family had sought asylum in the U.K., and eventually – with the help of Catholic Charities – made their way to Edmond, Oklahoma. Mullaliu, who owns Piatto Italian Kitchen at 2920 NW 63rd St., said his family and his cousin’s family were the first Kosovo refugees in Oklahoma. “I was almost 18 when we got to Edmond,” Mullaliu says, “and I started working at Denny’s right away. I’d been a server in England, so food service was what I knew.” Denny’s was a short gig, and Mullaliu soon moved into the local restaurant scene, with gigs at Vince Orza’s Pepperoni Grill and Coach House. The latter set the trajectory of his career in hospitality. With one brief exception, he worked for and with Chef Kurt Fleischfresser from 2004 until he bought the operation that is now Piatto in 2019. Previously, it had been Meat Market Refectory and Union Wood Fired Grill. Buying a restaurant in a building with a history of failed concepts is always iffy, and COVID didn’t help. (We have reached a point where all statements about COVID should be assumed to be understated.) Thanks to his relationship with Fleischfresser, Mullaliu secured the services of executive chef Rolyn Soberanis, a 2007 graduate of the Coach House apprenticeship program. The team seems to have come up with a strong formula for success in a building with a history best described as rocky. Mullaliu has long been one of the best front-of-house professionals in
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Piatto combines elegant aesthetics, rustic sensibilities and delicious, scratch food to create a spread that is both comforting and exciting, from the over-thetop indulgence that is the octopus and bone marrow to the freshly baked bread and cold, fresh salads.
the state, as evidenced by the fact that he was Fleischfresser’s first call when Vast came looking for new management. And Soberanis can really cook, as is evdent in his octopus and bone marrow dish that is one of the best bowls of pasta in Oklahoma City. In terms of aesthetics, Piatto is now an amalgamation of previous concepts. Mullaliu has tweaked the interior in positive ways, so that much of the old casino-esque vibe is gone, and the place is spacious enough to seat diners comfortably during a pandemic and still have room to spare for private events. The large bar is the first thing diners notice, and it is worth noting
Desserts, like the tiramisu, are made in house, just like the rest of Piatto’s menu.
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ABOVE: The artichoke fixtures are one of the few remaining original touches. BELOW: Piatto is Italian for “plate,” and regulars bring interesting examples to add to the collection.
If you’re going to make a concept work in a building where concepts haven’t before, great food is a must, and Piatto delivers.
that the cocktails are the best we’ve tried at an Italian restaurant. The genre is known for going all in on wine, and leaving cocktails as an afterthought. Not at Piatto. House-made limoncello is the heart of three concoctions, including the delicious Italian Mule. The by-the-glass wine list is all Italian, but the bottle list features popular domestic choices. Soberanis describes his kitchen as 98-percent scratch. Only two things aren’t made in-house, and one is a gluten-free pasta. All other pasta is made fresh in Piatto’s kitchen, as are all the sauces. The focaccia bread is actually a bit of a
hybrid – a delicious, fresh-baked hybrid – that the kitchen at Piatto developed in house. The pride in what Soberanis does shows in the marvelous attention to detail, from the Moroccan olives on the Italian salad to the bone marrow compound butter in the casarecce and octopus dish to the perfectly fluffy, flavorful gnocchi. If you’re going to make a concept work in a building where concepts haven’t before, great food is a must, and Piatto delivers. The restaurant is a testament to what two salty food-service veterans can do when they apply an abundance of talent, experience and determination.
Piatto Italian Kitchen 2920 NW 63rd St, Oklahoma City, OK piattookc.com
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The Cheese That Pleases Luscious, creamy burrata is on the menu BY GREG HORTON PHOTO BY LE XI HOEBING
hef Amanda Jane Simcoe calls burrata “a little balloon full of deliciousness,” which may be the most accurate description of food ever. She explained it in technical terms, too, but a summary will probably suffice: It’s fresh mozzarella curds stretched and molded into the shape of a little bag. Fresh cream and curds are placed in the center, and then the bag is sealed. That “fresh cream” part was the death of any illusion that burrata is sort of healthy – like cottage cheese. The confusion is understandable since both feature loose curds, right? “At that point, you should eat it with very good olive oil and fresh cracked pepper,” says Simcoe, who is also one of Oklahoma’s most respected cheese mongers. “I don’t adulterate my cheese with bread, but some people like it that way. I do like a little arugula with mine, though.” Usually appearing on the appetizer section of a menu, burrata has popped up all over the metro, and the accompaniments are as varied as the venues that serve it. Pizzeria Gusto was one of the first local restaurants to offer burrata, and its version has remained unchanged (and delicious) since the day it opened – the dish features a puree of mushrooms and truffles with a drizzle of honey to create a savory, sweet, creamy bite. It’s also served with warm walnut bread, so you can decide how you feel about adulterating cheese for yourself. Jimmy B’s serves burrata that verges on a riff on caprese, with a tomato medley, balsamic glaze and pesto. The highlight is the fresh, warm focaccia that accompanies the dish, but the tomatoes
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Jimmy B’s serves their burrata with fresh focaccia to add a little more comfort food vibe.
are distractingly delicious, too. Getting a bite that incorporates all the elements creates a very caprese-esque experience. In keeping with its ethos of bold flavors and eye-popping colors, Frida serves a version of burrata that is unique in the city. Chiles are a point of emphasis for Chef Quinn Carroll; they are woven throughout Frida’s menu to build layers of flavor and impart a warm, spicy backbone to the cuisine. The burrata comes out floating in chili oil, with a drizzle of ancho truffle honey. The bread is sourdough, and the burrata is topped with prosciutto and finished with chimichurri. It offers bolder flavors than diners typically get in an entire meal, and it works beautifully.
Chef Kevin Lee at The Jones Assembly provides a very different take on the dish, serving it up as a pizza. The whole burrata is in the center of a pie that features fresh peaches from Harrah’s Wind Drift Orchard, Serrano ham, balsamic caramel, Parmesan and arugula. Again, it’s a collection of bold flavors (and a bold take) that works well as a complete dish. Palo Santo has one of the simplest and most beautiful approaches. The burrata is served with charred bread, shredded tomatoes, brined green peppercorns and garlic. That’s it. It’s as straightforward and rustic as a dish gets, and it’s a dish that regulars order again and again because of its simplicity and flavor combinations.
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DINING Kindred Spirits is NEOKC’s newest destination for happy hour, inside or out.
Times to Celebrate Happy hour specials worthy of toasting
hen State Question 792 passed in 2016, thereby reforming Oklahoma’s alcohol laws, one of the most popular changes to the law concerned happy hours. Prior to 792, establishments could only offer happy hour specials if they ran for seven consecutive days, and the “happy hour” price had to be available all day, which meant customers who were aware of the law could simply demand happy hour pricing during peak hours and the restaurant or bar had to comply. The law at that point made it easier to simply say no to offering happy hour specials. With 792, the gate has been flung wide, so to speak, and restaurants and bars can offer nearly anything they want at almost any time of day. The Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission general counsel and deputy direc-
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tor Steven Barker says, “The main rules now are that they have to sell at least 6 percent above cost – that rule applies to retail, too – and the special has to be available to everyone in the establishment.” By everyone, he means everyone of legal drinking age; establishments can’t create a special only for specific demographics or organizations. It’s impossible to list all the available happy hours in the metro, but we collected some of the more popular (and best deals) for your consideration. While most places that do offer happy hour specials tend to offer them for all categories, a few worth noting excel in different areas, be it beer, booze, food or wine, and some even feature a late happy hour. Enjoy!
PHOTOS PROVIDED
BY GREG HORTON
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D R I N K
R&J Lounge and Supper Club (320 NW 10th St.) does specials all day Monday, and 2 to 6 p.m. the rest of the week. $5 Old Fashioneds, $3.75 well drinks, $10 carafes of sangria and $1.55 Coors banquet. They also have seven appetizers at various discounts, including the uber-popular cheesy crab toast. Empire Slice House (2 locations, empireslicehouse.com) has $12 pepperoni pies and cheese pies Monday through Thursday 2 to 5 p.m., takeout or delivery only. Also in 84 Hospitality, Burger Punk (3012 N Walker Ave.) offers $5 OG Punk burgers and $3 draft beers from 2 to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Revolución (916 NW 6th St.) has $5 margaritas, and Goro (3000 Paseo) has $5 whisky highballs on the same days and times. Northeast OKC’s new cocktail destination Kindred Spirits (1726 NE 23rd St.) offers $3 draft beers (all local brews), $4 Eastpoint Teas and $5 D’Usse Cognac Thursday through Sunday from 3 to 6 p.m. Trapper’s Fishcamp & Grill (4300 W Reno Ave.) has more than 350 whiskey options, and from 4 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, you can get half-price flights – that’s two pours per flight – of any bourbons you choose.
WINE TASTINGS
7pm First Wednesday of the Month Chef driven Food with Premium Wines FULL SERVICE KITCHEN & LIVE MUSIC To Good Taste & Good Company 405-843-0073 | bin73.com 7312 North Western Avenue, OKC
The Other Room in the Paseo Arts District (3009 Paseo) features half-priced appetizers, beer and wine from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Scratch Kitchen & Cocktails in Norman (132 W Main St.) has an early (3 to 6 p.m. daily) and a late (9 p.m. to close daily) happy hour. Happy hour is all day Tuesday and Thursday, and there is a list of select $6 cocktails available all day, every day. Regular happy hour is half off select appetizers and domestic beers, and $5 glasses of wine. The Hamilton Lounge and Supper Club (12232 N May) also has two happy hours: Monday through Friday 4 to 6 p.m. and again Thursday 8 to 11 p.m. for live music. Features include $6 house wines (two red and two white), $3 domestic beers, $6 shot (any well spirit) and beer (any domestic or White Claw). The well booze includes a few bottled-in-bond options like Evan Williams and Mellow Corn. Select appetizers are $10. Bar Arbolada’s (637 W Main St.) locally famous $4 burgers are available daily, including during happy hour from opening to 7 p.m. In addition, owner Riley Marshall offers $1 off draft beers and $6 pours of red, white, rosé and sparkling wines. Jimmy B’s in Automobile Alley (1225 N Broadway Ave.) calls its happy hour “Raising the Bar,” and it’s daily 3 to 5:30 p.m. and begins again one hour before close. It features $8 draft wine, $3 off cocktails, $3 off draft beer, $7 beer and shot specials and $9 “bar bites.”
Shawn Hamm
at Bloodline Elite Tattooing Thank you for voting me,
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DINING
Dining Guide These listings are not related to advertising in 405 Magazine. If you find that a restaurant differs significantly from the information in its listing or your favorite restaurant is missing from the list, please let us know. Email info@405magazine.com
taco-heads, and the pork verde is easily among the best in OKC. 1504 S. Agnew, OKC, 272.4739 $ NEIGHBORHOOD JAM Serving tasty takes on classic American dishes
DESIGNATION $ MOST ENTREES UNDER $10 $$ MOST ENTREES $10 TO $25
$$$ MOST ENTREES OVER $25
BEST OF THE 405 WINNER
SPONSORED LISTING
and more specialized options, this breakfast-centric spot aims to become a community favorite. 15124 Lleytons Court, Edmond, 242.4161 $$ STELLA A luscious spate of legitimately Italian tastes for a casual lunch, or romantic
BRE AKFA S T/BRUNCH
dinner, amid stylish scenery. The weekend brunch offerings are especially superb. 1201 N
CAFÉ ANTIGUA Authentic Guatemalan
Walker, OKC, 235.2200 $$$
food in OKC, with traditional dishes like motuleños, machaca, and refried black beans.
STITCH CAFÉ The hand pies got the
Full coffee service is available, and you’ll
business started, and they are still delicious,
want extra green sauce. 1903 N. Classen
but the breakfast tacos, burritos and tots are
Blvd., OKC, 602.8984 $$
among the best options in the city. 835 W Sheridan, OKC, 212.2346 $$
CAFÉ KACAO A sunlit space filled
Beef noodle bowl at Szechuan Story
FLORENCE’S For more than 60 years, this
it, go to Nunu’s immediately. The popular Leba-
eastside eatery has been serving crispy fried
nese dish is the main draw, but the traditional
with bright, vibrant flavors from the zesty
SUNNYSIDE DINER Traditional
chicken, hearty meatloaf, tangy greens, and
favorites—kabobs, tabouli and hummus—are also
traditions of Guatemala. Lunch possibilities
breakfast spot in multiple locations, serving
all the country cooking associated with soul
excellent. 6165 N. May, OKC, 751.7000 $$
beckon, but it’s the breakfast specialties that
excellent classic breakfasts, as well as spe-
food. Don’t leave without trying the pear pie.
truly dazzle. 3325 N Classen, OKC, 602.2883 $$
cialty items like Eggs in Purgatory and verde
1437 NE 23rd, OKC, 427.3663 $$
tamales. 824 SW 89th, OKC, 703.0011 $$ CATTLEMEN’S Almost as old as the state itself, this Oklahoma institution’s
LUNCH
immense corn-fed steaks and matchless
PIZZERIA GUSTO Neapolitan-style pizza (which uses an extremely hot fire to
HACIENDA TACOS Quality, of both
quickly cook superfine flour crusts) stars
ingredients and execution, and variety make
alongside Italy-inspired entrees, pastas and
this restaurant in Northpark and Midtown
appetizers. 2415 N Walker, OKC, 437.4992 $$
atmosphere are history served anew every
CLARK CREW BBQ Travis Clark reached
a pleasure to visit, and to explore the menu
day. 1309 S Agnew, OKC, 236.0416 $$
the pinnacle of pit master-dom when he won
again and again. The Midtown location in
QUEEN OF EGGROLLS Chef KC Chan-
Jack Daniel’s competition, and he’s brought
Plaza Court is now open, too. 12086 N May,
sombat specializes in traditional Laotian food,
CHEEVER’S Southwestern-influenced
the delicious brisket, burnt ends, champion-
OKC, 254.3140 $$
and while her egg rolls are the reason many
recipes (the chicken-fried steak is a house
ship beans and the best cornbread ever to
specialty) and love of seafood drive the con-
OKC. 3510 NW Expy, OKC, 724.8888 $$
temporary comfort food in one of the city’s finest dining destinations for lunch, dinner
EMPIRE SLICE HOUSE This was the
discover her, the larb, nam khao and capoon LÚA MEDITERRANEAN Lúa is Chef
are what eventually keeps them coming back.
Shelby Sieg’s base of operations, and the
2815a NW 10th, OKC, 769.2417 $$
food is stellar. Lamb tagine is the star, but
city’s first by-the-slice pizzeria, but you can also
the tzatziki is some of the best in town, and
SHEESH MAHAL While billed as a com-
get full pies, giant meatballs, fresh salads, and
the chaluapa is a must-have for lunch. Full
bination of Pakistani and Indian cuisine, the
ELEMENTAL COFFEE Seriously
a great selection of cocktails and local beer. The
bar with excellent wine list, too. 1749 NW
menu will be familiar to fans of Indian food,
spectacular coffee roasted in-house,
full menu is also available late night inside or on
16th, OKC, 601-4067 $$
with butter chicken, delicious curries, basmati
augmented with locally sourced salads,
the excellent patio. 1804 NW 16th, OKC, 557.1760 $
and brunch. 2409 N Hudson, OKC, 525.7007 $$
rice, and fresh naan. You won’t find a buffet in THE MULE Solid beer and beverage
breakfast options and other vegetarian and vegan friendly treats and entrees. 815 N
EL FOGÓN DE EDGAR Colombian food
selection plus a delectable array of gourmet
Hudson, OKC, 633.1703 $$
made from family recipes is the heart of this
grilled cheeses and melts; this relaxation
the building, but you get complementary tea with every meal. 4621 N. May, OKC, 778.8469 $$ SWADLEY’S BAR-B-Q Family-
hidden gem. A bowl of aji verde accompanies
destination in the Plaza District stays popular.
LOS COMALES This Stockyards taqueria
every meal and it should be ladled liberally
1630 N Blackwelder, OKC, 601.1400 $
isn’t just a breakfast joint, but the break-
on nearly everything, including flank steak,
fast tacos ought to be way more popular
morcilla, arroz con pollo and patacones. 7220
NUNU’S MEDITERRANEAN CAFÉ If
cue, sandwiches and desserts for groups of all
than they are. Big portions and explosive
S Western, OKC, 602.6497 $$
there is another place in the metro to get hash-
sizes. Multiple locations throughout the metro.
wa, we don’t know of it, and if you’ve never had
2233 W Memorial, OKC, 286.3838 $$
flavors make this place a favorite among
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JUNE 2021
owned and operated with a deep commitment to OKC, Swadley’s serves up traditional barbe-
L O C A L
F L AV O R
RETRO TOKYO It’s neither huge nor lavishly
regional favorites like bison tartare,
appointed, and the menu focuses on
quail, and steaks, as well as an excel-
tradition rather than creativity; but it’s
lent wine list and creative cocktails.
palpably fresh and routinely cited as
12232 N. May, OKC, 849.5115 $$$
COOL
DINING
among the metro’s best sushi. 7516 N Western, OKC, 848.6733 $$
LA BAGUETTE BISTRO Les Freres Buthion have deep roots in the
DINNER
city’s culinary landscape, and this flagship combines fine French cuisine with
BLACK WALNUT The eclectic,
a great bakery, deli and grocer on site.
creative cuisine is hard to categorize,
7408 N May, OKC, 840.3047 $$$
but Chef Andrew Black delivers seafood, chops, steaks, and healthy
THE LOADED BOWL The food
fare with equal attention to detail
truck turned brick and mortar helped
and beautiful presentation. Always
pioneer vegan comfort food in the metro,
say yes to the fish, and the cocktails
and they’re still famous for their “mac
are excellent as well. 100 NE 4th, OKC,
and cheese.” The menu runs the spectrum
445-6273 $$$
from healthy vegan to comfort food, and the bar serves excellent cocktails, beer
BOULEVARD STEAKHOUSE
and wine. 1211 SW 2nd, OKC, 820-9599 $$
Perfectly soigné ambiance down to the last detail and cuisine easily in the
MAHOGANY PRIME STEAK-
metro’s elite – a sumptuous, if pricy,
HOUSE The ambiance and service are
masterpiece. 505 S Boulevard, Edmond,
sublime, but fine aged steak broiled to
NEDSSTARLITELOUNGE.COM
715.2333 $$$$
perfection is the star. 3241 W Memo-
7301 N May Ave, Oklahoma City
405.242.6100
rial, OKC, 748.5959; 100 W Main, OKC, FRIDA SOUTHWEST This stun-
208.8800 $$$$
ning Southwestern-cuisine restaurant in Paseo is now one of the city’s must
THE METRO A perennial favorite
try destinations. Everything from the
that feels comfortably upscale, the
short rib empanadas to the Mexican hot
far-reaching menu covers culinary high
chocolate cheesecake is perfection. 500
points from vichyssoise to crème brulée.
Paseo, OKC, 683.7432 $$$
6418 N Western, OKC, 840.9463 $$$
GORO RAMEN + IZAKAYA An
NED’S STARLITE LOUNGE
“izakaya” is a Japanese pub, and this
A funky dive into supper club glory, Ned’s
energetic Paseo District spot nails the
serves up the best onion rings n the city,
mixture of great food, sake and cock-
pasta, fish, and chicken fried steak with
tails that make a pub a destination.
equal skill. An absolute treat with a solid
3000 Paseo, OKC, 900.6615 $$
bar. 7301 N May, OKC, 242.6100 $$
GREY SWEATER This beautiful
PATRONO Not only is Chef
Deep Deuce, tasting-menu restaurant
Jonathan Krell’s food some of the
defies categorization, but it’s easy to
best in OKC, the service at Patrono is
say that it’s the pinnacle of elegant
professional, friendly and seamless.
dining in the 405. Exquisite attention
Krell is as adept at seafood as pasta
to detail, beautifully crafted dishes,
and chops, so it’s impossible to go
one of the city’s best bartenders, and
wrong with this spectacular menu. 305
mind-blowing food come together at
N Walker, OKC, 702.7660 $$$
Chef Andrew Black’s dive into culinary art and creativity. 100 NE 4th, OKC,
SCRATCH PASEO Delicious,
446.6274 $$$$
scratch food from one of the city’s best young chefs combined with an excellent
THE HAMILTON Tucked into
bar and quirky-cool wine list. It’s mostly
Northpark Mall, this Okie-centric supper
modern American, but surprises abound.
club features upscale casual dining with
605 NW 28th, OKC, 602.2302 $$
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Oklahoma Sports Science and Orthopedics has been home to Oklahoma City’s top orthopedic specialists for over a quarter of a century. At the 26 year mile-marker, OSSO continues to maintain one of the most comprehensive teams of medical specialties in the greater OKC metro area. OSSO was originally established as a single specialty orthopedic clinic. Through the years, the scope of the practice has grown into a multi-specialty clinics including specialists from a variety of different fields from orthopedics to gastroenterology, endocrinology and rheumatology to name just a few. OSSO has recently expanded their foot and ankle specialist team. Sheri Smith, M.D. with the recent additions of Laura Luick, M.D. and Paul Kammerlocher, M.D. complete OSSO’s foot and ankle program. The foot and ankle area is one of the more complex areas of the human skeletal system, and becoming an expert in this part of the body requires years of training, education, and practice. It is important to know the difference between a podiatrist and an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in foot and ankle if you are seeking care for a foot or ankle problem. The primary and most important difference is the level of training each completes. Any orthopedic surgeon must complete 4 years of medical school and a 5-6 year orthopedic surgery residency. After that, a foot and ankle fellowship consists of a year-long full-time job working alongside a seasoned orthopedic foot and ankle specialist. Altogether, a foot and ankle surgeon will have 10+ years of training. Orthopedists also treat heel spurs, flat feet, foot deformities, and injuries, but are also trained to manage the full spectrum of problems involving the bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and soft tissues of the foot, ankle, and lower leg. An orthopedic surgeon intimately
understands the impact that the entire body can have on a foot and ankle condition. They also spend a great portion of their training working in large trauma centers and caring for extremely complex injuries and other medical problems. OSSO’s orthopedic surgeons are well equipped to determine the root of your problem and prescribe medications, physical therapy, bracing, or surgery to correct any problem you may have with your ankles and feet. For more information regarding the OSSO foot and ankle specialists, visit our physician profiles at www.OSSOnetwork.com or call 405.286. STEP(7837) to schedule an evaluation with one of our specialists. Sheri Smith, MD
Paul Kammerlocher, MD
Laura Luick, MD
ossonetwork.com
Community need and patient demand has dictated the addition of new specialties to the repertoire at OSSO. Ashley Harroz, Chief Executive Officer for HPI, says fellowship training is a critical element when considering new partners for our growing orthopedic and specialty clinics. We partner with the best physicians who will excel to the top of their fields. OSSO provides specialty and orthopedic care from head to toe and the physician practice is well known for their orthopedic extremity programs. Your hands and wrists are just as critical as your feet and ankles in daily activity. They are also intricate and vulnerable to injury. Whether you suffer an acute injury or have a chronic condition, our hand and wrist specialists offer expert care and innovative treatments. Everyday tasks become more difficult when living with wrist and elbow pain. The OSSO orthopedic hand team is committed to helping with pains, sprains and hand trauma. We provide expert care for conditions ranging from arthritis and tendonitis to carpal tunnel syndrome and fractures. Our team offers a full gamut of surgical and non-surgical treatment plans to care for your wrist and hand conditions. Should your condition require surgical care, you will be in good hands with the expertise of the OSSO orthopedic upper extremity specialists. The OSSO hand team includes three specialists who are fellowship-trained in hand and wrist orthopedic and plastic surgery. Ashley Cogar, M.D., Daron Hitt, M.D. and Robert Unsell, M.D. comprise the hand and wrist specialty team. Together, they provide you with the latest treatment options and most advanced surgical techniques available to resolve your condition and get you back to enjoying a pain free life.
To learn more about the OSSO hand and wrist specialists, physician profiles can be found on the OSSO website, www.OSSOnetwork. com. Appointments can be made with our specialty teams by calling 405.427.6776. As a leading provider of orthopedic and specialty care, OSSO and our team of fellowship trained physicians will provide you and your family with expert care for the full spectrum medical conditions and physical injuries. For all of your healthcare needs, OSSO can provide you and your family with exceptional care from physicians who are experts in their field. Ashley Cogar, MD
Robert Unsell, MD
Daron Hitt, MD
Dr. Noel Williams with Optimal Health Associates
ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS: What are minimally-manipulated stem cell therapies and how can they help patients?
Minimally-manipulated stem cell therapies are known as *exosomes that are nano-sized, extracellular vesicles that play a pivotal role in cell-to-cell communications. They potentially provide regenerative properties and anti-inflammatory responses necessary to heal tissues and injuries. *Exosome therapy is the process of delivering the nano-particles to targeted areas of the body, and it works as a catalyst for whole-body health and regeneration. This therapy can offer pain and joint management, immune system modulation, tissue revitalization and more.
How long is recovery from *exosome therapy?
Since *exosome therapy is non-invasive, recovery is minimal; in fact, most patients resume normal activity by the next day. The treatment itself typically takes less than 30 minutes overall and can be administered at the Optimal Health offices.
What are some common causes for erectile dysfunction?
Men who are dealing with erectile dysfunction often have an underlying symptom that is causing the overall problem. It can stem from anything from prostate issues to surgical side effects, or other medical conditions including hypertension or diabetes.
When should someone consider hormone replacement?
Essentially, hormones are gland-made chemicals that are used to control certain actions of cells and organs. They regulate the body’s functions and keep everything running smoothly; however, when the hormones become imbalanced, that’s when people should consider replacement. This procedure is designed to correct the imbalance, though not every hormone imbalance is made equal. If you are concerned, consult your primary care physician and consider the options.
* UCTMSC-N (Umbilical Cord Tissue Mesenchymal Stem Cell - Nanoparticles)
Noel Williams, M.D. Board-Certified Gynecologist
4 05-7 15-4 496 O P T I M A L H E A LT H A S S O C I AT E S .C O M O P T I M A L H E A LT H A S S O C I AT E S 9800 B R OA D WAY E X T S U I T E 2 00, O K L A H O M A C I T Y, O K 73114
HEALTH & WELLNESS
W E L L N E S S
Vegetable Bounty The health benefits of greener diets B Y K I M B E R LY B U R K
ennifer Downard has a nice laugh, and it’s a common response when she’s asked about certain food “rules.” Grapefruit is not a magic elixir for weight loss, she insists. (Try telling that to people of a certain generation.) Homemade chicken soup does not shorten the duration of a cold. But it does make you feel better. “I’m a big believer in eating food that makes you feel good emotionally,” says Downard, a registered dietician and assistant professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. “I grew up on a dairy farm. Ice cream is a comfort food for me.” The list of benefits from eating a varied diet of mostly made-fromscratch dishes is long and growing, Downard said, and high-fiber foods are especially essential. “Eating more fiber can help improve blood sugar levels in diabetics,” she says. “Cardiovascular disease risk is decreased with high-fiber diets. Anything associated with inflammation, high-fiber diets are beneficial.” Sharon Iezzi, who as a young person ate her share of Twinkies, says there’s “an overall feeling of well-being that is hard to describe when you are eating the right way. You look for wholesome foods.” Iezzi manages the Country Store in Harrah, which is associated with Oklahoma Academy, a private
J
Christian boarding school. Students help with the farming operation that supplies produce for the store. “We sell as much kale as we can grow,” Iezzi says. “Kale is very tasty. I like it steamed like spinach, or mixed in with a soup. It’s one of the highest-nutrition dark green leafy vegetables.” Another superfood is seaweed, Iezzi said. Dried seaweed is a big seller at their business, which is a combination health food and grocery store. “We sell healthy fruits and vegetables, a line of supplements and natural remedies. Asparagus was our biggest seller last year by far for the spring season.” Downard ran track in college and wanted to improve her recovery times. She found out it’s important to eat proteins and carbohydrates soon after exercising, in order to feel ready to exercise again. But when she studied for a career in nutritional sciences, Downard says, “the biggest lesson I learned is that being restrictive with your diet
usually never serves your health very well. I enjoyed learning more about what should I eat rather than what I should not.” Downard said some people get tired of hearing that they should eat more fruits and vegetables. “It’s not that easy, but you can find ways to sneak it in. When we have pasta at our house, I throw in chickpeas. When we have frozen pizza, we chop up extra veggies and add them to the top.” The Mediterranean diet ranks year after year as one of the best, Downard says. “Most if not all nutrition professionals would feel comfortable recommending it. It’s primarily plant-based, with fish and healthy oils.” Omega 3 fatty acids found in fish and nuts are good for brain health, Downard said. “There is some evidence they can decrease the risk of dementia. They are good for vascular health, for healthy blood flow to the brain.” A field of study getting a lot of attention these days involves
what is commonly referred to as “gut health.” “What we are learning now is that the microbiome, the bacteria in our intestines, interact with our bodies in a way that can beneficially enhance our immune system, or negatively affect it,” Downard says. Once again, it’s all about the vegetables. “A lot of fiber, lots of fruits and vegetables, those sorts of nutrients seem to promote a healthy microbiome.” For m a ny people, sod iu m contributes to high blood pressure. Downard said the DASH diet stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. And yep, it involves veggies. “The potassium in fruits and vegetables is thought to help balance blood pressure.” Iezzi said her favorite vegetable is spinach, boiled and seasoned with coconut oil. “But I like so many. I love beets and beet greens. Once you get your appetite turned around properly, and start going toward a more health-oriented diet, your tastes will change.” 405MAGAZINE.COM
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CONSULT A DERMATOLOGIST IF: Your acne makes you shy or embarrassed The store-bought products you tried have not worked Your acne is leaving scars or darkening the skin
WELCOMING NEW PATIENTS! any skin spot, rash, eczema or acne condition
Dr. Tracy Kuykendall
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JUNE 2021
405.920.1788 | spmcmed.com 9 N. Bryant Avenue, Edmond, OK.
New Laser Services Now Available B E FO R E A N D A F T E R R E S U LT S U S I N G N O N - S U R G I CA L S E S S I O N S
A powerful intense pulsed light (IPL) to treat pigmented and vascular lesions
A microneedling device that utilizes radiofrequency energy to remodel and contour the face and body
An ultra-fast high-speed hair removal laser that safely and gently eliminates unwanted hair
REGENERATIVE MEDICINE SERVICES OFFERED: Laser Hair Removal, Botox, Fillers, Micro-Needling, Skin Tightening, Stem Cell Derivatives, PRP Treatments, Joint Injections, Hair Restoration, Erectile Dysfunction Treatment, Vaginal Rejuvenation, Vitamin IV Therapies
B O O K YO U R A P P O I N T M E N T TO DAY ! 405.715.4496, Option 5 | optimalhealthassociates.com | 9800 Broadway Ext #200
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Home Sweetness and Light
CARLI ECONOMY
Warm up your next dinner party with the soft glow of colorful candles. Page 80
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E N T E R TA I N I N G
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LEFT: Soft candle light can brighten any occasion, from casual to formal. BELOW: The palette for tapers ranges from understated pastels to bright citrus hues.
Incandescent Entertainment Make any dining occasion more special B Y S A R A G A E WAT E R S | P H O T O B Y C A R L I E C O N O M Y
or a lot of people, a table set with candles is reserved for special occasions: birthday parties or anniversaries, romantic dinners or some kind of celebration. I was recently reminded of how silly it is to save the things that bring us warmth and beauty for special occasions only.
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Venturing into friends’ homes for small get-togethers is slowly starting to come back as a possibility, and this is where the reminder came from for me. My friend had set a beautiful table, and truly being together was something to celebrate, but the candles were unlit – that is, until her adorable and precocious 3-year-old squealed in delight to light the candles because “it’s cozy!” Of course it is. There is just something about the warm glow of a taper candle ... and something fabulous about several lit down a table or even placed around your home. The wide array of colors available for tapers is astounding – from sage green to coral to robin’s egg blue. If you can dream it, you can find it locally in your favorite home or design shop, or if need be, the internet. As for Edie, the 3-year-old, I couldn’t agree with her more. It is cozy and let’s be that again, together, in the most responsible, safest ways that we can.
Crystal candle holders courtesy of Tulips in Norman
We are happy to announce our
GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION this June.
DESIGN AND FUNCTION have come together to bring you Artisan Tile Studio’s state-of-the-art showroom, featuring EXCLUSIVE product lines, PRIVATE DESIGN ROOMS and 7,000 square feet of unlimited options on tile and stone for your home or office.
CALL TO BOOK YOUR PRIVATE ROOM TODAY! For MORE INFORMATION and to find out event dates, follow us on Instagram and Facebook @artisantilestudio.
405.242.2227 | @artisantilestudio 300 W Wilshire Blvd Oklahoma City, OK 73116
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Maddie Cloud’s Sunny Style A conversation with the Made by Maddie designer B Y S A R A G A E WAT E R S | P H O T O S B Y R A C H E L M A U C I E R I
Maddie Cloud is a force of nature. An Oklahoma girl through and through, she grew up here, attended the University of Oklahoma and launched a small business – Made by Maddie Designs – that makes jewelry for every occasion and creates designs based on special requests. Her design work is her passion, but Cloud is not one to only have one iron in the fire. Sitting on the sidelines is far from her style. In addition to Made By Maddie Designs, she recently launched a career in real estate. Infectious positivity is her superpower, as you will see here. HOW DID YOU FIRST BECOME AWARE OF OR INTERESTED IN THE ART OF JEWELRY MAKING?
During college, I was on a strict budget. I would see expensive jewelry and I knew I could make my own, so I started buying beads, and I would make necklaces for myself. HAVE YOU ALWAYS BEEN ARTISTIC? ARE YOU SELF-TAUGHT OR DID YOU HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN THIS CRAFT FROM OTHERS?
I have always been creative and artistic. My grandma taught me how to sew in elementary school, and I dreamed as a little girl that I would design clothes. There was a lot of trial and error when I started making jewelry. But once I got into a rhythm, it was almost second nature. DO YOU HAVE MENTORS, KNOWN OR UNKNOWN PERSONALLY TO YOU, WHOM YOU LOOK TO FOR GUIDANCE AND INSPIRATION?
Maddie Cloud began designing jewelry in collage as a budgetfriendly way to accessorize.
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For guidance, I really look up to all women who have started a small business from the ground up – the women who worked multiple jobs and had self-doubt in their small business but kept going. A small business does not succeed overnight; it takes time and a lot, a lot, of work. I am inspired by the style of Grace Kelly and Jackie Kennedy Onassis, and also artists like Slim Aarons.
I N
C O N V E R S AT I O N
W I T H
Full Kitchen & Bath Remodeler CONTRACTOR • TILING SERVICES
- FREE ESTIMATES! Echo Tile and Stone 405.905.5982 120 SW 11th St. Moore, OK 73160 Randy, Dalon and Elizabeth Valadez
French antiques, florals and pastels inspire Cloud’s feminine designs.
I really look up to all women who have started a small business from the ground up – the women who worked multiple jobs and had self-doubt in their small business but kept going.”
WHAT DO YOU LOOK TO FOR INSPIRATION WHEN YOU ARE COMING UP WITH A DESIGN?
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE OKC SPOT?
I find inspiration everywhere – from floral patterns to a perfect pastel color palette, to French antiques, to my Pinterest boards that hold many years of inspiration … (from) current and past decade trends. I am always inspired to design earrings that are whimsical and feminine, to bring out the girlie side in women of all ages.
Oh gosh, so many. The Bradford House has fabulous drinks for a girls’ night. The Metro is intimate and cozy for martinis and dinner. En Croute has the best cheeseboards and wine list. Bellini’s has a great patio for happy hour. The Ranch for the best steak dinner (my husband’s first pick). The list goes on and on.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT WORKING AND LIVING IN OKC?
WH AT DOE S THE FU T URE HOLD FOR MADE BY MADDIE?
It’s the best place to live. I would be a cheerleader for Oklahoma City if I could. Oklahoma City is growing with new developments and businesses every day. I am so proud to be a part of this growing city.
Made by Maddie is now being sold on (wedding apparel company) BHLDN by Anthropologie. It still feels unreal. I am excited to be a go-to jewelry designer for brides all over the country.
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HOME
Ripple Effect The Adlers’ courtyard pool reflects the family’s lifestyle BY E VIE KLOPP HOLZER | PHOTOS BY DON RISI
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o you want a pool? When Marissa and Tommy Adler began looking for a new home a few years ago, this was the key question. Yes, the Adler family wanted a pool. No, they were not willing to build one. Then, they discovered a unique Scandinavian-style home located in Hidden Lake neighborhood in Moore. The Adlers were drawn to the towering, cathedral-like pine ceilings, the beautiful wood-framed windows, the charming pond in the backyard and the U-shaped layout with the living room, dining room and breezeway overlooking an expansive courtyard. The home was perfect for a pool – a pool that it didn’t have. “I think we both could see what it could be,” Marissa Adler says. “This home had been for sale quite a while. The courtyard had two fountains and was overgrown. We were like, ‘Ah, this has got so much potential!’ It’s kind of like the best room in the house.”
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The previous owner was Swedish, and she incorporated several elements that reflected her background into the construction. “The scale of the house is not something you typically see in Oklahoma; it has a lot of volume,” Adler says. “Where we would typically put another floor on top, you just have all these exposed beams and woodwork. It has two kakelugn, which are Swedish stoves, and they brought a Swedish tile setter over to tile them. Everything is built from a European standpoint, which is awesome – and also pretty challenging, because nobody knows how to work on it.” Marissa and Tommy Adler purchased the home in 2019, and so began their adventure of renovating an atypical home. Even though it was not their original plan, they actually enjoyed the pool building process. The courtyard is located on the front of the house, which greatly influenced design direction. Together they devised how the 2,500-square-foot outdoor space would look and function for their family.
FAR LEFT: The Adler family pool is the centerpiece of the home, easily viewed from inside living spaces. LEFT: Lofty pine ceilings and wood-framed windows are among the many distinctive elements in the home.
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The quatrefoil is a sign of life for our family. My husband gave me a necklace with that shape when we were dating. It was green – kind of a sign of life, new seasons and new things. We’ve always gravitated to it when we see it somewhere.” “We wanted it to be a fun family and entertaining space for the kids – with a pool – but we wanted it to be beautiful because you see it all day, every day,” Adler says. Marissa is an interior designer, and worked with Innovation Pools to make their vision come to life. The pool’s raised edge and water features mimic a fountain. A sunken hot tub in the corner blends in seamlessly with the pool’s quatrefoil-inspired shape. “We started with materials – what do we want to see day in and day out, year-round?” she says. A friend advised her to view pool tiles wet when selecting materials. Adler chose a dark tile, turning the water into a reflecting pool.
ABOVE: Marissa Adler says the chef’s table in the kitchen is her favorite family space. LEFT: The previous owner, who had lived in Sweden, incorporated Scandinavian stoves into the living room design. RIGHT: Marissa Adler selected modern furniture with simple lines to complement the home’s Swedish style.
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Planning a Pool?
Innovation Pools owner David Perez outlines a few factors to consider: Property – Existing trees with deep roots, the slope of your land or existing easements (which provide access to water, gas and power) may dictate the location, size and shape of your pool. Building plans may also require a retaining wall, depending on the layout of your property. Another thing to know about is the water table for your area, which will affect pool construction. Materials – A designer and builder can help you select tile, caulking and other materials to best suit your home. For inground pools, Perez recommends installing a concrete pool over a vinyl liner pool because of Oklahoma’s weather and soil conditions. Functionality – Your preferred pool activities will help you determine how wide and deep to build. Will the pool be used for diving, sports or exercise? In addition, consider the pool setting – what else you may want in order to foster the best outdoor experience. Will you need to designate areas around the pool for lounge furniture? Do your plans include landscaping or adding a fire pit, fireplace, kitchen, bar or cabana? Budget – The more perimeter and square footage, the higher the cost. Depending on the pool setting you envision, you may need to budget for water features, lighting and outdoor speakers.
The quatrefoil cutout on the front gate echoes the pool’s unusual shape.
Views – Pool placement is important. Think about the views both from your pool and from your home. You may want a higher fence for privacy. You may want the pool tucked away, or in plain sight to watch children.
Michael Pullen Design installed the landscaping, hardscaping and lighting. Lit pathways and outdoor speakers set up the courtyard for entertaining into the evening. The Adlers selected turf instead of grass, adding more beauty to the highly visible area. After the courtyard was completed, the Adlers installed a wooden gate they designed, with a small quatrefoil shape cut into the door. The shape not only models the curves of the pool, but also holds significance to the family. “The quatrefoil is a sign of life for our family,” Adler says. “My husband gave me a necklace with that shape when we were dating. It was green – kind of a sign of life, new seasons and new things. We’ve always gravitated to it when we see it somewhere.” The courtyard’s design also influenced interior design throughout the home. The breezeway was reconfigured to become a cabana. Big picture windows and sliding glass doors open onto the pool, providing easy access to the new wet bar, fridge and ice machine inside.
Team – Experience matters. Ask for a portfolio, and read customer reviews. A longstanding pool company will factor “what-if” situations into the process and cost. (For example, Oklahoma soil varies from city to city, and Edmond has lots of bedrock. An experienced company will know how to navigate that during construction.) Most importantly, your pool company, designer and builder must collaborate and communicate well throughout the project. Make sure you have a solid team working with you from the get-go.
“I did a mosaic marble tile in there because I wanted it to feel fresh, but not new. I didn’t want it to be trendy,” Adler says. The wrought iron furniture outside complements the iron light fixtures in the cabana. Other design elements throughout the home were selected for inside-outside compatibility. “Because the living room is all glass, all around, you want it all to have the same personality,” Adler says. The Adlers completed renovations in 2020, and the courtyard has become a favorite place to play. Their daughters have been known to turn the raised pool ledge into an impromptu stage, where they can sing and dance, and their dad loves to cook up a pan of paella as they entertain. This summer, as things open up after the year-long pandemic, they are eager to share their home with more family and friends. “We’re dreaming about big gatherings with food and conversation and different ages and generations getting together,” Adler says. The pool that didn’t exist has now become the gem of the Adler home. 405MAGAZINE.COM
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Out & About Native Zeitgeist Chickasaw artist Steven Paul Judd brings a slow, patient humor and smart, insightful satire to his pop art creations. Page 90
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OUT & ABOUT
Judd’s home is not his workspace, but his work overflows into his home, a perfect metaphor for his brimming creativity.
Creative Reflection Steven Paul Judd and art through a Native eye BY GREG HORTON P H O T O S B Y S H E VA U N W I L L I A M S
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uccess can be a little difficult to measure sometimes. “I won an art contest when I was in second grade, but how well can you really draw in second grade?” Steven Paul Judd asked, rhetorically. “Maybe my mom knew the teacher, or she had some kind of hookup.” The humor and clear-eyed evaluation of circumstance are hallmarks of what Judd, a Choctaw artist, does in his work. But just because something doesn’t really make sense, doesn’t mean you can’t take something from it. Like that art contest. “Someone told me I was really good at drawing,” Judd says, “so I kept drawing. I had one art class in high school and maybe one in college, but I kept trying because I believed that teacher.” Judd, the son of Methodist ministers, was born in Lawton and raised in Oklahoma. A stint in Los Angeles writing for television ended and so did his
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vagabondage, and he returned to Oklahoma. But his love of travel remained, so he chose OKC to be closer to the airport. That’s really his answer; he delivers it with uninflected honesty and no apology for the explanation not being more interesting. I asked; he answered. It’s refreshing, and not at all what you’d expect from an artist whose work is fascinating because it’s so funny, ironic, tragic and inspired. “When I got back from L.A., I was looking for Native pop art,” he says. “I couldn’t find anything that I liked, so I decided to make my own.” Today, his apartment is an externalized metaphor for his creative imagination: bursts of color, corners full of projects, tables strewn with Rubik’s cubes and Zippo lighters – both are being modified into pieces of functional pop art – acrylics adorning the walls, a stuffed bison head staring
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at visitors from a living room wall, a pinball machine with Native warriors on horseback, a hat collection that is a combination of practical headgear and wearable art, sneakers, gewgaws, fabrics and just too many things to categorize. To talk to Judd about art is to jump from one instantiation of artistic imagination (the plastic bunny topiary on the balcony) to the next (a six-episode, limited series script he’s writing for a major streaming service) to one seemingly unrelated (giant dice for a casino opening in Durant). He has an apparently inexhaustible reservoir of creative energy and imagination. “I know I hit the zeitgeist when I started creating my own art,” he says. “I was making things that people were looking for right then.” While that is certainly true, it fails to underscore that the kinds of work he does are desirable in other artistic climates, too. He’s a “Trojan horse” artist, and there is always room for the artist who creates what he loves, but also manages to poke and prod and challenge at the cultural touchpoints we all have difficulty talking about. It’s certain that for most our history Native pop art imagery was created by and controlled by non-Native creators: film, painting, television, etc. Part of Judd’s task has been to excavate those images and then reify them with messages both funny and powerful. On one of his living room walls is an acrylic image of an iconic Native chief with the words, “I loved America before it was called America.” “Imagine growing up and in every movie, television show and ad featuring people who looked like you and your family, they were only shown in historical context,” Judd says. “It would be like white people were only portrayed as Pilgrims. It’s weird. Most of the depictions of us were embarrassing, but I also get embarrassed when people tell me I’m wrong, so I want people to see the images and realize on their own that they had something to learn.” Excavating those images means updating them, too, bringing depictions of real Native people into the pop culture mainstream, so television and streaming make sense as areas of intense focus. The series he’s writing features a Native American actor in the lead, playing a Native American – a combination rarer than you’d expect. As the dice indicate, Judd is also working on largescale installations, a new thing for him. One series will feature Native dancers with paint on their feet dancing out motion art on canvas. Another is a large-scale ledger art project, an updating of the 19th century form named for the ledger book paper Native artists used to extend the work they’d originally done on animal hides. Again, there is no end to Judd’s creative stream, and any object can become a piece of art in his mind and hands. “Honestly, I’m creating art for my 12-year-old self,” he says. “I wanted cool stuff, too – skateboards with Native imagery, action figures, sneakers – what 12-year old doesn’t?”
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He’s a “Trojan horse” artist, and there is always room for the artist who creates what he loves, but also manages to poke and prod and challenge at the cultural touchpoints we all have difficulty talking about.
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OUT & ABOUT
What Lies Beneath Spiro Mounds contains many clues about Mississippian civilization BY GEORGE L ANG
In his recent four-part documentary Exterminate All the Brutes, director Raoul Peck explores the deeply flawed popular understanding of what Native American culture looked like before European contact. As a result of European conquest, 55 million Natives were killed in war and by the spread of diseases like smallpox. In essence, the idea of a great, sparsely populated frontier is a myth, and Spiro Mounds is key to unlocking the truth. Spiro Mounds, a 150-acre cultural site near the Arkansas border in eastern Oklahoma, are remnants of the Mississippian civilization, which comprised more than 60 tribes speaking 30 different language groups. At their peaks, cities like Spiro and Cahokia, the center of the Mississippian culture, were home to thousands of people — around 1100 AD, Cahokia was larger than London. Spiro, a major city populated by the Caddoans, was smaller but a center of great wealth, commerce and culture. All told, about 9 million people lived in the Mississippian region. Based on materials recovered from the mounds by archaeologists, Spiro developed an immense trade network with other communities throughout North America, including the East Coast megacity of Tsenacommacah. Much of this commerce took place via waterways like the adjacent Arkansas River, and the Caddo residents of Spiro used
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massive dugout canoes, some of which had sails and could hold upward of 80 people, to sail west and east for trade purposes. Dennis Peterson, director of the Spiro Mounds Archaeological Center, 18154 First St. in Spiro, said this centrality and proximity to major trade routes made Spiro a major power in the region. They were able to travel from as far west as the Rocky Mountains and east to Tsenacommacah, which was located in what is now Virginia.
And Spiro had a corner on at least one major market. “Things like Osage orange, which is the main bow wood for the U.S., was only here in eastern Oklahoma, in western Arkansas, parts of Texas, Louisiana — all controlled by Spiro,” Peterson said in a recent edition of Oklahoma Historical Society’s Crossroads. The Spiro culture thrived from around 900 A.D. to 1650 A.D., and they left behind 12 mounds at the site, which are large, raised earthen areas in which Caddo leaders were buried with their possessions. At
SPIRO MOUNDS: SCOTT W. HAMMERSTEDT, ARTIFACT: 405 ARCHIVE
Artifacts recovered from the mounds depicted the culture of the prehistoric Spiro people which included an extensive trade network.
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Prized conch shells provided the medium for the only prehistoric, pan-tribal writing system in the U.S.
Craig Mound at Spiro Mounds Archeological Center was looted in the early 1930s, when a group of opportunists tunneled into the mounds and discovered a ancient burial tombs.
At their peaks, cities like Spiro and Cahokia, the center of the Mississippian culture, were
The Spiro archaeological site yielded more well-preserved artifacts than any other site belonging to the Mississippian culture, according to the Oklahoma Historical Society.
home to thousands of people — around 1100
CONCH CUP: ERIC SINGLETON, ARROWHEADS: SAM NOBLE OKLAHOMA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
AD, Cahokia was larger than London. the vernal and autumnal equinoxes, these mounds line up with the sun, indicating that they were used as a kind of calendar for determining the start of seasons. In the mounds, successive leaders’ remains and fortunes were then placed on top of their predecessors, resulting in stratified layers of Spiro civilization. In these layers, archaeologists have found copper that was brought to Spiro by Caddo representatives in Iowa, and the important conch shells brought from representatives in Florida were used for inscribing Caddo history and creation myths. Such conch shells conferred high status on their owners — Peterson describes it as equivalent to owning gold or diamonds.
“Spiro has more of this stuff than any other place in the nation. The conch shells are very important, because it’s also the only pan-tribal writing system for the U.S. prehistorically,” he said. “It’s their equivalent of the Bible.” Because of this, the Spiro Mounds were prone to raiding and desecration. In Looting Spiro Mounds: An American King Tut’s Tomb, University of North Carolina Wilmington professor David La Vere describes how, in 1933, a group of locals calling themselves the “Pocola Mining Company” started plundering the Craig Mound, excavating engraved conch shells, axes and arrowheads. “So, from 1933 to ‘35, these six men and their helpers destroyed about a third of the mound or about 400 buri-
als and sold hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of items to collectors, universities and museums throughout the world,” Peterson said. “Anywhere you go, there will be something from the Spiro collection nearby.” University of Oklahoma anthropologist Forrest Clements worked with the Oklahoma State Legislature in 1935 to craft laws banning such raids, but not before these artifacts ended up in collections throughout the U.S. and Europe. Fortunately, most of the other mounds survived intact, and the Spiro Mounds Archaeological Center offers tours and talks about what lies beneath the mounds. Visit okhistory.org/sites/spiromounds. 405MAGAZINE.COM
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LOOKING BACK
Sunken History Lake Texoma’s submerged ghost towns BY GEORGE L ANG
he photo from a 1939 issue of The Oklahoman showed a pavilion in front of a John Taylor Dry Goods store in Woodville, Oklahoma – a town that, at the time, was situated on the north side of the Red River. A sign in front of the pavilion told passersby that there would be “no loitering” at that location. Five years later, loitering was no longer a problem at the dry goods store, which was, by that time, extremely wet. The process of building Lake Texoma started in the mid-1920s when a Denison, Texas, businessman
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named George Moulton decided it would be a great idea to build a dam at Baer’s Ferry on the Red River. He met with the chambers of commerce in Durant and Denison about the idea and enlisted future Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn to back a plan for an expansive lake stretching over the Oklahoma-Texas border. In 1944, just six years after the Rayburn-sponsored Flood Control Act of 1938 authorized construction of the Denison Dam, the area started filling with water. Woodville and three nearby Texas towns – Preston, Hagerman and Cedar Mills – slept with the fishes. Until the construction of Lake Eufaula, Texoma was the largest lake in Oklahoma, and its construction required many changes to the infrastructure that had been accruing in the area since the days when Holland Coffee and Silas Cheek Colville established a trading post in 1836 at what would become Preston. Railroads, cemeteries, public utilities and highways had to be diverted or relocated completely. As the Flood Control Act of 1938 suggested, the area was extremely prone to flooding of the
unregulated Red River, but under normal conditions, school children from Preston were able to wade across the river to the Woodville Community School. The narrowed point of the river, where Woodville and Preston faced one another, was also used for the Butterfield Stage Line and as a crossing point for the Shawnee Cattle Trail. Once the area was flooded permanently by Lake Texoma, the former site of Woodville became a prime fishing area for people looking to hook a largemouth bass. Like sunken ships, the towns became freshwater reefs for the lake’s schools of fish. Some residents of Woodville relocated to a town called New Woodville, which was home to 132 people in the 2010 census. In 2011, when Oklahoma and Texas experienced record high temperatures and record low rains, the old Woodville attempted a comeback as lake levels plummeted. Headstones from the Woodville Cemetery were visible along the shore, as were other structures that had long since been buried under decades of silt. A decade later, the area is still a favorite among fishing enthusiasts and adventurous scuba divers.
P H O T O C O UR T E S Y O F A S S O CI AT E D P R E S S
During a recent drought, water receded at Lake Texoma revealing tombstones marking the graves of former Woodville residents.
LAST LAUGH
Fear Factor None of these unpleasant things, please BY L AUREN ROTH I L L U S T R AT I O N B Y S A M WA S H B U R N
r. Roth and I recently were intrigued by a Facebook post from a friend who, while sheltering in place, had stumbled upon the psychological thriller Nocturnal Animals on Netflix. According to our friend, the movie’s storyline was so intense that she and her husband had to watch with the lights on. To ease their lingering trauma afterwards (and somehow coax him out of the fetal position), the couple resorted to watching five Disney movies in succession. We’d been warned. Nonetheless, I cast the THREAT-LEVEL: RED warning to the wind. Ten minutes into date night, I was rocking in a fetal position when Mr. Roth got up to turn on every light in the house. At the 20-minute mark in the two-hour movie, we were scrambling for the remote with the urgency of a couple of rats on crack. We couldn’t go on! How, we wondered, could anyone get through it? It would take the entire Season 8 of “The Great British Baking Show” to shake off our own trauma. Scare-tastic movies aren’t the only things that terrorize me more today than they did when I was a kid. My phobia list grows with every passing year.
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The dentist. I don’t think this is an irrational fear. When I was a kid, a routine visit to the dentist was just that: routine. Nothing about this experience ends well these days. A visit to the dentist is the beginning of a long, expensive series of visits to the dentist, yet I must go. 96
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Riding shotgun. Remember riding shotgun when your older friend got his or her driver’s license? Today, its only appeal is arriving alive and, quite frankly, it’s exhausting: “Oooooh, watch out for that guy!” “They’re all stopped up here – stop. Stop! STOP!!!” “It’s green, love. Love? You’re about to miss the light.” “You need to be in the right lane or you’re going to miss your… OK, you can turn around up there.” “Tell that guy to kill his high beams! It’s like I’m getting LASIK in here!” The mall. A 13-year-old version of me would have been happy to live at the mall. Today, if I needed an Orange Julius fix that badly, I’d buy a HAZMAT suit and pay someone to brave the sea of humanity at the food court. Rides that only go in circles. Merry-go-rounds and that thing that spins you until the bottom falls out are the barf-inducing rides I’m talking about. If you have inner-ear problems, this is why. Falling. When you’re a kid, you fall 10 times a day and think nothing of it. I’m not at Life Alert® level yet, but if I fell today, I’d call half a dozen friends to drum up sympathy. For the rest of the year, I’d blame every ache and pain on “the fall.”
Roller coasters. Every time Six Flags introduced the next big roller coaster, I gladly hopped on it, multiple times, laughing at all the steep drops, the loop-deloops and the rush of wind in my hair. You couldn’t pay me to get on a roller coaster today. My brittle spine would snap like a twig. Answering a call from a number I don’t recognize. When I was a kid, the sound of a ringing house phone would catapult me off the couch to answer it with enthusiasm. It never mattered who the caller might be – that was a universally accepted mystery of the pre-Caller ID world we lived in. Today, if I see the number of a caller I don’t recognize, I won’t take the call. “A VOICE call? Are you kidding?” I’ll ask myself, as if human interaction simply reaches too far beyond the scope of what I can muster. June bugs. Part of the humble june bug’s appeal to me as a child was that it didn’t bite, sting or spit tobacco like the ill-mannered grasshopper. The hordes of june bugs that buzzed around the back porch light were an early signal that summer was here. What’s not to love? I’ll tell you what: that infernal, creepy buzzing sound they make when they swoop past your ear; those clingy legs and feet; that rapid flapping of their wings – it’s enough to put me off summer entirely.
I took your advice... your boy’s a new business owner! You are? Congratulations! I couldn’t have done it without you. You taught me the value of patience, instilled the courage to go after my dreams and the wisdom to select a strong financial partner. I knew you could do it son! I’m so proud of you. I love you, pop. P.S. I’m dedicating my first million to you!
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