PASSIONS

BURTON PROMOTES ART, READING LeVar Burton

Edie Tolbert, left, is the founder of Stonebrook Day Spa and new nonprofit the Stonebrook Project. Through the latter, Tolbert offers complimentary spa services to clients like Lorrie Mayfield, right, who are receiving cancer treatment.

MORE THAN A MASSAGE

Spa owner offers free services to cancer patients.

Actor, director and children’s literacy advocate LeVar Burton will visit Tulsa this month in support of Arts Alliance Tulsa, the United Arts Fund with 40 member organizations. Burton will speak at AAT’s #THEbrunch on May 19 at Hyatt Regency Tulsa. AAT Executive Director Todd Cunningham says the organization was inspired by the Reading Tree Challenge, a program of Tulsa’s Gathering Place. “When our community committed to reading 2 million books this year, we wanted to help, so we decided to invite an artist to be our keynote speaker who also happens to be famous for reading,” Cunningham says. In addition to his numerous TV and film roles, Burton is perhaps best known as the executive producer and host of “Reading Rainbow,” which aired from 1983-2006 on PBS. — MORGAN PHILLIPS

BY BRIA BOLTON MOORE

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TulsaPeople MAY 2018

In 2016, the spa gave away $12,000 in complimentary spa services to 30 people. In November 2017, Tolbert launched a nonprofit, the Stonebrook Project, to expand services offered to those affected by cancer. In addition to providing massage therapy, reflexology, foot detox and other spa treatments to patients and caregivers, Tolbert plans to open a yoga studio and connect clients to counseling and support groups. Tolbert says one of her clients is battling pancreatic cancer and comes in every two weeks for a manicure. “She doesn’t like to talk about her cancer when she comes in,” Tolbert says. “She wants to talk about everything but her cancer, but that’s what helps get her through. It helps her have a piece of normal.” TP

MAY 19 — #THEBRUNCH WITH LEVAR BURTON 11 a.m. Hyatt Regency Tulsa, 100 E. Second St. $250, individuals; $450, couples; $900, family of four; $50 extra to meet Burton (for brunch patrons only); sponsorships available. Benefits 2018 members of Arts Alliance Tulsa. Contact Anna Inhofe at 918-289-0222 or anna@artstulsa.org.

MAY 19 — LEVAR BURTON READS 2 p.m. Guthrie Green, 111 E. M.B. Brady St. Burton will join Tulsa youth to read one of his favorite children’s books on the lawn of Guthrie Green. Free and open to the public. For more information about these events, visit artstulsa.org.

PASSIONS: VALERIE GRANT; BURTON: COURTESY

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n January 2008, Edie Tolbert’s “normal” was fractured. A routine mammogram led to a diagnosis of stage 0 DCIS breast cancer and a single mastectomy. “During that time after I had my mastectomy, I was all bandaged up, I couldn’t lift my hands over my head, and everything became a process,” Tolbert remembers. “Realizing in that moment how many things I took for granted, I knew I wanted to make sure other people (experiencing cancer) had some normal in their lives.” Tolbert opened Stonebrook Day Spa in Catoosa in 2010. A year later, she participated in the Susan G. Komen Tulsa Race for the Cure and gifted free massages to every breast cancer survivor she met. “One thing led to another, and we started serving whomever asked us about spa services for cancer patients,” Tolbert says.