News Updates

Boomtown Awards to honor local champs

Tulsa's Young Professionals (TYPros) is hosting a brand-spankin'-new awards showcase for local businesses and people. The inaugural Boomtown Awards will be held on Thurs., Nov. 3, in the Mayo Hotel's Crystal Ballroom.

The event was designed as an opportunity for the 7,500-plus membership organization to recognize community members who champion the TYPros mission and help attract young professionals to Tulsa.

"We want to create an event that will honor those who blazed the trail for us, those who have embraced our mission and those who have helped us achieve it," said Cassie Reese, TYPros chair and director of corporate relations for Crossland Construction.

Members of TYPros nominated people or businesses for awards in nine categories with fun names like "Social Igniters" and "Green Team."

Nominees from selected categories include: Blake Ewing, Joe Momma's owner and District 4 city council candidate, for the "People People" award, which honors people who work to promote Tulsa; the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice for the "Inclusives" award, to honor those who champion and exemplify the value of diversity and inclusion; Marilyn Ihloff, owner of Ihloff Salon & Day Spa, for the "Green Team" award, which will honor a person or business that makes Tulsa a more sustainable community for generations to come.

A full list of nominees can be found on the TYPros site, typros.org. Tickets are $30 per person and include, wine, beer and food.

First intergenerational summit held Monday

The first summit to address intergenerational cooperation was held Monday at the Tulsa Convention Center.

Across the generations was the brainchild of recently resigned mayoral chief of staff, Terry Simonson. In an August press conference, Mayor Dewey Bartlett Jr. announced the summit to assembled media. Simonson gave an off-the-cuff speech about his idea for the summit, and said he wanted to help generate new ways for Tulsa to become a place where young professionals can put down roots and settle down.

The summit also focused on constructive plans for recognizing, respecting and meeting the needs of children, youth and older adults.

Americans are living longer than ever before. By the year 2030, one in every five Americans will be over 65.

To put together the summit, City of Tulsa partnered with the national Legacy Project, a multigenerational education project to create a model for Legacy Community Building that tackles the demographics, finances, environmental concerns and social needs of all generations.

After the summit, the Legacy Project will create a detailed case study of the Tulsa experience as a model for other cities.

"Aging is really something we do from the moment we're born," said Legacy Project Chair Susan Bosak, a keynote speaker at the summit. "If we thought more about the whole of our lives, rather than fearing and denying getting old, individuals and communities would make different choices. This is about making those different choices, and bringing young and old together in new ways."

Sponsors of the summit include Tulsa Community Foundation, George Kaiser Family Foundation, Williams Cos. and the Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation, among several others. More information can be found at cityoftulsa.org/generations.