Tulsa Press Club Announces 2018 Headliners
Tulsa Press Club announced its 2018 Headliners, a group of outstanding Tulsa-area civic, business, professional and industrial leaders selected for their unselfish contributions to the growth, prosperity and culture of Tulsa.
This year’s honorees include: Mark Graham, retired president and of the Tulsa Area United Way; Tulsa Teachers, with Superintendent Dr. Deborah Gist and 2018 Tulsa Teacher of the Year Shaniqua Ray accepting the award;
Tony Moore, park director of Gathering Place and Guthrie Green.
“Mark, Tony and Tulsa teachers represent the best sides of our community – philanthropy, economic development and education. Their achievements made them obvious choices for the club’s 2018 Headliners awards, and we know all three will continue to positively impact Tulsa,” said Rachel Anderson, Headliners chair and past president of the Tulsa Press Club.
With Graham’s 10-year tenure at its helm, the Tulsa Area United Way raised more than $252 million, which is one-third of the total the raised over 90 years. He also helped start the Women’s Leadership Council and the Emerging Leaders Society to ensure Tulsa’s under-represented perspectives were at the United Way table.
Moore officially began his role as Park Director for the Gathering Place in August 2016 and has led a team to complete the build and prepare for the opening of Gathering Place, a $465-million public park. Moore’s experience from Universal Orlando and SeaWorld Orlando has been instrumental in preparing Gathering Place for its global debut.
His background working in the entertainment park industry spans more than 30 years and began with his first job as a part-time operations employee at SeaWorld. He went on to work in various roles, including marketing, environmental, health and safety, and culinary operations at a number of Orlando-area entertainment parks. Most recently, Moore served as chief operating officer at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, one of the most visited zoos in the southeast U.S.
Tulsa teachers have made headlines for their perseverance, their leadership in the April 2018 walk-out and for helping advocate for a statewide teacher pay-raise. Long underfunded, Tulsa schools have led the conversation about the connection between quality education and economic development and quality of life.
The Headliners will be recognized at a dinner and awards program on Thursday, Sept. 20. A portion of the event’s proceeds will fund scholarships for Oklahoma journalism and communication college students.
Presenting sponsor for the event is a partnership between Bank of Oklahoma, Frederic Dorwart Lawyers and Tulsa Community Foundation.
Publisher-level sponsors include Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma, Cherokee Nation Businesses and George Kaiser Family Foundation.
Editor-level sponsors are the Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation, Samson Energy and Tulsa Regional Chamber.
Reporter-level sponsors are Crossland Construction Co., Greater Tulsa Reporter Newspapers, Enterprises, Mabrey Bank, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, Schnake Turnbo Frank, Federal Credit Union and Tulsa Drillers | Tulsa Roughnecks FC.
The event is hosted by the University of Tulsa.
Festivities will be held at the Helmerich Center for American Research at Gilcrease Museum. Cocktails begin at 6 p.m., with the program from 7-9 p.m.
Individual tickets are available for $150 by calling the Tulsa Press Club at 918-583-7737 or emailing becki@tulsapressclub.org.
About the Tulsa Press Club
It was in 1906 that a group of “newspaper” men formed an organization, “To make the path of newspaper men more beautiful and have a little fun on the side.” William Stryker, editor-publisher of the Tulsa Democrat, forerunner of The Tulsa Tribune, was president. It was before statehood, before taxes, before women’s suffrage, before TV and radio.
The Tulsa Press Club membership today is very different in many ways from the group that formed in 1906. Today’s members not only work for (or have retired from) newspapers, radio and television stations, they are also involved in advertising and public relations at agencies and corporations. Some members come from outside the media, including lawyers, politicians and businessmen. Currently, the club’s membership stands at 469, shooting for 500.
Today’s Press Club is also motivated by somewhat broader and more altruistic goals, hosting Page One speakers, awarding journalism scholarships and recognizing radio, television and press icons.
In addition to the Headliners, the Tulsa Press Club also hosts the Legislative Reception, First Draft, Page One Luncheons, Great Plains Journalism Awards and the Newsie Awards.
The Tulsa Press Club is located in the first floor of the Atlas Life Building at 415 S. Boston Ave.
Updated 09-12-2018
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