Action City

Bryn Schockmel - Oklahoma City Museum of Art

Bryn Schockmel is a Curator at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Originally from upstate New York, Bryn earned her B.A. from Skidmore College, her M.A. from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, and her Ph.D. in Italian Renaissance art history from Boston University. After graduating in 2019, Bryn moved to Oklahoma City to begin her Fellowship for Provenance Research at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.  After her fellowship, She began her new position as Curator at OKCMOA in November 2020 and is currently working on the Museum’s major summer exhibition The Painters of Pompeii:  Roman Frescoes from the National Archaeological Museum in Naples. Prior to moving to OKC, Bryn worked at a number of different museums in the Northeast, including the Clark Art Institute and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Please welcome Bryn to Action City! 

 

 

 

Rachel Cannon and Matt Payne - Prairie Surf Media

Rachel Cannon and Matt Payne are the co-founder of Prairie Surf Media which is located in the old Cox Convention Center. Rachel Cannon is an entertainment executive, entrepreneur, mentor, accomplished television actress, writer and producer. With an acting career in Los Angeles that spans 20 years with over 80 network television credits, Cannon has been featured on iconic television series like “Big Bang Theory,” “Two and a Half Men,” “Mad Men,” and for the last 6 years she played Deidre on ABC’s hit comedy, “Fresh Off The Boat.” Combining her on-set experience with a strong entrepreneurial spirit, Cannon is determined to bring more creative opportunities for film and television to her home State. She believes this industry will create sustainable jobs, economic diversity and a creative path for the next. Matt Payne is a two-time Emmy-nominated filmmaker, writer, photographer and educator based in Oklahoma City. In his 15 years based in Los Angeles, Payne worked as a writer on CBS’s “Vegas,” “Without a Trace” and “The Defenders.” In 2015, Payne moved back to Oklahoma City and since then, has taken a key role in the Oklahoma film community producing documentaries for Griffin Communications and the OETA Foundation as well as teaching film business and screenwriting at Oklahoma City University among other things. Please welcome Rachel and Matt Action City!

 

 

 

Kari Watkins - Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum

Kari Watkins, a third-generation journalist, became the Oklahoma City National Memorial's first staff member as the Communications Director in March 1996. She was named Executive Director in 1999. Today, she oversees the operations of the Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum; one of Oklahoma’s most visited sites and is Race Director for the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon.

 

Kari guided 2020’s signature educational/outreach/training program for the 25th Anniversary – Better Conversations. Through online and in-person programs, visitors experience a safe space to have candid conversations about tough subjects including racial reconciliation, collective memory, and uniting and moving a city forward.

 

Locally, she has been recognized with several awards including the 2000 Women in Communications Byliner Award, 2005 Journal Record Woman of the Year, 2006 Stanley Draper Award for Community Excellence, 2011 University of Oklahoma Gaylord College of Journalism Distinguished Alumni Award, 2016 Lee Allan Smith Oklahoma Legacy Award, and the 2017 John F. Kennedy Community Service Award.

 

Kari serves on the board of directors for the OKC Convention and Visitors Bureau, MAPS3 Park Sub-Committee, Board of Visitors for the University of Oklahoma’s Gaylord College of Journalism & Mass Communications and is an elder at Crossings Community Church.

 

She and her husband Hardy have two children, Ford and Caroline.

 

Welcome to Action City!

Robert J. Ross - Inasmuch Foundation

Robert J. Ross currently serves as Chairman and CEO of Inasmuch Foundation which was founded by Edith Kinney Gaylord in 1982. After working as an attorney at McAfee & Taft, Bob left to work full-time with Inasmuch and has been there since 2003. He is a graduate of Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School and Washington and Lee University, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. He received his J.D. from the University of Oklahoma. Ross is a member of too many boards to mention but a few of the notable ones are Board of Directors: Colorado College, Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum, Oklahoma State Fair, John Rex Charter School, and OU Foundation. He is a member of the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO). Bob has worked tirelessly on behalf of the Gaylord family to better the lives of Oklahomans. He is a bright light and the ultimate cheerleader for our city. Bob is married to Heather Ross and has a daughter, Lilly, and a son, Frank. Welcome to Action City, Bob!

Sara Parker - Fort Worth Country Day

Sara Parker is the lead teacher for Junior Kindergarten at Fort Worth Country Day in Fort Worth, Texas. After growing up in OKC and attending Westminster and Casady School, she made her way to the University of Arkansas where she majored in early childhood education. After graduation in 2015, she came back to OKC to be a teacher at the Chesapeake child development center and met her now-husband at Emmi's wedding. She then was offered a job at Fort Worth country day as the Kindergarten Associate and in two short years was promoted to start FWCD’s first  Junior Kindergarten program. Her knowledge of education is astonishing and I constantly ask her about my own children’s development. Anyone who knows Sara knows how beloved she is by her students and how much she loves them. Please welcome Sara to action city! 

Rosemary Walker - Somm

There are very few people in the world who love to eat as I do. But I guess it's only fitting that my sister, Rosemary Walker, is one of them. She is the product of a long line of foodies. After finishing her "lifer" experience at Casady, Rosie headed east to play college field hockey and has spent the past 20 years bouncing back and forth between the East Coast and West Coast. She turned her love of food and wine into a career with the Rustic Canyon Group in Los Angeles. From there she went on to study for her first sommelier exam through the Court of Masters and has since passed her second level test. She flourished as a member of the somm teams at the Nomad LA and Nomad NY. During the pandemic, she founded a virtual wine-tasting business, TOGERTHER--NESS. Welcome to Action City, Rosie!

Dr. Sumeeta Nanda - Women‘s Preventive Health at Integris

Dr. Sumeeta Nanda is an OBGYN at Women's Preventive Health at Integris. After growing up in Michigan and going to undergrad and med school at the University of Michigan, she met her husband while training at John's Hopkins and then they moved to OKC when her husband got a job here. Dr. Nanda has been practicing for over 25 years, and we loved asking her all our burning medical questions. From PSOC to how the pandemic has affected her patients, in this podcast, we really dive into more than just typical OB issues. Dr. Nanda looks at her patients' lives as a while and treats more than just their bodies but their minds and spirits as well. Welcome, Dr. Nanda to Action City!

Miki Farris - Infant Crisis Services

Miki Farris is a founder and currently serves as the executive director of Infant Crisis Services. 37 years ago, Miki and her Sunday school class at Westminster Presbyterian Church needed a service project and decided they wanted to make a difference in their community. Little did Miki know that her childhood and early adult life would inform her passion to help mothers, fathers, and babies in crisis as a career. 

Infant Crisis Services’ mission is to provide life-sustaining food, formula, and diapers to infants and toddlers in crisis. The organization is entirely privately funded and hosts events throughout the year to supplement individual and corporate donors and foundation grants. Their biggest event of the year, Boots and Ball Gowns, which many of you may have attended gets voted one of the best non-profit events in Oklahoma City year after year. 

 

Miki is an Oklahoma State University graduate, sustainer in the Junior League of Oklahoma City, board member and past president of the Alumni Board of Leadership OKC, member of the Kiwanis Club of OKC, member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Alumni, and an active member of the United Methodist Church of the Servant. She is married to Jim Farris and has three daughters and one son: Jacquelyn, Abbey, Ally, and Josh.

 

Welcome to Action City! 

Erin Cooper

Growing up in a fishing town in southwest Oregon gave Erin Cooper the work ethic and creative spirit she embodies today. At 18, Erin left home for the Air Force to enter their graphic design and video production program. Eight years later, she met her husband and co-founder of Cooper House, Tim in Denver. They eventually made their way back to Tim’s hometown, and we are luckier for it. Erin and her team have spearheaded the manifestation of some of the coolest brands in our city including The Oklahoma CIty Museum of Art, Good Egg Group, the Wheeler District, Prairie Surf Media and The Ellison Hotel. Please Welcome Erin to Action City!

 

 

 

Richard Taplin - Blacken Studios

Richard Taplin is the owner of Blacken Studios and the producer of Action City. Richard talks to us about experiencing racism at a young age and how that shaped his development as a person. Through health scares and therapy, Richard was able to become the son, husband, and father he is today. We talk about how he began producing podcasts and the future of Blacken Studios. We feel fortunate we get to work with him, please welcome Richard to Action City!