Listen to this article here
The Black Wall Street Times

Sign-Up for a free subscription to The Black Wall Street Timesdaily newsletter, Black Editors’ Edition (BEE) – our curated news selections & opinions by us for you.

Children gathered yesterday for the unveiling of Gathering Place Of Tulsa’s Park Ambassador and park mascots.

Ambassador Ariana, interviewing with local news outlets, was poised and well spoken while telling the world what the Gathering Place means to her community.

Blue the Heron and Tulsey the Turtle are two of the three Gathering Place walk around mascots unveiled Tuesday afternoon. A third mascot; a squirrel who champions reading and the arts; was also announced along with a contest to name the third mascot that will run from Tuesday October 23rd until  Tuesday October 30th. The winning name will be announced November 1st, at a special story time held at the Reading Tree.

The mascots are available to help guests stay active and learn about different aspects of the Gathering Place. Blue the Heron focuses on environmental programming and activities in the Wetlands Gardens and the Chapman Adventure Playground. Tulsey the Turtle promotes sports activities at the SEMGroup Sports Courts and BMX & Skate Parks.

Executive Park Director; Tony Moore; released a statement, ” Our mission at Gathering Place is to bring all Tulsans together for a shared experience of fun and inclusiveness, and our new characters will be champions of that mission,”. Moore invites the children of Tulsa to become involved and create a lasting impact in their community by participating in the naming of the squirrel mascot.

Join Ambassador Ariana in having a lasting impact on Tulsa’s Gathering Place by submitting your name for the squirrel mascot, contest runs from Tuesday October 23rd until  Tuesday October 30th. Contestants must be 18 or younger and have an adult submit their character name ideas on the Gathering Place website.

Literary Editor
Casey McLerran is the Literary Editor at the Black Wall Street Times. She is a Sooner State transplant from Forest Hills, NY. McLerran arrived in Oklahoma at the age of three shortly after gentrification displaced her and her family out of their home in New York. At first glance, many think they have McLerran figured out. To be frank, she’s a biracial American young woman that unapologetically embraces her half-African identity — a feminist-womanist she is. Her pen operates as her voice as well as her sword. Her accolades include the 2018 Rural Oklahoma Poetry Museum’s Oklahoma Poem Award, a business management degree, and her three beautiful children. Her objective with the Black Wall Street Times is to elevate and amplify the literary art of modern black American culture, pay tribute to African-American literary trailblazers, all while simultaneously linking and introducing children to the world of colorful American writers.

The Black Wall Street Times is a news publication located in Tulsa, Okla. and Atlanta, Ga. At The BWSTimes, we focus on elevating the stories of our beloved Greenwood community, elevating the stories of...