Action City

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! 

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.

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 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! 

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 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 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.