OKC FRIDAY Vol. 58 No. 22 • One Section • 12 pages • October 4, 2024 $1 per copy
www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday OKC’s only locally-owned legal newspaper with all local news Serving affluent far north Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills and The Village for 50 years
9 cars hit in 1 night during NHills spree
Friends complete hike in memory of late pal
By Eric Oesch Staff Writer
By Sara Sweet Special to OKC FRIDAY In December 2022, my dear friend Susanna Gattoni asked me if I’d like to hike the “Rim to Rim” trail in the Grand Canyon. Not truly understanding what I was committing to, within a few days, I replied, “I’m in!” I learned that I was committing to a 24.6 mile hike that involved hiking down the north side, across the bottom, and back to the top on the south side for a total elevation gain of 5,574 feet. Both 1972 babies, Susanna and I shared a similar attitude toward turning the big “5-0.” Big whoop! It’s just a number, and taking on this legendary hike felt ambitious but thrilling. I worked that sadistic stair master as best I could and went on sev-
Trish Davis, Sara Sweet and Vi Le with OKC FRIDAY as they hike rim to rim of the Grand Canyon.
eral training hikes in Oklahoma and Colorado. Susanna, our friend Vi, and I met several times for early morning hikes around Lake Arcadia, Lake Draper, and Mount Scott, startling the deer with our chatter and laughter. As mothers of college-
aged children, we shared our excitement, concern, and hopes for our kids as they navigated that unique part of life in which you have a foot in childhood while you try on adulthood. By the end of summer, we felt prepared and were excited to
hike on Sept. 15, 2023. Days before we were set to leave, Susanna began to feel poorly. She was hospitalized and diagnosed with acute leukemia, and she passed away on Sept. 11, 2024, four days before our “big
Nichols Hills residents experienced a rash of car burglaries last month when nine vehicles were broken into on Westminster Avenue in a single night. The crime spree led the City Council to request an official letter from the city notifying its nearly 4,000 residents of the burglaries and to provide best practices to avoid becoming a victim. A similar car burglary spree occurred last May in The Village when suspects stole items valued at over $3,000 from unlocked vehicles during late night break-ins near Lakeside Drive and Hefner Road. At the September City Council meeting, Nichols Hills Ward 1 Councilman Sody Clements requested correspondence be sent to residents letting them know of the crime spree. “We want to make a statement and by sending this notice via USPS rather than as an insert in a utility bill,” she said during the council meeting. “It’s important to reach our residents to inform them of this danger.” The city spent $1,250 on postage and $300 on supplies to send the letter to all city residents via first class USPS. “Although one of the safest cities in the nation, Nichols Hills experiences its share of car and home break-ins,” said City Manger Shane Pate in the letter dated Sept. 13. “FORBES recently reported an NBC survey of over 500 convicted burglars in which 42 percent of the respondents said they entered through an unlocked window and 39 percent said they gained access through an unlocked door.” Police Chief Steven Cox said the city experiences a rash of vehicle burglaries two to three
See HIKE, Page 12
See NHILLS, Page 3
Shots fired in The Village
Three cook up wins at the state fair
By Eric Oesch Staff Writer
By Rose Lane Editor
Village Police responded to several calls of gun shots being fired in the 1700 block of Westchester last Sunday afternoon around 2:38 p.m. Officers were on the scene within two minutes. Nearby
residents identified the suspect as a Black male in a dark gray SUV who fled the scene traveling southbound on Stratford from Westchester. Neighbors told police the suspect exited his vehicle and stood in the front yard while See SHOTS, Page 12
Lillie-Beth Brinkman and Kathye Winslow pumped up the jams and jellies and Erin Engelke brought the best brownies to win ribbons at the Oklahoma State Fair.
OKC FRIDAY: Fabulous at 50
Events, names are still important By Helen Wallace Retired Journalist Congratulations OKC FRIDAY newspaper on 50 years of excellent reporting. FRIDAY has been known for its focus on private and community social events, as well as sports, arts and government. I have loved the really good photos and news of parties throughout the years and have enjoyed seeing what Nichols Hills, The Village and Quail Creek people have been up to. Country club events and holiday parties are always good feature sto-
ries, in my mind, because, they give people decorating ideas they might want to use for their own parties. And right now, FRIDAY is the only newspaper which gives this type of coverage. Community events and names in the news are still important to many of us as readers. Publisher Vicki Clark Gourley and Rose Lane, editor, have seen to the strong voice about local and state government in FRIDAY newspaper. That is important in today’s political atmosphere. See 50, Page 3
Lillie-Beth’s masterpiece came about after an “accidental” peach tree grew by her front door. “But in the years since it grew, I have had so much fun with it – learning how to tend to it to produce more peaches, making cobbler and then learning how
to make peach jam, learning how to design a label for the jam in Adobe Illustrator and giving jars away to family and friends,” she said. This is the second year she has entered her Jam See FAIR, Page 2
FRIDAY’s Dog of the Week Callie Sugar joined Chris and Lynette Gianos’s family a few years ago. We are told like most dogs; she gets in to everything and pretty much runs the whole show. Her mom Lynette shuffles children around to their activities and upon occasion Callie tags along. Callie has taken part in a long tradition in this Gianos family, help get ready for the Greek Festival. Her father Chris has been heading up the event for several years. His children are also part of the festival dance troupes.You can also see Lynette at the Kids's Zone from time to time. Though you won’t see Callie at the 2024 Greek Festival, she has got her hair done in a beautiful blue for the occasion. Come out to this year’s Greek Festival this weekend, Oct. 4-6, at St. George Greek Orthodox Church located at the corner of 145 North Penn.