Shequana Hughes

Where do I start! What are some things that I can do to get my skin on the path to healthy, glowing and youthful looking skin?  This is a question I’m often asked by guests attending a party or clients visiting the salon.  Here are some basic tips I give to get them started.

Find a skin care regimen that works for you and use it daily. Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all skin care product.  Visiting a skin care professional before you embark on a skin care product search will help to determine the best products for you.  Knowing your skin type and what may be causing any problems (if one exists) can save you time and money in the long-run.

When it comes to visible signs of aging, sun damage is the biggest external factor effecting the skin.  It can cause fine lines and wrinkles, a loss in skin elasticity, age spots, and most importantly-skin cancer.  Wearing sun screen every day is important for all skin types.  So, when you come in to see me and I ask if you are wearing sun screen daily, I want to hear a “yes!”

Avoiding stress is not only good for your health, but it is good for the health of your skin.  Stress is known to further aggravate the skin and may trigger unexpected flare-ups.  When a person is stressed, their hormone levels increase.  This increase creates a rise in the oil production which later causes acne and other related problems. Getting facials regularly and enjoying other relaxing activities can help reduce stress and keep your hormone levels nice and balanced…. so INDULGE!

As stated before this is only the beginning…..a start.  Skin care health goes a long way, but with patience and persistence, you will see rewards that are endless!

Shequana Hughes is a licensed estheticain and owner of Changing Faces On The Go.

                                                                       Oklahoma Hall of Fame Announces 2012 Class

Seven outstanding Oklahomans have been selected for induction into the 85th class of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. These accomplished Oklahomans will join the cast of 648 individuals who have been inducted since 1928. The honorees were officially announced at a luncheon today at the Gaylord-Pickens Museum. New inductees were presented to a roomful of past Oklahoma Hall of Fame honorees and guests.
The 2012 Oklahoma Hall of Fame inductees are: Stan Clark, Tulsa/Stillwater; Bart Conner, Chicago, IL/Norman; Edith Kinney Gaylord, Oklahoma City, who will be inducted posthumously; Tom L. Ward, Shattuck/Oklahoma City; Suzanne Warren, Greenwich, CT/Tulsa, Lee R. West, Clayton/Oklahoma City; and Ronald White, Seminole/Oklahoma City. Click here for more information about each of the class members.

The honorees will be formally inducted to the Hall of Fame on Nov. 15 at the Renaissance Tulsa Hotel and Convention Center. Also in November, their portraits will be added to the Oklahoma Hall of Fame Gallery at the Gaylord-Pickens Museum. Their biographies, photos and fun facts will be accessed through touch screen computers in the same gallery.

Tickets and table sponsorships for the banquet & induction ceremony will go on sale August 31. For more information about the Oklahoma Hall of Fame or making a nomination to the Hall, contact Millie Craddick at            405.523.3203       or mc@oklahomaheritage.com.

Stepping Stone Program helps animals find a temporary home until adopted

 The Central Oklahoma Humane Society is set to relaunch its foster program under the new name Stepping Stone, a program that was developed to meet the needs of the overwhelming number of animals at risk for euthanasia at the Oklahoma City Animal Welfare Division.

“Foster homes truly are the stepping stones for shelter pets,” said Christy Counts, Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Central Oklahoma Humane Society. “Your home is the place between the shelter and their forever home. Every foster home means another animal can be transferred out of the overflowing Oklahoma City Animal Shelter, which means another life saved!”

Since the Central Oklahoma Humane Society opened its doors in the beginning of 2007, over 9,100 cats and dogs have been placed in homes, while 39,000 pets have been spayed and neutered. The Central Oklahoma Humane Society aims to double the amount of foster homes through the launch of the Stepping Stone campaign. The goal of the program is to end the needless euthanasia of animals at the Oklahoma City Animal Shelter.

“Your decision to be a foster parent should never be affected by the cost of caring for an animal,” said Foster Coordinator Sara Schumacher. “The Central Oklahoma Humane Society covers all necessary veterinary care for your foster animal, dry food and even a crate if you need one.”

For more information on Stepping Stone, call the Central Oklahoma Humane Society at 405-286-1229 ext. 6, visit http://www.okhumane.org or email foster@okhumane.org.

By Hollie Niblett

You’ll find the mouth of the Nile River in Ethiopia.  You’ll find the source of local Ethiopian cuisine and culture in Oklahoma at the Queen of Sheba Restaurant on the west side of Oklahoma City at 23^rd Street and N. McArthur Boulevard.

The delicious, aromatic food offered up at Queen of Sheba is only a part of the dining experience.   The nondescript building housing this fine restaurant belies the rich sensory and cultural adventure awaiting the person who steps inside.  As you first walk in, your nose is filled with the deep, earthy spices used to create the dishes you will later devour.  You’ll hear the distinct African rhythms of Ethiopian music.  Your eyes will feast on folk art, Ethiopian photos and a large banner with the portrait of the late Ethiopian hero and leader, Haile Selassie;  an ever-present figure in the home or business of any Ethiopian.

“I want to do more than just serve food.  I want to provide an experience,” said owner, Mimi Younis.  Mimi and her husband, Begib Younis, opened the Queen of Sheba six years ago.  At the time it was the only Ethiopian restaurant in the OKC metro area.  The Younis family moved to Oklahoma about 27 years ago after Mimi visited a relative here.  After her visit she went home to Florida and told her husband she wanted to move to Oklahoma because it was quiet and beautiful. “When I told him I wanted to move to Oklahoma he said, ‘Where is that?’” she chuckled.

She said she chose the name ‘Queen of Sheba’ because most people associate Ethiopia with the well-known African queen.  According to legend, the Queen of Sheba had a son with King Solomon;  this son was Menelik I, the first Emperor of Ethiopia.  This is a source of pride for Habisha, or “ brown-skinned people,” which is what Ethiopians call themselves;  along with the fact that Ethiopia is home to the only pre-colonial Christian church of sub-Saharan Africa and the only African nation that has never been successfully colonized.  “The Italians tried, but we fought and ran them off,” she said.

“Ethiopians also introduced coffee to the world,” she said.   The coffee plant came originally from the Kingdom of Kaffa, in the southwestern part of the country.  In Amharic, the official language there, the word for coffee is bunna (pronounced boona).   “In my country we have a special love for coffee,” she explained. “We make coffee all day long!”

To get the full flavor of just how much Ethiopians love coffee, you can make an advance request for a coffee ceremony as an after-dinner treat.  A frequent occurrence in Mimi’s home country, a coffee ceremony is a traditional, informal gathering of friends and family where Ethiopian coffee is served after dinner, along with a snack of popcorn and sometimes habasha:  warm, dense, soft bread.  Incense is burned.  A traditional coffee pot and cups are used to provide you the full experience of this special part of Ethiopian social life.

It is your taste buds, however, that will have the most delightful experience at the Queen of Sheba.   You can start off with sambusa:  an appetizer made of a flaky shell crust stuffed with beef, green chilies and herbs.  Then move on to the succulent lamb, tender chicken or choice beef.  Don’t have a taste for meat? No worries there; the vegetarian selection is varied and scrumptious.  A few of the options are potatoes, lentils cooked in a hot berbere sauce and fresh collard greens cooked to perfection.

The most popular dishes are the combination platters of meat and veggies.  This is the more traditional way of eating Ethiopian food:  everyone sharing a cornucopia of food from one large plate.  All dishes are served with a thin, spongy bread unique to this culture called injera, which is used as a utensil to scoop up the food and sauces.  According to Mimi, eating with your hands is all part of the adventure.  “If people ask for silverware I tell them I don’t have it.  When I bring it later they say ‘Oh, it’s okay, we don’t need it,’” she said with a wise smile.  “When you eat the food with your hands, it tastes much better.”

Red wine is a good pairing with the food, or even better, the traditional mead or honey wine called tej (pronounced tudge).   Although first made for Ethiopian royalty, tej is now widely available in Ethiopia.   It goes down easy, but be careful you don’t stumble out the door; this sweet nectar has a surprising bite.   A full bar is available for the more familiar drink options.

To celebrate their 6^th anniversary, the Queen of Sheba will be throwing a party on June 2^nd with a buffet and live Ethiopian and African-style music by Mixology, which will be returning to perform twice per month throughout the spring and summer.  Jazz is scheduled for Fridays.  In addition to the regularly scheduled live music, every first Thursday of the month will be Poetry Night, where local poets can share their work.  “These events draw a very diverse crowd,” said Mimi.

Even with all the culinary and cultural offerings available here, what is at the heart of the values of the Ethiopian people is found in something far less tangible than food or music; it is found in their profound respect for the guest;  the “other,” if you will.  “It doesn’t matter where you come from or what color you are,” she said.  “As a guest, you are very important.  It is an important part of our culture to be respectful to the guest.”

But you’d be wrong to think you didn’t have an important responsibility as the guest at the Queen of Sheba.  “If you come to someone’s house, you have to eat,” she laughed.  “You cannot say no!”

You’d be hard pressed, on several levels, to say no to this queen.