Today is Tulsa’s inaugural 918 Day.
Events started early with a scavenger hunt on Saturday, and the citywide celebration of all things Tulsa includes special deals at businesses today and a Tulsa Public Schools arts competition.
Mayor G.T. Bynum is attempting a whirlwind 24-hour tour of the city, which started at midnight and already included visits with police and firefighters, sunrise at Turkey Mountain, and visits to local restaurants before a brief coffee stop at Kendall Whitter’s Pancho Anaya bakery just after 9 a.m.
"What I’m trying to do with this is raise awareness here in Tulsa of all of the things, the experiences, that Tulsa has to offer in all parts of our city," Bynum said.
918 Day is part of the Resilient Tulsa Strategy goal of bringing residents together.
"I think all of us have a tendency to exist within our own little bubbles where we live, where we work, where our kids might go to school, and we don’t appreciate all of the great experiences that there are in other parts of the city," Bynum said.
Bynum says he hopes 918 Day becomes an annual tradition that unites Tulsa.
"There’s so many things that can be a default source of division, but the reality is that we all have this one thing in common and that’s we’re all Tulsans," Bynum said. "And this is our day, on Sept. 18, to celebrate the fact that we’re Tulsans and that we have this great city that has all these things to offer us."
