What a JOY it’s been to be part of the OKC metro — and your families! — for the past quarter century! So much has changed in our city and in parenting in the past 25 years, but our commitment to serving local families has remained steadfast. As many in our original parent community have become grandparents, using MetroFamily resources to play and learn with grandchildren, we continue to feel immense gratitude for all the families who have informed, supported and inspired our work. Enjoy this look back at our past and our vision for how we will continue to support all OKC families in the years to come. Thank you for being part of our MetroFamily! 25! Looking Back, Thinking Forward 25 years of MetroFamily BY SARAH TAYLOR Turns
As we look back on the past 25 years, here are the top five ways we have been fortunate to support the OKC community and local families — plus how we’re looking to serve in even more effective ways in the future: Our local family fun resources have always been our most popular and often how new families hear about MetroFamily. We provide award-winning, top-notch resources, including a popular calendar of events and directories, lists and guides featuring kids’ sports, arts, STEM and other educational classes and camps along with parenting classes and resources. Through articles, themed series and our new podcast, we have brought attention to important local issues such as foster care, child care, our education system, mental and physical health of children and resources for kids with special needs. We enjoy highlighting the local movers and shakers who work hard to improve family life in Oklahoma City, as well as the parents who are making a difference for their own children and other kids who need a helping hand through our annual Awesome Moms contest and Real Parents of the Metro series. 1 2 3
MetroFamily’s mission as a media company is to provide inspiration and support to local parents in their important role of raising their children to be happy, contributing members of their communities, and to help businesses and service organizations connect their messages to these engaged parents. Our emphasis on “things to do” as a family through our in-print and online calendars, lists and resources is key to this mission: we know family life can be tough and prioritizing having fun as a family is key to building relationships that can stand strong through the difficult times. We also acknowledge that our community is only as strong as its individual families — strong families rely on parents who have the resources and know-how for their vital role.
18 METROFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM / JULY-AUGUST 2023
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