Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 12-1-15 Edition

Features
City Of Tampa Opens Parks & Recreation Centers For Healthcare Open Enrollment
Tuesday, City of Tampa an- nounced that it will once again open its Parks & Rec centers for the Affordable Care Act open enrollment period.
Navigators will be available at the following centers begin- ning Tuesday, December 1st to answer questions and help in- dividuals enroll. These centers willbeopenfrom 4to7p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays each week through the enroll- ment deadline of January 31, 2016.
Navigators will not be available December 22 - Janu- ary 1 due to the holidays.
“As Mayor, it is my respon- sibility to do everything I can to ensure our friends and neighbors in the City remain happy and healthy for years to come,” said Mayor Bob Buckhorn. “Everyone de- serves the right to see a doctor when they are injured or get medications when they are sick. There are no exceptions.
As a community we are stronger when we are healthier and we, at the City, are happy to do our part to make sure all of our citizens are covered.”
Cyrus Greene Center
2101 East Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard
Forest Hills Center
724 West 109th Avenue
Hunt Center at
Al Lopez Park 4810 North Himes Avenue
Loretta Ingraham Center
1615 North Hubert Avenue
Port Tampa Center
4702 West McCoy Street
For more information on how to enroll for healthcare contact connector.getcov- eredamerica.org or call (877) 813.9115.
President Of COT Black History Committee Aims To ‘Grow On The Vision’
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Ms. Celeste Gibbons- Peoples is going into her 2nd year as president of the City of Tampa Black History Commit- tee.
“As President, I want to continue to embrace and grow on the vision of Bobby L. Bowden, founder of the City of Tampa Black History Commit- tee (COTBHC) and to continue the work that the Presidents before me, like Janett S. Mar- tin, Bettye Greene Johnson and Frank Crum have done for the City of Tampa’s Black History Committee, Inc., and with the hard-working commit- tee members that volunteer their time. With their efforts and our community and spon- sors we are well on our way and say, ‘Thank You’.”
Although the COTBHC is well-known for the annual Black History Month program in February, Ms. Gibbons- Peoples says they are cur- rently “working on a number of things.” On Tuesday, Novem- ber 24th the committee distri- buted Thanksgiving baskets to
MRS. CELESTE GIBBONS-PEOPLES ...President, COTBHC
families in the community. The committee is also prepar- ing for the Black History Month Celebration on Monday, Febru- ary8,2016,11a.m.atthe Tampa Convention Center; and the Scholarship Ceremony on May 19, 2016. The theme of the 28th Black History Month Cele- bration will focus on music.
The committee is also work- ing with Kennie Sims of the Sports Authority to host its first golf tournament in April or May, 2016 at Rogers Park Golf Course. “Prayerfully, that will become an annual event.”
“We are excited and busy raising funds so that we can keep giving scholarships to graduating African-American high school seniors and to African-Americans enrolled in Vocational/Technical Schools. We realize that college and uni- versity studies are not for everyone, but that doesn’t
mean there isn’t a financial need for those students as well,” she explained. Last year, with $25,000 the group blessed several students.
A native of Tampa, Ms. Gibbons-Peoples grew up in Central Park Village until the age of 8 when her family moved to the Jackson Heights commu- nity. She is the daughter of (the late) Walter Lee “Dirk” Gib- bons (well-known Negro League Baseball Player) and Ms. Agustina Penalver Gib- bons, both of whom were reared in Ybor City.
A graduate of Hillsborough High School, Hillsborough Community College and St. Leo University, Ms. Gibbons- Peoples has been employed with the City of Tampa for 30 years (Oct. 16th). Currently, she is a Certified Procurement An- alyst in the Purchasing Dept.
She is very active in the community serving with sev- eral organizations. She has many professional commit- ments as well. Her hobbies are reading traveling, attending concerts and Broadway plays. Ms. Gibbons-Peoples at- tends Springhill Missionary Baptist Church, Rev. Eugene Garnett, Sr., pastor, where she is also affiliated with sev- eral ministries.
Ms. Gibbons-Peoples is married to Jeffrey Peoples and has 2 sons, Terrell and Chris and one grandson, Calvin.
PAGE 2 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2015