Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 2-26-16 Edition

Features
Funeral Planned For Popular Teacher Killed In Motorcycle Accident
BY LATRICE SCOTT
Funeral services for a pop- ular Hillsborough County teacher, will be held on Satur- day, February 27th.
Mr. Antony C. Cook
was an educator in Hillsbor- ough County for 15 years. He began teaching English/Lan- guage Arts and Reading at Carver in 2008. He soon be- came the Subject Area Leader for ELA in high school. Al- ways an advocate for his stu- dents, “Mr. Cook” would always go the extra mile to ensure success in the class- room and even more impor- tantly was a mentor and trusted advisor that could be counted on to offer guidance when life presented obstacles.
Recently, he had come across one of his former stu- dents who found himself homeless and living in the streets. Mr. Cook took it upon himself to find shelter and fresh clothes for the young man and put him in touch with an individual who eventually secured employ- ment for him. As a result, he has his own apartment and is providing for himself. There are countless stories such as this where Mr. Cook quietly, without fanfare, helped kids in the community who were struggling.
Anthony’s leadership was not confined to the class- room. He was an active member of the Classroom Teachers Association and was
ANTHONY C. COOK
the Carver representative on campus for the past several years. He was also an active member of the SOS Founda- tion of Tampa Bay. Always willing to assist young teach- ers and veterans alike, his calming influence was a silent force which echoed through- out the halls of Carver.
While riding his motorcy- cle on Valentine’s Day, a fa- vorite pastime of his, Mr. Cook was killed when an SUV pulled out into the road- way directly in front of him. He was 43-years-old.
“Mr. Cook was always polite, friendly, and with that big smile of his, he would come by every day, just to say good morning to myself and my staff. The kids loved him and he will be truly missed.” Passion Jones (Core Cater- ing Manager)
“Mr. Cook was a won- derful man who always had his students' interests at heart. He was honest, reli- able, and there to help you
whenever you needed it, pro- fessionally or personally. His infectious smile and attitude will definitely be missed around the halls of Carver.” (Kristen DeRose, Guidance Counselor)
“Mr. Cook was a kind- hearted man. He knew how to make people feel good when they were down and out. No one could ever re- place him. He was one of a kind.” (Ms. Weaver, Para- professional)
“He was a family man, firm but fair. He loved the students and was a people person.” (Ms. Ford, Para- professional)
“He was kind and loved everyone. He wanted all the kids to do right and get out. He was just a wonderful per- son and strict when he needed to be.” Zedrick Cohen, student.
Mr. Cook’s life motto was “Never be a problem to a problem. Be a solution to a problem.” He will surely be missed by family and a host of friends and colleagues.
Carver Exceptional Center will have a tribute in honor of Mr. Cook on Friday, Febru- ary 26, at 1:30 p.m.
Funeral services will take place at Keeney United Methodist Church, 7736 Des- tin Drive in Clair Mel (33619), on Saturday, February 27th, at 2 p.m. Aikens Funeral Home is in charge of handling arrangements.
Young Designer To Be Honored As Girl Scouts’ ‘Woman Of Promise’
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
On Tuesday, March 29th at the Downtown Hilton, the Girl Scouts of West Central Florida will be holding their annual “Woman of Distinction” lunch- eon.
As a part of that event, in a special cat- egory, the 2015 “Woman of Promise” will also be recog- nized.
This year’s
“Woman Of Promise”
will be Altrichia
Cook. She was nominated, a committee reviewed all of the nom- inations and after the selection process, Ms. Cook came out the winner.
Ms. Cook is a Lakeland native, and successful entrepreneur with her unique swimwear line, “Allusions by A. Lekay.”
In two years, Ms. Cook made quite an entrance into the fash- ion world with the launching of her luxury high-waist swimwear line.
“I had given birth to a son, and still wanted to wear a bathing suit,” said Ms. Cook.
“After failing to find a high-waist bathing suit anywhere, I de- cided to just design my own.”
Ms. Cook said she thinks it’s important that she helps the next generation of leaders, and she wants them to be fearless.
“My parents are everything to me and instilled the resilient part of my personality in me. I raised my son while attending col- lege, and it’s because I’ve always had the support of my family.
“I came up with the business after I started getting inquiries from other women on where I got my bathing suit from. That’s when I started designing for myself and others.”
Ms. Cook said her business has grown steadily each year, and she’s proud to have had Nikki Minaj wear one of her swimsuits on the cover of Cosmopolitan Magazine.
“Having my parents being pivotal in what I’ve become, and my son, Anthony, drove me to want to secure his future while at the same time giving back to the community.
“I’ve gotten so much support and I’m very grateful for the sup- port and for this honor from the Girl Scouts.”
Ms. Cook said it’s been tough, but she tries to leave a positive impression on everyone she comes in contact with.
Altrichia Cook holds a copy of Cosmopol- itan Magazine with Nikki Minaj on the cover wearing one of her swimwear designs.
PAGE 2-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2016