Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 10-29-19

Features
Tampa Native Launches Her Career As Pediatrician
DR. ALRICK DRUMMOND
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
It has often been said that anyone can serve as a mentor and influence our children. And this was the case with a young Tampa woman.
As a child, Dr. Alrick Drummond was a patient of Dr. Elizabeth Yakubu. She remembers, “I struggled with asthma during most of my childhood. Unlike most chil- dren who dread visits to the pediatrician, I looked forward to each visit because Dr. Yakubu always managed to make me feel better.
“Growing up, I also saw what a difference she made in the lives of her patients, and I wanted to have that opportu- nity, too,” Dr. Drummond said.
So, as a child, the little girl with asthma decided that she wanted to follow in the paths of her pediatrician.
A Tampa native, Dr. Drummond graduated from Tampa Bay Technical High School, Academy of Health Professionals, and continued her education at
Florida State University. She earned both her B. S. Degree and her M. D. Degree from the University.
While there, she was a member of the Center for Ac- ademic Retention and En- hancement (CARE) Program. As part of the program, she mentored middle and high school students who dis- played an interest in the med- ical field.
After graduating from Florida State University, Dr. Drummond completed her residency at Crozier Medical Center, in Upland, Pennsylva- nia and became board certi- fied in 2018.
When the opportunity presented itself for her to work with her mentor, Dr. Drummond did not hesi- tate. She currently serves as a pediatrician at the Children’s Health Center, 13043 Sum- merfield Square Drive, in Riverview.
Today, Dr. Drummond is realizing her goal and com- mitment to improve health literacy among the population she serves.
FYI
HART To Host Career Fair November 2nd
HART, (Hillsborough Area Regional Transit) Au- thority, will host a Career Fair, on Saturday, Novem- ber 2, 2019. The event will take place from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., at the HART Opera- tions Center, 4501 East 21st Avenue, Tampa.
HART is offering on-site interviews at their Opera- tions Center for bus opera- tors, van drivers and mechanics – apply early at www.gohart.org,
Individuals could be of- fered a job on the spot with great benefits including health, dental, vision and more!
Tampa Native Is Dancing His Life On Stage
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Marcus McCray’s fasci- nation with dance began when he was a little boy growing up in Tampa.
He was drawn to ballet, specifically. But other cre- ative outlets were thrown his way before he could step foot into his first pair of slippers.
“I’ve always wanted to dance,” McCray said. “My family wasn’t so supportive, so they put me in gymnastics and marching band.”
He indulged in these ac- tivities and along the way be- came a classically-trained musician. The passion for dance, however, never went away.
McCray, a graduate of Gibbs High School in St. Pe- tersburg, moved out on his ownat17.Itwastheendof his childhood, but the official start of a dance career that’s put him on stages in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Mexico, and Trinidad.
Today, McCray tells sto- ries through movement with the Tampa City Ballet, a con- temporary dance company founded last year by Paula Nunez. He was one of a dozen performers last week- end at Hillsborough Commu- nity College’s Ybor
MARCUS MCCRAY ... “Dancing my life on the stage”
Mainstage Theater for the company’s latest production, “If I Cry,” which tells the story of famed artist, Frida Kahlo.
This show is personal for McCray. Like Kahlo, he’s endured a series of bad expe- riences – loss of family, missed opportunities, racism in the dance community – only to rebound stronger than before.
“I’m literally dancing my life on this stage and calling it ‘Frida’,” he said.
But his appearance in the production almost didn’t happen.
In February, McCray – then living in Miami – was preparing to join an Italian company and move overseas.
But the offer was rescinded, leading McCray to question if a dance career was still vi- able for him.
He packed up his apart- ment, moved back to Tampa, and didn’t dance for eight months. That is, until Nunez came calling.
“He’s an amazing dancer,” she said. “He’s a true artist. This is work he’s good at doing.”
McCray, an alum of Miami’s The New World School of the Arts, said he found it difficult to ignore the pull of dance. And soon, he was back into the groove of conditioning and rehearsal.
“I got that high that no drug could ever compete with,” he said. “I cried that night. It had been too long since I had that feeling.”
McCray said he’ll never give up on dance and has a goal to start his own com- pany in the future. He’s also exploring a career in law.
“I know it’s difficult but it’s possible,” he said.
And, he’ll continue to en- courage other young Black men to pursue the art.
“It’s not easy,” McCray said. “I’m on a platform that some people don’t want me on because of what I look like.”
But a strong faith in God has made it possible to come this far, he said.
“It is His doing that all of this is happening,” McCray said. “I give all credit to Him.”
“I Cry,” a production of the Tampa City Ballet in- spired by Frida Kahlo’s di- aries, ran Friday, Oct. 25th and Sat., Oct. 26th at the Ybor Mainstage Theater. Visit www.tampacityballet.org for more information.
PAGE 2 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2019