Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 8-23-16 Online Edition

Local
Woman Who Sewed For Famous Boxer Operated Business For 30 Years
Tampa Native
Is Recipient Of ‘Senior Sailors Of The Quarter’ Award
Rear Admiral Kenneth R. Whitesell, of the Navy Personnel Com- mand, (left) is shown presenting Petty Officer 1st Class Sylvester Williams with the Senior Sailors of the Quarter Award.
MS. VIRGINIA PHILLIPS
... Worked on robes for Muhammad Ali
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
When thinking about the garment business, people seldom think about the process it takes to make some garments. In fact, some types of gar- ments require the expertise of more than one company.
And, Ms. Virginia Phillips owned and op- erated Phillips Lettering Service. The company was responsible for stitching the lettering onto all types of clothing, ranging from sports uniforms to items used by celebrities.
While operating the business, Ms. Phillips was hired to provide a service for the late Muhammad Ali. Ali died in June at the age of 74.
Ms. Virginia Phillips said, “I never met him, but I was told he was very particular. I pressed and hand stitched the lettering onto the robes he wore in the ring. When I tell people, they don’t believe me,” she said.
But while operating her business, Phillips Let- tering Service, she was hired by his organization on 4 different occasions. The first time, she
Muhammad Ali, Dr. Walter Smith, and Tyrone McGriff.
stitched the lettering on Ali’s robes was Decem- ber 12, 1977. Her company was hired again in May 1979, May 1980, and June 1983.
She owned and operated the business for 30 years.
Ms. Phillips said she learned about the in- dustry when she was job hunting. “I was hired and learned the business through on the job training. When the owner decided to close the company, I opened my company,” she said.
Ms. Phillips retired as a professional seam- stress in 1995, and moved to Tampa 10 years later. She is the mother 4 sons and a daughter.
Former FAMU President Also Met Great Boxer
As an educator, Dr. Walter Smith crossed paths with many who were celebrities or who be- came celebrities. He, too, shared memories of Muhammad Ali.
Dr. Smith recalls meeting Ali while serving as the 7th president of Florida A & M University.
“It was a pleasure to know Muhammad Ali and I had the opportunity to be with him several times. He visited the FAMU campus several times,” Dr. Smith said.
Recently, Rear Admiral Kenneth R. Whitesell, of the Navy Personnel Command, presented awards to sailors and civilians during the quar- terly awards program. The awards ceremony was held on August 11th.
The awards were presented to Petty Officer First Class Sylvester Williams, Yeoman 2nd Class Ricardo Geron- imo, Personnel Specialist 3rd Class Mekala Nelson, Tim- othy Hodskins, Shenetria Harris, and Ellen Griggs.
Petty Officer First Class Sylvester Williams was pre- sented the “Senior Sailors Of The Quarter” Award. A Tampa native, Petty Officer Williams is the Aviation Boatswain’s Handler Detailer for #-4 and below.
Yeoman 2nd Class Ri- cardo Geronimo, of
Alameda, California, was pre- sented the “Junior Sailor Of The Quarter” Award. Petty Officer Geronimo was also chosen as the “2015 Junior Sailor Of The Year.”
Personnel Specialist, Petty Officer 3rd Class Mekala Nelson, of Nacogdoches, Texas, was recognized as “Bluejacket Of The Quar- ter.”
Timothy Hodskins was chosen as the “Senior Civil- ian Of The Quarter.”
Shenetria Harris was recognized as the “Mid- Grade Civilian Of The Quarter.” Ellen Griggs was honored as “Junior Civilian Of The Quarter.”
Each of the recipients were presented a command plaque and flag letter of commenda- tion in recognition of their re- spective accomplishments.
University Area CDC Site Of Free Wiz Live Community Night Kick Off
The community is invited to a free screening party to view the Kenny Leon-di- rected television version of The Wiz Live, in celebration of and in preparation for, the University Area Community Development Corporation’s (CDC’s) fifth annual gala on Friday, Sept. 23.
The free screening party is on Friday, August 26, 2016. The doors open at 5 p. m. and the movie begins at 5:30 p. m. The University Area CDC is located at 14013 N. 22nd St., Tampa (33613).
The gala’s theme will be “A Brand New Day,” from the popular Broadway show and film, The Wiz Live. This ‘Brand New Day’ gala will raise much-needed funds for the University Area CDC, which works to improve the economic, education and so- cial levels of the community through youth programs and adult education and resource
‘The Wiz Live’
assistance.
The UACDC Community
Movie Night is a family-ori- ented event designed to pro- vide a fun and safe activity for University Area residents, and at the same time inform them of the many services and programming they can benefit from at the University Area Community Center.
The mission of the UACDC Community Out-
KENNY LEON ...Directed the TV version of ‘The Wizard Live’
reach Committee is to engage University Area residents through personal outreach to increase awareness and par- ticipation in University Area Community Center program- ming, events and services.
Its primary mission is the redevelopment and sustain- ability of the at-risk areas sur- rounding University of South Florida's Tampa campus.
For more information about UACDC, a 501(c)(3) public/private partnership, visit www.uacdc.org.
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