Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 5-28-21

Feature
East Tampa Man Adopts 9 Students At James Elementary School
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
A Tampa man adopted 9 children at James Elemen- tary School this past Christ- mas season, showering them with toys and clothing. Thanks to the impression his mother, Mattie Mc- Carr, made on him in his youth, Sheldon McCarr has always had a desire to reach back and help chil- dren. Education has been his passion. Mrs. McCarr taught at Cahoon Elemen- tary School for 38 years.
“I also believe that I was the first student in Hillsbor- ough County to attend a white school before integra- tion. My mom took me with her to Cahoon in 1969. I was the only Black student and in 2nd grade. They inte- grated in 1970, my 3rd grade year. I got called the ‘N’ word and Black Boy by some of the students in my class that year,” McCarr re- calls.
A retired U. S. Postal em- ployee (15 years), and re-
Some of the gifts McCarr distributed.
Sheldon McCarr with Bucs Super fan, Bucified Bert (Al- bert Owens).
from the school delivered the gifts a few days before Christmas. “We asked the kids to provide a wish list and we tried to fulfill their wishes. Among the items they asked for were: bikes, notepads, clothes, remote cars, dolls, and skateboards. The families were elated,” he said.
McCarr has supportive friends who assist with his projects. One being, Ray- mond Rocha, who also helps with his sponsorship of a team at Belmont
Heights Little League; and Gerald Anderson, of the Lyfe magazine in Maryland. McCarr has already started preparing for the 2021 proj- ects.
McCarr has several other ventures he’s involved in. The owner of 2 T’s Bar- becue, he spends a lot of time catering for wedding rehearsal dinners, family Wakes and Repast meals. He has set up his barbecue stand on Fridays and Satur- days outside Jackson Mar- ket, where there once was a fish-fry business.
A graduate of King High School, a member of the FAMU Marching 100, Mc- Carr earned a degree in Business Administration from Columbia College. The father of 4 (8 grandchil- dren), his relaxing time is spent volunteering at the Belmont Heights Little League, working on cars, working in his yard – any- thing with his hands.
McCarr has a message for the young people, espe- cially young men, “stop all this gun violence. It’s not getting you anywhere, but in the grave early. We’re con- stantly preaching to them, but they’re not listening.”
tired from the U. S. Navy (20 years), McCarr reached out to James Ele- mentary, spoke with the principal and eventually worked with 2 of the school’s administrators to get his project done. He has done Great American Teach-Ins for several years, but not at James. He has been a guest at Just and
Robles Elementary Schools and Sheehy this past year, virtually. James is next on his list.
School personnel se- lected the 9 families who would be the recipients of his gifts, which totaled $5,000. Through a raffle (writing an essay), a girl and boy received a bicycle. Mc- Carr and Ms. Bennett
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