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Boys And Girls Clubs Of The Suncoast Gets New Leadership
Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast, an- nounces the appoint- ment of new President/CEO, Freddy Williams. Freddy is a Boys & Girls Club alum who brings many years of experience and proven non-profit success to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast.
Prior to joining the
Boys & Girls Clubs of
the Suncoast as the
President/CEO,
Freddy served as the
President/CEO for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Lake and Sumter Counties, where he led the organization through unprecedented growth.
Freddy also serves on the National Advisory Committee for Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Government Relations Depart- ment and the Executive Secretary of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Florida Area Council.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast, we are thrilled for the expertise and lead- ership Freddy will bring to our Clubs. He will be a great asset to our community and its young people. We are honored to have hi,.” Corporate Board of Directors Chairman, Rick McElwian stated. Freddy will begin his new role as President/CEO on July 18, 2016.
FREDDY WILLIAMS
Dialysis At Home Helps Man Maintain Employment
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
Miguel Ocasio has been a man who enjoys hard work his entire life. At a very young age, he worked for a company as a tree trimmer, a job that had him climbing or going up and down huge trees on ladders.
Ocasio saw what he was doing as an opportunity to start his own tree trimming business, and in his 30s, he took a chance and go it under- way.
What Ocasio didn’t plan was being diagnosed with a kidney problem that would cause him to be on dialysis.
“It started out as infrequent headaches, and I attributed it to the kind of work I do, and the climate, especially during the summer.
“I started taking BC pow- ders for the headaches, and they were working fine, but I had no idea what they were doing to the rest of my body. I find out they were dissolving completely in my system.”
It’s been 14 years since Ocasio was put on dialysis,
Miguel Ocasio is doing what he loves.
and from the very beginning, he insisted it be done at his home.
“For the first five years, I was getting injections, but I wasn’t able to keep working. Now, I’m able to undergo treatments at home, and still go to work. That’s right, I’m still trimming trees.
“When I was first diag- nosed, it scared me, because I knew nothing about dialysis. Now, I understand that life goes on, and you are what you eat.”
Ocasio has visited some
schools in the area, and shared his story with students so they can understand what dialysis treatments are for, and how important they are.
“Right now, I’m preparing for a kidney transplant.
“I’ve met a lot of people un- dergoing dialysis, and I think doing the treatments at home puts me in a better position from contracting an infection when I go into an office.”
Ocasio’s advice to every- one is to be careful what they eat, and pay attention to what your body is trying to tell you.
FRIDAY, JULY 8, 2016 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 3-B