Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 11-10-17

FLORIDA SENTINEL
Retired Veteran: ‘I Didn’t Let This Disease Break Me’
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Mrs. Melissa Battles- Vazquez is a survivor. She has battled cancer on three separate occasions and is currently in remission.
“I’m a military retired veteran, wife and mother,” Mrs. Battles-Valdez said. Being proactive, she be- lieves in self-examinations. So, in May 2014, when she discovered a lump, she im- mediately visited her pri- mary doctor for a mammogram.
The doctor told her that they would call her if there was a problem and to wait 10 business days. “I believed that no news was good news. So I went on with my life. I attended a planned event as usual with my friends.”
When she returned, it was time for her yearly
physical at MacDill Air Force Base. And, that is when she saw a different physician, she received the news. “When the physician asked about my lump, I ex- plained that no one had called me back with the mammogram results. She immediately called the exam center to get my re- sults.
“She walked back into the examination room with a yellow envelop with my re- sults. She handed me the re- sults and a Moffitt cancer card and asked me to please schedule a follow up with them. I knew what that meant, but my husband told me to keep the faith, that I shouldn’t worry yet.”
When Mrs. Battles- Valdez visited Moffitt Can- cer Center, she learned that she had stage 3 breast can- cer. “The worst day of my life was here. I had to tell my
MELISSA BATTLES- VAZQUEZ
3 boys that I was sick,” she recalled.
Her oldest son was away serving in the Navy, so she told him by telephone. Af- terwards, she went through her treatment at Moffitt with the support of her fam- ily and friends.
“I went through
chemotherapy, radiation, and 5 surgeries. When I went through chemo, my husband, Carlos, my mother, and my best friends both came from out of state,” Mrs. Battles- Valdez said.
The majority of her fam- ily lives in Atlanta, but she knew that she had their full support. Although the dis- ease tested her strength and faith, she never lost the sup- port of her husband, family, or friends.
On one occasion, though, she was talking to her sister on the telephone. She re- calls crying because she had lost her long hair, her eye- lashes, and her eyebrows. Her sister’s response was, “Missy, we would rather have you here, it’s just hair.”
When Mrs. Battles- Valdez returned to her pri- mary physician and asked him why he never contacted
her about the results of the mammogram, she recalls him saying, “Melissa, as you know, I’m busy.”
Mrs. Battles-Valdez
said, “I immediately took my family out of his care. I didn’t let this disease, or that doctor, break me or my family,” she said.
During her journey, Mrs. Battles-Valdez has been diagnosed with 2 other kinds of cancer and is cur- rently in remission. She shares her story in the com- munity and by visiting churches, giving her testi- mony. And, she continues to visit Moffitt Cancer Center for maintenance.
As the Vice President of Sisters Network of Tampa Bay, she said, “I try and make sure women do self- exams. This is my calling in life. Please follow up on your results,” Mrs. Bat- tles-Valdez said.
WWII Veteran Is Honoree At Fall Festival
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Being active has always been a word that describes Mr. Emanuel P. John- son, and he is showing no signs of slowing down in his senior years. And, his mem- ory doesn’t seem to be aging either.
Mr. Johnson can rattle of dates and events that took place 75 years ago as if they happened yesterday. On Sat- urday, November 11, 2017, Mr. Johnson will be the honoree at the Progress Vil- lage Fall Festival. It will take place from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., at the Emanuel P. Johnson Progress Village Community Center and Gymnasium, 5855 S. 78th Street.
Ms. Linda Washing- ton, who is coordinating the Fall Festival, said Mr. Johnson will be the guest of honor. Residents will have an opportunity to stop at his table and visit with him dur- ing the festival. There will also be a video shown that was made when Mr. John- son traveled to Washington, D. C.
Mr. Johnson began life
in Marianna, Florida. He at- tended the local schools and graduated from Gilmore Academy in Jackson County. He obtained employment as a Civilian at the Marianna Army Air Force Base.
“I wanted to go into the Air Force. But, World War II started in 1941, and I was drafted into the Army in 1942. When it ended in 1945, I was stationed in Hamburg, Germany. I was discharged in 1947,” Mr. Johnson said.
After the military, Mr. Johnson returned to Mari-
EMANUEL P. JOHNSON World War II Veteran
anna and later moved to Tampa.
He married the late Mrs. Ruby Johnson and they became the parents of 5 sons and 3 daughters. The family became one of the first fam- ilies to move into the newly created Progress Village subdivision in Hillsborough County.
He retired from DeVoe Paint Company in 1996, after 46 years of service.
Having celebrated his 96th birthday on October 14th, Mr. Johnson has been recognized several
times.
In October 2013, Mr.
Johnson’s history was recorded as part of the Hills- borough County Public Li- brary Digital Collection, “Our Lives, Our Lega- cies, The Hillsborough Black Experience.”
In June 2015, Mr. Johnson was among more than 80 veterans in the Tampa Bay Area who were flown to Washington, D. C. to tour the Memorials.
In February 2016, U. S.
Congresswoman Kathy Castor included Mr.
Johnson in her Veterans History Project. His story is now memorialized in the U. S. Library of Congress as a Veteran of World War II.
The Hillsborough County Commissioners allocated funding to rebuild the Progress Village Community Center several years ago. When the building was com- pleted and dedicated, in March 2016, it was renamed the Emanuel P. Johnson Progress Village Community Center and Gymnasium.
He serves as the “Hon- orary Mayor and Historian of Progress Village.”
Mr. Johnson is looking forward to participating in the Fall Festival and sharing the many stories of events that have taken place in his life.
His conversations are peppered with adages that make you think such as, “Pa- tience is the companion of wisdom,” and “At my age, you lose a little bit of eye- sight, a little bit of hearing, and a little bit of your mind. But, I still have a little left.”
And, he issues a warning for those who come to listen to his stories, “The longer I talk, the more I remember.”
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2017
B