Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 6-30-17

Feature
Psychiatrist Chosen To Participate In ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Tampa Bay To Raise Money For Charity
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Marketa Wills has many titles by her name – daughter, sister, friend, doctor.
Come October, she’s hop- ing to add “winner of Tampa Bay’s Dancing with the Stars 2017: Bollywood Edition” to the list.
Dr. Wills, Corporate Medical Director for WellCare Health Plans, said she’s hon- ored to be selected as one of 11 “celebrity” dancers for the an- nual charity event sponsored by Julie Weintraub’s Hands Across the Bay.
Dr. Wills and her cohorts will be partnered with profes- sional dancers from The Hip Room Studio to perform sev- eral dance styles Oct. 7th at TPepin’s Hospitality Centre.
“I’m super excited,” she said.
This year’s style of dance and music, Bollywood – the nickname for India’s Hindi film industry – is new to Dr. Wills, but dancing and per- forming are not.
Dr. Wills said she began dancing at a young age. As she grew older, tap lessons gave way to stints as a cheerleader and member of the drill team.
While living in Houston some years ago, she was in- volved with the Urban Souls Dance Company.
“I’ve always been passion- ate about dance,” she said.
This time, Dr. Wills said she’s lacing up her dance shoes
Dr. Marketa Wills will par- ticipant in ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Tampa Bay to raise money for charity. You can vote for her next month.
not only to raise money for charity, but to also bring awareness to a topic that does- n’t get as much attention as it should: mental health.
Dr. Wills, a board-certi- fied psychiatrist with a Mas- ter’s Degree in Business Administration from the Wharton School of Business, completed a residency in Adult Psychiatry at Harvard’s Mas- sachusetts General Hospi- tal/McLean Hospital program where she served as Chief Resident her last year, is presently the president of Na- tional Alliance on Mental Ill- ness – Hillsborough, a chapter of the national organization that advocates to better the
lives of those who are affected by mental illness.
She said her participation allows the organization to get some exposure so that it can “beat the drum for mental health issues.”
“It’s really part of the effort to de-stigmatize mental health,” she said. “I’m really excited about the opportunity to serve our community in this way.”
There are multiple ways to snag a win at the event, includ- ing Best Female Dancer and Crowd Favorite.
The community can participate through on- line voting on the event website. Each vote costs $1, Wills said. To vote for her, go to www.dancing- forcharity.com/Marketa- Wills.
Although online voting doesn’t begin until next month, Dr. Wills said she’s already mapping out a strategy to raise the most money.
“That’s my main thing – driving people to the website,” she said.
Dr. Wills said she’s grate- ful to combine two of her fa- vorites things: dancing and
giving back.
“I think it’s fun and I think
it’s healthy,” she said.
Dr. Wills is a native of
Dayton, Ohio, and has em- braced her community since moving here for her job. She is an active member of The Tampa Chapter of The Links, Inc. and attends Bible-Based Fellowship Church Carroll- wood. She also chaired the first 5K Walk to bring about Mental Health Awareness last
year. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Save the Date
Julie Weintrab’s Hands Across the Bay presents Tampa Bay’s Dancing with the Stars 2017: Bollywood Edition, Saturday, Oct. 7, at TPepin’s Hospitality Centre, 4121 N. 50th St., in Tampa.
For more information, visit www.dancingforcharity.com.
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