Page 30 - Florida Sentinel 4-22-22

Local
Councilman Gudes’ Legislative Aide Passes Suddenly
Hillsborough County’s 1st
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Mrs. Debbie Mercer, Leg- islative Aide to City Councilman Orlando Gudes, passed away suddenly on Monday, April 18, 2022. Mrs. Debbie Mercer was a longtime City of Tampa employee.
Councilman Gudes and a dear friend and co-worker, Ce- leste Gibbons-Peoples, both spoke with Mrs. Mercer earlier in the day and learned she was headed to the doctor’s office. By 5 p. m., they learned that she had passed away.
For Councilman Gudes, Mrs. Mercer was a god-send. “The Lord sent her to my office at the right time. She made this office smile!,” he said. “She was a happy person all the time. That smile and giggle made you forget
Manager for the City Council and his aide. Her official title was Senior City Council/City Clerk Support Specialist.
For Ms. Gibbons-Peoples, Mrs. Mercer “touched so many lives. She was a prayer warrior. We prayed in the hall- ways, in the bathroom, in the of- fice, whenever and wherever we needed to,” she said. They talked daily.
Mrs. Mercer worked for the City of Tampa for nearly 21 years. She was an active member of the City of Tampa Black His- tory Committee, serving as the treasurer for many years, before being sworn in last week as the Vice President.
Mrs. Mercer was the wife of Jarvis Mercer. She was a mother and grandmother.
Funeral arrangements are in- complete at this time.
African American Social
MRS. DEBBIE MERCER
what you were upset about. When she came to this office about a year ago, she lifted our spirits. She was a praying woman.”
Councilman Gudes said Mrs. Mercer was the Office
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Rev. Jimmie Bobby Keel, Sr., the first African American Social Worker for Hillsborough County, passed away Thursday, April 14, 2022 at the Tampa’s VA Hospital. He was 83 years old.
A native of Marianna, Florida, Rev. Keel furthered his education at Bethune- Cookman College, where he majored in Religion and Phi- losophy and minored in Eng- lish, graduating in 1962.
Rev. Keel served his coun- try as a Medic in the U. S. Army for 3 years. Returning to Tampa after serving in Korea, he started his career with Hillsborough County, rising to the rank of becoming the first Black Assistant County Ad- ministrator. He retired in 2001. A library was named in his honor,
Feeling the call of God to ‘feed my sheep,’ Rev. Keel delivered his trial sermon in 1958. He later would be ap- pointed to pastor Mt. Olive A. M. E. Church in Clearwater, where he served for 25 years. He was appointed Presiding
Government Officials Tour Troubled Local Apartment Complex
PRESIDING ELDER JIMMIE KEEL
Elder in 2007 of the South Dis- trict of the East Conference.
Presiding Elder Keel is survived by: wife, Dorothy Harvey Keel; daughter, Eve- lyn Scott; sons, Perry Keel, and Sean Keel; a sister and many other relatives.
His wake will be Thursday, April 28, 2022, 3-8pm at Wil- son's Funeral Home. The fu- neral will be Friday, April 29, 2022 at 2 p. m. at Allen Tem- ple AME Church in Tampa.
Worker Passes
On April 19, 2022, the resi- dents of Silver Oaks Apartments hosted Florida Agriculture Com- missioner and gubernatorial candidate Nikki Fried and newly appointed Tampa City Councilwoman, Lynn Hurtak to tour the property.
Residents have been com- plaining for a long time about the atrocious conditions. As the media began investigating, Sil- ver Oaks began policing the property and even locked the
SILVER OAKS APARTMENTS
only pedestrian entry.
This week, the apartment’s
management sent residents a notice where tenants that did
not pass inspection would be facing possible eviction.
Residents are trapped, with the lack of low-income property in the area.
Fried and Hurtak spoke on the unsafe living conditions at Silver Oaks after tenants told them of black mold, rodents and rodent droppings, widespread flooding, and breathing issues caused by the environment in the apartments. To date, no re- pairs have been made.
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