Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 12-29-15 Edition

Features
Creal Funeral Home
Young Movie Makers Want To Make A Difference In Tampa
Gets Experienced
Director
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
With most young men hav- ing their eyes set on success in the music industry, there is one group that wants to ex- pand into all phases of enter- tainment.
Zoboe 69 Entertainment
has a couple of young men who have experience as rap- pers and filmmakers.
Justin and Tony have been in mainstream enter- tainment for almost 20 years.
Justin’s first big show was “Showtime At The Apollo.”
“That experience opened the door for me to be able to interview the top artists in the industry. I’ve helped the 69 Boyz, and now that I’ve been educated in film and editing, I ‘m expanding into movies.
“My roommate got me in- terested in film and showed me a few things. The rest, I picked up on my own and I
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
Ronald Derr, Sr. is the last of the old-school funeral directors from the 1970s who is still active.
Derr is now the director of the Tampa location of Creal Funeral Home.
“I’ve been riding a see saw the last few years, and working for Creal is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.
“This is a very competitive business, and it’s important to have experience somewhere in your ranks.”
Derr has been in the funeral business since 1971 when he was first licensed.
“It really started before 1971,” said Derr.
“It was Ms. Pughsley who got me started in the business and my uncle, James Everett, was very knowledge- able about the industry. “
Derr said a lot has changed in the industry over the past few decades, and one of them is the clientele they now serve.
“No longer do African American funeral homes specifically handle their own race. We’re getting more white people and others than ever before.
“What remains a problem in this industry is the failure of people to prepare. Having funds to cover funeral ex- penses is still a problem, and our customers are getting younger every year.”
Derr said that’s why it’s important to keep services af- fordable and help families in their time of need.
“I advise people to be more prepared for the inevitable, and plan in advance. We have something at Creal to suit the needs of any situation.
Derr said he’s talked with a lot of medical examiners who told him the number of crema- tions would rise, because peo- ple don’t have the money.
From left to right: Tony, Zoe, and Justin.
RONALD DERR, SR.
“When you look around, you can see they were telling the truth. That’s why it’s so im- portant to meet with us and make your plans early. That way, we’ll know what you’re dealing with and put together a great service that’s afford-
able. “Preparing for death is something that shouldn’t be taken for granted. No one is going to live forever, no matter what they think, and it’s not fair to put the burden of pay- ing for a service on your loved ones.”
Derr said the mortuary business is just that, and with it comes great responsibility.
“You have to be a people person and know how to deal with people in their moment of grief.
“You can’t overwhelm them, and it’s not proper to start quoting them outrageous prices as soon as they contact you. That’s why we assess each client’s need and then we tell them what we can do for them.”
Derr said no matter what the situation is, he never turns anyone away.
Ronald Derr can be reached at Creal Funeral Home by calling (813) 650- 4039.
find locations all over the city to film movies.”
Tony has a sitcom project he’s working on called “Street Extortion”, and he’s already done work with the movies Sunshine, Dollaz, Spring Breakers, Live Fast, Die Young, and others. He and Justin are also collaborating on a few projects.
Justin has completed four movies: a King Fu movie, “What’s In The Worx,” a sus-
pense thriller, “Seeking 4 Re- venge” and “Off Guard.” All of them were filmed in Tampa.
Zoboe Entertainment
founder, Alonzo Brock, said there is so much incredible talent in Tampa, and there are a lot of people with experience in different entertainment venues that should be stars.
“It’s time for us to create a place for these artists and then we all lift each other up to success.”
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2015 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 3