Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 11-13-15 Edition

Features
County Commissioners Elect New Board Chair
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
On Tuesday in a 4-3 vote, the Board of County Commis- sioners named Les Miller as its new Chair.
Comm. Chair Miller, along with Commissioners Ken Hagan Kevin Beckner, and Victor Crist voted in favor of Comm. Miller, while Commissioners Al Higgin- botham, Stacy White, and Sandy Murman voted to re- tain Murman for a second term as Chair.
Charter Review Board member, Gerald White said when he got the news, he was elated.
“We advocated for this, and I’m pleased a qualified African American got the position. This is a strong signal to the African American community that the Board continues to be fair.”
Comm. Chair Miller said although he’s excited and thankful for the confidence his colleagues have instilled in him, they have some difficult issues ahead.
“The biggest issue we will be facing is trying to fix our public transportation prob- lems. We also want to generate jobs, and now that I’m repre- senting my six colleagues my
COMMISSIONER
LES MILLER .....Elected new Board Chair in
a 4-3 vote.
responsibilities have grown. “Wehavetoworkonalotof economic issues and putting together some partnerships to help get things done. It’s time forallofustorollupour sleeves, because we have a lot
on our plates right now.” Comm. Chair Miller said he’s going to be working closely with Council Chair Frank Reddick on some things as their districts cross each other. “Trying to do something about crime is also a priority,
and that means Tampa. “People talk about this
county being so big, to me that means we’ve got to generate jobs, and a viable transporta- tion system to get them to and from work.”
Student Wins Annual World Class Essay Contest
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
During last year’s school term, one Tampa student was among a thousand who visited a local business. She was also one of more than 1,000 stu- dents who wrote an essay about her visit to the facility.
Ms. Laura Alessi DeLu- cia, of Vigo Importing Com- pany wrote to MacFarlane Elementary School and said, “I’m writing to you with good news ... one of your fifth grade students won our school year 2014-2015 essay contest! Un- fortunately, the student did not write his/her name on the essay, but I am hoping the teacher can identify the au- thor.”
And so, the school identi- fied the author as Pearlyana
PEARLYANA FIELDS
... Winner of Vigo & Alessi World Class Essay Tour
Fields and provided her name to Ms. DeLucia.
She contacted the Fields family in a letter dated August 25th, and stated in part, “As the
winner, you have won boxes of Vigo and Alessi products that we trust you and your family will enjoy. Because of your out- standing writing ability, Mac- Farlane Elementary will receive a check for $500. Also accept this $100 check as a token of appreciation for your efforts.”
By the time Pearlyana was notified of the win, she was al- ready a student at Williams I. B. Middle School, but her fam- ily is proud of the win neverthe- less.
Pearlyana is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward (Yustina Rusmaryanah) Fields and the older sister of 7- year-old Christiana. Chris- tiana is a student at MacFarlane Elementary School.
She enjoys participating in community outreach opportu- nities, such as feeding the homeless and cleanup projects. She is also a member of the Tampa Preparatory School Swim Team, and playing the piano. She has won the state competition on three separate occasions, including last year, her father said.
Nurturing plans to become a Physician or a Physicist, her father said Pearlyana is tak- ing 7th grade math classes.
She is an avid reader and when time allows, she enjoys playing golf. She has also won several golf tournaments.
Pearlyana and her family visits local churches in the area. The Vigo World Class Tour project was launched in 1993. Since that time, thousands of fifth grade students have par- ticipated in the tours and essay contests. The essay contest is designed to help schools and the winner with a monetary do-
nation.
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