Marc & Kelly Rockquemore are proud to have opened their third Tampa Bay-area New Identities Hair Studio, in the New Tampa Center plaza on Bruce B. Downs Blvd.

Marc & Kelly Rockquemore are proud to have opened their third Tampa Bay-area New Identities Hair Studio, in the New Tampa Center plaza on Bruce B. Downs Blvd.

Not unlike the local restaurant business, the hair salon scene in New Tampa has been pretty volatile the last two decades. It’s therefore pretty impressive that Marc and Kelly Rockquemore, who are now the proud owners of three New Identities Hair Studios in the Tampa Bay area — including two right here in New Tampa — have not only survived, but thrived during that span.

The Rockquemores opened their first New Identities Hair Studio in what was then called the Palm Lake at Tampa Palms (now the Shoppes at Amberly) shopping center 17 years ago, which means I’ve known them for 18 years, because they came into my office in that same plaza looking for advertising for the salon several months before it opened.

Since then, the Rockquemores have opened a second successful New Identities salon in the Riverview/Apollo Beach area that they refer to as their “South Shore” location, and have now opened their third studio — and hosted  a Feb. 7 North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting — in the space in the Publix-anchored New Tampa Center plaza on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. that most recently was occupied by Bella Mia hair salon.

The 1,400-sq.-ft. space also previously was home to the second Bostonian Hair Salon. Marc admits that Bostonian owner Joseph Caetano was something of a role model for them, as Caetano’s salons were well-known throughout the area for high-quality, affordable hair services provided by professionally-trained stylists and hair color specialists.

“Even though Joseph (now 84 years old) no longer owns a salon in this market,” Marc say, “his success paved the way for salons like ours. The key for us is being able to sustain that success long-term.”

Maintaining success hasn’t really been an issue for the Rockquemores, who opened the new salon on BBD with some of the popular stylists from the Tampa Palms location.

“I just think that Kelly and I have both have been relentless in our pursuit of success, by our own definition,” Marc says. “We’re always working to make this thing better all the time and we’ve been fortunate to have great people who have stayed with us long-term.”

Kelly adds, “We had to open another salon up here. We were having two stylists working at each station in Tampa Palms.”

The Rockquemores say they started looking for a new salon sometime last summer and quickly found the New Tampa Center location. They were open by November.

“We did a lot of the work ourselves, whatever we could do,” Kelly says. “It all came together pretty quickly.”

The new New Identities, which has a total of ten stations available, already has eight stylists, four of whom came from the “overcrowded” Tampa Palms studio, but Marc says, “We still have room for more here, and we’ve been getting some outstanding applicants.” At New Identities, stylists have to be properly trained, and clients pay different rates for the same services, based on the level of a stylist’s training.

They both credit advertising in not only the New Tampa but also the Wesley Chapel edition of the Neighborhood News with helping them get the new salon started off right.

“It hasn’t been easy getting this place open and running properly,” Marc admits, “but it’s truly been a blessing to us so far.”

New Identities specializes in “anything to do with hair, including hair styling for men and women, coloring, perms, relaxers and even extensions. “We definitely are known for our color specialists,” Kelly says.

The salon also specializes in playing a vital role in the biggest day of a woman’s life. “Our Bridal Services primarily consist of hair design up-dos, shampoo & blow dries), as well as makeup application,” Kelly says. “Let us take care of your entire wedding party!”

Your Stylists, Your Salon

The Rockquemores are somewhat skeptical about the rise of “Salon Suites,” where stylists (or other beauty industry professionals) can rent a space, set their own hours and “be their own boss.”

“But, some states, like New Jersey, are banning the salon suites because it’s easier to avoid paying taxes on what you make,” Marc says. “Those booth rental people are independent contractors, whereas we work on commission and offer employee benefits and continuing education training.”

Kelly adds, “A lot of those people get stuck at a certain level because they don’t want to have to pay out of their own pocket for education. Here, everytime you receive more training, you have an opportunity to earn more money.”

Marc adds that he has very strong opinions about booth rentals because, “all you’re doing is renting a 10-foot-by-10-foot space in a store. You’re not incorporated, you don’t have employees or have to pay business taxes, you’re not inspected and on and on and on. You’re not a business owner, but that’s what the stylists are being sold.”

Marc says that he and Kelly were particularly proud to have been named the “Best Hair Salon in New Tampa & Wesley Chapel” in the recent Neighborhood News Reader Survey & Contest. In addition to those accolades, New Identities  has been the official salon of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tampa Bay Storm cheerleaders, and most recently, the Tampa Bay Lightning girls. The Tampa Palms location was featured on the HBO series “Hard Knocks” last summer, when Bucs linebacker Kwon Alexander (photo, above left) took the advice of  teammate (and New Identities client) Gerald McCoy, and came to New Identities for a new color job.

“We do a lot to make sure people know who we are (including possibly being a sponsor of the upcoming Taste of New Tampa, see pg. 3),” Marc says, “but Kwon being filmed here for ‘Hard Knocks’ was a great bonus.”

For appointments at the New Tampa New Identities Hair Studio (19038 BBD Blvd.), call (813) 579-1575. For Tampa Palms (15307 Amberly Dr.), call (813) 979-0760. For the South Shore studio (10639 Big Bend Rd. in Riverview), call (813) 741-1177. For more info, visit NewIdentitiesSalon.com or the Facebook pages for any of the locations.

Freedom’s Gibson Cruising Through High School Competition

Freedom sophomore tennis standout Julianna Gibson has been playing the sport since she was five years old, and so far has been unbeatable during her high school career as the No. 1 player at Freedom High in Tampa Palms. (Photo: John C. Cotey)

Freedom High tennis player Julianna Gibson doesn’t race across the tennis court, she glides.

Her forehand and backhand aren’t harried, they are harmonious.

Her demeanor isn’t delirious, it is docile.

It all works together to make Gibson one of the top high school tennis players around.

Last year, as a freshman, she played line 1 (where typically the best players at each school line up) and went 14-0 in singles, winning District and Regional titles on her way to the State tournament.

She kicked off her sophomore season on Valentine’s Day by winning 8-0 against Gaither in singles, and teaming up with Zoe Rosen for another 8-0 win at doubles. She is 4-0 so far this season.

“I think it’s gone pretty smoothly,” Julianna says of her brief high school career. “A few of the matches were pretty competitive, but I have gotten through most of them pretty easily.”

Gibson has been playing tennis since she was 5. Her parents, Mike and Carri-Ann, say Julianna tried a number of sports, like soccer and volleyball and even earned a black belt in Tae Kwan Do.

“I coached her Little League softball team, and she was a really good hitter and threw really well,” Carri-Ann says. “I thought, “We might have a softball player here.’

But, Julianna gravitated to tennis. Carri-Ann and Mike remember Julianna running around and chasing balls to hit as a toddler while her parents played.

Despite having physical gifts — Julianna is 5-feet, 9-inches tall with a long reach — that lend themselves to almost any sport, none had the amount of action to keep his daughter’s attention like tennis, according to Mike.

“She took to tennis like a fish to water,” he says. “It was a sport she seemed she could really get into. I remember she said in tennis, the ball comes right back to you and you get another chance. It’s a constant engagement. You have to be constantly engaged when you’re playing tennis.”

As an only child, Julianna said she enjoys the individual aspect of playing singles. She started out in playing in the USTA’s Junior Team Tennis leagues, but most USTA junior tournaments focus on singles.

The competition can range from friendly to fierce. Many of the opponents Julianna has faced in her junior career are training 5-6 hours a day at expensive and prestigious academies away from their families.

The Gibsons prefer a more balanced approach. Julianna has hopes for playing in college, and does train with personal coaches, but she says her obsession for being a professional tennis star takes a back seat to enjoying her high school years.

And so far, she says she has been enjoying them.

“It’s nice playing on a team with other girls, and cheering them on,” Julianna says. “I like that part of it.”

Her height and long frame give Julianna an advantage over most opponents when it comes to serving and her forehand, her two strengths.

Still More To Accomplish

That helped catapult her to her unbeaten season last year, and the Patriots advanced to the Class 3A Regionals as the District runner-up.

Gibson won her singles match at Regionals against Largo, with her opponent remarking that she couldn’t believe Julianna was only a freshman.

At States, Julianna lost her first match 7-5, 6-2 to Fort Myers’ sophomore lefty Shani Idlette, still the only blemish on Julianna’s high school record.

“It was a lot more competitive there,” says Julianna, who says she was sick the week of the match. “I lost, but it was pretty competitive.”

Her main goal for this season is to make it back to States, but she doesn’t plan on going alone.

“I want the whole team to go,” says Julianna. “The one thing I thought when I was there last year was that this would be more fun as a team.”

New Tampa Resident Helping Impoverished School In India

Joshua Gomes visiting the Premdan School in Mumbai, India, last summer.

In 2008 and 2009, when Joshua Gomes was just 6 and 7 years old, he accompanied his family on trips to India, where so much of what he experienced left a lasting impression on him.

Joshua is now a high school sophomore who lives in Hunter’s Green and attends a biomedical magnet program at Middleton High on N. 22nd St. in Tampa.

His goal is to one day become a cardiologist, but he’s not waiting until he graduates from medical school to help people.

He’s working now for the benefit of children in India, just like he remembers from his trips there when he was a little boy.

Back then, Joshua tagged along as his mom Arlene and sister Ayesha volunteered at a small school in Mumbai, called the Premdan School for Impoverished Children, which is run by Catholic nuns. It was started in the 1970s by a nun who wanted to help children living in the slums of Mumbai, who don’t have access to the educational opportunities reserved for the upper class.

Joshua says his mom and dad are both from India, and his family traveled there in 2008 and 2009, when his grandparents passed away. While they were there,  Arlene offered to provide a meal to students at the school, which teaches kindergarten to children no one else will educate.

At right in the red shirt, Joshua’s first visit to the school in 2008. He is raising money to support students at the school via a GoFundMe page.

The experience was eye-opening, because of the poor conditions of the school, how eager the kids were to learn, and also because of the gratitude the children showed for the help they received. Arlene and Ayesha, who was about 12 at the time, continued to volunteer with the students throughout their time in India. They helped the children with their studies, provided food and handed out candy as treats. Joshua sometimes got to come along.

“The kids are cramped in tiny rooms, with small desks and small chalkboards,” he recalls. “There’s such poverty.”

After those trips, Arlene says she was putting off going back, although she needed to take care of business related to her parents’ deaths. But, Joshua didn’t forget about the kids in that little school.

“Even after all these years, I have always remembered how appreciative these children were for what we gave them, and I always wanted to go back one day,” Joshua explains.

Arlene says he asked to return to the school many times over the years. “He finally told me, ‘I don’t want to hear any excuses,’” Arlene says. So, they planned a trip last summer and Joshua was thrilled to be able to finally visit the kindergartners at the Premdan School again.

“I think education is so important for these children to make something of themselves in life so they can take a different path and stay off the streets,” he explains. “It is a foundation for these children.”

Before he left, Joshua promised the principal of the Premdan School, Sister Sylvia, that he would continue to promote the school and raise support for it back here in the U.S. After reaching out to friends, family and local businesses, he hopes the New Tampa community will support his efforts, as well.

Joshua is hoping to re-stock the school’s three classrooms with necessary supplies — such Joshua as books, colored pencils, maybe even playground equipment — before the new school year starts in June.

“He has a very caring personality,” says  Arlene. “He’s always been interested in helping kids, in education and in making a difference and helping out.”

He’s set a goal to raise $750 through a GoFundMe page. While he had raised more than half of that at our press time, Joshua says, “I want to raise as much as I can because the school and the children really need it.”

To support Joshua Gomes’ efforts to help the Premdan School, visit GoFundMe.com/PremdanSchoolForTheImpoverished.

Promise Pointe At Tampa Oaks Offers A Way To Keep Your Family Closer

Tampa Palms and New Tampa-area residents searching for a convenient assisted living and memory care option for their aging family members will soon have a new choice with the opening next month of Promise Pointe at Tampa Oaks.

The new facility is located seven minutes away from the heart of New Tampa via I-75, one mile west of Exit 266 on E. Fletcher Ave., next to the Woodspring Suites Tampa Northeast hotel and the Hong Kong Willie art gallery and red worm farm (that is not a typo).

The 108-unit Promise Pointe joins recently-opened Discovery Village at Tampa Palms, the Legacy at Highwoods Preserve and the Memory Lane Cottages in Tampa Palms as assisted living and/or memory care residences those living in New Tampa can consider to meet the changing lifestyle needs of their elderly family members.

Promise Pointe is managed by Life Care Services (LCS), the country’s third-largest manager of rental senior living and continuing care communities, serving more than 33,000 residents nationwide. LCS also manages the Beach House Assisted Living & Memory Care at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel, which also is celebrating its Grand Opening in March.

Executive director Delane Ward, NHA (Nursing Home Administrator)

Overseeing day-to-day operations at Promise Pointe is the job of executive director Delane Ward, NHA (Nursing Home Administrator) who brings more than 25 years of elder-care experience working in assisted living facilities, nursing homes and memory care facilities. Whatever the setting, Ward abides by a simple rule of “making sure the basics are done” and says, “the safety of residents is number one,” on her list of priorities.

“I treat every resident as if they’re my own family member,” Ward says. “On my business card, I provide my personal cell phone number and if there’s an issue or concern, they can call me anytime.”

Ward says she put her B.A. in Political Science from the University of South Florida to considerable use in navigating the regulatory environment of elder care and working with the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) to open Promise Pointe, which has a March 20 Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting scheduled.

The location of Promise Pointe can help keep New Tampa residents close to their family members residing there and it also provides easy access to numerous nearby medical providers, including Florida Hospital Tampa and the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital, as well as attractions like Busch Gardens and Wesley Chapel’s nearby shopping centers and restaurants.

Onsite services and activities offer chances to work out in Promise Pointe’s fitness center, spend time on hobbies, develop artistic talents or socialize in an environment where chores like housekeeping and laundry can be taken care of and all utilities, including Wi-Fi are included in a month-to-month rental package.

According to the Promise Pointe website (PromisePointeSeniorLiving.com), assisted living involves helping residents with daily activities such as dressing, bathing, dining and managing medications without impinging upon their independence. For residents, that means living in their own private unit (or companion suite) with whatever level of help and care they may require being readily available once those needs have been assessed.

So Many Options

Assisted living residences range from 355-sq.-ft. studios for a monthly rate of $3,395 to 730-sq.-ft., two-bedroom units for $4,495. Additional personal services are available in Level of Care (LOC) packages ranging from $350 to $1,500 a month.

Promise Pointe also addresses the needs of memory care residents who have dementia-related disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, which is characterized by a general decline in mental ability and inability to retrieve information, through the use of Heartfelt Connections – A Memory Care Program®.

Heartfelt Connections derives detailed biographical information by using tools such as LifeBio’s Reminiscence Therapy, which according to its website (LifeBio.blogspot.com), “is a powerful tool which promotes engagement, ignites feelings of purpose, reduces loneliness, and increases emotional wellbeing.” Daily routines emphasize accomplishment of basic tasks and participating in activities to promote self-esteem and reduce anxiety.

Home for memory care residents is a dedicated area of the Promise Pointe facility, staffed continuously by Registered Nurses (RNs) and/or Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs). Accommodations include private 318-sq.-ft. studios for a monthly rate of $4,495 and a 442-sq.-ft. shared suite for $3,495 per month.

Memory care monthly costs include medication management and attending to personal care needs.

To keep an eye on the health of residents, Promise Pointe staffing includes the 24-hour presence of Registered Nurses and/or Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) and residents also will have access to services provided by visiting physicians.

For families more involved in the daily care of aging loved ones, Promise Pointe offers respite care at a daily rate that can give home caregivers a break while their loved ones enjoy a short stay in a safe and supportive environment.

Families also can connect with what’s going on in their loved ones’ lives through social media such as the “Promise Pointe at Tampa Oaks” Facebook page, which also provides information families may find useful in planning for the attrition of life, so their loved ones may age in place as gracefully as possible. There are links to articles about topics such as communicating effectively with someone who has dementia and performing legal document “check ups.”

Delicious Food, Too!

Enjoying food is a big part of enjoying life and an essential part of health in the elderly and Promise Pointe’s Executive Chef Jorge Perez blends taste and nutrition in a modern kitchen.

Executive Chef Jorge Perez

Chef Jorge earned his Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree in Culinary Arts from Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico in Ponce, and has worked in assisted living and hospital kitchens for seven years. He also has had commercial experience in opening two Tampa Bay-area Cheesecake Factory locations.

Chef Jorge says that a basic principle of cooking  — “flavor, not salt” is applied to the menu, and recipes for Promise Pointe meals use other ingredients, such as cilantro, to spice up a dish. He adds that residents will always have two choices for each meal, and that customer service is an essential ingredient to the dining experience he wants to provide.

“If today we have fried eggs and tomorrow you want boiled, I’ll make it happen,” she says. Residents have access to food throughout the day and facilities for private family events also are available.

Residing in an assisted living or memory care facility can provide a good value for the cost of living there, but paying for it requires knowledge and planning. Long-term care insurance is accepted by Promise Pointe, as are Veterans Administration benefits that can help veterans and their spouses, as well as surviving spouses, pay for assisted living services. Help in determining insurance coverage and benefit eligibility, as well as identifying financial resources to finance senior living expenses is part of discovering if Promise Pointe is a viable senior-living solution for your family.

Membership in the Founders Club awaits the first 35 families who become part of the Promise Pointe at Tampa Oaks community. Benefits offered in promotional materials include free rent for the first and 20th months of residency, guaranteed lifetime rent pricing, recognition with personalized plaques, and more.

To learn more about assisted living and memory care options, or schedule an on-site tour at Promise Pointe at Tampa Oaks (12110 Morris Bridge Rd.), see the ad on pg. 25 of this issue, call (813) 694-2153, or visit PromisePointeSeniorLiving.com.