Dr. Duga & Dr. Feeney Can Help Your Kids Enjoy Visiting The Dentist!

Dr. Paul Duga opened his practice in New Tampa more than 20 years ago and, along with Dr. Shawna Adams-Feeney, their office in Tampa Palms has grown into one of the area’s best-known pediatric dentistry practices.

Since opening his pediatric dentistry office more than two decades ago, one philosophy has always guided Paul Duga, DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery).

“We provide one-on-one, private, patient-driven care,” he explains. “We provide dentistry that is safe and healthy, and also non-threatening, so kids don’t grow up with an irrational fear of dentists.”

He and Shawna Adams-Feeney, DMD (Doctor of Medical Dentistry) see patients at their Dr. Duga, Dr. Feeney & Associates Pediatric Dentistry office in the Somerset Professional Park in Tampa Palms, located off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. at Amberly Dr.

Especially during times of uncertainty, Dr. Duga and Dr. Feeney (as she is called by most of her young patients) are reassuring. While facing a pandemic, the doctors’ always-calm tone helps parents to know their kids are in good hands.

“People want to know how their kids are going to be taken care of safely,” Dr. Duga explains. “That’s very important to everyone. We’re taking temperatures, doing screenings, and all the things we’re supposed to be doing.”

While the office has made some changes because of Covid-19 — such as adding Plexiglas barriers at the front desk — Dr. Duga says most of the health and safety precautions that are currently recommended have always been standard practice at his office.

“The governor of the state of Florida closed us for about six weeks, but not because of risk,” Dr. Duga says. “We already practiced sterilization techniques and barrier control, such as wearing masks and goggles, to keep our patients and staff healthy. We were shut down because front line people needed (so much of) the personal protective equipment.”

Closing dental offices meant masks and gloves that were desperately needed in hospitals would go there until production could be ramped up to provide enough PPE for both hospitals and all other medical offices.

“As far as social distancing is concerned, our office was almost designed for it,” Dr. Duga says. “Our floor plan allows us to keep families all separated and safe.”

He recognizes, however, that many people are even more anxious these days, and the staff does everything it can to counter that.

“We always try to maintain a spirit of positive-ness,” he says. 

About The Doctors

While Dr. Duga established the practice in 1998, he says working with Dr. Feeney — as he has since she joined the practice in 2005 and became his partner in 2009 — gives children the option to choose the dentist with whom they feel more comfortable.

Dr. Paul Duga

 “I really appreciate having Dr. Feeney here,” he says with a smile. “If a kid is struggling to connect with me, maybe the next visit he or she might want to go to Dr. Feeney. We do everything we can to keep the children comfortable.”

Both doctors are Board-certified pediatric dentists.

Dr. Duga earned his DDS degree from the Marquette University School of Dentistry in Milwaukee, and then worked as a general dentist in Milwaukee. He went on to earn his Certificate in Pediatric Dentistry from the Louisiana State University School of Dentistry in New Orleans.

Dr. Shawna Adams-Feeney

Dr. Feeney earned her Certificate in Pediatric Dentistry from the University of Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford, after receiving her DMD degree from the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston.

The doctors encourage their young (usually from age 1 up to about age 18) patients to come in every six months to maintain good dental health.

They provide examinations, cleanings, sealant placement, tooth repairs (such as fillings and crowns), as well as cosmetic whitening and orthodontic alignments.

“We do continuous growth evaluation, bite evaluation, and provide guidance through early orthodontic care,” explains Dr. Duga. The practice also offers braces and Invisalign invisible aligners for its patients, although they do also refer some patients to orthodontic offices, when needed.

For a child who has special needs or is too young to cooperate, a parent can choose sedation dentistry. An anesthesiologist comes in to safely manage the sedation, so the dentist can focus on fixing the teeth and getting them healthy.

“We do accept dental insurance, but we’re not an insurance-driven office,” says Dr. Duga. “Insurance is a contract for paying bills, not healthcare.”

The staff will gladly help patients and potential new patients understand their insurance benefits.

Happy Patients

“I’ve seen kids since they were one or two and now they’re going off to college,” says Dr. Duga. “You get to know these families. It’s been a wonderful thing.”

Atiya Young brings her four children to Dr. Duga and Dr. Feeney. In fact, her oldest, age 18, just came in for his regular cleaning and checkup before leaving for college.

“We started seeing Dr. Duga when he was one,” says Atiya, whose other kids are 15, 12 and 9. “They have friendly customer service and are very clean and organized. I love how they speak to them on their level, how patient they are with them.

Her daughter, Brooklyn, says she actually likes going to the dentist.

“You walk in and they’re so nice to you and so welcoming,” says Brooklyn.

Atiya says her kids like the perks, too, such as fun in the lobby — including video games — and TV screens and headphones in the chair, plus picking flavors for their toothpaste and being rewarded with a small toy at the end of each visit.

Atiya says one of her daughters has special needs. “They treat her no different than my other kids,” she says. “I have no concerns about them seeing her or caring for her. They just embrace her and meet all of her needs. They just love all my kids so much.”

Dan Paone lives in Arbor Greene and also brings his kids to Drs. Duga and Feeney. His children are ages 8, 9, and 10 and are in various stages of their orthodontic treatment. Like Atiya’s kids, they have only ever been to one dental office their whole lives.

“We like that our kids have had one pediatric dentist from the time we first took them to the dentist, including orthodontics,” Dan says. “It’s great that we don’t have to go anywhere else.”

Dan says that while he appreciates how “fantastic” Dr. Duga is with his kids, and that he also is great about communicating with parents, too, such as when he analyzes x-rays and explains to Dan exactly what treatments his kids might need in the future.

“I definitely recommend Dr. Duga and I wish we had someone like him when I was a kid,” Dan says. “Actually, I wish I had an adult dentist like him.”

Dr. Duga, Dr. Feeney & Associates is located at 15293 Amberly Dr. To learn more about the practice, visit DrDugaDrFeeney.com or call (813) 631-1100 to schedule an appointment or find out about your insurance/payment options.

One Former New Tampa Standout Is Chasing Big-Time Soccer Dreams

Former New Tampa youth soccer standout Austin Amer (in purple) started 26 matches last season for Orlando City B of the United Soccer League.

Austin Amer has lofty goals. The 20-year-old native of New Tampa is now in his second season as a professional soccer player with Orlando City B, which is in the second tier United Soccer League. 

Eventually, Amer says he would like to move on to play overseas, where the passion for soccer, as well as the paychecks, are higher. 

For now, like all of us, Amer is in his own little bubble. His world revolves around getting up early, driving to the training facility, filling out a coronavirus questionnaire, training before the midday heat becomes unbearable and heading back to his apartment for the rest of the day. 

His short-term goals during the pandemic are much smaller: “Going to Publix is the big highlight of the day,’’ Amer says. 

If he’s going to be in a bubble, it might as well be a soccer bubble. 

Amer grew up in Hunter’s Green, where there was always a soccer ball at his feet. By the time he was four, he was playing rec league soccer for the New Tampa Comets. One of the league’s directors noticed Amer’s talent and suggested to his father, Fred, that Austin practice with a group of seven-year-old club players. 

By the time Austin was seven, he could juggle a ball with his feet more than 3,000 times. There is a video on his twitter page (@austinamer) showing him juggling a roll of toilet paper. 

“Ever since I could walk I’ve been around a soccer ball,’’ Amer says. “My dad and I would always go up to the fields at Hunter’s Green and we would work on technical stuff. I’ve always been around soccer. It’s the only sport I’ve ever enjoyed playing.’’

Fred Amer, who introduced his son to the game, can vouch for that.

“He always had his ball with him,’’ he says. “It was in his blood.’’

Austin Amer as a six-year-old playing in New Tampa.

By the time Amer was playing U-9 club soccer, he moved from the New Tampa league to the more competitive Hillsborough United, which is now Tampa Bay United. He stood out so much that the family, which also includes his mom, Jan, and his younger sister, Alexi, decided it would be best for Amer to play on an elite U-12 club in Orlando when he was in the sixth grade. 

During that year, Amer attended Benito Middle School. On most days, he and his father would drive to Orlando right after school and not return home until 11 p.m. By the seventh grade, Amer started virtual school. His day consisted of morning workouts by himself in Hunter’s Green, school work, then practice in Orlando. 

By the second year, he was spending a few nights in Orlando with a fellow club player to ease the travel. 

“After that first year, it was just too much,’’ Amer says. 

“We’ve gone through quite a few cars,’’ Fred Amer adds. 

Austin’s travels were just beginning.

Before his senior year, when he was 17, he had a chance to play for the Barca Residency Academy in Casa Grande, AZ. The brand new academy was partially run by FC Barcelona, an elite club in the top-level “La Liga” in Spain. Think IMG Academy in Bradenton, except strictly for soccer.

After a tryout, he was given a full scholarship to play for Barca’s U-18 team. Leaving home was another sacrifice in chasing his soccer dream. 

Amer, a midfielder, thrived on both the U-18 and U-19 teams in his year-plus with the club. During a showcase in the winter in Lakewood Ranch, he was spotted by some Orlando City scouts. Ironically, the scouts didn’t realize that just two years earlier, Amer’s club team was affiliated with Orlando City. They wanted him to join their B team, which was one step down from Orlando City of Major League Soccer. 

He decided to leave his Barca team during the season, when Amer became the first Barca player to sign a professional contract. 

“He’s chasing the dream that he has,’’ his dad says. “If he really wanted to go through with the sport, he had to follow this path.’’

The Amers were able to see Austin play last season. He played in 26 matches as a 19-year-old and was impressive enough for Orlando City to bring him back this season. 

The 2020 season hasn’t gone exactly as planned. The only way the Amers can see him play is via livestream. Earlier in the year, Amer suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out of a few games. Also, an inconclusive Covid-19 test forced him to sit out a bit longer until he got two straight negative tests. 

However, he’s back on the field now and doing the thing he loves to do. The season runs until late October. After that, Amer’s contract will be up and he could move on yet again. 

“My goal in the future is to play in Europe at some point,’’ he says. 

USF Federal Credit Union Offers Sterling Service In Tough Times

While the USF Federal Credit Union has stressed online banking, the lobby at the New Tampa branch on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. has been made safer for those who need an in-bank experience. (Photos: Charmaine George)

Like all businesses, the USF Federal Credit Union (FCU) has been forced to adapt and change throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, while many businesses have struggled, the USF FCU has continued to thrive.

The credit union’s New Tampa branch, which opened in the fall of 2018, is located at the northwest corner of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and Imperial Oak Blvd., in the Trout Creek area of New Tampa, just south of County Line Rd. (across from Burger King).

While the New Tampa location’s lobby shut down in March, its drive-through window has remained open throughout the pandemic.

Now, several months into the crisis, USF FCU’s main branch on the Tampa campus of the University of South Florida has reopened for regular business hours, while the New Tampa lobby is open by appointment only. 

A History Of Helping

From humble beginnings more than six decades ago, when it was founded in 1959 with just 16 members and total assets of $505, the USF FCU has grown to more than 60,000 members and $800 million in assets.

While it originally served only USF faculty and staff, today, current USF students and alumni are eligible to be members, along with employees of more than 40 affiliated companies that have business partnerships with USF. That list includes Tampa General Hospital, Moffitt Cancer Center, Darden Restaurants (the parent company to Bahama Breeze, Olive Garden, etc.) and more than 40 other companies, listed at USFFCU.com/eligibility.

The USF FCU offers personal banking services — from checking and savings accounts, to money market accounts and CDs (certificates of deposit), auto loans, home loans, personal loans and more. The credit union also offers business banking.

The difference between USF FCU and a typical bank, explains brand and promotions manager Bill Steiger, is the credit union’s focus on serving its members.

Online Banking

One way the USF FCU has kept both members and employees safe during the pandemic has been by education members about how to bank without leaving their homes.

Steiger says a new online banking platform was rolled out about 18 months ago. As of January 2020, about 58 percent of members who had a checking account with the credit union were using it.

That changed during quarantine and safer-at-home orders.

“We made tutorial videos to show people how to deposit a check with their phones,” Steiger says. “We did a promotional campaign and educated people on how to use digital banking, and saw success in getting people on board and using it.”

He says now, 97 percent of members who have a checking account use online banking to make deposits through their phones or to complete other transactions. 

“That has helped us to be able to continue to serve our members,” Steiger explains.

USF FCU also served front-line workers in the midst of the pandemic.

Between April 9 and May 5, USF FCU provided catered meals for a total of 950 front-line workers at Tampa General Hospital, AdventHealth Tampa and AdventHealth Covid-19 testing sites, plus other hospitals in the Tampa Bay area and the USF Police Department.

“It was our way of giving back,” Steiger says.

The credit union also served its members in the most flexible way possible.

Knowing that some members were furloughed or laid off from their jobs, USF FCU made hardship loans available with very low interest rates. Members also were offered a “skip-a-pay” option, which doesn’t reduce the amount owed, but extends the length of the loan. 

“That gives our members the ability to not have a car payment one month, for example,” says Steiger, “which is important if you’re furloughed and not getting a paycheck.”

Steiger adds that USF FCU also has been busy with home and auto refinance loans, which allow members to lower their monthly payments and save money during this time of great need.

PPP Loans, Too

Knowing that businesses were going to need assistance to navigate through the pandemic, USF FCU also made it a priority to help its business customers during these most difficult of times.

“We were one of the first credit unions in the area to offer Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans through the federal government’s Small Business Association,” Steiger says, “allowing us to manage the loans to small businesses and single-owner businesses.”

He says the credit union has provided 486 PPP loans — totaling $18 million — which are fully forgivable by the federal government, if all conditions are met.

Kelly Stuart Williams, owner of Pegasos Public Relations, has been a member of the USF FCU since 1990.

She says she had never previously considered using the credit union for her business banking needs until she received an email from USF FCU that shifted her thinking.

“They were very proactive in letting all their members know they were staying on top of the PPP loan program,” says Williams, who realized she wasn’t hearing that from any other bank. 

She says she reached out and opened a business account, and was able to be one of the first to fill out an early PPP application.

Unfortunately, like a lot of small businesses in our area, Williams’ initial PPP loan application was rejected. But, the credit union representative told her not to worry. They would help her get positioned for the second wave of loans.

“It was so different,” Williams says. “The other banks (she looked into) have a policy that if you’re not already a business banking customer, they’re not doing your banking loan.”

The second time around, Williams did receive a PPP loan from USF FCU, and she says she couldn’t be happier.

Now that she has qualified for and received her PPP funds, Williams is counting on USF FCU to keep her informed regarding the forms and processes to have the loan forgiven. 

“Sure enough,” she says, “they are way out front from anyone else I’m hearing from.” 

Steiger says that’s the goal.

“We were pleased to be able to offer that and really help those people keep their businesses going and their employees employed,” he says.

Sterling Award Winner

While serving its customers well may sound like a matter of opinion, there is at least one objective indicator that measures USF FCU’s effectiveness in its business practices. 

In June, the USF Federal Credit Union was honored with the Governor’s Sterling Award. 

This exclusive award goes to companies in Florida that are “high performing, role-model organizations, both private and public, who demonstrate superior management approaches and role model results.”

Fewer than 100 organizations in Florida have earned the award since the Florida Sterling Council was created by the state legislature in 1992.

USF FCU is only the second credit union to ever win the coveted honor.

Steiger says that USF FCU began working to put these best practices in place more than four years ago.

“Our organization was getting larger, so we wanted to be sure that our processes were constantly improving,” he explains. “The Sterling process is a very detailed and rigorous set of activities to show continuous improvement and performance excellence.”

This is the first year that USF FCU applied to have examiners evaluate their business, and Steiger says it was “truly a tremendous honor” to receive the Governor’s Sterling Award during this first attempt.

The New Tampa branch of the USF Federal Credit Union is located at 20610 BBD Blvd. The lobby is currently open by appointment only. The drive-through windows open at 8 a.m. weekdays, closing Mon.-Thurs. at 5 p.m., and at 6 p.m. on Friday. It also is open 9 a.m.–1 p.m. on Saturday. For more information, visit USFFCU.org or call (813) 569-2000.

High School Fall Sports Season To Be ‘Challenging’

At our press time, Freedom High was expected to open its 2020 football season on Sept. 11, hosting its New Tampa neighbor and archrival Wharton High, but the toughest opponent for both teams to combat that night likely wasn’t each other.

It was Covid-19.

And, that doesn’t just go for football. Avoiding the virus is arguably the biggest challenge facing teams across Hillsborough County (and the country), as high school athletes, their coaches and administrators try their best to remain socially distant and safe in what is certain to be the strangest prep sports season ever.

“It’s going to be very…what’s the word I’m looking for? Intensive,” says Wharton athletic director Eddie Henderson “It’s going to be a lot of work.”

The county is following all CDC guidelines for sports and also has issued its own 18-page guide, which covers everything from daily cleaning and sanitizing to quarantining and tracing those who become infected. The rules, which include the difficult-to-enforce ban on handshakes and high fives, seek to prevent a major outbreak of the virus.

Social distancing will be the key to keeping crowds at athletic events from spreading the virus.

One of the rules that will make football feel very different is that the bands and cheerleaders will not be permitted to travel to away games. That means that when the Wharton Social Distancers traveled to take on the Freedom Social Distancers, they had to leave behind some of their loudest and most ardent supporters, not to mention a group that is woven into the very fabric of the Friday night football experience.

The crowds will be smaller. A limited number of fans will be allowed into sporting events like football and volleyball this fall — players (and band members) are allowed to choose only four spectators, but they have to be registered on a list at least a day before each game, so they can be issued electronic tickets. Each player’s foursome will be a “spectator pod” and will be required to sit together.

Fans, who must wear masks in the stands, will find seats clearly marked off in groups of four, socially distant from other pods.

The biggest hurdle, however, will be keeping the athletes healthy. If an athlete tests positive, he/she and anyone in close contact with them will be quarantined for 14 days. That can wipe out any team’s roster in a hurry.

Football will be a huge challenge, due to the unavoidable closer quarters presented by bus transportation and the sheer number of players (often ranging anywhere from 50 to 80 or so) cramming into small locker rooms.

The football teams at Hillsborough and Jefferson high schools have already had infected players and, as a result, may not be able to play the first two weeks of the season.

“I’m holding my breath, and the reason is that, when we’re putting this many people together, you just don’t know,” Henderson says.

While football is the biggest concern, every sport will present its own set of issues. 

For example, cross country will have to stagger its starts to avoid large gatherings of runners from multiple schools. Volleyball players will be expected to avoid the traditional high-five after every point, and swim meets with multiple teams may be hard to find. In fact, Wharton’s usual “home” pool at the New Tampa YMCA is not permitting the Wildcats to host any meets there.

Provided that high school sports can make it all work under such unique and demanding circumstances, middle school sports will not begin until the second quarter, with track starting first on Oct. 12, followed by flag football and volleyball on Oct. 19.

“Everything is so uncertain,” Henderson says. “Are we gonna be able to push through or will there be a setback? I hope we can push through — I want to see the kids play. They have suffered enough the last six months with (the 2019-20 school year) getting cut short, and the makeshift way of doing school. I hope we push through.”

New Tampa Students, Teachers Get Back To School

Following a summer of indecision and fear of the unknown, New Tampa’s schools finally opened their doors to students for in-person learning for the first time since they closed in March due to Covid-19.

“Woo hoo!,” shouted one parent, as she drove off smiling after dropping her two kids off at Benito Middle School.

Students spent the first week of the 2020-21 school year eLearning only, as the fight over whether or not to open brick-and-mortar classrooms for students and teachers raged on. 

The Hillsborough School Board initially leaned towards doing eLearning only for the first nine weeks, before settling for four weeks after consulting a panel of medical experts. However, that decision was then overturned by Superintendent Addison Davis, after Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran threatened to withhold millions of dollars in funding to schools that did not offer a brick-and-mortar option for parents.

Busy at work cleaning and prepping their classrooms for a socially-distant learning experience, teachers finally opened the doors to their students on August 31.

After the first week, Chiles principal Teresa Evans said things went “remarkably well.” At Chiles, roughly 450 students were home learning online, while 400 or so learned in classrooms. Evans said none of her teachers were forced back into the classrooms, and praised their efforts in the opening week.

“I think we planned and planned and planned and what we planned has worked out so far,” Evans said. “The kids aren’t struggling with masks the way people thought. They have been very compliant, and the parents have been incredibly compliant and helpful in following the new rules.”

Those new rules include keeping desks as far apart from each other as possible, eating lunches outside under the school’s covered courts keeping everything as clean and sanitized as possible.

“We were nervous, but never terribly worried,” Evans says. “We were very careful and will continue to be, and we are tweaking things as we go.”

While the Covid-19 numbers were slightly rising in Hillsborough County during the first week, schools hadn’t reported any large outbreaks.

According to the school district’s Covid-19 dashboard, the first four days produced only 21 positive cases among students, and another nine from school staff.

The district is not reporting if any classrooms have been quarantined.

From March through July, the district reported 284 confirmed cases of Covid-19. 

In New Tampa, the only schools to report any cases were Freedom High and Tampa Palms Elementary, with each reporting one student positive from the first day of school.