|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
When it comes to volunteering, what could be more fun than working at a fishing tournament featuring well known athletes? In the summers, New World School of the Arts junior Phoebe Mark volunteers at the Jimmy Johnson’s Fishing Tournament – one is held in Miami and the other in Atlantic City.
Athletes like her dad, former University of Miami football star Greg Mark and her uncles Bruce Eberts and Tod Roy, basketball great Michael Jordan and football great Tom Brady have taken part in the tournaments.
“I’ve been working for the tournament for the past three years every summer,” she says. “My cousins and I are in charge of registration. We register the boat, the anglers, and the captain.”
They also sell the merchandise and fill out necessary paperwork.
“We raise money for a lot of organizations and a lot of charities,” she says. “One of the things we do, when we weigh the fish, we either keep them for the competition or send them to homeless shelters.”
The fish are weighed on the dock so the public can see what’s happening.
The anglers fish for big eyed tun or yellow fin tuna. They also catch blue and white marlin.
Mark usually works the Atlantic City tournament because the Miami tournament conflicts with school and dance.
She’s in the dance program at New World and she participates in dance competitions through her dance studio, Trends Dance Technique Center.
“I’ve been dancing since I was two years old,” she says. “I started competing when I was 11. I do about six regional competitions and one national.”
She recently won a huge competition in Orlando and is now a dance Prodigy, which allows her to go to as many dance competitions as she wants and she can assist choreographers and is a part of the faculty.
The past two competition seasons, she was an Electro Tap, which means she was able to travel to competitions for free and assist in anything involving tap.
Her future involves college.
“I want to go to college for dance in New York and either dance for a professional company or go on Broadway.”
Mark can do all styles of dance – ballet, modern, jazz, contemporary, tap, hip hop ballroom, lyrical and she’s also had training in African and Caribbean style dance as well as musical theater.
“I’ve come to learn that being versatile is important in the industry,” she says.
In college she wants to major in commercial dance or choreography. She’s also looking for a college that would allow her to double major. After dance, she wants to work as a forensics scientist and investigator for either the police department or the FBI.
A visit to Alcatraz sparked her interest in the criminal investigations.
Her list of potential colleges includes Pace University in New York, the New York University, Arizona State University, the University of Texas and the University of Michigan.
At school, she’s a part of Key Club and she volunteers in the front office.
She’s a member of Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD).
The dance program participates in three concerts every year. She’s been in the ensemble most of the time but this year they have a Peter London piece and she’s one of the leads for that. She also has one of the lead roles in the ballet fusion piece.
Mark volunteers at her dance studio teaching the classes to the youngest children.
She also participates in the TAZ program where they dance and teach dance to children who are disabled both physically and mentally.
Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
ABOUT US:
For more Miami community news, look no further than Miami Community Newspapers. This Miami online group of newspapers covers a variety of topics about the local community and beyond. Miami’s Community Newspapers offers daily news, online resources, podcasts and other multimedia content to keep readers informed. With topics ranging from local news to community events, Miami’s Community Newspapers is the ideal source for staying up to date with the latest news and happenings in the area. Additionally, the newspaper has exclusive Miami community podcasts, providing listeners with an in-depth look into Miami’s culture. Whether you’re looking for local Miami news, or podcasts about the community, Miami’s Community Newspapers has you covered.
