ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Roger Mooney
If Roger thought covering the Tampa Bay Rays inexplicable run to the 2008 World Series was strange, imagine how he felt on the March afternoon in 2016 when he stood in the heart of Havana, Cuba while on assignment to cover the Rays historic game against the Cuban national baseball team.“Is this really happening?” he thought then.Ah, the life of a sports writer, where the unexpected is the norm.
My background story
From Little League to the World Series, Pop Warner football to the Super Bowl, Roger covered it all during his 20-plus years as a sports writer. He met everyone from Hank Aaron to Ben Zobrist, covered nearly the entire spectrum from youth sports to Florida and Florida State football to the Buccaneers and the Lightning.It was a good run, filled with great subjects for stories and a lifetime of memories, highlighted by a white-knuckle trip through the backstreets of Havana in a 1956 Dodge that did not have a working horn, speedometer or seatbelts. An unforgettable ride as the cabbie bounced through narrow streets to escape the traffic jam caused by President Obama’s arrival.Now, Roger is writing about students who benefit from the four scholarships provided by Step Up For Students. These are inspiring stories about children whose lives improved dramatically because of their new educational opportunities.
What I did before joining Step Up For Students
Before joining Step Up, Roger spent seven seasons covering the Tampa Bay Rays for The Tampa Tribune and two years writing about the Rays and the Tampa Bay Lightning for The Tampa Bay Times.A native of New York City, Roger’s future as a hall-of-fame baseball player was derailed in high school when he could not make the baseball team. Undaunted, he sets his sights on writing. He studied at St. John’s University and dabbled in real estate and technical writing before finding his first job at a newspaper.
What do I do on my day off?
When not working, Roger enjoys running (he has completed three marathons and has his sights set on someday running a fourth), reading (his goal is 20 books a year), bike riding, canoeing and kayaking with his wife, Suzanne, watching sitcoms (Superstore and Young Sheldon currently top the list) and taking his mixed beagle, Story, on long walks.
How to reach out?
Reach me at [email protected]
11/18/24 | Roger Mooney
Bringing water to remote villages in Tanzania a ‘life-changing’ event for Clearwater Central Catholic students
CLEARWATER, Fla. – The orphans in a tiny town in Tanzania left the biggest impression on Sarah Williams. They were so cute and kind and happy. And curious. The children...
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11/11/24 | Roger Mooney
Florida’s parent-directed education environment helps fifth grader thrive at military-friendly Catholic school
Jackson Pelletier’s enrollment at St. Paul’s Catholic School Riverside on an education choice scholarship began with a trip to the pediatrician. That’s when his parents, Natasha and Greg, noticed the...
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11/08/24 | Roger Mooney
Education choice scholarship a boon for a military veteran and his family
MIRAMAR, Fla. – William Ivins moved his family to South Florida ahead of his retirement from the United States Marine Corps and enrolled his children at Mother of Our Redeemer...
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10/03/24 | Roger Mooney
PEP scholarship allows for ‘A-plus homeschool experience’ for one family
In July, Jessie Pedraza was reading through posts on a Facebook page for mothers who homeschool their children when she saw three words jump off her screen. Personalized Education Program....
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09/30/24 | Roger Mooney
From a vision to flyers to students: Former legislator finds new way to help kids – by starting a school
LEESBURG, Fla. – The first tangible evidence of a new private school opening in town were the 1,500 fliers printed at Staples and handed to parents as they left a Publix...
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09/16/24 | Roger Mooney
From an idea to a goal to Emma’s walk of a lifetime
SARASOTA, Fla. — It was time for the valedictorian to address the assembly, so Emma Howey rose from her seat in the front row of the auditorium, left her...
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08/21/24 | Roger Mooney
From Venezuela to the Naval Academy with the help of an education choice scholarship
RIVERVIEW – Rosa Salom Garcia’s car was reinforced to withstand bullets because the threat of being kidnapped was a part of everyday life in Venezuela. She was a leading eye surgeon...
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08/12/24 | Roger Mooney
Wherefore art thou Genevieve? She’s directing the Tallahassee Homeschool Shakespeare Club
Drywall is piled three feet high in the attic of Emily and Alan Lemmon’s home in Tallahassee. It was placed there a few years ago, intended for walls as the...
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07/31/24 | Roger Mooney
Taking control of their children’s education with the help of the PEP scholarship
Gabriel Lynch III was born five months early and weighed 1.8 ounces when he entered this world fighting for his life. He spent his first three months in an Orlando...
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07/19/24 | Roger Mooney
Of pop art, plate tectonics and a super-strong Minotaur: How PEP allows one family to tailor lessons to their children’s interests
Something about the Periodic Table of Elements grabs Conrad Black’s interest. All those chemicals and their atomic numbers. He heard about it, read about it, but didn’t know anything about...
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07/17/24 | Roger Mooney
E’leese set a goal to graduate high school early and she did … at age 12
It’s halfway through summer vacation, and 12-year-old E’leese Shelton is bored. When you breeze through elementary and middle school and graduate high school before becoming a teenager, learning is your...
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07/03/24 | Roger Mooney
He started a scholarship at his high school to honor a friend and enable future students to have the ‘exact experience I’m having’
TAMPA – The night ended with a set of Latin music, one of Victor Peña’s favorites, and everyone inside the theater on the campus of Jesuit High School was standing and moving...
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06/21/24 | Roger Mooney
The path to being an advanced manufacturing engineer began with an education choice scholarship
The faces looking back at Da’Shaun Holmes appeared familiar. They looked like Da’Shaun. Well, a younger version of Da’Shaun. They were students at Academy Prep Center of St. Petersburg, Da’Shaun’s alma...
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06/11/24 | Roger Mooney
How do you help children with severe development and behavioral needs? You build them a school
DORAL, Fla. – This was supposed to be Elise’s school, the white two-story building with beige trim that sits on a quiet street and serves students with moderate...
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05/31/24 | Roger Mooney
Bella’s life was worthy of a documentary and Columbus High senior Sebastian Broche was ‘the perfect guy’ to direct it
Originally, all Raymond Rodriguez-Torres was expecting was a public service announcement honoring his late daughter. He – and his daughter’s memory – received more. Much more. Rodriguez-Torres hoped the...
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05/29/24 | Roger Mooney
Jaydis is a ‘powerful example’ of the transformative impact education choice can have on a student
ST. PETERSBURG – Jaydis Kincade sat at a picnic table in the shade next to the vegetable garden maintained by his classmates at Academy Prep Center of St. Petersburg and set...
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05/13/24 | Roger Mooney
By catering to students who learn differently, Beacon College helped Ryan ‘Blow away expectations’
LEESBURG – Ryan Sleboda is a college graduate with a degree in anthrozoology, a 4.0 GPA, and the distinction of being one of five valedictorians for Beacon College’s Class of...
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04/24/24 | Roger Mooney
Top grades and desire to ease family’s financial burden leads to coveted QuestBridge scholarship
DORAL – When he begins his freshman year this fall at Boston University, Alvaro Saenz plans to major in biomedical engineering, a decision driven by his lifelong love of science and...
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