Frontline Heroes Inducted Into MDC Alumni Hall Of Fame; Event Raises $1.2 Million For Student Scholarships

By Adriana Dos Santos and Ammy Sanchez

Teresa Murphy, who has served as a school teacher for 27 years, faced multiple challenges last year.

Five months after the coronavirus pandemic struck in March, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. But Murphy, who earned an associate’s degree in elementary education and teaching from Miami Dade College in 1989, was determined to keep working.

Even though she was hospitalized, she continued instructing her fourth-grade class at Spanish Lake Elementary in Hialeah—virtually. 

“Students are the ones who keep me going. You don’t realize the impact you have on your students until five or ten years have gone by,” Murphy said. “It’s nice to be important but it’s more important to be nice.”

Murphy was one of ten MDC alumni inducted into the College’s Alumni Hall of Fame during a special Heroes Edition ceremony at the Wolfson Campus auditorium on Wednesday night. 

Honorees were recognized for supporting South Florida during the coronavirus pandemic in fields like education, health care and law enforcement. 

The College raised $1.2 million for student scholarships during the night, surpassing its goal by $200,000. Fundraising has become a signature part of the Hall of Fame ceremony since its inception in 2003. 

This year’s ceremony was scaled down due to the pandemic. The event was held at Wolfson Campus instead of a fancy ballroom and included a limited guest list of only 200 people—there are usually about 1,000 guests. 

Attendees were welcomed into the auditorium with live music from the New World School of the Arts Alumni Jazz Band. 

Here are the ten alumni inducted into the MDC Hall of Fame:

Murphy received the Education Award. In February, she was named the 2022 Francisco R. Walker Teacher of the Year for Miami-Dade County. 

“I’m so proud of everything she’s done. She’s absolutely earned this award,” said Janelle Lopez, who was Murphy’s student 15 years ago. “I couldn’t have asked for a better mentor and inspiration.”

Pete Gomez, who earned the Emergency Management Award, serves as senior director of Florida International University’s Academy of International Disaster Preparedness. He worked as one of two incident commanders at the university’s testing center, where they performed almost 3,500 tests daily during the pandemic’s peak. Gomez previously served as a firefighter and directed emergency management efforts for the City of Miami.

Brandon Webb became the Battalion Chief of Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue’s Special Operations Division after working as a 911 operator for two decades. He received the Fire Rescue Award for his work as program manager for Florida’s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force, which has been testing and vaccinating large numbers of people for COVID-19. Webb was also awarded the Florida Commendation Medal for his efforts last June.

Sheila Jones-Coakley, who has been a nurse for more than 30 years, was the recipient of the Health Care Award. She currently works as the nurse manager of the Dialysis Unit at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, caring for young patients who are getting medical procedures that clean and filter their blood—often while separated from their families due to the pandemic. Jones-Coakley also teaches nursing students in the Scholar’s Program for Jackson Health Systems at MDC. 

Brian Rafky, who has served the Miami-Dade Police Department for more than two decades, earned the Law Enforcement Award. He led the department’s Special Victims Bureau—which protected vulnerable members of the community during the pandemic—as it responded to allegations of sexual and domestic crimes, child and elderly abuse, missing persons, and more. Rafky now serves as the police’s chief of the South Operations Division. 

Shirley N. Codada is an internal medicine physician with more than 20 years of experience in hospice and palliative care. Codada received the Medicine Award and currently serves as Regional Medical Director of VITAS Healthcare, overseeing four of its programs in Florida and one in Georgia. The native of Haiti has supported COVID-19 patients, who often feel anxious and lonely, during a time when visitors are not allowed. 

Betsy Godoy-Rosado, who has dedicated her career to helping people deal with mental health crises, earned the Mental Health Award. She currently works as the clinical supervisor of the EPIC Team at 4Kids by helping children who have experienced trauma heal. A licensed clinical social worker and mental health advocate, she has supported federal prisoners and probationers, as well as children from broken homes, during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Caridad Cuellar, who currently works as a registered nurse at Baptist Health, was the recipient of the Nursing Award. She underwent four brain surgeries while studying nursing at MDC, but that didn’t stop her from earning her bachelor’s degree. She showed that same determination to help the community during the pandemic: Cuellar worked as a middle school nurse, providing telehealth services at a community health center and tested patients for COVID-19 on a county site.

Cesar F. Larancuent, who works at the logistics company DB Schenker, earned the Trade and Logistics Award. He is currently working to transport 28 million vaccines to Latin America. During the pandemic, he transported face masks, cleaning materials and medical supplies internationally and partnered with public and private institutions to distribute Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), hospital medical supplies and essential equipment to first responders.  

Jessica Gutierrez-Castillo, who earned the Nonprofit Award, co-founded Buddy System MIA to run errands like grocery shopping for people with health complications and reduce their risk of contracting the coronavirus. The network—which includes 400 volunteers across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties—is also combating food insecurity by placing community fridges across Miami-Dade County.

“This award is for my community and for my family,” Gutierrez-Castillo said. “I feel very humbled because I’ve been very focused on our community and this has allowed me to take a pause and recognize myself and the work of all our other leaders.”