Alondra Bodden/Contributing Writer
When Cheryl Holder and her family first moved to Brooklyn in the summer of ‘68, she witnessed a little girl falling off a bus and left in the street for hours. This occurred in a poor community where police often responded very late, if at all. This experience shaped Holder’s mission in life: provide, educate and heal.
Holder is a board certified physician in internal medicine and has dedicated her medical career to helping communities that lack support and education. In September 2009, she became an associate professors for the Division of Family Medicine at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine.
“Life experiences make you want to decide to do something about what you see around you,” said Holder. “Medicine matches my personality and my passion, it all aligns with my desire to do the best.”
Growing up in Kingston, Jamaica, Holder was backed by a strong solid family background who helped propel her into greatness with her educational endeavors and career.
“I went to Science High School, which is located in Manhattan,” said Holder. “I never really thought about getting into medicine until high school. One summer, I was assigned to do blood pressure screenings at a Community Health Center in South Jamaica, and that was so much fun. I knew I wanted to do that.”
Holder explained she did not experience much discouragement until medical school, where she was met with racism and professors who did not believe in her.
“I’d get the same score as somebody else in my class, and they’d get told they just had a bad day, whereas with me they would only say that I did not do so well,” she said. “However, I don’t really pay much attention to the negative, that’s just the way my mind works.”
Holder explained that in Jamaican culture, you are taught from very young that they are capable to achieve anything.
“In Jamaica we have a saying: ‘You’re little, but you’re tallawah,’” said Holder.
Tallawah is Jamaican patois for strong and fearless.
“I graduated medical school with three other black women. We all looked completely different, but yet nobody could tell us apart. We were basically invisible,” said Holder. “Luckily I come from a strong family and I had a support system outside of the university, so it didn’t quite bother me, it just made me more aware.”
On Dec. 13, 2016, she was awarded with the FIU Medallion Cal Kovens Distinguished Community Service Award at the 2016 commencement ceremonies.
“It was wonderful,” said Holder. “For me, I’ve been doing this work forever, and it’s always nice to be recognized. It is nice to know that the community sees the work that I have done and continue to do and that it matters, that everyone that I have worked with and helped also matter.”
Holder stresses the importance of serving your community and staying connected with those around you.
“The community is us, we are the community. Serving each other, purely, is better for your health. You stay happier, and it also makes your day to day life better,” she said. “Coming from a third world country and also traveling a lot, I see the rich often shut out the other side. They live behind high walls, with security, what kind of life is that? You can’t separate yourself. Community service is serving yourself.”
Valeria Raventos, program manager for the Department of Health and Humanities at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, has known Holder for six years.
“Dr. Holder is a very thoughtful, very intelligent woman, she has a lot of passion for what she does,” said Raventos. “It’s actually very remarkable to see it because it just resonates in her how much she enjoys being a physician and enjoys helping everyone … it’s been a pleasure working with her.”
Pedro José Greer Jr., associate dean for Community Engagement, has known Holder for more than 20 years.
“Cheryl is one of the most dedicated and brilliant physicians that you’re going to find and one that has dedicated her career to those who are the most vulnerable, particularly those with HIV and with no access to help,” Greer said. “She is a perfect fit for our program and a role model for students and the community.”
In addition to helping serve HIV patients in underserved communities, Holder also helps guide and teach transgender communities on how to prevent spread of HIV. Holder also narrated a video explaining the disparity between rich and poor communities here in Miami-Dade county.
Marin Gillis, professor and chief of division of ethics has known Holder for six years.
“Her whole focus as an educator and healer has been community driven. She is extremely service oriented and extremely passionate about what she does.”
In her free time, Holder enjoys doing community service, traveling, reading, writing children’s books and cooking.
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