8 • Thursday, November 5, 2015
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OVER THE MOUNTAIN Journal
Photo courtesy of NBAE/Getty Images
Mountain Brook’s Summersell Earns Eagle Scout Rank
From left: A Hornet Honeybee, Dr. Stephen Gould, Dr. Sara Gould and Dr. David Gregorius are a just a few of the many people who traveled with the Charlotte Hornets and the LA Clippers for two global exhibition games.
Courtside Care
Birmingham Doctor Travels to China With NBA By Kaitlin Candelaria
FEATURING GUEEST ARTIST FROM THE AROVA CONTEMPORARY BALLET VICTORIA BENNETT, JAMIE KILGORE FOUST, AND JAMORRIS RIVERS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, JAMORRIS RIVERS
DECEMBER 4-6
Dec. 4 - 7pm | Dec. 5 - 2pm & 7pm | Dec. 6 - 2pm
LOCATION
Tyson Theatre - Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church 2061 Kentucky Ave., Birmingham, AL 35216
TICKETS: $15 General Admission | $25 Preferred Seating Available online at www.magiccitynutcracker.org
CONTACT
magiccitynutcracker@gmail.com or Kelly Avery at 205.769.0140
Sara Gould’s first exposure to sports medicine wasn’t necessarily a good one. The former cross-country runner had to end her college running career after finding out she had stress fractures. “That was my first experience and it was terrible,” she said, laughing. “But after the doctor told me I couldn’t run for the rest of the season, he said I could come shadow him anytime I wanted. That kind of peaked my interest.” Now a sports medicine and emergency room physician, Gould moved to Birmingham with her husband two years ago. When she’s not juggling her concussion clinic at Children’s of Alabama, working in the emergency room at UAB Hospital or spending time with her toddler, Gould moonlights as a traveling sports medicine physician for the NBA. “Every year, the NBA does global exhibition games,” Gould explained. She began working with the organization while completing her residency in New York City. Since then, she’s had the opportunity to travel with the NBA all over the world. “Getting to work with athletes at that level is phenomenal,” Gould said. “I never thought I would be working with an organization like the NBA.” Gould and her husband, an orthopedic surgeon at UAB, recently traveled to China with the organization for two global exhibition games. According to Gould, China’s NBA market is astounding. “It’s a really big deal and it’s exciting,” Gould said. “There’s a lot of energy around it because there are so many crazy fans.” The exhibition included a game between the Charlotte Hornets and the Los Angeles Clippers, and the trip included both teams dancers, trainers, mascots and more. Serving that many people isn’t without its challenges. “If everybody’s really healthy, you can do nothing, but unfortunately that
never happens because everybody is jetlagged and working around the clock,” Gould said. “It’s really exciting and it’s really important to everyone to do this because we’re promoting NBA internationally and this may be a fan’s first exposure to the NBA. Everybody wants it to be a good experience and everybody is burning the candle at both ends.” Gould said she begins preparing for these types of trips by traveling to the country months in advance to scout out hospitals and strategize treatment plans. “Healthcare standards are really different in China than they are here, so we’re trying to work around that,”
‘Getting to work with athletes at that level is phenomenal. I never thought I would be working with an organization like the NBA.’ she said. “Also, any time you’re working with someone who’s high profile, it’s difficult to maintain their privacy. Things like HIPPA don’t exist in China.” Gould said that, although the experiences include a lot of moving pieces, it’s ultimately a lot of fun. “It was fun and challenging to get all the logistics squared away,” she said. “But fortunately we have a lot of experience doing this, so it really falls together pretty easily when we’re in the markets.” Although Gould says she loves the NBA and enjoys her yearly stints as the courtside doctor, she won’t be leaving Birmingham anytime soon. “Most of what I do on a day-to-day basis is working with high school kids and elementary school kids who get hurt playing club soccer or on the playground, and that’s really the best part of my job,” she said. “The NBA is a lot of glitz and glamour and it’s really cool, but it’s the day-to-day stuff that you really have to love.” ❖
Cole Harrington Summersell of Mountain Brook has earned the Eagle Scout award and will be recognized in ceremonies on Dec. 13 at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. A member of Troop 86, Summersell is among approximately 4 percent of all Boy Scouts who attain the Eagle rank, according to Scoutmaster David Millhouse. Cole Summersell Each candidate must earn 21 merit badges and successfully complete a community-, church- or synagogue-related service project to earn the award. For his project, Summersell chose to build warehouse shelving for Magic City Harvest. Summersell joins other outstanding American citizens who have become Eagle Scouts, among them former President Gerald R. Ford, Jr., astronaut Neil A. Armstrong and former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Summersell has held leadership roles in Troop 86, including the position of senior patrol leader, and participated in a week-long high adventure sailing excursion at Florida Sea Base. A senior at Mountain Brook High School, Summersell is a member of the cross country and track teams. He is a member of the National Honor Society and is a National Merit Scholar semifinalist. Summersell is a member of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. He is the son of Trip and Margaret Summersell of Mountain Brook and his grandfather, Dr. William H. Dodson of Mountain Brook, also is an Eagle Scout.
DuBose of Troop 28 Earns Eagle Scout Rank David Raines DuBose Jr., a member of Boy Scout Troop 28, recently received the rank of Eagle Scout at a court of honor ceremony Oct. 5 at Independent Presbyterian Church. DuBose’s scouting career began in first grade as a Tiger Cub at Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church in Den 7 of Pack 352. David DuBose During that time, he took first place at the Pinewood Derby race and second place in the Raingutter Regatta. After attaining the Arrow of Light, he joined Troop 28 under Scoutmaster Allen Sydnor. As a member of Troop 28, DuBose held a number of leadership roles and earned 33 merit badges. He logged 84 camping nights and 117 service hours. In 2013 and 2014, he attended Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico,