[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 104 (Thursday, June 4, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E517-E518]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING DR. TAMMY TEREL TAYLOR

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 4, 2020

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. 
Tammy Terel Taylor.
  Dr. Tammy Terel Taylor was born to the late NR Taylor and Alberta 
Smith-Taylor. She is the third youngest of fourteen siblings. She 
entered the world during very troubling and uncertain times. Dr. Martin 
Luther King had just been assassinated a few months before her arrival 
and Senator Robert Kennedy assassinated on the exact same day she was 
born. She believes her passion for social freedom and equality to all 
humankind started in utero. Her parents instilled into her and her 
other siblings the importance of the Golden Rule, ``Do unto others as 
you would have them do unto you.'' She grew up in a traditional family 
structure where her father was the sole provider while her mother took 
care of home. Dr. Taylor was raised up on the family's farm and refers 
to her family as the ``Black Walton's'' and often says ``Although money 
was not plentiful her family had an abundance of love and fortitude 
when faced with adversity''. Dr. Taylor's family truly understood what 
it meant to live off the land. Her father farmed their land for several 
years and later pursued a construction career when farming alone was 
not enough to provide for his family. Dr. Taylor credits her 
perseverance and strong work ethics to her late father and her 
undeniable faith and endurance to her mother.
  Dr. Taylor was born and grew up in Sardis, MS. She attended and 
graduated from North Panola High School in 1987. She attended Northwest 
Community College following high school and later transferred to the 
University of Mississippi majoring in Sociology with a minor in 
Psychology; she graduated in August of 1993. After graduating from the 
University of MS, Dr. Taylor begin her nursing career at Northwest 
Community College (NWCC) in Senatobia, MS. NWCC had the reputation of 
producing some of the best registered nurses (RNs) and if you 
successfully completed their

[[Page E518]]

very rigorous nursing program you were well prepared for the challenges 
ahead.
  Dr. Taylor started her nursing career at Baptist Memorial Hospital 
(BMH) in Oxford, MS and worked at this facility for 7 years as the 
Charge Nurse. While working at BMH full-time, she traveled once a week 
to Alcorn State University (ASU) nursing campus for the next 2 years. 
She earned her Master of Science as a Nurse Educator graduating with 
highest distinction and inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau National 
Honor Society of Nursing. She accepted an Assistant Professor position 
in their Associate Degree Nursing at ASU. Dr. Taylor possessed not only 
a passion for learning but immensely enjoyed teaching and sharing her 
knowledge and clinical experience. While teaching full-time at ASU, Dr. 
Taylor earned her Post Master's as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP). 
This was a very difficult time in her life because her sister and best 
friend, Renetha, was diagnosed with a terminal cancer and lost her 
battle on October 6, 2002.
  In January of 2004 a unique opportunity arose and Dr. Taylor was 
invited to join a team of dynamic African American women with a diverse 
background in the nursing profession to start the first Associate 
Degree Nursing Program at Coahoma Community College in Clarksdale, MS. 
Dr. Taylor and other faculty referred to themselves as the ``Dream 
Team'' and was determined to create one of the best nursing programs 
for those aspiring to become registered nurses in the state of MS. 
Although this dream was short-lived, her dynamic team laid the 
groundwork and this RN program is thriving today. Dr. Taylor has 
dedicated years of service into almost all areas of nursing from the 
hospital setting to academia to correctional setting just to name a 
few.
  On March of 2009, Dr. Taylor accepted a position in the MS Delta at a 
private Cardiology practice. This in many ways for her was surreal 
because now she would be providing care to patients with heart disease, 
a disease that abruptly ended her own father's life at the age of 
forty-six. She was eager to accept this challenge because this would 
give her the opportunity to help others combat heart disease and save 
lives, something she was not able to do for her very own father. Dr. 
Taylor knew this had to be fate, a higher power orchestrating this 
only-for-her opportunity.
  On January 2010, Dr. Taylor pursued her highest level of education in 
her profession. While working full-time as a Cardiology Nurse 
Practitioner, she began her doctoral degree at the University of 
Alabama Capstone College of Graduate Nursing. Her scholarly project 
explored the precursors of coronary heart disease among women of color 
in the MS Delta. She graduated with a 4.0 GPA and again inducted into 
the Sigma Theta Tau National Honor Society for Nursing, the Honor 
Society of Phi Kappa Phi and the Golden Key International Honor 
Society. Dr. Taylor earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and her 
Hooding Ceremony was on the former President Barack Obama's birthday 
August 4, the year 2012.
  Dr. Taylor still practices in the MS Delta specializing in heart 
disease and managing other chronic diseases such as hypertension, 
diabetes, hyperlipidemia, etc. She is an advocate for change and 
currently serves as the Lead Volunteer in the state of MS for the 
National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF) out of Washington, DC. Dr. 
Taylor has attended the last three Patient Congress in DC to be the 
change agent and voice for her patients. Dr. Taylor was selected by the 
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) and National 
Institute of Health (NIH) to serve as a stakeholder reviewer for new 
funding opportunity: Testing Multi-Level Interventions to Improve Blood 
Pressure Control in Minority Racial/Ethnic, Low Socioeconomic Status, 
and/or Rural Populations.
  Dr. Taylor is an entrepreneur and recently started on own business 
Day by Day Health and Wellness to be the change she wishes to see in 
the world. Her passion for healthcare runs deep but she sees the bigger 
picture and that is focusing more on preventive care versus sick care. 
Dr. Taylor currently serves as a Community Advisory Board member for 
Panola County for the Risk Underlying Rural Areas Longitudinal Study 
(RURAL). She is an active member of the Mississippi Nurses Association. 
She is an active member of the distinguished ladies of the Alpha Kappa 
Alpha Sorority Incorporated, Upsilon Iota Omega Chapter. She is also an 
active member of the NAACP Panola County Branch. And lastly and more 
importantly, she is the doting aunt to her nieces and nephews and the 
loving wife to her soulmate, Mr. Whittington Bufford, Jr.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Dr. 
Tammy Terel Taylor for her dedication to serving her community and this 
great state.

                          ____________________