The QCT
Miami Black Heritage Tour™ is the first tour of its kind in
that it will take you to places and introduce you to people previously
overlooked like Pastor Meddie P. Bannister -- first woman of color to
lead a Miami congregation of the Church of God of Prophecy; Dr. Enid
C. Pinkney -- Miami history preservationist; Isreal Curtis -- first Black
pressman for the Miami Herald Newspaper; to name a few . The tour is
developed by Mr.
Juan "Jay" Whipple, a Miami native, who left the area for military
service in 1978 upon graduating from Miami Beach Senior High School. 
He returned here in late 2014 for a five month stay; his longest stint
since graduating. "I was completely blown away and a bit intimidated at how
much had changed since the late 1970's when I freely navigated Miami via
automobile, my bicycle, the Jitney, city bus, and on foot," says Whipple.
"Fast forward nearly four decades and I found myself literally driving in
circles trying to get from here to there," he said.
"The Sun Life Stadium assignment brought things full circle
for me in that I worked at the old Orange Bowl Stadium in Little Havana while
in high school in the late 1970's and actually got a chance to see up close and
personal the entire Dolphin roster; including legendary coach Don Shula - at
each home game," recalls Whipple.
Whipple then landed a job with an airport shuttle
company located just a few blocks from his mother's home in the Gladeview
Community near the MLK Metrorail station. "It was a blessing and
a challenge," he stated because "I was now being paid to drive around in
circles trying to get from here to there." That job helped him expand his
navigational reach from Florida City to the south and as far north as Lake
Worth. 
"That job also gave me a chance to interact with both visitors',
newcomers', and local residences' from all walks of life," he said. "After
a while I also began giving them brief tours while in route to their
destinations." Whipple decided to leave that job because the 50-plus
hours per week did not give him enough time to begin the long process of
developing this tour.
