Eclectic Thomas Leading Commodores

Eclectic Thomas Leading Commodores

3/3/2006

By Riki Mack 

When Carla Thomas comes to the minds of her teammates, they describe her with words like “stately,” “queenly,” “intellectual” and “quiet.” 

Carla describes herself as “eclectic.”  She says, “You wouldn’t think an athlete would be into art or reading a lot, but I [sort of] am.” 

The 6’3″ forward for the basketball team certainly stands out from the crowd.  The daughter of Guyanese emigrants, an avid reader, and talented artist, there is much more to Carla than meets the eye.
 
Originally from Mechanicsburg, Pa., Carla describes her hometown as “the middle of nowhere.”  Growing up there, in a Guyanese-American family, she developed a taste for dishes such as pepperpot, pumpkin pie, curry, and homemade bread.  Carla says there are a lot of cultural differences in her home that she did not find in some of her friends’ homes.  Yet she doesn’t hesitate to say that “I wouldn’t change it for anything because it has definitely made me unique.”

Carla began playing organized basketball at the age of 7.  She said that overhearing a comment from a coach that she was “uncoordinated and awful” three years later led her to begin taking basketball seriously. 

Carla expresses confidence going into the SEC Tournament this year.  “We’re focused and we can do well throughout the year.  We’re coming together as a team at the right time,” she said. 

 Thomas  says that being a basketball player, “makes you feel like you’re lucky?you get to live out other people’s dreams.”  She knows she will look back fondly on her years playing in Division I, and says, “You don’t fully appreciate it while you’re living it.” 

 A defining moment of Carla’s sports career at Vanderbilt was when she injured her knee early this season.  “I’ve never gotten injured that badly before as far as dealing with pain,” she says.  “It was really a test of how much I love basketball.” 

On top of that, Carla says that the defining moment of her life was when she became a Christian early last fall.  She says her experience “put my life in perspective in terms of what’s important and why I’m here.”

Carla doesn’t know what life after graduation holds for her, but for right now, she is looking forward to her senior year.  She said she expects it to be a very emotional time, since it will be her last year competing as a Commodore. 

After graduation, Carla is thinking about pursuing a career as a lawyer.  She wants to have a family, and she is definitely open to the possibility of playing professional basketball, should the opportunity present itself. 

Regardless of the career she chooses, Carla simply wants to be “someone who helps people.”  Whether Carla Thomas is reading a book, drawing, or revving it up on the court, she realizes — and hopes that others realize — she is “still a 20-year-old college student and at the end of the day, basketball isn’t everything.”