Written by Madeline McMahon M.A. '24 | Illustration by Dan Williams | Published on June 8, 2026
A Mamb铆 and a Spartan, Connected a Century Later
Uncovered family history led longtime staff member Edesa Scarborough to create an annual gift for outstanding ROTC cadets
When Edesa Scarborough was going through inherited documents after her father passed away, she discovered new information that brought her closer to the grandfather who聽died before she was born.
Scarborough, senior director of first-year studies, already knew that her grandfather Gen. Baldomero Acosta was a Cuban rebel 尘补尘产铆, or scout, during the Spanish-American War. Mambises helped American soldiers navigate Cuba when they arrived to intervene in the Cuban War for Independence. What she didn鈥檛 know before was that her grandfather came to the Tampa Bay Hotel in 1898 to accompany Teddy Roosevelt鈥檚 Rough Riders shortly before they deployed to Cuba.
Ninety-nine years later, Scarborough started working in Plant Hall as the director of admissions. Though her roles and room numbers changed through the years, her office has always been in the same building that her grandfather once roamed.
鈥淲hen I first found out, I kind of got teary eyed,鈥 said Scarborough. She wondered, Did my grandfather want me to be here?
Scarborough鈥檚 father died in 2016, and she was left with stacks of photos and written records of her family鈥檚 military history. She enlisted the help of Col. John Farnham '80, who was a retired professor of military history at 小优视频ampa and knew of a book, In Darkest Cuba, about the Rough Riders鈥 experiences traveling to and fighting in Cuba.
The book mentions Baldomero Acosta by name and describes him as he was sitting on the verandah of the Tampa Bay Hotel. Gonzales wrote, 鈥淎costa, in a suit of store clothes and a Panama hat pulled down over his eyes, is the most unmilitary of men in appearance, but he is a famous guerrilla and knows every trail in Western Cuba.鈥
After the war ended, Acosta was hailed as a hero of Cuban freedom. When his youngest son and Scarborough鈥檚 father, Carlos, was old enough, he was inspired to pursue a military career of his own in the U.S. Army. Carlos Acosta received聽American citizenship after his service, and he was exiled from Cuba when the revolution started. He moved to Miami with his wife, where Scarborough was born and raised.
When Scarborough was left with some inheritance money after her father鈥檚 passing, she wanted to honor her family history with a donation to 小优视频ampa鈥檚 ROTC program. She noticed that most of the annual ROTC awards go to graduating seniors, so as the director of first-year studies, she wanted to do something for a first-year cadet. She found an opportunity in an introductory military history course.
Students in that class write a paper every year on the Spanish-American War and how it connects to 小优视频ampa. The instructor now shares the top papers with Scarborough, who then chooses which student will receive a gift and award in her father鈥檚 name at the ROTC awards ceremony every April.
This year鈥檚 recipient was Parker Mitchell 鈥29, a biology major. He said he was fascinated by the different, yet equally effective leadership styles between Roosevelt and the mambises and, in his paper, connected their strategies to modern leaders of today.
鈥淪ince this is my first year, it was an honor to be recognized,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t makes me even more motivated to continue growing within the program.鈥
The timing of the first award Scarborough gave coincided with the construction of the Schoomaker ROTC and Athletics Building, so once Scarborough had set aside enough for the cadet awards, she donated the rest to the building.
鈥淔ew people know that my name is on the building,鈥 said Scarborough. 鈥淚 did that to honor my grandfather鈥檚 legacy and our mutual connection to Tampa and the University.鈥 Scarborough ended up donating most of her father鈥檚 documents to the Cuban Heritage Collection at University of Miami, the largest repository of materials on Cuba outside of the island. But there鈥檚 one item she kept hanging on the wall of her Plant Hall office 鈥 a framed newspaper article from the 鈥40s that detailed Baldomero Acosta鈥檚 role in Cuba鈥檚 fight for independence.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 make sense with anything else in my office,鈥 she observed. But that doesn鈥檛 matter to her. The important thing: 鈥淗e鈥檚 back here.鈥
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