As director of Rogers-Pickard Funeral Home in Sanford, Ceirra Doll recognizes life can be short, but that was a perspective she learned.

Ceirra Doll thought for years that her voice shouldn’t be heard. Her singing career began in middle school, but she faced a barrier that so many can relate to as teenagers – a clique. “Every time I would have a solo, they’d laugh at me,” she says, and then became convinced that she didn’t have the skill. So, by the time she was in high school, she was carrying on with her life as an intern at the funeral home and leaving the singing to others. Thankfully for our community, Ceirra’s voice didn’t remain silent.

Karaoke makes an appearance in her journey, as it does with so many musicians, and in 2020 she stepped behind the mic once more. She made an impression, and those around her returned encouragement. “People were kind. They were more than kind – it felt genuine.” So, Ceirra took the next step with an open mic performance. You may have seen Ceirra perform as half of the Stone Dolls, with Mary Stone. It began with Stone, as a stark contrast to the group of girls in middle school, who approached Ceirra and asked if she was interested in getting herself out there in a more professional capacity.

Those Stone Dolls performances helped Ceirra build confidence in her singing. “That’s when I decided I wanted to pick up guitar,” she says, “because I wanted to contribute more to the music and the band.” She found it a challenge, but like anything else, with practice and experience we get better. The next opportunity came from the same karaoke group where she met Mary. Karra Ussery, founder of Hazel + Grace, was another regular on the mic. Ussery was hosting a party at Agora Bakery and asked Ceirra if she could play music for the event.

That opened the door. The owners at Agora reached out to Ceirra. “People were saying really nice things about the music and how nice it was to have it,” she says, “and they put me on a rotating schedule, every other week.” That was her first solo recurring gig. The budding confidence that began with the Stone Dolls bloomed. “They asked me to do this. They want me here,” says Ceirra. “It gave me the space I needed to be a better musician and more comfortable taking that front-and-center stage.”

Ceirra still leans on the friends she made in those early karaoke days, like Stone, when she questions herself or has pre-show jitters, and ultimately she makes music for herself. “I’m just trying to be happy,” she says, and performing is a way to bring what she wants for herself to others. “I get to help people at their saddest times,” says Ceirra. “I’m not going to get tomorrow back, so why not just try it. I do attribute seeing people pass at 99, at 2 years old, at 20, to a perspective to stop saying ‘no’ and start saying ‘yes.’” Ceirra Doll is a regular at open mics and reaching out to other cities, “which is something I never would have done in the past.” She’s going to continue saying yes. “For the future, I want to continue,” she says, “meeting people and playing the songs that I love for people, because I think they can tell that every song I pick, I truly like it.”