Florida Citrus Hall of Fame Executive Director Brenda Eubanks Burnette names the latest inductees and discusses the organization. Citrus Industry magazine editor Tacy Callies interviewed Burnette at the 2020 Florida Citrus Hall of Fame induction ceremony on March 6 at Florida Southern College in Lakeland.
Burnette says this year was “the first time that I can remember … that all of our inductees are going in posthumously.” The latest inductees were Frank Gardner, head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Subtropical Fruit Station; John Kennedy Sr., vice president and director of grove services for Golden Gem Growers; and Karick Price Sr., owner and director of T&G Harvesting Company and president of T&G Groves. Read about their accomplishments here.
The Florida Citrus Hall of Fame began in 1962 to honor the contributions individuals made to the Florida citrus industry. Burnette says it moved to Florida Southern College in 2008. Students at the college research the inductees and help keep track of citrus memorabilia such as citrus crate labels, postcards and photos. By moving to the college and having students involved, the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame has become an entity “that helps preserve our history and promote the heritage of the citrus industry,” Burnette says.
Burnette discusses the nomination process for the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame. She urges those submitting nominations to tell as much about a nominee as possible, including the contributions the individual made to the industry as a whole. She suggests looking at information about previous inductees on the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame website to get “an idea of what qualities they’re (the selection committee) looking for in terms of how to get into the hall of fame.” She says the website also contains “all of our databases for our postcards, our photographs and our citrus crate labels.”
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