This is the third installment of Q&A features with Brenda Eubanks Burnette, the 2024 Citrus Achievement Award winner. What was the motivation to revive the Miss Florida Citrus Pageant and what did it take to get the program up and running again? Burnette: LaVoyce Leggett Porter, the 1966 Florida Citrus Queen, asked me if I would be interested in resurrecting …
PIECES OF THE PAST: An Impactful Citrus Sisterhood
By Brenda Eubanks Burnette It’s amazing to see how impactful the Florida Citrus Queens have been in marketing our crops! From swimming with dolphins to posing on top of the sign for the host hotel of the annual pageant, these women worked overtime to sell Florida citrus. Dick Pope, founder of Cypress Gardens, was a master at using the Florida …
PIECES OF THE PAST: Celebrating a Special Centennial
By Brenda Eubanks Burnette One hundred years ago, in February of 1924, a young woman named Dorothy Williamson was chosen as Florida’s first Citrus Queen. Since that time, numerous young women have vied for the title and have promoted the Florida citrus industry throughout the world. To celebrate the centennial, the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame has interviewed many of …
PIECES OF THE PAST: Centennial Celebrations
By Brenda Eubanks Burnette Gap Kovach, formerly head of HESCO, recently sent me a surprise packet of goodies for the Citrus Archives that included citrus labels, the 1986 Miss Florida Citrus program and the Winter Park Public Library 1985 calendar. The calendar was in honor of the library’s centennial celebration and featured numerous Florida citrus crate labels “as a salute …
Barrington Crowned Miss Florida Citrus
Payton Barrington of Orlando was crowned the 2022 Miss Florida Citrus on Jan. 22 in Winter Haven. She will travel extensively promoting the Florida citrus industry. Barrington was chosen during the Miss Florida Citrus and Miss Winter Haven Program held at Polk State College. Jada Carter of Tallahassee was crowned Miss Winter Haven. Barrington and Carter will both compete in …