1. Zora, who was an icon of the Harlem Renaissance, was raised in nearby Eatonville, the first all-black town to be incorporated into the U.S. and the only Florida town founded by African Americans. She penned in her memoir, Dust Tracks on a Road, “I was born in a Negro town. I do not mean by that the black back-side of an average town. Eatonville, Florida, is and was at the time of my birth, a pure Negro town – charter, mayor, council, town marshal town.”
2. Zora was the daughter of a minister of one of the two churches in town and later become its mayor. While living in Eatonville, Zora said she led a privileged position as the mayor’s daughter and felt that she had a special destiny: “My soul was with the gods and my body in the village.”
3. In 1928, Zora was the first black student to graduate from New York’s Barnard College after transferring from Howard to pursue her writing career. She hung out with literary greats, like Langston Hughes, Wallace Thurman, and Nella Larsen who would also author the Harlem Renaissance.
4. She returned to Central Florida in 1931 to stage two plays at Rollins College that starred talent from Eatonville.
5. When the U.S. Supreme Court declared school segregation unconstitutional in 1954, she penned a letter to the Orlando Sentinel saying she would rather have the Supreme Court focus its attention on improving black schools because, “How much satisfaction can I get from a court order for somebody to associate with me who does not wish me near them?” she asked.
6. Eatonville honors Zora with an annual festival every January and with its The Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts (also known as The Hurston). The museum, which is a must-see in downtown Eatonville, has been called the most significant place for people of African American descent to display their work.

Zora died in 1960 after enduring many financial struggles and a chronic illness. While Zora likely didn’t know her impact on the Central Florida community, and the rest of the world, Eatonville does a beautiful job of not letting us forget her. Want to learn more about Zora’s influence on Eatonville? Check out this New York Times piece from 2010.

Now through Sunday, you and a friend can watch ‘The Luckiest People’ for the price of one at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater, in honor of William Shakespeare’s birthday. Buy your tickets here and use the discount code: PEOPLE.

(Valid for all seats for regular performances April 23 – 29, 2018. Excludes Senior Matinees. Not valid for previously purchased tickets.)

NEW JOB ALERT

ALSO, we told you about this new job we would be posting. Well, it’s here. And we want you to take a close look at it. If you know of someone looking for a part-time writing/storytelling producing position, LOOK NO FURTHER.

FINALLY. A year after Bar Rescue made its way to Orlando, the episode documenting Maitland’s Copper Rocket getting dominated by Jon Taffer will make its long-awaited debut… in May. (Orlando Weekly)

Revisions, provisions. Last week, we announced the proposals that made it past the Constitution Revision Committee. This week, the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board has something to say about the wonkiness of the whole process and how pairing one good amendment with a bad amendment is like putting lipstick on a pig. (Orlando Sentinel)

Deflation speculation. In March, home sales for Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties were down 4.2 percent from this time last year. The question is whether it’s a blip or the new trend. Only time will tell. Florida Realtors Chief Economist Brad O’Connor said a sales drop off throughout most of the state might reflect how fast-paced the market was a year ago and that it could also be the start of a “very gradual slowdown in sales growth that appears to become more inevitable the longer our statewide housing shortage continues.” (Orlando Sentinel)

Don’t get rent out of shape. Rent was up 8 percent in Metro Orlando last month in comparison to last year. Orlandoans are feeling it as rent increases but availability and deals decrease. With an average rent across Central Florida counties at roughly $1,240, “renters now face greater disadvantages as economic pressures increasingly favor landlords.” Only two other cities experienced sharper rent boosts than Orlando: Reno, Nevada and Springfield, Missouri. (Orlando Sentinel)

21 Jump Tree. Sixth-graders from a College Park school have jumped on the opportunity to share their stories of a place they hold near and dear to their hearts. During Hurricane Irma, their beloved “Jump Tree” in the western part of Lake Ivanhoe, fell. The tree held many memories for students at the Monarch Learning Academy. What better way to pay tribute than to put together a storytelling project to honor the tree? (Bungalower)

So this is cool. A.V.T. Simulation in Orlando is ramping up the competition when it comes to technological advancements for the battlefield. They’ve begun to integrate computer simulation technology with real equipment used by the military. A.V.T. says the realism of its simulators can prepare soldiers for real-life battle on land and in the air. (Fox 13 News)

Moratorium in Seminole County expires next week. Even those who voted no against Amendment 2 in Sanford are speaking out about the lack of action taken during the moratorium that was placed on the medical marijuana dispensaries in Sanford back when the amendment was initially passed. With the way things are currently set up, the temporary ban on dispensaries in Seminole County ends in a week and it looks as if there will be no pushback. Locals are frustrated with the Seminole County commissions for doing “essentially nothing”, as it’s “(un)fair to the 70 percent of the people that voted on the other side…” (WESH)

“A day may come when the courage of men fails… but it is not this day!” Starflyer, the world’s tallest swing ride, is one step closer to opening after its recent practice runs. Slated to open as early as May, if not June, the attraction will take riders 420 feet in the air. We’d be happy to support any of you adventurous readers, from the ground. (Also, we googled best movie quotes to yell when jumping out of a plane, essentially the same thing as flying 420 feet above ground, right? The responses were golden.) (WKMG Channel 6)

Not all heroes wear capes; some of them wear uniforms, some drive big trucks.

While this has nothing to do with Orlando, this story of a dozen plus semi-trucks lining up underneath an overpass in Detroit on Tuesday in an effort to brace the fall of and/or deter a suicidal man from jumping reinforces our faith in humanity.

Good news is the best news. More of that tomorrow!

Anyone doing something cool in Orlando, Lake Nona, Sanford, Winter Garden, Winter Springs, Altamonte, Longwood, Kissimmee that we should know about? Tag us #pulptown or @pulptown or hit reply.