There I stood, in front of about
thirty people, ready to give my presentation on a topic I was sure no one would
care about: the Florida Citrus Queens and Miss Florida Citrus. With my note
cards in my hands and my Prezi projected behind me, I talked about the
evolution of the citrus queen title and job over the years as a result of the
American Feminist movement. To my surprise, I was greeted by a round of
applause at the end of my presentation, as well as several interested questions
after all of the presentations were over.
I knew exactly what I wanted to
present from the moment my supervisor mentioned the 2015 Florida Conference of
Historians, which was held at Florida Southern College last weekend. I have
always been interested in the Florida Citrus Queens and Miss Florida Citrus. Honestly,
I am really just a fan of the way these women worked for the Florida citrus
industry. One day, I was watching the “Miss Florida Citrus and Florida Citrus
Queens” YouTube video on the CitrusLegacyChannel and I noticed the change from
dresses to business attire. My observation sparked an interest in me and I
started to question why the change from Florida Citrus Queen to Miss Florida
Citrus occurred and how it happened as well. As a result, the idea for my
presentation was born.
However, as interesting as the
topic was for me, I had no idea that it would be interesting to anyone else.
After months of research, scanning photos, writing my paper, preparing my presentation,
and practicing, I was ready to share what I had worked so diligently on at the
conference. I was pleased to see that my hard worked was appreciated by the
attendees.
It was also a nice surprise to
see how engaged everyone was in my coworker, Anthony Woodside’s, presentation
on the history of the Florida citrus crate labels. With a witty attitude and
several colorful citrus crate labels to display, my coworker shared his own
research on how the crate labels reflected American culture in the 1920s-1950s.
He had several questions to answer at the end of the presentations as well.
Before the presentation, I
feared that Anthony and I were going to have a difficult time during the
question portion of the conference. I thought there would be several attendees
who would find faults in our research because they knew more about citrus
industry history than us. However, I was pleasantly surprised that I was wrong.
People asked questions because they wanted to know more about our research. They
were interested in what we had to say because we were the ones who knew more. It
was quite an exhilarating experience.
It feels odd to be done with the
conference after preparing for it for so long. However, it was a wonderful,
educational experience that helped me grow as a student and employee. I know
this experience will add to my resume and will help me as I someday leave the
comforts of college to move into a challenging career in the real world. Then,
when I have to give another important presentation for another job, I will
remember when I worked for the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame at the Florida
Southern College’s McKay Archives Center. I will remember the confidence my supervisors
had in me as I prepared for and presented my work at the conference. Finally, as
I look back on all of this, I will know the quality of work I am capable of and
will put just as much effort into my work as I learned to do for the 2015
Florida Conference of Historians.
Written by Selys Rivera
Student Fellow at the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame
In partnership with Florida Southern College’s McKay Archives
Center
