Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
Myrtice Young, Canter Brown Jr. and Jim Stafford are among a group of well-known Polk County residents being inducted into Polk's Hall of Fame.
Historian and museum director Myrtice Young of Lake Wales was among five individuals honored by induction into the Polk Hall of Fame. Young has been the Preservation Manager at the Polk History Center for nearly 14 years.
Myrtice Young | Museum Director | Lake Wales
A Polk County resident for 74 years, Myrtice Young has been the Preservation Manager at the Polk History Center for nearly 14 years. Young was born in Blakley, Ga., but grew up in Lake Wales after her family moved to Florida.
From the beginning of her career as Historical Preservation Manager, Young has re-organized the Polk County Historical Commission to position it to achieve the critical mission of historic preservation. She spearheaded Polk County's historical marker program which provides incentives and guidelines for the historical commission to identify and mark significant historic sites in the county. Since its inception, forty-one markers have been installed throughout the county.
Among other efforts, Young worked with Polk County's Planning Division to develop a Historical Preservation Ordinance for Polk County, establishing historic preservation as public policy.
Young's work with the History Center is also noteworthy. Under her leadership, the Polk County History Center performed the rigorous tasks of examination and implementation of best practices to earn the American Alliance of Museums Accreditation by "demonstrating the highest professional standards for education, public service and collections stewardship and its commitment to continued institutional improvement." Young has also been extensively involved in county-wide cultural preservation work. Notably this includes her leadership on projects such as:
• Sesquicentennial 2011, a county-wide celebration to commemorate Polk's 150th anniversary.
• History and Heritage Guide to Polk County, a collection of heritage sites featuring architecture, cemeteries, churches, schools, museums, historic markers, and historic districts.
• Citrus Crate Label Tour, a driving tour that features Citrus Crate Labels that were used to market Florida in the early 1900s.
• Suffrage 100th Anniversary, a county-wide celebration of the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment.
Canter Brown, Jr. | Artist (Literary Arts) | Ft. Meade
Canter Brown Jr. is the author or co-author of thirteen books about Florida and southern United States history.
Canter Brown Jr. is an historian, professor and author. He was born in Fort Meade, Florida, and earned his degrees at Florida State University. He taught at Florida A&M University and has worked at Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Georgia. He is the author or co-author of thirteen books about Florida and southern United States history. These include the book, Florida's Peace River Frontier, which earned him the Florida Historical Society's Rembert W. Patrick Award, and the book Ossian Bingley Hart: Florida's Loyalist Reconstruction Governor, which won the Certificate of Commendation of the American Association of State and Local History, about Ossian B. Hart, one of Florida's Reconstruction era governors.
In addition to Florida's Peace River Frontier, Mr. Brown has also written two other books specific to Polk County. At the request of the Polk County Historical Association, he prepared the county's prized two-volume history that covers early times to 2000: In the Midst of All That Makes Life Worth Living: Polk County to 1940 and None Could Have Richer Memories: Polk County Since 1940. He has also written extensively about his hometown in the book, Fort Meade, 1849-1900. His most recent work, issued in 2019 by the University of Alabama Press, was Henry Plant: Gilded Age Dreams for Florida and a New South.
Brown's books have earned local, state, regional, and national recognition. He recently completed the manuscript for Elwood North & Betty Albritton: Gothic Justice in the Heart of Florida's Cattle Kingdom. In May 2023, the Florida Historical Society awarded him its Michael V. Gannon Lifetime
Frank Howes | Arts Educator (Music) | Lakeland
FRank howes is the former principal of the Lois Cowles Harrison Center for the Visual and the Performing Arts and later the Senior Director of Fine Arts for Polk County Schools.
Frank Howes grew up in Live Oak, FL and became the Band Director at Southwest Jr. High in Lakeland, Florida in 1971 after graduating from the University of Florida. During Howes' 18-year tenure, the Southwest band performed at clinics and workshops throughout the Southeast and played at the 39th Mid-West Orchestra and Band Convention in Chicago in 1985 gaining national renown.
Howes became principal at the Lois Cowles Harrison Center for the Visual and the Performing Arts in 1989 and was later named the Senior Director of Fine Arts for Polk County Schools. He served in that position until his retirement in 2010.
Along with Dr. J. Jossim, Howes founded The Hollingsworth Winds in 2003. The group was designed to unite musicians from the local community and provide opportunities for wind players and percussionists to perform high-quality literature in formal concert settings and continues as a performance outlet for many instrumentalists.
Howes served as the president of the Florida Music Educators Association in 2004- 2005. He received the ACE of Hearts award from the Florida Alliance for Arts Education and he is a proud member of the Phi Beta Mu- the International Bandmasters Fraternity. Howes was inducted into the Florida Bandmasters Hall of Fame in 2003.
Dr. Jessie Owens | Arts Educator (Music) | Winter Haven
Dr. Jessie Owens was the founder and director of the Sankofa Chorale. She, is a retired choral director from the Polk County Public Schools and has served as Adjunct Professor of Music at Florida A&M University and Polk State College.
Dr. Jessie Owens, founder and director of the Sankofa Chorale, is a retired choral director from the Polk County Public Schools and has served as Adjunct Professor of Music at Florida A&M University and Polk State College.
Owens has been teaching music to Winter Haven-area young people for over 55 years, 42 of which were spent working for Polk County Schools.
Owens is a native of Winter Haven and is married to Rev. Alvin L. Owens. She founded the Dr. J. Owens Academy of Fine Arts in 2012, which also includes the Owens Academy Young Artists. She is the Artistic Director of the Sankofa Chorale; a church musician at Hurst Chapel AME Church; and a part-time piano instructor at New Beginnings High School.
The Sankofa Chorale sings various genres of music, e.g., spirituals, gospels, jazz, hymns, and European classics and they strategically endeavor to support and embrace African-American culture as an extension of the African Diaspora. Their membership is composed of individuals of diverse backgrounds and professions.
The Sankofa Chorale members have bonded together in unity to share their gifts in song through their love of music.
Jim Stafford | Artist (Music) | Winter Haven
Jim Stafford and his friends, songwriter Bobby Braddock, Kent LaVoie, and Gram Parsons (of the Byrds) played together in a band, each member of this little "garage band" going on to national success in the music business.
Born in Winter Haven, Florida, Jim Stafford was inducted into the Polk County Schools Hall of Fame in 2000. In high school, Stafford and his friends, songwriter Bobby Braddock, Kent LaVoie, and Gram Parsons (of the Byrds) played together in a band, each member of this little "garage band" going on to national success in the music business. Stafford was introduced to comedy while playing with Jumpin' Bill Carlisle in Nashville as a guitarist.
Stafford wrote and recorded his first chart-making song, The Swamp Witch, produced by his boyhood friend Kent LaVoie a/k/a Lobo in 1974. He followed with a gold single, Spiders and Snakes, which stayed on the American pop charts for 26 weeks. The hits just kept coming and included My Girl Bill, Wildwood Weed, and the wonderfully satirical Cow Patti, written for the Clint Eastwood movie, Any Which Way You Can, in which Jim appeared.
Stafford launched his television career with The Jim Stafford Show on ABC in 1975. His numerous television appearances included music specials, variety shows, and talk shows. He co-hosted the popular prime-time show Those Amazing Animals with Burgess Meredith and Pricilla Presley. Stafford also hosted 56 episodes of Nashville on the Road and made 26 appearances on the Tonight Show. In 1987 & 1988, he was a regular performer and head write/producer for the Emmy-nominated Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. He has also worked with Joan Rivers, Tina Turner, Sammy Davis Jr., Bruce Springsteen, Glenn Campbell, Gallagher, and many others.
Jim Stafford was inducted into the Florida Artists Hall of Fame in 2017.
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