At a time when opportunities for female Black entrepreneurs were constrained by gender restrictions and Jim Crow, one Jacksonville businesswoman built a prosperous beauty empire. A new profile of Sophia Nickerson Starks explores how she created the Nickerson’s School of Beauty Culture on Myrtle Avenue in the heart of Durkeeville and transformed it into a model of Black enterprise and financial resilience. We talk to the author of the piece about why he wanted to celebrate Starks’ accomplishments and highlight her lasting legacy.
Guest: Jerry Urso, historian, writer and archival researcher
Right whale documentary
It’s a creature that could potentially live to 130 years or more but has never been known to die of old age. Instead, the actual median lifespan of a North Atlantic right whale is just 22 years — every one of them killed by humans. A new documentary about the whales explores their truncated life and often brutal death with unprecedented access and clarity. From ship strikes and fishing gear entanglements to the heroic (and occasionally even fatal) efforts to save them from human hazards, The Right Whale: Tales of Resilience and Hope tracks the crisis faced by the whales and offers a prescription for change. The film is currently on what’s being called “The Calving Grounds Tour,” which follows the path of the migratory species along its annual Georgia-to-Florida path. It includes four stops in Southern Georgia and on the First Coast, including a screening and discussion with the filmmakers from 6-8 p.m. Aug. 25 at Beaches Museum.
Guests:
- Cheryl Dean, filmmaker, The Right Whale: Tales of Resilience and Hope
- Nick Dean, filmmaker, The Right Whale: Tales of Resilience and Hope
- Chris Hoffman, mayor of Jacksonville Beach, executive director of Beaches Museum
Right outside
It’s no secret that summer is peak season for biting insects in Florida, but the pests pose a special hazard for the unhoused. A new initiative aims to connect homeless individuals to protective resources and expand awareness of the risks presented by mosquitos and ticks. The Homeless Coalition of St. Johns County is partnering with the Anastasia Mosquito Control District to co-host a public education event from 5-7:30 p.m. Aug. 20 at the district’s Disease Vector Education Center, at 120 EOC Drive. All who spend time outdoors are welcome to attend.
Guests:
- Debi Redding, executive director, Homeless Coalition of St. Johns County
- Jeanne Moeller, board member and fundraising chair, Homeless Coalition of St. Johns County
Topics and guests subject to change.