- Orlando Signal
- Posts
- A Fountain of Oddities
A Fountain of Oddities
Reading time: 4 minutes
Good morning, Orlando! This is the last week until Christmas. Don’t wait until the 24th to start shopping for presents.
You share, we listen. Click 👆 the poll at the bottom of this issue and tell us how we did today!
🌟 In today’s issue: 🌟
Bricks & R.D Eunice
"Life"
Yule Be Sorry
….and much more
Let’s get to it!
- Philip
P.S. Happy birthday to Stuart Whitaker.
ORLANDO REWIND ⏪
A Fountain of Oddities: Lake Fairview's Quirky Past
Lake Fairview Park appears at first glance simply as a delightful spot for rowing, playgrounds and ball games.
But peek beneath the surface, and a fascinating history emerges of antique bricks, showmen entrepreneurs, and even a sporadic, natural "geyser." Look down next time you walk across the parking lot and you may be treading on bricks crafted over a century ago.
Manufactured across the Southeastern U.S. by companies like Graves Brick Company and Southern Clay Manufacturing, some bricks hail from the turn of the 20th century.
The city cobbled them together into a lot in the 1960s, though records of the bricks' origins have faded like old photographs in an attic trunk. The harder-fired bricks, called vitrified pavers, created far more durable surfaces than dirt roads and proved ideal for early pavements.
But Lake Fairview preserved a few.
Even more fascinating is the tale of the lake's early 20th century "geyser"-like fountain. At the Davis-McNeill farm on the south shore, water erupted up to 100 feet skyward every six minutes!
The farm manager R.D Eunice, spotting a business opportunity, charged spectators a small fee to witness this oddity.
The cause was man-made, though the results mimicked nature. An underground pipe meant to drain the flood-prone lake sat just inches below the surface. Air pressure built until bursting forth in dramatic style.
Eventually, the "geyser" pipe got capped in the 1930s, ending this quirky feature.
But clues to the area's offbeat past remain if you know where to look.
Underfoot or underwater, Lake Fairview holds fragments of peculiar history worth dipping into.
THE SQUEEZE 🍊
Carving Out Courage for Cancer Patients
In an Orlando workshop, a face-shielded jeans-clad craftswoman shapes an uplifting gift for fellow warriors – wig stands for cancer patients. To recipients, Pam Bozkurt is a heroine. To woodworking club members, she’s one of their own.
At 66, Bozkurt’s breast cancer diagnosis, despite knowing her family history, caught her off guard. With minimal invasion needing lumpectomy and radiation, Orlando Health doctors helped strategize her fight.
Ironically, as treatments began, wood crafting’s meditative spinning drew Bozkurt in deeper. She first learned it as a hobby before diagnosis. The art-form granted therapy beyond medicine, as fellow club members knew well.
Soon Bozkurt envisioned passing on the gift of comfort. Her club enthusiastically embraced using their skills to create wig stands for those in treatment’s trenches. Local hospitals now have dozens thanks to the team’s voluntary project, ever-ongoing.
Bozkurt models the power of early detection and community support. Dr. Shah asserts 95% success rate catching cancer early via scans and exams. Equally vital - nurturing patients’ spirits through survivor camaraderie.
For Bozkurt, wood-turning therapy uplifts her while inspiring others. Early screening, support groups and family aid empower her health and productivity. But the cape in her workshop stays on a hook - this hero has more stands to sculpt and courage to spread.
Filling the Gaps: How International Educators are Addressing Florida's Special Education Crisis
As Florida ushered in a new academic year, its classrooms faced a distressing missing ingredient: 7,000 educators according to the Florida Education Association. Though teaching gaps pervaded subjects, special education saw case loads without a captain to steer toward the brightest futures.
As families can attest, such scarcity threatens student growth and school stability. Luckily, solutions arose, including recruiting international teachers.
Dr. Ilene Wilkins brought 40 international teachers to her eight Central Florida charter schools this year to fill 5% of her teaching openings. Experts confirmed this targeted hiring efficiently, if temporarily, addresses shortages. According to the U.S. State Department, international teacher hires surged 69% nationally from 2015 to 2021. Florida specifically flagged special education as the top area lacking qualified candidates this academic year.
Natalia Bordalo, a Brazilian first grade teacher at Dr. Wilkins’ Bailes Community Academy, says her background lets her integrate a more cross-cultural curriculum. Adjusting hasn’t been seamless, but the Bailes community provides support. While data on international teachers’ impact remains limited, the consequences of leaving shortages unaddressed are clear, warns expert Dan Goldhaber. Inadequate staffing risks furthering inequality long-term.
January’s vacancy tally likely won’t bring relief. But with creative solutions happening now, like Dr. Wilkins’ international hires, offer hope for bridging the gap.
Into the Eco-Verse: Orlando Science Center's Wildest Exhibit Yet
A $13.5 million investment aims to soon immerse Orlando Science Center visitors in a 13,000 square foot slice of tropical wilderness, bringing them nose-to-nose with over 300 animals across 100 diverse species.
Though still an active construction site, the exhibit called "Life" is taking shape on the ground level, transforming once-stale halls into the future home of finned, furry and feathered creatures mingling with guests.
Funding from Orange County's tourist tax and a $3 million donation from Dr. Sarah Layton make this living paradise possible. As curator Shannon Zimmerman puts it, we want people to feel connected to these animals and inspired to protect our shared planet.
When complete, the space will offer encounters blurring the lines between guest and host. Inquisitive tamarin monkeys will scale playground-like vines while sharks endlessly circle a 10,000 gallon arena-style tank.
Behind the scenes, state-of-the-art technology from UV lighting to industrial filtration systems will maintain the delicate balance of this ecosystem. By designing for intimate interaction post-construction, administrators hope to foster empathy and awareness in visitors.
The exhilarating spectacle of the Florida wilderness will soon await at Orlando Science Center's "Life."
Emil Caron’s lifelong addiction reached rock bottom in county jail cell. The 30-something navy veteran had spent over eight years bouncing between detention and the streets. But his salvation came from an unlikely place – a simple act of mercy from the system he knew all too well.
When his probation officer asked if he wanted help, Caron whispered “Yes” for the first time. He enrolled in a diversion program for justice-involved veterans. Despite relapsing seven times, with compassion and accountability, he turned his life around, graduating in 2020. He emerged with overwhelming gratitude and a new purpose and went onto become a director at Recovery Connections.
Veterans treatment courts address complex post-traumatic stress and addiction issues that can lead veterans into the justice system. By focusing on root causes, not just behaviors, the collaborative effort aims to reroute vets toward stability. Judge Alicia Latimore oversees courts across two counties centered on helping participants get treatment and services.
In ten years, 661 vets have graduated. As one alum, Caron now pays it forward guiding others out of darkness. He urges it doesn’t matter where you’ve been, but where you’re going – recovery is possible if you keep fighting.
Yule Be Sorry, Reindeer
'Twas weeks before Christmas when a grinchy black bear crept into the Levins' yard, targeting their decorative reindeer. The Levins' Ring camera captured the late-night theft in chilling detail.
Under moonlight he stealthily approached the three proud reindeer “standing guard” on the front yard, unaware of the plot they'd soon meet.
Sniffing and snorting, the bear drew near, still unnoticed by the gleaming deer. Suddenly he lunged, grabbing one reindeer in his jaws, the other falling over with pitiful roars.
Crushing and mangling one as if it was a toy, the bear dashed off with it as his getaway ploy. The bear remains loose, lying in wait for more decorative prey to snatch under the shadow of night this Christmas season.
ORLANDO DIGS: DISCOVERING THE AREAS TOP PROPERTIES 🏠
Edison History (Still) Available
Nestled along Lake Sylvan's shimmering shores in Winter Park lies a portal to Old Florida’s era—the 1887 Harris-Edison House. Built by innovation pioneer Thomas Edison’s youngest son Ted and wife Anne, this whimsical farmhouse offers glimpses into bygone days.
Lovingly preserved architectural treasures fill the home, from the hand-carved staircase and Tiffany-style windows to sleeping porches perched under steeply pitched gables. The dining room gazes out on the lake through ornate bay windows, while a free-standing hutch built by Ted anchors the space. Though the kitchen has modernized appliances, a stained glass window imported from England infuses morning light.
After being named Florida Home of the Year, meticulous restoration spotlighted the home’s vintage glory—heart pine floors, cast iron tubs and gothic details transport visitors back in time.
Once $1.22 million, the asking price has dropped to $1.075 million. For buyers seeking one-of-a-kind old world charm, the Harris-Edison House presents a rare chance to own a piece of Central Florida history.
Curious? See more awesome photos, here.
#ORLANDOSIGNAL 📸
Fa-La-La-La
📷 via @orlandosignal |📍Wave Hotel
Tag @orlandosignal to get your photo featured in the newsletter!
FOODIE FIND, FORK YEAH! 🤩
Chayote Barrio Kitchen
📍480 Orlando Avenue, C-134, Winter Park or map to this location, right here.
⏱️ Monday: Closed, Tuesday – Thursday, Sunday: 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm, Friday & Saturday: 5:00 pm – 12:00 Midnight
Acclaimed Puerto Rican chef Mario Pagan has brought his “Nueva Mesa Latina” cuisine to central Florida with his new restaurant, Chayote Barrio Kitchen, in Winter Park Village. After training with Norman Van Aken’s “New World Cuisine,” Pagan returned home eager to celebrate Latin food traditions. His inventive dishes blend flavors in creative ways while honoring heritage.
The alcapurrias appetizer encapsulates Pagan’s approach, merging Puerto Rican and Middle Eastern traditions into fritters with roasted pork and zesty Colombian ají mayo. More surprises await, like octopus with airy tapioca “chicharrones” or adobo lamb with boniato gnocchi in chèvre cream. Even the setting fuses contemporary and tropical motifs into a striking vision.
The energetic barkeeps concoct drinks like the off-menu “clairvoyant,” seamlessly blending Japanese gin, bermutto and Chareau. And Pagan’s architectural “lubina” sea bass wows with its angular presentation and complex medley of truffle, foie gras and asparagus.
With its pan-Latin spirit, Chayote Barrio Kitchen infuses Winter Park Village with bold new energy. Pagan has awakened something vibrant. The New Latin Table has arrived.
ORLANDO WEATHER 🌤️
Monday
67🌡️ 46 | ☀️ | Breezy in the morning; otherwise, less humid with plenty of sunshine
Tuesday
61🌡️ 46 | ☀️ | Plenty of sunshine, but cool
Wednesday
71 🌡️ 54 | ⛅️ | Pleasant and warmer with times of sun and clouds
How did you like today's newsletter? |
THANKS! 🙏
If you found something useful or interesting, please share this issue with someone you know! We’ll see you on Thursday with some fun weekend recs.
My Best,
Philip - Publisher, Orlando Signal