Zetas

Zeta Phi Beta Celebrates Zora Neale Hurston and Awards Stacey Abrams and Sharon Shropshire their ‘Spirit of Zora’ Award

The following is from a press release the was published by Zeta Phi Beta

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Kappa Iota Zeta chapter of East Point, Ga., held “A Silver Tea with Z Celebrating Zora Neale Hurston, A Literary Legend” on Feb. 24 at the Georgia International Convention Center. Two community servants, Stacey Abrams, political activist, and Founder of Fair Fight Action, and East Point, Ga., Councilmember Sharon Shropshire received the Spirit of Zora Award for courageously fighting to improve the lives of Georgia residents.

Special guests included Valerie Boyd, author of Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston and Writer in Residence at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University Georgia, who gave a Tribute to Zora, and Zeta’s 25^th International President Valerie Hollingsworth-Baker. Kathy Adams, President of the Georgia Federation of Democratic Women accepted the Spirit of Zora award on behalf of Stacey Abrams.

Hurston, who attended Howard University between 1919 – 1924, became one of the first initiates of Zeta, which was founded at Howard in 1920. “It is an honor to celebrate the life and legacy of Zora Neale Hurston, one of the great authors of the Harlem Renaissance,” said Hollingsworth-Baker. “Zora’s contribution toward protecting Black culture and instilling self-love in the hearts of her readers makes Zora’s work as significant today as it was when first written.”

Tea attendees were entertained by Vascola Stoney, a Houston spoken word artist and saxophonist Eric Thomas. During the tea, the East Point chapter also announced the creation of the Zora Neale Hurston Literary Society that launched on Feb 5. in partnership with Westlake High School in Atlanta. Greenberg Traurig and Re/Max Platinum Access were event sponsors.