Lori Wilson (February 15, 1937 – January 30, 2019) was an American lawyer and politician in the state of
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
.
Wilson was born in
Waynesville, North Carolina
Waynesville is a town and the county seat of Haywood County, North Carolina. It is the largest town in North Carolina west of Asheville. Waynesville is located about southwest of Asheville between the Great Smoky and Blue Ridge Mountains.
As ...
and came to Florida in 1960. She was part
Cherokee
The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...
. She attended
Tennessee Tech University
Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a Public university, public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as ...
,
Rollins College
Rollins College is a private college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several graduate programs. It is Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institution.
History
Rollins Colle ...
and
Brevard Community College
Eastern Florida State College, formerly Brevard Community College, is a public college in Brevard County, Florida. It is a member of the Florida College System and has campuses in Cocoa, Melbourne, Palm Bay, and Titusville, as well as a Virtu ...
. Wilson lived in
Cocoa Beach, Florida
Cocoa Beach is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,539 at the 2018 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
The first non-native s ...
. She was an honorary director of the Central Florida Zoological Society and legislative director of the Florida Injured Wildlife Sanctuary. She was also associated with the University of Florida Foundation. Wilson served on the
Brevard County
Brevard County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county seat is located in T ...
Commission. She served in the
Florida State Senate
The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopte ...
from 1973 to 1978, as an Independent member (16th district).
In her time in public service, Wilson fought to remove all pay toilets in Florida and fought for the passage of a law to protect endangered Florida
manatee
Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing three of the four living species ...
s. Wilson also worked to clean up an unofficial city dump in
Cocoa Beach
Cocoa Beach is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,539 at the 2018 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
The first non-native s ...
, which was then turned into a city park—named Lori Wilson Park by a unanimous vote.
Wilson went to the
Florida State University College of Law
Florida State University College of Law is the law school of Florida State University located in Tallahassee, Florida.
The law school borders the southeast quadrant of the University's campus, near the Donald L. Tucker Center, an arena and part o ...
and was admitted to the Florida bar in 1984. In 1988, Wilson sought to return to the Florida State Senate, but was narrowly defeated by Democratic
state Representative
A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...
Winston Gardner
Wilson died at her daughter's
Indian Harbour Beach, Florida
Indian Harbour Beach is a coastal city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 8,225 at the 2010 United States Census. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne– Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is nort ...
home on January 30, 2019, weeks before her 82nd birthday, following a lengthy illness.
References
1937 births
2019 deaths
People from Cocoa Beach, Florida
People from Waynesville, North Carolina
Florida lawyers
Florida State University College of Law alumni
Eastern Florida State College people
Rollins College alumni
Tennessee Technological University alumni
Women state legislators in Florida
Florida Independents
Florida state senators
County commissioners in Florida
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century American women
21st-century American women
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