Flora Jeanne Zbar

Zbar, Flora Jeanne

passed away on August 20, 2025, at the Legacy at Highwoods Preserve in Tampa, FL. She was 94 years old.

Flora Zbar was that rare commodity, a native Floridian. She was born in Tampa, FL on September 24, 1930, to Estelle Jacobs Zbar and Samuel Zbar. Flora attended the Academy of Holy Names in Tampa and later received her BA from the University of Richmond and her MA from Florida State University in 1962. Her area of concentration was Eighteenth-Century Literature and Jonathan Swift remained her life-long literary love.

In 1965 Flora became the second native Floridian to join the English faculty of the University of South Florida where she served for 38 years, retiring at the age of 73. During her long and memorable career at USF, Flora taught a wide spectrum of courses, ranging from Medieval Literature to Eighteenth-Century Literature to Classical Mythology to Image of Women in Literature. Later, with the support of her colleague William Heim, Flora introduced a new genre to the USF English Department: Literature and the Occult. Sparked by the enthusiasm and knowledge of its two initiators, Literature and the Occult soon became a blockbuster course in the Department.

Flora was also extremely active in various scholarly societies at the University including the Medieval/Renaissance Society, which she helmed twice as President, and the annual De Bartolo Conference, which she enthusiastically attended every year. She was also for many years a faithful and much valued member of Beta Theta Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma.

But Flora's greatest passion was travel and throughout her life Flora journeyed around the globe. During her 38 years at USF, Flora made over 30 overseas trips, many to the British Isles. London was one of her favorite cities and here Flora taught a course in English Literature under the auspices of Florida State University. She also enjoyed attending the London theatre and visiting with her special friends, particularly Jack and June Bishop and their family. In addition, in 1986, 1987, and 1988, Flora escorted three groups of English teachers around Britain with the assistance of her two friends, Sue Gordon McCord and Lucy Caryer. During these three trips the peripatetic professor gave enlightening lectures on Chaucer, Jane Austin, Shakespeare, and many other giants of British literature as the group visited locations associated with them. Flora also loved Greece and boasted that she had visited every Greek site related to her course in Classical Mythology.

In addition, Flora relished weekends at her beach home in Indian Rocks, enjoyed Gothic novels and both fantasy and science fiction TV shows, and valued cats for their individuality and independence, which mirrored her own. She also collected miniature handcrafted cottages that occupied every shelf in her beautiful architecturally designed home, as well as an extensive shell collection.

Flora is survived by her niece, Lane Zbar Warren; her nephew, Clay Zbar; her two great-nephews, Samuel Warren and Tate Warren; and her longtime "niece", Suzanne Gordon Hamar, as well as many devoted friends, who remember her as a witty, intelligent, and adventurous woman and a steadfast friend. Flora Zbar will be much missed. A private gathering was held to honor the life of Flora Jeanne Zbar.

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