Birthdays: Michael Shermer (8th, 1954), Greydon Square (28th, 1981)

Founding Dates: BE. Orlando (2nd, 2011)

  • Secular Volunteer Day – September 2nd, the founding date of BE. Orlando, a Humanist volunteer organization that served Central Florida for 9 years, providing thousands of hours of volunteer service and more than 700 volunteer events coordinated for the local Humanist Community. Dissolved 7/21/2020.
  • Labor Day – Observed on the first Monday in September.  It was originated by labor unions to create a holiday for workers.
  • 9/11 National Day of Service and Remembrance –  Visit 911day.org to find information, resources, and engagement opportunities on this important day of remembering the strength of community.  Did you know that Meetup.com was founded by people who lived near the Twin Towers, and wanted to create an online tool to help people come together in our communities?  We are proud to host our event calendar on Meetup and we honor the intent of Meetup and the initiatives of our nation by encouraging our members to reflect and to volunteer on this day.
  • International Coastal Cleanup Day (ICCD) – Held annually in September by the Ocean Conservancy, ICCD engages volunteers around the world in waterway cleanups and data collection.  Learn more: oceanconservancy.org
  • Talk Like a Pirate Day –  “ARRRR me hearties!” and the like. Learn more: talklikeapirate.com.  Our celebration of TLAPD goes back to the days long before BE was founded, when we ran amok with a kayak group called FOCK (Florida Outdoor Camping & Kayak) which later became FLOAT (Florida Outdoor Adventure Troupe). We had kayak pirate adventures – including more than 50 kayaks with pirate flags & kids & adults dressed as pirates on one of our TLAPD events. Later we began using a pirate theme for our blood donor group, PintClub, and our International Coastal Cleanup Day events.  We may not be much into the pirate events these days, but we be havin’ swashbucklin’* fun for true, savvy?  And in the words of the founders of TLAPD: It’s fun, so why not?
    • Swashbuckle. verb. 1. engage in daring adventures with ostentatious bravado or flamboyance. 2. to jump off stuff and laugh.
  • Ask an Atheist Day – Originated by the Secular Student Alliance national office, this day of open dialogue is celebrated on the third Thursdays in April and September. Non-faith organizations are encouraged to invite community members of faith to ask questions and engage in conversations that can build bridges across our differences.  Many people mistakenly believe that they have never met an Atheist – and they have been fed misinformation, misdirection, and anti-Atheist rhetoric by family, peers, and the media. This is an opportunity to overcome divisive faith-bias against Atheism, one conversation at a time.
  • World Gratitude Day – Occurring on September 21st, this day was officially started by the United Nations Meditation Group in 1977.  There are references indicating that it was started at a dinner party in Hawaii in 1965, and later brought to the meditation group, thus eventually becoming official.  World Gratitude Day is meaningful to Humanists because mindful living and appreciation of the good have personal, mental, professional, physical, and cultural benefits.  However, for many people of faith, the practice of gratitude is related specifically to the supernatural, and people of non-faith become stigmatized as being unable to feel or express complex human experiences and emotions like Gratitude.  Learn more about Secular Gratitude and find examples of secular reflections and graces at SecularGratitude.wordpress.com (a project of BE. Orlando)
  • World Peace Day –  The United Nations General Assembly has declared September 21st as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples.Learn more: un.org/en/events/peaceday/
  • Banned Book Week – The Banned Books Week Coalition is a national alliance of diverse organizations joined by a commitment to increase awareness of the annual celebration of the freedom to read. Banned Books Week occurs at the end of September – in 2018, it will be September 23-29.
  • Math Storytelling Day – observed annually on September 25th, this is a great opportunity to engage youth (and adults) in the story of Mathematics.  Read together about the history of math, famous mathematicians (especially women and minorities).  Read Flatland, the Fantasia Mathematica, the Sir Cumference Series, and other beautiful math-based stories. Engage in math word puzzles and logic games. It all adds up to fun!