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The top stories near you

• WUFT News: In A Year Of Disrupted Traditions And Grief, A Cemetery’s Planting Day Offers Comfort. "In the 10 years since (Prairie Creek Conservation Cemetery) opened and the three in which the event has happened, there has never been a community planting day quite like this one."

• WUFT News: ‘The One-Armed Bandit’: How An Ocala Man Learned To Golf Without Both Arms. "(Chris) Kemp is a 29-year-old Marion County Sheriff’s Office emergency management logistics planner. On Jan. 10, 2012, he was in a motorcycle accident in Ocala. As a result, he was left with something called a brachial plexus injury. The nerve clusters were torn out of his left arm, which left the arm paralyzed."

• WUFT News: UF’s Planned Return To In-Person Classes At Pre-Pandemic Numbers Causes Mixed Reactions. "Even though some people feel uncomfortable with UF in-person classes for the Spring, Ken Garcia with UF Health Communications said, 'We have seen no evidence of transmission in classrooms or labs to date. Students, faculty and staff should continue to take necessary steps to stay healthy. This includes wearing a mask, washing hands and physical distancing.'"

• The Alligator: Activist and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai will virtually speak to UF. "Women’s rights activist and youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai will speak to UF virtually on Nov. 18."

• Gainesville Sun ($): High Springs selects new city manager. "High Springs city leaders have chosen Ashley Stathatos of Texas as their new city manager, officials announced Monday."

• Bay News 9: Hernando Woman Credits Long-Term Rare Reopening With Saving Mother's Life. "A Hernando County woman is expressing gratitude after a visit to her mother’s assisted living facility revealed a potentially deadly medical condition just in time."

• Ocala Star-Banner ($): Woman pleads guilty in animal cruelty case that targeted bears. "A woman has pleaded guilty to luring bears with pastries and then letting loose trained dogs that would hunt the creatures in places like the Ocala National Forest."

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Around the state today

• Panama City News Herald ($): Nikic makes history as first person with Down Syndrome to finish IRONMAN marathon. "The 21-year-old Special Olympics Florida athlete crossed the finish line in 16:46.09 to complete the competition consisting of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run totaling 140.6 miles, all of which needed to be completed in 17 hours."

• Florida Storms: Uncertainty High On Tropical Storm Eta’s Next Move In The Gulf. "Tropical Storm Eta has moved into the Gulf of Mexico, where competing atmospheric factors are leading to low confidence on its next move. As such, a credible forecast on when, where, and even if a second landfall will occur in Florida cannot be made at this time."

• New York Times ($): Tropical Storm Eta Causes Flooding in South Florida. "South Florida awoke to streets turned into shallow rivers on Monday after Tropical Storm Eta soaked the region overnight. It dumped rain inland, caused storm surge along the coast and left hundreds of thousands of people without electricity."

• News Service of Florida: The Florida Legislature will convene next week, and in the Senate, masks will not be mandated. "The Senate plan doesn’t mandate that masks be worn but makes clear that members and guests are asked to adhere to federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that recommend masks and six-foot social distancing."

• Miami Herald ($): Experts wonder and warn: Is Florida the nation’s test case for COVID-19 herd immunity? "The minimum threshold to achieve herd immunity in a population is around 60%, or triple the estimated percentage of Floridians already infected. Public health experts said that means you could expect the death toll — currently at 17,121 — to triple as well, to as many as 51,000 lives, assuming people return to their pre-pandemic levels of activity with the current mix of inconsistent standards of masks and social distancing across the state."

• WTSP: Molecular epidemiologist: 'This is the home stretch, the vaccine is coming.' "Dr. Jill Roberts, an epidemiologist at the USF College of Public Health called the early data 'just phenomenal.'"

• WJCT: Mosquito Advisory Issued For Duval County After West Nile Virus Confirmed. "The Florida Department of Health in Duval County said several sentinel chicken flocks and mosquito pools have tested positive for the West Nile virus."

From NPR News

• Health: Pfizer Says Experimental COVID-19 Vaccine Is More Than 90% Effective

• Health: Coronavirus Is Surging: How Severe Is Your State's Outbreak?

• Business: Stocks Soar To Record Highs On Vaccine Hopes

• Race: In Harris, Black Sororities And Fraternities Celebrate One Of Their Own

• Politics: Barr Wades Into Trump's False Voting Claims, Allowing Prosecutors To Investigate

• Politics: Trump 'Terminates' Secretary Of Defense Mark Esper

• Politics: Key Trump Contacts Ben Carson And David Bossie Test Positive For Coronavirus

• National: Veterans And Gold Star Families Granted Lifetime Passes To National Parks

• National: Utah Gov. Announces Statewide Mask Mandate, Citing Steep Spike In COVID-19 Cases

• National: Puzzle Business Goes 'Bonkers' As People Seek Pandemic Pastimes At Home

About today's curator

I'm Ethan Magoc, a news editor at WUFT. Originally from Pennsylvania, I've found a home telling Florida stories. I’m part of a team searching each morning for local and state stories that are important to you; please send feedback about today's edition or ideas for stories we may have missed to emagoc@wuft.org.