The Way We Were: George Stallings, Jr.
Long-time Venetia resident George B. Stallings, Jr., who will join the ranks of centenarians on May 12, credits his longevity to strong Biblical beliefs. “I believe if you live a clean, godly life, you get a lot of years! I also believe in having morals,” said Stallings. The lack of morality, according to Stallings, is […]
The Way We Were: Jim and Mimi Pearce
Although Mimi Sherman Pearce was born in White Plains, New York and her husband, Jim Pearce, was born in Sioux St. Marie, Michigan, they both consider San Marco their “hometown.” Mimi Pearce lives two houses down from the house on Alexandria Place where she grew up. “I came to live in San Marco as a […]
The Way We Were: Carolyn Smith Gentry
Carolyn Gentry cares deeply about the memories she’s made with her family and friends. She treasures the rich history of her ancestry in the Jacksonville neighborhood on the St. Johns River where she was born and raised. Inspired by diaries, journals and “jottings” of her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, Carolyn has chronicled the large and […]
The Way We Were: Blair Jones Woolverton
The sign still hangs over the door of the iconic shop in Avondale where “everybody who was anybody” shopped for over 30 years, but Blair Woolverton “has left the building.” It serves as a reminder to passers-by that Blair’s personal touch and attention to detail created a shopping experience that could not be separated from […]
The Way We Were: Karyl & Bert DeSousa
Karyl Crowley DeSousa remembers when there was no Beach Boulevard in Jacksonville. “We lived on Belden Street in St. Nicholas and we’d take the bus down Atlantic Boulevard to the old Pier at Jacksonville Beach,” said Karyl. “There was an arcade and there were rooms to rent at the Pier. Mother, my cousin Yvonne, and […]
The Way We Were : Hank Bonar
Henry Bascom (Hank) Bonar II grew up on a lake in Tampa and loved all that the water had to offer – boating, fishing, skiing and even duck hunting – so the opportunity to buy a house on the St. Johns River was one he couldn’t pass up. When his friend, Francis Langel, who worked […]
The Way We Were : Bob & Barbara Swindell
Bob Swindell says that his and Barbara’s love story is the “greatest one ever told.” “We’ve been married 57 years, 5 months, 26 days and 2½ hours,” he announced, glancing at his watch during an interview at 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2018. With a steel-trap memory, tempered and honed by deep affection for his […]
The Way We Were : Sarah Towers Van Cleve & Dr. Robert Van Cleve
“Growing up in Avondale was the most perfect childhood,” remarked Sarah Towers Van Cleve. “I had cousins close by, a neighborhood full of kids; we walked to Fishweir Elementary School, waded in the creek and played everywhere. I had everything a child could want. I had loving parents, a nursemaid, Emma Gould, who was also […]
