Summerlin Family Reunion Committee
The Magic Unfolds
From an early age I can remember my daddy and his sister, my Aunt Polly Ann, being fascinated about old family pictures and saved memorabilia. While visiting at my grandma and papa’s once, I think I was in my early teens, they had me try to find their images in an old family reunion picture. It tickled me their sight was so blurry, they were having a difficult time focusing on the images. Only with a magnifying glass would it come clear to them. Turns out, that picture was of the Honey Dew Ranch Reunion, circa 1948 and they’re in the third and fourth row back. This is a treasured memory, as this would be my first lesson on tracing our roots.
“It’s a sweet life, living by the salty sea.”
~Jimmy Buffet
It piqued my curiosity. Through the many years that followed they would grab every chance they could, trying to get me involved in delving deeper into our family history. And looking at old family collections was just the beginning. I became obsessed in joining in with antique bottle hunting in the sand dunes on the hill above their childhood home and climbing through the gnarled mangrove roots along the ocean and river. Those were fun times in my teen years. And then I dropped the interest for things of the youth and finding a way for myself.
It saddens me to think I didn’t feed that curiosity before I could ask my daddy more about all the old stories he heard from his uncles and aunts. Stories of growing up with that salt sheen that seemed to always be on his skin; about building his own boat as a boy of twelve years of age; about hunting and fishing whenever he was given the opportunity, and about details, lots of details. Even as an adult he always had a fishing pole in the back of his work van and would pass by the river on his way home to cast a line or two. He knew all about work life balance. Something I’ve struggled with my entire adult life.
The tutor and her students
When I turned 50, I moved back to St. Lucie County and a few years later renewed my interest in tracing our roots by helping plan the 2013 Summerlin Family Reunion. That was a year of sitting under Aunt Polly Ann’s tutelage, with Peggy and Lucy by my side, with an occasional cousin joining in, to help plan that reunion. Aunt Polly Ann was an amazing tutor and weaved so many wonderful stories of her own youth as she shared pictures and letters and assorted saved documents passed down to her from her aunt. She stoked in us a drive to know more about all things family history.
Her passion became ours and we enjoyed every minute of those nights sitting at her table, reading and talking and laughing. There was always a shared meal. That came first. Breaking bread and talking about current events. Then the table would be cleared and that’s when the magic of history would unfold.
We learnt that fishing and crabbing and hunting, in the 30’s and 40’s, were favorite past times in the family, a tradition that continued. Many of the women joined in, but they also loved to cook and created amazing recipes, some of which you’ll find in our Favorite Recipes section of the website. *Look for my papa’s fudge recipe and my grandma’s orange cake!
Mending nets was not only a past time but a necessity as cast nets and sein nets were used to catch messes of fish unlike any we’re used to today. And they built their own boats and called them names like Minerva, Lillian Jane and The Bittersweet.
“If a man must be obsessed by something, I suppose a boat is as good as anything, perhaps a bit better than most. A small sailing craft is not only beautiful, it is seductive and full of strange promise and the hint of trouble.”
~E. B. White
Radioing and Sings
One of the only means of outside entertainment was “radioing” where the family would gather together and listen to baseball or a show on the radio. But that’s okay because they had each other and would often gather together for what they called a “sing”. These would typically happen in the late evening when it was cooler and those who could play instruments would bring them and all would gather and sing all night!
I can remember attending those when I was a child at my aunts and uncles homes. One of my fondest memories of one of those “sings” occurred at my Uncle Astor and Aunt Margaret’s where we had roasted oysters from the outside brick grill with boiled peanuts. Why is that one of the best meals I ever ate? It must have to do with the sound of the joyful laughter bubbling up from family, the water lapping outside at the dock, and the lilting sounds of music drifting through the air. And of course, the salty taste of those oysters and peanuts!
Telling the stories
So much of this history I never would have known about if it weren’t for my Aunt Polly Ann. To you she’s mom, grandma, aunt, cousin or friend. And to my daddy she was his “baby sister” (even though she was older). To me, she was the most amazing and vivacious story teller and confidant. Aunt Polly Ann cut right through to the heart of a matter and could see it, dissect it, and help you to better understand it. She was generous, loving and welcoming, witty, opinionated, and mischievous, forthright in all her ways. Oh, she could make you laugh out loud until you thought you couldn’t breathe. She was a very special aunt that helped unfold the history of our family to us and make us want to know more. That curiosity is now embedded in my DNA. Lucy has it. Peggy has it. Many of you reading this have it, too. And I know she’s smiling now. Knowing we’ll continue tracing our roots. Telling the stories. Showing the pictures. Sharing the memories. Holding these family reunions.
Keeping it alive
And so family, as this website unfolds, we’ll spend more time tracing our roots and sharing the magic with you too. With Aunt Polly Ann looking over our shoulders, making sure we don’t claim something that wasn’t verified. In history, we know, some things are legend. We know some are great stories, embellished along the way and some are followed up to with facts. We will do our best to keep to the facts but share some of those sweet stories, too. Tracing our roots. We hope you will, too, keeping it alive for generations to come. Come along for the journey!
We’re all connected by our roots.
~Dale
