![\"article](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Pioneer-Picnic-042826-450x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\nFrom left, Bud Smith, Ralph Ireland, Marge Smith-Henley and John Bruner at the 77th annual Pioneer Picnic\u00a0at the Tinsley Pavilion at Mike Greenwell Regional Park on Saturday. CHUCK BALLARO<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
From left, Bud Smith, Ralph Ireland, Marge Smith-Henley and John Bruner at the 77th annual Pioneer Picnic\u00a0at the Tinsley Pavilion at Mike Greenwell Regional Park on Saturday. CHUCK BALLARO<\/p>\n
Remember when Palm Beach Boulevard was a two-lane road and Daniels Parkway didn\u2019t exist?<\/p>\n
Remember Alva High School and when the Edison Mall was a heralded game changer?<\/p>\n
Those who attended the 77th annual Pioneer Picnic in the Tinsley Pavilion at Mike Greenwell Regional Park do. Saturday, on a sunny, windy day, nearly 800 people came to get reacquainted with old friends and talk about the old days.<\/p>\n
Since 1949 (except for the pandemic year of 2020), the Pioneer Club of Lee County has put on this annual event for those who were born or lived in Lee County for at least 50 years. Every year, the picnic has gotten bigger and better.<\/p>\n
Pat Mann, who was in charge of the festivities, said the picnic is the only event the organization puts on. Its mission is simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about bringing old-timers who lived in Lee County 50 years ago together to see friends they haven\u2019t seen for a long time,\u201d Mann said. \u201cThere\u2019s no real program. It\u2019s just getting together, shaking hands, hugging and remembering the good times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, Lee County is nothing like it was 50 years ago, which many who came to the picnic lamented, but understood.<\/p>\n
Johnny Streets, a former Fort Myers city councilman, graduated from Dunbar High School in 1967, when there was still school segregation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t integrate until 1969. We couldn\u2019t play Fort Myers in baseball or football. But we learned and respected everybody. There was no problem,\u201d Streets said. \u201cEveryone wanted to have a job and follow the rules. Our Dunbar neighborhood was very close-knit, more so than it is now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marge Smith-Henley, Fort Myers Class of 1956, came along with her brother, who graduated a year before her. It was only her second trip to the picnic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always wanted to come and it got to the point where I finally could come,\u201d Smith-Henley said. \u201cWe were looking for our kinfolks, but there aren\u2019t that many left. But we enjoy seeing everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith-Henley said as a youth, girls were not allowed to wear pants to school.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe used to walk or take the bus everywhere. When my brother got a car, my mom made him drive me to school. He wasn\u2019t happy about that,\u201d Smith-Henley said. \u201cFort Myers is definitely different from when I grew up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even those who just earned the pioneer designation have seen the changes. Brenda Capps-Brylanski, North Fort Myers Class of 1987, said the schools didn\u2019t have the curriculum they have now.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had the basics. We had one security guard and we knew everyone,\u201d Capps-Brylanski said. \u201cGuys had guns in their trucks and they weren\u2019t even locked and there were no school shootings. Safety was not a concern. And high hair? Absolutely.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, they gave out awards for the most special of the pioneers. Betty Anderson, 97, was the oldest female pioneer and oldest overall.<\/p>\n
Don Knowles, 93, was the oldest male. He and his wife, Barbara, 92, have been married 71 years, making them the oldest married couple.<\/p>\n
Judy Walden-Dismuke came all the way from Hawaii, making her the pioneer who travelled the longest distance.<\/p>\n