By B.C. Manion
They streamed into the Old Lutz Schoolhouse carrying covered dishes and desserts and placed them on tables already laden with food.
Some made their way about the room, looking at black and white photographs that captured scenes from the past. Or they checked out the memorabilia: Colorful citrus labels, a Sunday school cradle enrollment form about a century old; a $1 receipt for hymnals purchased during the Depression.
They gathered in clusters, laughing at old memories, catching up on family news and reminiscing about people they knew who have passed away.
This was the 24th reunion of the descendents of the pioneering families of Lutz and Land O’ Lakes.
Cindy Swisher was there. She said wouldn’t miss it.
“My great-grandmother was Minnie Dennison. My grandmother was Dorothy Frizzell. My mother is Glenda Louette. My dad is Charles Steinke,” she said. Her grandfather, Bill Steinke, was the first chief of the Lutz volunteer fire department.
“I’ve been here all of my life. I was one of the last classes to go to school in here,” she said, referring to the old schoolhouse which closed during the 1970s.
“My family was here before it was even Lutz,” she added, noting her descendants originally settled in the community during the early 1800s.
Annie Carlton Fernandez, an event organizer, said she looks forward to the reunion that is held each year during the second weekend of October.
The communities of Lutz and Land O’ Lakes have changed enormously through the years, but those attending the reunion have an abiding affection for their communities, Fernandez said.
She recalls when Lutz was a simpler, quieter place.
“We used to have a band in Lutz. We would practice on (US) 41, a two-laner. We wouldn’t have to worry about anything.”
Others recalled swimming in Lutz lakes, eating oranges from the community’s trees and watching movies at the old band shell at Bullard Park.
While others mingled out on the patio, Ed Brant and Janet King O’Neill checked out some photographs inside.
“We’re remembering a lot of the adults we grew up with,” Brant said. He points to a little boy in a picture. “I think that’s me,” he said.
His wife, Sharon, said the annual gatherings provide a venue for preserving the community’s history. “It’s retelling a story. It makes you remember,” she said.
Outdoors, under canopies, people ate lunch, talked and listened to music.
Elizabeth Riegler MacManus, who died in 2008, is credited for starting the reunions nearly a quarter-century ago.
Margie Strickland used to help MacManus with the event. She said no one will ever know how much money MacManus spent on the annual reunions.
Susan MacManus, the daughter of Elizabeth Riegler MacManus, is a professor at the University of South Florida and is widely known for her political expertise.
She also worked with her mother to chronicle the history of Lutz and Land O’ Lakes in a book called “Sawmills, Citrus, Critters & Crackers: Life in Early Lutz and Central Pasco,” published in 1998 by the University of Tampa Press.
Now, Susan is working on a companion book that will honor the centennial of Lutz. It’s called “Going, Going … Almost Gone,” and is due out next year. Again, Susan and her mother will be listed as the book’s co-authors.
Susan brought a copy of the manuscript to the annual reunion to give people a sneak preview.
One section covers the area’s fondness for picnics.
“Good fellowship, food, fun and rekindled friendships have been the hallmarks of Lutz-Land O’ Lakes area annual picnics since the 1910s,” states the book. “Even the earliest settlers realized the importance of reflecting on shared histories and passing them along to the next generation.”