Celebrating Pine Islanders: Nellie Price
Church of God of Prophecy Secretary Treasurer Nellie (Howard) Price said the most important thing to know about her is that she was born and raised here on Pine Island, although she did leave for a time to go to Georgia and help some of her mom’s relatives.
“She was originally from Georgia,” Price said of her mother. “My dad was born and raised here. He was a commercial fisherman. That’s how he made a living.”
Her paternal grandparents lived in a houseboat around Charlotte Harbor, she said. In 1906, when her father was 3 years old, they moved to Pine Island.
“They had a place on Tortugas-a lighter house,” Price said, explaining the house had been made out of pine wood, which is also known as “Fat Lighter” or “Fatwood” primarily for being heavily resonated in natural pine resin and often used to start a fire.
Price said she knew Pine Island was special mostly through her family’s association and communication with other islander, they were close with, such as the Honc and Celec families.
“Some of my brothers and sisters grew up with Johnny Honc — that family lived pretty close to us and the Celec family — one of their girls married one of my brothers. We’re all like a big family,” Price said.
Her mother and father, she explained, were some of the first members of her church — the Church of God of Prophecy, which was organized in 1942. In 1945, she shared, the children were transported from Pine Island to North Fort Myers and Fort Myers to attend school.
“Two of my brothers and sister went to school here, where the church is now — it was a school. My other brothers and I were transported to J. Colin English and Fort Myers High School until North Fort Myers High School got built,” Price said.
Some of her maternal uncles came over to Florida to get jobs after her mother and father got married, Price said. Back in the 1930s, she explained, one had to have proof of a job, such as a letter stating it from your employer, before you could even cross the state line, she said.
“They had to be sure they had a job when they got here on the island,” Price said.
One of her aunts, she went on to explain, was the maid for Mr. Stringfellow and many of her family members were connected to Pine Island in ways easily traced back now. Her uncle Lloyd, she said, was something known as a grove manager.
“He kept the groves clean and the grass cut and what have you. When it came time for the fruit to be picked, he got one of his brothers to come help. There were other men who did not live on the island, but they had different types of groves. One had vegetables, and when they got through the vegetables he’d tell mom she could go get whatever she wanted, so that’s how we got vegetables. We mostly lived off the land and the sea. Mom would go out with a croker sack in the woods to get gophers. There was never a meal at the house that we didn’t have fish -morning, noon and night,” Price said.
A second cousin of Price, on her mother’s side, she said, had a mill for grits and for meal and would come over with a croker sack of each in exchange for fresh mullet, canned mullet and various jellies.
“Mom would go to the beach and get that cactus that had an apple. She would get that and make cactus apple jelly,” Price said.
Price said she would describe Pine Island as, West of Fort Myers, unlike the past, currently, having filling stations and grocery stores.
“It’s somewhat of a tourist Island, with no beaches. Pine Island is becoming more of a retirement, vacation place, ” Price said.
She said her greatest wish for Pine Island would be that it stays a safe community.
“Where people can live comfortably — a safe island where you come feeling like your safe,” Price said.
To reach PAULETTE LEBLANC / pleblanc@breezenewspapers.com, please email