Sun City Center

Fruits of generosity

Trees in Sun City Center produce so much fruit that residents give the excess to food banks or anyone who wants it.

By JAY CRIDLIN
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 21, 2003

The fruit doesn't fall far from the tree. At least not in Elmer Priebe's neighborhood.

Priebe had too much fruit on the orange and white grapefruit trees in his yard. So he put out a neighborhood call for folks to come pick leftover fruit, and got a resounding response.

"I've had 35 people come," he said. "I didn't expect that many people, but I had enough fruit to handle them all, and I've still got enough over there for myself for the balance of the year."

Priebe's come-one-come-all generosity is not uncommon in Sun City Center. A handful of fruit-laden residents have circulated the word in recent weeks that their tree limbs are weighed down with extra vitamin C.

Charles Miller, who has a yard full of lemon, grapefruit, orange, tangerine and tangelo trees, said he and his wife simply don't need that much fruit.

"We can't use it all," he said. "We didn't plant them. They were here when we came. So we just share them with others."

Longtime residents like Marilyn Andrew say this year's fruit giveaways are nothing new.

"I don't think it's unique," she said. "It's just indicative of an overabundance of fruit that you don't know how to cope with."

Most years, residents can find crates of pre-picked grapefruits and oranges on the sidewalk, ready for the taking.

"Quite often, people just box their grapefruit and put it out on their front walks, and people can stop and pick it up," said John Donnelly of King's Point, who took a sack of Miller's grapefruit.

Priebe allowed folks to pick directly from his trees this year, but in the past, he'd just set fruit in his yard.

"The past couple of years, I've been picking the fruit and putting it out front, because I have so much," Priebe said.

At least one county group picks leftover fruit to give to churches and food banks. Gleaners of Hillsborough County, led by Polly and Gene Shewfelt, picks up fruit that would otherwise go to waste.

Those giving away the produce say the free fruit brings Sun City Center neighbors closer together.

"I would say about 90-some percent of the people that came, I did not know or meet before," Priebe said.

Donnelly, who used to have his own citrus trees, already wrote a thank-you note to Miller, whom he'd never met before.

"That's the kind of community Sun City Center is," Miller said. "We kind of share things and volunteer."

It's the sort of thing you won't find in most communities, Andrew said.

"It has a lot to do with the type of people who live here," she said. "We're a community, and it's just the natural thing to do."

-- If you've got extra fruit to give away, tell us and we'll spread the word. Gleaners of Hillsborough County can be reached at 689-8621. Jay Cridlin can be reached at 661-2442 or cridlin@sptimes.com .