By Brittany Cohill
mail@floridanewsline.com
On Saturday, April 20, Mandarin Museum & Historical Society presented local residents, Olis and Jo Garber, with the 2024 Miss Aggie Award at the historic Mandarin Store and Post Office. The award has been given annually since 2003 to one or more Mandarin residents who have contributed to the community in the areas of business, civic, educational, or charitable accomplishment. Recipients are also recognized for their sense of community and caring attitude.
The award is named for Agnes Grace Jones, or “Miss Aggie” as she was affectionately known. The daughter of Edith and Walter Jones, she was a resident of Mandarin from 1898 until her death in 1992 at the age of 94. After her father’s passing in 1928, Miss Aggie assumed the role of proprietor and U.S. Postmistress at the Store and Post Office. She was an independent, strong-willed, confident woman who possessed a deep sense of community and developed a reputation for helping her neighbors in times of need. She was the last of her family to live in the Webb-Jones Farmhouse located in Walter Jones Historical Park.
Olis and Jo Garber are longtime Mandarin residents and owners of Olis Garber Photography. Their love for their community is evident in their friendly and neighborly spirits, and their selfless giving of time and professional skills. In 2021, Olis Garber partnered with Mandarin Museum & Historical Society to document the last remaining 19th and early 20th-century structures in the Mandarin community. The images appeared in the museum’s “Images of America: Mandarin” book, with select images also appearing in Wayne Wood’s “Jacksonville’s Architectural Heritage Bicentennial Edition.”
Following this project, Olis and Jo Garber have continued to document countless people, programs, and events at the museum, throughout Walter Jones Historical Park, and the community, including the meticulous chronicling of Brenda Councill’s sculpting of “Harriet Beecher Stowe in Mandarin.” Portions of this work will be featured in an upcoming permanent display at Mandarin Museum.
Photo courtesy Keith Bartholomew
Olis and Jo Garber (standing) and their family at Miss Aggie Day 2024.
