Retired Plant City Photographer Honored For Life's Work

Nostalgia was the dominant theme at the gala honoring photographer Gladys Jeffcoat for her life's work - capturing on film nearly a half-century of history in her small hometown.

Jeffcoat received the Heritage Award at Plant City Photo Archives' seventh annual gala Thursday at Red Rose Ballroom at Red Rose Inn and Suites.

Accepting the award, the 84-year-old honoree told guests, "This Heritage Award is dedicated to the people of Plant City and my family. I couldn't do it without both of them."

"The thing that always impressed me about Plant City is people always help each other," she said. The Plant City native told the crowd she preserved the many portraits and other photographs "to save your precious smiles."

During his biographical introduction of Jeffcoat, Photo Archives President Ed Verner related how, at age 16, she took her first photo with a 50-cent camera and earned $1 weekly at her first job at a local shop, Hollywood Studio.

"She'd ride her bicycle from high school to the studio each day," and from home to work on weekends. In 1945, at age 19, she opened her own business, Arcade Studio.

After 45 years in the photography business, Jeffcoat retired in 1990. To ensure her estimated 45,000 photos are preserved, she recently entrusted them to Plant City Photo Archives. Her contribution "nearly doubled the size of our collection overnight," Verner said.

For years, she was the official photographer for Plant City High School and the Florida Strawberry Festival.

The historical photographs are especially valuable because Jeffcoat is able to identify the individuals, places and events she photographed, Verner said. "She's been working like a demon" to catalog the photos she donated, providing identification for about 75 percent of them in the past four months, Verner added.

Hal Brewer, recipient of last year's Heritage Award, also addressed Jeffcoat's photography career, pointing out that her pictures went everywhere. World War II troops stationed at nearby Drane Field often enlisted Jeffcoat to photograph them in uniform. Those photos were mailed home to families across the nation.

Also during wartime, many Plant City mothers brought their newborn babies to Jeffcoat for the child's first photograph, said Brewer, a retired physician. Mailed overseas, those photos found their way to military fathers stationed overseas, providing a treasured first look for "some who would not see the kids until they were 14 months old," Brewer said.

The black-tie-optional Evening of Picture-Perfect Memories included displays of scores of historical black-and-white photographs from Jeffcoat's collection, a photo trivia quiz, champagne reception, musical entertainment by the Florida Southern College Jazz Combo and a continuous hors d'oeuvre buffet.

Guests could also pose for souvenir digital photos with a choice of four historical Plant City backgrounds - superimposed by computer.

Besides Brewer, previous Heritage Award winners include David E. Bailey Jr., James L. Redman, Robert Trinkle, B.M. "Mac" Smith Jr. and Betty Barker Watkins.