84 Years of Mixon Farms Memories – A Special Banquet
A very special banquet was held on Saturday, May 13, 2023. Close to 200 people attended the special event honoring Janet and Dean Mixon, owners of Mixon Fruit Farms. After 84 years, they have decided to close the business.
The entire Mixon family was in attendance, and they all pitched in to make the event a huge success. There were speeches by Mayor Gene Brown – Bradenton Mayor, Vanessa Baugh – Manatee County Commissioner District 5, Jeff Padobnik -Chairman of Manatee Chamber and Pirates and Marauders, and Pastor Randy Bezet – Bayside Community Church.
I have known the Mixon’s for many years and it has always been a pleasure to work with them. I am pleased to announce that Dean’s special project, U-Pin-It is undergoing a complete update and should be up and running in early August.
I had a chance to speak with Janet during and after the banquet and she conveyed some thoughts-
The 84 years of Mixon Memories banquet on Saturday night was both a happy and a sad evening for Dean and I. We had so many people attending that helped make a difference not only in our lives, but also in our business. It meant so much to us that people took the time to come and share their stories of their Mixon memories.
Our prayer, 17 years ago, when Dean and I decided to keep the business going we started diversifying. We wanted to be a place where memories are made. When you have someone come up to you at their child’s birthday party and they tell you they got married in the Pavilion, you know that your dream for Mixon’s is happening. Stories that we hear go back for generations of visits to the farm and we hear them every day.
Our store will be open until July 29th, but we are going to continue to have weddings , birthday parties and events for another year. We are also expecting to have our Food Truck, “The Mixon Swirl” completed and ready to go in October. We want to thank you all for our memories.
Janet and Dean…. You 2 are a class act and such important members of our community.
Photos from Janet Mixon
banquet, Bayside Community Church, Bradenton, Dean Mixon, Florida, honor, Janet Mixon, Manatee Chamber, Manatee County, Mixon Fruit Farms, Pirates and Marauders
