She grew up on Gwynn’s Island and 41 years ago was married on Gwynn’s Island. Today, Tenna Safrit and her husband Steve (a North Carolina native) have made their home on Gwynn’s Island. This frequently happens for persons who have had the fortune to know and love this 3.5-square-mile true gem surrounded by Chesapeake Bay, Piankatank River and Milford Haven.
“Gwynn’s Island was quite different 60 years ago,” Tenna expressed. “Everybody knew everybody. We didn’t have a lot of toys so we played outside and made mud pies. People visited their neighbors and cooked from scratch.”
Tenna added, “I didn’t pay much attention to my mama when she was preparing meals; I was bit of a tomboy. But when my maternal grandmother was coming I would go in the woods (barefoot) and pick blackberries. She would make miniature pies and bite-size biscuits just for me in my little metal kitchen pans. It was the best thing in the world.”
Although Tenna says she didn’t know how to cook before she was married, she ...