Florida grocery heiress, 65, dies

LAKELAND — Carol Jenkins Barnett, the daughter of Publix founder George Jenkins and a prominent Polk County philanthropist, has died. She was 65.

Jenkins Barnett died late in the evening Dec. 6 in her home, surrounded by family, according to a statement from the Lakeland-based grocer. The former chair and president of Publix Super Markets Charities, she was diagnosed with younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease in 2016, the company said in the statement.