10-4; I am not too far off from you on dates.
My first trip out there was around 98 or 99 with my father. But we wade fished all the barrier islands about every other weekend while I was growing up--Horn, Petit Bois, Sand, DI, etc. The first wade belt I bought was a Shimano that I purchased back in 97. Had to have one just like my fathers (I was 15 at the time). It came with a pliers pouch, a rod holder, a pouch for a smallish sized flat tackle box and a d-ring for a clip on landing net....it also had the stringer slot too. We each added cup holders so we could keep a water bottle on us. I have upgraded belts since but I still have that old belt. The belt itself is still in pretty good shape though the tackle box pouch has finally succumbed to the UV rays. I've had to replace the stringer 3 times. Mr. Toothy on all three occasions...but over almost 20 years, that is a pretty rare occurrence.
