Local Sheryl Rohan has been selected to receive a $2,000 non-traditional scholarship from the Republican Women of Okaloosa Federated to apply to her major field of study at the college of her choice. She is pictured with RWOF members: Bottom row from left: RWOF President Deborah Stone; Sheryl Rohan-2022 scholarship recipient; 2022 Scholarship Chairman Billie Chappell. Send row from left: 2022 Scholarship Committee members Linda Gail Martin and Karen Neighbors. Top row: 2021 Past Scholarship Chairman Linda Flowers.
Chief George Darrel Welborn, Chief of Emergency Medical Services with Okaloosa County, was recently presented the H.E.R.O. Award from Okaloosa County staff for his incredible response during an emergency in June. Long-time employee Chief Welborn jumped into action on June 3, 2022, when a man with a machete attacked a couple visiting the Okaloosa Island boardwalk. Chief Welborn’s actions distracted the suspect from charging other civilians in the area until Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived on the scene. The County established the H.E.R.O. (Humanitarian Efforts Recognized by Okaloosa County) Award to recognize employees who not only go above and beyond the scope of their job description, but who do something that is considered to be of a humanitarian or heroic in nature.
The Downtown FWB Farmers’ Market is open the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month, year-round, from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. and is held at the Fort Walton Beach Landing Park, 139 SE Brooks St. in Fort Walton Beach. Vendors offer an array of locally grown and handmade items such as fresh produce, local honey, farm fresh eggs, fresh dairy products (milk, cream, cheeses, ice cream) grass fed beef, fresh pork, fresh roasted coffee, Italian ice, homegrown herbs, baked goods, handmade pastas, jams, jellies, salsas, dips, pickled veggies, infused vinegars, soaps, crafts, and tons more! Interested in becoming a vendor? Please read the guidelines and fill out the application here: https://forms.gle/nAeAtZHhagxuhPmd6
With hurricane season upon us, Florida Power & Light Company partnered with Feeding the Gulf Coast to distribute hurricane meal kits to homebound residents in DeFuniak Springs. Together, FPL, Florida Council on Aging and Feeding the Gulf Coast are distributing more than 150 hurricane preparedness kits to seniors in Walton County to ensure they have access to water and nutritious food for up to three days following a storm.
Registration for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Emerald Coast 2022-2023 After School Program began July 11. All registration will take place in person at your local Club (not online). Okaloosa County After School Program begins August 10, 2022 and ends May 25, 2023, 2 – 6:30 p.m. (All Clubs). Have questions? Call at (850) 862-1616.
This fall, University of West Florida (UWF) is offering a creative writing class at the Emerald Coast Campus in Fort Walton Beach. Writers and students interested in exploring narrative fiction should enroll now for this course. Advanced Creative Writing 3110 84857 is a workshop course in narrative fiction, taught by Diana Jernigan that helps creative writers explore fiction through developing plot, characters, setting, point of view and other elements of fiction, with an eye toward publication. Starts this fall, August 22—Tuesday nights starting at 5:30 p.m. 1170 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. in Fort Walton Beach. Diana Jernigan is a consultant with UWF who also teaches for the College of Business and for the Department of English. The university offers tuition waivers for senior citizens in some cases. Get started here:
https://uwf.edu/offices/emerald-coast/ Or contact Andrea Rymer at 850.863.6569 or arymer@uwf.edu.
On June 2, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the roughly $112 billion State Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Budget, confirming the funding for projects totaling nearly $8 Million to benefit Okaloosa County.
Approved projects include:
• $2 million for a US 98 Bridge-to-Bridge Multi-Use Path from West Okaloosa Island to Destin
• $750,000 for Overbrook Area Stormwater Improvements;
• $300,000 for Cinco Bayou Glenwood Park Water Quality Improvement;
• $3 million for County Road 2 Road Safety and Upgrades to Big Horse Creek and Yellow River Bridges
• $1.5 million for Niceville College Boulevard Multi-Use Pathway
• $350,000 for the continued support of the Pretrial Mental Health Diversion Program.
Two County projects were vetoed, including $1.5 million for a Florosa Water Storage Tank and funding for US 90 at Jericho Road Improvements within the Shoal River Ranch Gigasite for $1 million. An alternate funding source for the Florosa tank will be presented to the Board of County Commissioners in July, as part of the upcoming 5-year Capital Improvement Plan.
Though the US 90 and Jericho Road Improvements were not approved as part of the State’s annual budget process, DeSantis awarded $3.2 million to Okaloosa County through the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund to expand infrastructure, including roads, at the Shoal River Ranch Gigasite.
HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital has received two American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines achievement awards for demonstrating commitment to following up-to-date, research-based guidelines for the treatment of stroke, ultimately leading to more lives saved, shorter recovery times and fewer readmissions to the hospital. Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest evidence- and research-based guidelines. As a participant in the Get With The Guidelines program, HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital qualified for the award by demonstrating how its organization has committed to improving quality care.
