CRESTVIEW — First United Methodist Church’s youth pastor, Mike Milani, is taking some time off this summer for a special reason. 

On June 29, Milani will travel to New York, where he will undergo surgery to give his 14-year-old niece, Kenzie, one of his kidneys. 

Kenzie lives in North Carolina with her mother, Lindsey, who is Milani’s sister. She has been through several surgeries since birth and is currently in renal failure. 

“It’s been such a long time coming,” Milani said. They kept changing the dates, and then my niece, bless her heart, being that she is in end-stage kidney failure now, any infection is a hospitalization… so this should have been done on May 30.” 

Kenzie was born with an extremely small bladder, according to Milani. Three teams of surgeons from North Carolina and New York will do perform surgery at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. One of the surgery teams created a larger bladder for Kenzie and will place it during the kidney transplant. The other team includes the surgeon who invented laparoscopic kidney removal, Lloyd Ratner, who will remove Milani’s kidney and place it in Kenzie. 

Lindsey was originally supposed to be the organ donor. 

“That felt really wrong to me,” Milani said. “So I said, ‘Let me finish getting tested.’” 

As it turned out, Milani was also a perfect match for a transplant. 

“Lindsey has always been right there at (Kenzie's) side the whole time,” Milani said. “I said to her, ‘I can’t imagine you sitting in a hospital room recovering from your surgery, and you can’t get up and go see your baby girl.’ 

“She was being tough, I could tell, so I said, 'Let me do it.'” 

The recovery period for Milani will include a two-day stay in the hospital, followed by a follow-up appointment after a week; he will not be able to lift anything for about six weeks but should be mostly back to normal. 

Kenzie’s recovery period will be much longer – a six-week stay in the hospital, followed by 12 more weeks staying in New York for twice a week follow-up appointments with the doctors. 

“This is the new frustration for her; she’s fixing to start high school,” Milani said. “She’s had physical limitations her whole life… and it finally got to where most of that was gone. Now that’s going to be off the table for a little while. 

“She’s really kind of down about it.” 

The family has a GoFundMe page set up with more than $20,000 raised and a $50,000 goal. 

According to Milani, $20,000 is just the tip of the iceberg in this situation. With the travel expenses, Lindsey has already spent more than $12,000. Their stay alone in New York will be more than $10,000. 

"… I consider it as a blessing that I can do this for [her]," Milani said.  

“She’ll get a regular kidney and feel like a normal kid again.”

Visit www.gofundme.com/kidneyforkenzie to donate to the Milani family for Kenzie’s surgery and travel expenses

HOW TO HELP

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'I consider it as a blessing'

CRESTVIEW — Okaloosa County residents likely have a number of foot health problems, and a local podiatrist explains the issues and potential causes. 

Sean Hodson is a podiatrist who recently finished construction on a new White Sands Podiatry office on South Ferdon Boulevard, next to Lifepoint Church in Crestview. He has been practicing in the area since 2013 and has three offices in Fort Walton Beach, Niceville and Miramar Beach. 

According to Hodson, who travels between his four office locations throughout the week, along with most of his office staff, the problem he sees most often in patients is heel pain. 

“Walking barefoot causes it a lot,” Hodson said. “If you don’t have any support and your foot needs it, heel pain is one of the things that can happen.” 

To resolve heel pain, Hodson prescribes a combination of stretching exercises, devices patients can wear in their shoes, and injections. He also provides education on the issues and how to treat them. 

There are various foot health issues people experience, and there are many treatment options provided by podiatrists. 

“Services [include] corn and callus [removal], wound care, generalized diabetic foot care, reconstructive foot and ankle surgery, bunion surgery, hammertoe surgery, (treating) toenail fungus and non-operative treatments of the foot and ankle,” Hodson said. “We do custom orthotics in a lab, and ultrasound-guided injections.” 

Ultrasound-guided injections are used to alleviate pain. During this procedure, the ultrasound machine is used to ensure the doctor puts the needle in the correct place, according to Hodson. 

For residents who want to prevent major issues, Hodson’s top tips to improve foot health include not walking barefoot — always have some type of shoe or sandal on; doing stretching exercises; and washing feet to avoid fungus and infection.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Podiatrist: Preventive care crucial for foot health

CRESTVIEW— North Okaloosa Medical Center kicked off the first F.A.S.T. 5K on May 13 on Main Street, a fun run and walk to promote stroke education and awareness in the community.

The event is titled "F.A.S.T." after the acronym used as a mnemonic device to help detect a stroke: Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time to call emergency services.

This is the first time this event has been held, but the hospital plans on continuing the 5K for years to come, according to Greg Clark, a physical therapist at North Okaloosa Medical Center and one of the event's coordinators. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: F.A.S.T. 5K brings stroke awareness, education

CRESTVIEW — Paige Woody and her daughter, Zoey, were injured in a March 25 pit bull attack, but the pair are on the mend.

Meanwhile, bills are mounting.

Greg Woody, Zoey’s stepfather, set up an online GoFundMe account — https://www.gofundme.com/evj94r-help-for-zoey — to cover medical expenses and related bills following the accident, which the site explains.

“Paige was treated for deep lacerations to her head and body,” it states. “Zoey was airlifted to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola where she underwent nine hours of emergency surgery. The right side of her face had been ripped to shreds leaving her left eye hanging out. Her jaw was shattered in, required dissolvable screws to hold in place.

“Zoey's father, Jonny Green and I, have been trying to keep them as comfortable as possible. Zoey will need several surgeries to repair damage to her face.”

Paige said she isn't able to work due to Zoey's needing around-the-clock care.

"She is not allowed outside or able to go to school,” Paige said. “My follow-ups are all cash pay. Medical supplies are for her cleanings and scar treatments twice a day.

"We just found out (May 10) that she will be going to Birmingham (in) early summer to have an eye lift.”

The medical procedures and follow-up appointments are costly, and GoFundMe donors have only given $11,768 of the $50,000 goal, as of this writing.

The Wingmen Motorcycle Club of Northwest Florida, for their part, scheduled a May 13 poker run.

"As soon as we saw the news article in the News Bulletin and some people saw it online, we organized a run,” Wingmen member "Tinman" Charron said. “All their medical expenses aren't covered, and we're holding a run to cover the remaining expenses.”

While the cyclists don't have an exact goal in mind, "We're just going to raise as much as possible,” Charron said. “Even with maximum participation, it's probably not going to be enough, but we're going to do what we can.”

Participants may drive bikes or cars for the event. The cost is $20 per rider and $10 per passenger. A cash prize for best hand and door prizes are part of the event.

Registration is 9-10:45 a.m. May 13 at Main Street Eats, 147 Main St., Crestview.

From there, riders will visit On the Edge, 114 Edge Ave., Niceville; KC's Sandbar, 190 Miracle Strip Parkway, Fort Walton Beach; and Hooters, 180 Cracker Barrel Drive, Crestview.

The final stop will be the Wingmen's clubhouse at 160 Cayson Ave., Crestview.

Contact Tinman, 826-3819, for more information on the run.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Dog bite victims recovering, but bills mounting

CRESTVIEW — Okaloosa residents with standing water on their property may want to get live fish from the county if they are inundated with mosquitoes.

Okaloosa County Mosquito Control provides gambusia fish free of charge to people who contact the county Public Works Department. The fish can eat several hundred larvae a day, according to PondDigger.com.

"It's pretty much done as a normal work order," Dan Debord, North Okaloosa Mosquito Control employee, said. "We bring fish out to their private property and have them sign a release."

After that, the fish can fend for themselves. "People can feed them to boost their numbers, but it's really not necessary," Debord said. "They are a slightly aggressive fish, but as far as problems, there haven't been any."

"People can feed them to boost their numbers, but it's really not necessary," Debord said. "They are a slightly aggressive fish, but as far as problems, there haven't been any."

The county has stocks of the fish in holding ponds and feeds them catfish food as necessary.

When the county gets a call from a resident, they net some gambusia and put it in a 5-gallon bucket for transport and delivery, according to Debord.

During dry periods, the mosquito fish in certain areas die out. For people with acres of space that dry up in hot weather, the fish come in handy. When the rain fills those spaces back up, without the gambusia, the site would be overwhelmed with mosquitoes.

"They help us out a lot," Debord, a Crestview resident, said.

Debord delivered a few of the fish to the Crestview library the first week of May, along with an information board describing their benefits.

They will be available for viewing at the Crestview library for about a month.

The library planned to give away the fish in little baggies during an upcoming program about them, "but they don't survive without oxygen," Reference Librarian Sandra Dreaden said.

Area residents may have the fish delivered by calling the county Public Works department, 689-5772. Hours are 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The department is closed Fridays.

• Area residents may have the fish delivered by calling the county Public Works department, 689-5772.
• Hours are 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The department is closed Fridays.

Need a mosquito fish?

21081608007

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: MOSQUITO PROBLEMS?

NICEVILLE — The Northwest Florida State College Dental Assisting program will offer free dental X-rays in June.

Available hours are 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Thursday beginning June 5.

The lab will be closed June 19-23 and will re-open June 26.

Patients must have a written request from their dentist. Requests should include name, date of birth and a contact number. Participants may fax them to 729-6460.

Contact the Dental Assisting office, 729-6444, for details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: NWF Dental Assisting program offers free X-rays

CRESTVIEW — Okaloosa Head Start sites here had a walkathon in observance of the National Children's Mental Health Awareness Week May 1-5.

While the NCMHA Day is May 4, due to severe weather, children, their parents and teachers at both locations walked May 5 in Crestview. The walks ended with a balloon release.

OHS Mental Health & Disabilities specialist Junia Askew, with support from staff members, organized a weeklong program for the observance. It included the reading of a story about mental health; creating art for a display featuring the color green for mental health awareness; dressing in green; parental awareness of mental health; and creating banners featuring green for the walkathon.

The children also had a classroom activity where they discussed "What Mental Health Means to Me."

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Head Start sites celebrate children's mental health

FORT WALTON BEACH — Two Okaloosa County parks have potentially hazardous bathing water, the Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County stated date.

Liza Jackson Park, Fort Walton Beach, and Garniers Park, Fort Walton Beach, failed tests based on EPA-recommended enterococci standards. Enteric bacteria's presence indicates fecal pollution from stormwater runoff, pets and wildlife or human sewage.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Two Okaloosa parks receive hazardous water advisories

FORT WALTON BEACH — Two Okaloosa County parks have potentially hazardous bathing water, the Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County stated May 3.

Liza Jackson Park, Fort Walton Beach, and Garniers Park, Fort Walton Beach, failed tests based on EPA-recommended enterococci standards. Enteric bacteria's presence indicates fecal pollution from stormwater runoff, pets and wildlife or human sewage.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Two Okaloosa parks receive hazardous water advisories

BAKER — The Baker Lions Club and Baker Area Ministerial Association have scheduled a free mobile dental clinic.

The clinic will provide fillings and extractions during the week of May 8-12 to people who:

•Are 6 or older

•Have no dental insurance coverage

•Live at or below the 200 percent poverty guideline

•Attend a screening, which is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 5 at the Baker Area Recreation Center, 5503 U.S. Highway 4, Baker.

Local dentists and their assistants will provide services. The Florida Baptist Convention provided the mobile dental unit.

Call Project Director Mary Ann Henley, 865-3144, for more information about the dental clinic.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Free dental clinic scheduled