NOIRMOUTIER — Treading where history took place and immersing themselves in the life of their sister city counterparts gave Crestview visitors a new way of viewing their world.

Standing on Pointe du Hoc’s cratered bluff during an overnight excursion to Normandy, Montavius Diamond, 24, suddenly understood the relevance of World War II history lessons.

In June 1944, U.S. Army Rangers scaled the towering bluffs under withering German gunfire and inadvertent shelling from U.S. warships.

"Those guys were younger than me when they climbed up here," Diamond said softly as he gazed at the English Channel over rusted barbed wire crowning the bluff’s edge.

The nearby sword-shaped memorial to Col. James Rudder, namesake of the Rangers training camp at Eglin Air Force Base, gave the Crestview group another connection.

During their stay with host families, participants learned about oyster cultivation, beat the incoming tide as it flooded the causeway connecting the island to the mainland, observed sea salt harvesting, and relished cuisine for which the French are famous.

Pam Coffield watched as a Noirmoutain tailor demonstrated a hand-cranked sewing machine, and marveled at the artist's skill as she guided the fabric with one hand.

"I'd sew my fingers together if I tried that," Coffield said.

Crestview visitors who compared Noirmoutier's oysters with those from Florida found the oblong-shelled French variety more flavorful.

"But I still don't like oysters," Diamond said after forcing one down.

Viewing the Bayeux Tapestry — which depicts events preceding Normans' England conquest — and Mont Saint-Michel, an island monastery in Normandy, contrasted with the somber experience of the vast American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer.

"What a tragic waste of young lives," Richard Baker-Rian said, shaking his head as he walked between endless rows of crosses.

Under a medieval cathedral’s towering Gothic vaulted ceiling, Rip Coleman whipped out his flute and played a melody .

"It had tremendous acoustics," Coleman said. "It made the music come alive."

Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: French home stays, excursions, expand Crestview visitors' horizons

CRESTVIEW — School's out and the kids are screaming for something to do. Dr. Brian Rucker has a suggestion: Take a drive into our regional heritage.

The University of West Florida history professor's recently published "Treasures of the Panhandle: A Journey Through West Florida" is more than a lively history lesson.

"It's a guide for eco and heritage tourism," Rucker said. "It's a celebration of the place we call home."

Rucker said his book fills the void left by other Florida guides.

"Every time you read a book about Florida, it always stops at Tallahassee," he said. "I got tired of our area being the bastard stepchild of Florida. We have a long history here."

Local sites

Without leaving Okaloosa County, cultural tourists can choose from many destinations, beginning with the Carver-Hill Museum in Crestview and Baker Block Museum.

Heading south, Rucker recommends the U.S. Air Force Armament Museum, noting, "For people who like things that go 'boom,' this is the place."

The Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida in Valparaiso and the Indian Temple Mound Heritage Park and Cultural Center in Fort Walton Beach also rate a visit, Rucker said.

The Indian temple mound is the last of several, one of which was lost when bulldozed to put in a bowling alley in the 1950s — "because that's 'progress,'" he said.

Head west, young man

Newspaperman Horace Greeley's advice to "go west" is also appropriate for seekers of local history.

Traveling U.S. Highway 90 west toward Milton takes visitors into the heart of Northwest Florida's once booming timber and turpentine industry.

Along the way, motorists drive parallel to a restored section of the first paved highway in the area. The Old Brick Road, or Highway 1, was a brick-paved section of the Old Spanish Trail.

"People came from Pensacola in their Model T's just to ride up and down a paved road at 35 miles per hour," Rucker said.

At the site of the region's first industrial park, Arcadia Mills Archaeological Site in Milton, visitors follow an elevated walkway and sense the large scale of the long lost sawmill, turpentine still and cotton gin complex.

Downtown Milton's historic center includes the L&N Railroad depot museum. The same railroad served Crestview, which is marked on several pieces of equipment displayed.

Looking east

Like Milton, DeFuniak Springs’ historic downtown is ideal for Victorian architecture lovers, Rucker said. A stroll around Lake DeFuniak is a wander through history.

In addition to a promenade of picturesque railroad industrialists' homes, historic structures include the stately Florida Chautauqua Hall of Brotherhood and several elegant churches.

DeFuniak's 1882 L&N Railroad Depot is also now a regional history and culture museum.

With the 1972 horror film "Frogs," Hollywood made famous Eden Gardens State Park, the stately 1890s Greek-revival plantation home.

Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: UWF history professor's book is a guide to regional heritage

NOIRMOUTIER, France — A trip 70 years back in time was memorable for 22 Crestview Sister City members who visited this French island.

For the first time in seven decades, a B-17 Flying Fortress roared low over the beach of La Guérinière, a small village on the island's west coast.

On July 4, 1943, another B-17, the "Battling Bastards" — returning from a bombing raid on a German-held airfield — crash-landed in low-tide shallows near Camp Tirpitz, a German blockhouse fortification.

The 10 crewmembers survived the crash and spent the rest of the war as German prisoners. Their plane's wreckage can still be seen at low tide, a vivid reminder to swimmers and fishermen of their community's freedom.

"We keep it so everyone on the island remembers what our American friends did to help liberate us," Noirmoutier Sister City committee vice president Gérard Moreau said.

The crash was the focus of "Wings of Freedom," a June 29 and 30 commemoration of the American forces’ role in freeing the island from German occupation.

Front and center was the Crestview delegation, augmented by the sons of two Battling Bastards and the co-pilot’s brother and grandson.

Click here to see a photo gallery of Crestview's delegation exploring France

Niceville resident Don Bohler, a member of the Crestview group, had spent several months tracking down families of the B-17 crew and was rewarded when some of them joined the celebration.

They were honored guests during the ceremonial unveiling of a monument dedicated to the crew on the beach near the crash site.

"My wife and I were planning to vacation in Hawaii," said Richard Burton, son of tail gunner Harold Burton. "When we got Don's phone call, I told her, 'Hawaii can wait.'"

"Isn't it interesting that an event 70 years ago — that probably lasted less than an hour — has brought people together from different nations to keep the terrible memories of war alive and bring into perspective the value of peace and freedom?" said Gregg Stephenson, grandson of co-pilot Hubert Stephenson.

Noirmoutier’s classic vehicles club organized events on the beach and displayed their restored war-era Jeeps, troop trucks and civilian cars.

Their historic reenactment on the beach, scripted from actual wartime events, starred club members and some of the Crestview group's host families in authentic German, American, Free French and British uniforms, and civilian garb.

Shells exploded and the crackle of gunfire mingled with stirring music as a vintage landing ship dropped its front loading gate and Allied troops stormed the beach.

The weekend's grand finale, the flyover of the "Sally B," the last operational B-17 in Europe, drew cheers from thousands of people gathered on the beach.

Crestview visitors’ presence, maintaining the memory of Americans' roles in liberating their island, drew the praise of U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller-R, Fla.

"The island of Noirmoutier … maintains an inextricable link with our nation's military history," he said June 12 in the House. "I am privileged to recognize the friendship between the people of Northwest Florida and Noirmoutier."

Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview Sister City participants commemorate World War II

CRESTVIEW — A backyard barbecue requires tasty side dishes. Boost baked beans and coleslaw with any of these easy-to-prepare cold salads.

Corn and black bean salad with cumin-lime dressing

Cumin is the spice that gives Mexican food that "Mexican food" taste. Used sparingly, it gives this savory salad a kick.

Prepare this dish a half-day in advance so the flavors can blend.

Dressing

3.4 teaspoons ground cumin

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt or season salt

Salad

1 11-ounce can corn kernels, drained

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 red and green pepper, diced

1/2 diced medium red onion

1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley

Warm the cumin about a minute in a small skillet over low heat. Turn off the heat, add the lime juice, oil and salt and whisk to blend.

Combine the corn, beans, peppers, onion and parsley in a large bowl. Add the lime dressing and toss to coat.

Optionally, garnish the top of the salad with a wreath of chopped parsley.

Chinese cabbage slaw

When my friends in New Orleans ask, "What's the biggest change in your life since you moved to Florida?" I have to reply, "The church supper."

When you get a few dozen southern church members trying to outdo each other with favorite family recipes, you always come out the winner. I learned about this wonderful salad at a church supper.

Dressing

1 cup olive oil

4 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon soy sauce

Salad

1 package shredded cabbage slaw

8 green onions, chopped

8 tablespoons slivered almonds

4 tablespoons sesame seeds

2 packages Ramen noodles, including spice packets

Whisk the dressing ingredients together. Crumble the Ramen noodles into the bowl and mix with the other salad ingredients. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to mix well.

Serve immediately for a crunchier texture, or let it rest a half-hour so the noodles can soften.

Tabbouleh

People differ on how to spell "tabbouleh" about as much as they do with what to put in it.

My version, which serves six, combines the Houston's restaurant chain couscous recipe with other recipes.

Ingredients

1 cup dry bulgur wheat

1 1/2 cups boiling chicken or vegetable stock

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 or 2 minced garlic cloves

Salt and pepper to taste

1/3 cup minced green onions

1 tablespoon minced fresh mint

1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts

1/2 cup dried currants

Put the bulgur wheat in a mixing bowl, cover with boiling broth and let stand about 25 minutes until tender.

Stir in olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper, and refrigerate at least an hour or up to two days.

Stir in remaining ingredients about 30 minutes before serving, and bring to room temperature.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: RECIPES: Summer salads add green side to backyard cookouts

NOIRMOUTIER, France —Visitors to Crestview’s sister city can expect red-carpet hospitality from big-hearted host families.

Some visitors, however, receive a bit more.

Jocelyne and Gérard Pontoizeau have welcomed more than 50 guests from Northwest Florida since Crestview and the French town Noirmoutier-en-l’Ile formed a relationship through Sister Cities International.

Gérard — known as “Pompom” to friends — and his father-in-law built the couple's six-bedroom, two-bathroom and three-water-closet stone house nearly 30 years ago.

The Pontoizeaus are well-known among Northwest Florida State College show choir students, who perform every two years in Noirmoutier.

“Older students pass the word, ‘Stay with Pompom,’” said Montavius Diamond, who is with the 22-person Crestview contingent that recently returned from visiting the island

Guests become part of a large, extended family. Chris Embree and Marie Anne Fella, members of the current Crestview group, stayed with the Pontoizeaus.

“We had shrimp and crab for lunch today that Pompom and I caught this morning,” Embree said. “We went out in his boat, pulled the traps and got the crabs.”

“Jocelyne made us quiche with herbs from the garden and eggs from their hens when I stayed here,” Diamond said. “Everything is always fresh from the sea or the garden.”

Jocelyn Pontoizeau prepares meals that include regional dishes and treats, like homemade pizza, that are popular with student palates not adjusted to French country cooking.

“I like staying with people instead of hotels,” Embree said. “People who stay in hotels miss out on this,” he said, waving his arm around the sunny courtyard. He and Fella sat drinking coffee from cups that were more like small bowls.

“I can sum it up in one word: awesome!” Fella said. “I feel like I’m family here.”

Contact News Bulletin Arts & Entertainment Editor Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: ‘Awesome’ French hosts treat Crestview visitors ‘like family’

CRESTVIEW — Photographer Mira Crisp invites shutterbugs to capture local attractions this summer and share their experiences with others.  

"There are a lot of photography enthusiasts out there, and we are proud to be able to now offer a place for them to meet, learn, share and discuss photography," said Crisp, an officer of the newly formed Crestview Photo Club.

Keep reading for the meeting time, date and location.

The club welcomes anyone — "from advanced and professional photographers to beginners who have just picked up their first point-and-shoot camera or smart phone," she said. 

The Italy transplant particularly enjoys photographing downtown Crestview, which has “lots of great backgrounds; full of details.” She and her husband, Brett, moved to Crestview last year.

The club plans to elect a seven-member board during its first meeting on July 8. In addition, the club wants to form committees for marketing, hospitality, trips and challenges, and maintain a database of photographers willing to donate their services.

Want to go?

What:Crestview Photo Club meet-and-greet

When:  6 p.m. July 8

Where:Crestview Public Library, 1445 Commerce Drive

Monthly meetings are at 6 p.m. second Mondays at the library.

Find the club on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/19DrTlj.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: New Crestview Photo Club meets July 8; shutterbugs sought

There is a misconception that organic pesticides are always safe for humans and the environment. Pesticides are labeled organic because they come from natural sources. Organic farming doesn’t mean pesticide or chemical-free.

There are several approved organic pesticides. Just because a pesticide is Organic Materials Review Institute-approved doesn't mean it's safe for humans or the environment.

Read the label and search for signal words like "danger," "warning" and "caution.” Caution items have low toxicity but can irritate the skin and eyes, and are toxic if ingested. Warning items have medium toxicity if eaten, absorbed by the skin or inhaled. Danger items are highly toxic and often have a “Poison” label. The label also lists hazards to humans and the environment.

Neem oil, an excellent organic fungicide and insecticide, comes from the neem tree. "Caution" is the signal word for neem oil. Handle neem oil carefully, as it can irritate the skin. It is also a bee hazard and should be sprayed when bees are not active, before about 8 a.m. or after about 5 p.m.

Champ WG, copper hydroxide, carries the signal word "Danger" on the label. It is corrosive, causes irreversible eye damage and is harmful if swallowed or inhaled. Personal protective equipment must be worn while mixing, handling and applying this fungicide. This includes long sleeves and pants, shoes and socks, chemical-resistant gloves and eye protection.

Identify your pesticide properly, and choose the treatment right for you. Read the label carefully and follow it. The label is the law.

Use appropriate caution when using any pesticide, whether synthetic or organic.

Jennifer Bearden is an agent at the Okaloosa County Extension office in Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: EXTENSION CONNECTION: Organic does not always mean safe