EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE — Senior leadership in the Department of Veterans Affairs Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System has scheduled a town hall event for veterans who receive health care services from the VA outpatient clinic near Eglin Air Force Base.

The event is 5 p.m. July 18 at the Eglin AFB VA Clinic, located at 100 Veterans Way along Eglin Boulevard. Representatives from the VA’s Barrancas National Cemetery in Pensacola will also be present to answer veterans’ questions about VA burial benefits.

GCVHCS town hall events are open forums for veterans receiving VA health care services. The goal is to ensure that senior GCVHCS officials and/or subject-matter experts hear veterans, their families, and beneficiaries and address their health care concerns.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Feedback sought on VA health care in Okaloosa County

MILTON — Love Gun, a KISS tribute band, will soon bring its tour to West Florida. The concert is set 8 p.m. July 22 at the Imogene Theater in Milton.

“It's a true vintage KISS show, complete with Gene spitting blood, Ace's smoking guitar, Peter handing out roses during [the song] ‘Beth’ and the show’s climactic guitar smashing from Paul … it's the whole nine yards … just like seeing [the namesake band] in the ’70s!” a media release for the event states.

“Love Gun delivers all the KISS classics and more obscure tracks that KISS doesn’t currently include in its live set. Plus, Love Gun will hang out after the show and make sure every fan gets a picture with the band and an autograph at no charge.”

There will also be T-shirts, stickers and posters available for purchase.

Tickets — available at www.theimogenetheatre.com/buy-tickets-online — cost $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Ages 12 and under can enter at no charge.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: KISS tribute band to perform at Imogene Theater

CRESTVIEW — Jaedyn "Jae" Williams will be 7 years old soon, and the Crestview resident wants nothing more for his birthday than to help others.

To that end, he is requesting donations of paper and cleaning products, drinks and other items through July 31 to benefit the Ronald McDonald House in Pensacola.

'Be the Change'

Jaedyn is a special needs student with high-functioning autism and severe Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Despite these and other issues, his parents, Cassey and Stephen Williams, focus on the positive things about life.

"We have often had to comfort him through situations of being bullied at school due to other children making fun of him for being overly emotional and not being able to understand and speak like his peers," his mother said. "This experience, although far from easy, has taught us as a family so much. Instead of focusing on the 'bad' we started teaching our son the good."

"We asked him, 'What can we do to make sure that other people don't feel like others have made you feel?' He came up with the "Be The Change" slogan all on his own, because that's what he wants to do is change sad and mad hearts into happy ones," Cassey said. Their efforts also had an unexpected impact.

"We had no idea he would run with this as he has … he wants to stop everywhere and make sure everyone has what they need and that they feel appreciated," his mom said.

With assistance from his parents, Jaedyn has collected and distributed monetary, food and other donations to people and organizations across Northwest Florida. Through their Ronald McDonald House and Sacred Heart Hospital donations, the Williamses became friends with some of the children there.

"Some of them have Facebook pages that help them share their story. I would often read them to him and show him photos of his friends' pages, which led to Jae asking for his own." He was persistent about it too, she said. It took six months to convince her, but she finally started https://www.facebook.com/Jaedynisthechange after he told her his reasoning: "Mom, if you let me get a Facebook, we can help other people help too and then lots of people can help and be the change."

To help

Email bethaechange_jae@yahoo.com, call or contact Cassey Williams, 850-736-3717 or via Facebook message. The email address may also be used for Paypal donations.

Drop off donations at the Q92 radio station on Ferry Road in Fort Walton Beach or arrange neutral location drop offs.

They also accept cash, checks or money orders, and Square app credit card payments for the Ronald McDonald House.

Some of Jaedyn's activities over the past few years

•presented Crestview Police Department officers and staff with cake, cards and treats on his sixth birthday

•helped at car wash fundraisers and Comicon for Ronald McDonald House and other organizations

•made and shared cards, food, drinks and treats with veterans, nursing home residents, and homeless people.

•collected donations and helped make Thanksgiving dinners for first responders

•helped raise funds for the police memorial at the Crestview Police Department

Community activities

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview boy requests Ronald McDonald House donations for birthday (VIDEO)

CRESTVIEW — A kitten allegedly beaten with a golf club and left for dead is rapidly recovering in the home of Karen McCauley, who rescued her early last month. 

“We were surprised she had stripes because she was so bony,” said McCauley, who found the mangled kitten in the Fort Walton Beach Golf Club parking lot with a huge gash on her shoulder as she was heading to her car after a day’s work at Two Trees Restaurant.

“She’s growing like crazy and we never thought the hair would grow back and now it’s black and shiny. Even the vets weren’t sure, and it came in, but not striped like the rest of her.”

The cat, affectionately dubbed “Ping” after a brand of golf clubs, is fast becoming one of McCauley’s favorite pets. A self-proclaimed animal lover, McCauley has another cat and two dogs — and the one she calls “crazy” is Ping’s new best friend.

“She’s a regular little kitten and she’s friends with the crazy dog and the mellow dog,” McCauley said. 

When the Crestview resident found Ping, the cat was feral, biting her and, eventually, doing the same to the vet tech who thought she wouldn’t survive. 

“She bit the crap out of me," McCauley said. "I had to wrap her really tight in a towel and just rub the top of her head."

“Now [Ping's] as friendly as can be,” she said. “She never cried in pain and they gave me some pain medicine for her and I just gave her some once so she could fall asleep.”

McCauley has yet to spay Ping, who suffered broken ribs and needs surgery for a visible hernia — which she plans on getting for her in six months.

“She’s my fur baby, she purrs all the time and cuddles up,” McCauley said affectionately.

If you would like to help pay for Ping’s medical expenses, donate on McCauley’s GoFundMe page, https://www.gofundme.com/brutbrutally-abused-and-left-for-dead.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'She's my fur baby'

CRESTVIEW — Today, Tanya Rivera is a reserved, smartly dressed 34-year-old real estate agent. Earlier in life, she was a Hooters Girl. 

“I didn’t apply; they asked me to apply,” she said.  

When she was just 17 years old, Rivera’s future sister-in-law asked her if she would be interested in the job.  

“Well, she wasn’t my sister-in-law then, but the manager had her go to me and ask me to apply to Hooters," Rivera said. 

Rivera met both of her husbands at Hooters. Her first husband, and recruiter — now deceased — was a chef at Hooters. Her second husband, Humberto Rivera, was a customer who roomed with three Hooters Girls, her co-workers at the time. 

“When I came to Crestview’s Hooters in 2007, the people I worked with said, ‘we are going to hook you up with somebody’ and they ended up hooking me up with him,” she said. “They kept trying to get me over to his table and would call me and say, ‘Hey, can you come talk to this table?’”

Rivera was looking for a husband when she worked at Hooters and said other Hooters girls were looking to get hitched as well, although some of them were simply putting themselves through college. 

“I watched one girl become a doctor by paying her way through college and some of the girls are still finding themselves,” she said. “But even with a college education, some can’t find a job that pays as much as Hooters does.”

According to a recent report by the National Partnership of Women and Families, women in Florida make 85 cents to the dollar of a man.

It doesn’t change with education, either — women with master’s degrees employed in full-time positions make 72 cents for every dollar paid to men with master’s degrees and women with PhDs make even less than men with master’s degrees, according to the report.

Rivera said the Hooters company doesn’t judge and even though the name may imply it, attitude trumps Double D’s any day in the application process. 

“As a former manager, we are looking for that All-American cheerleader look. Someone who takes good care of themselves, does their hair, their makeup and when they are applying, they are excited to work for Hooters,” she said.

And even though some promotional materials for Hooters are laden with windblown blondes in bright orange, size 2 hot pants and white tank tops with their signature gawking owl, Rivera says that even overweight women who aspire to be a Hooters Girl stand a chance. 

“You can’t sit there and say they can’t be thick because there are plenty of girls who worked there who were thick, but they were still beautiful," Rivera said.

She added, “It doesn’t have to be a certain size, but a certain fit that looks like what Hooters is looking for.”

You don’t have to be conventionally pretty, either; even so-called “ugly” girls have a shot at donning those crunchy white socks and tan nylons as long as they put some effort into keeping up appearances. 

“As long as they had that personality and put work into themselves, that’s what Hooters is looking for,” Rivera said.

Rivera added that it wasn't just the revolving door of doting, good looking women that turned customers to regulars at Crestview’s Hooters, even for the single men who dined there. 

“A lot of single guys go there because they can sit there and have conversations with these girls that they wouldn’t have outside,” she said. “It’s about the service.  These girls go out of their way to make sure you have everything you need when you come to dinner.

"They make sure you are taken care of, that your drink is full.  They go above and beyond what any typical restaurant does."

“So at Hooters you are getting attractive girls, food that is decent and service that is amazing — and, I’m sorry, but that service is hard to find in Crestview.”

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'They go above and beyond'

Publix Super Markets associates and Publix Super Markets Charities reached a new goal during the 2016 Publix employees United Way campaign, with donations totaling $501,455 — more than any other company in United Way of Okaloosa & Walton Counties’ 59-year history. The Publix employees campaign has increased each year since 1999 with the opening of the first Publix store in this area — all to benefit United Way’s work in health, education and financial stability in Okaloosa and Walton counties.

“Publix has always been involved in our communities with our time, talents and dollars so to see the amazing generosity of our associates is so rewarding. We appreciate the Okaloosa-Walton County United Way for their support and relationship,” Publix District Manager Jackie Gouge stated.

United Way of Okaloosa & Walton Counties is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Its mission statement is to serve donors, advocates and volunteers with the organization and leadership they require to provide financial stability, education opportunities, and healthy lives to their community.

United Way fights for the health, education and financial stability of every person in every community of Okaloosa and Walton counties.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Publix tops all giving in United Way’s 59-year history

I'll be the first to admit that when my native-born Okaloosa County husband first used the term "potlikker" before we were married 40 years ago, I didn't have the foggiest idea what he was talking about! Potlikker is a food metaphor referring to the liquid that remains after you boil down a big pot of greens or beans (and incidentally it's very nutritious).

In his new book, "The Potlikker Papers: a Food History of the Modern South," food historian John T. Edge, who directs the Southern Foodways Alliance at the University of Mississippi, traces the evolution of Southern identity through its food culture.

Many fascinating people and stories fill the book such as Georgia Gilmore. She had worked as a cook, a waiter, and for the railroad all her life, but then she fuels the Montgomery Bus Boycott with cooking she did in her house.

But the story of Stephen Gaskin really inspired Edge to pursue writing a full-length book. (His earlier pieces for the "Oxford American" and "Garden & Gun" magazines also served as investigative research.)

In the late 1960s and 1970s (when it was in vogue to quit the South), Gaskin, an outsider from California, starts a farm in Tennessee and brings with him a bunch of Haight-Ashbury kids tripping on LSD. They grow their own food and marijuana, and Gaskin and the others reinvigorate the South and Southern food with the products they sold to local companies. (As an interesting footnote, it was Gaskin's wife, Ina May, who wrote "Spiritual Midwifery" and inspired a whole new generation toward natural childbirth.)

Edge narrates the gentrification that gained traction in the restaurants of the 1980s and the artisanal renaissance that began to reconnect farmers and cooks in the 1990s. He reports on the newer South that came into focus in the 2000s and 2010s, enriched by the arrival of immigrants from Mexico to Vietnam and many points in between.

"The Potlikker Papers" is a people's history of the modern South, told through its food. It is well worth a read, whether you were born in the South or not!

Sandra Dreaden is the Crestview Public Library's reference librarian.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Librarian's Pick — 'The Potlikker Papers…'

Here are upcoming Crestview Public Library-related events. The library's address is 1445 Commerce Drive.

SUMMER READING CHALLENGE LOGS ARE DUE: 6 p.m. July 12 at the library. Parents or guardians must sign them before turning them in.

READER AWARDS AND FUNNY MONEY STORE: 6:30-7:15 p.m. July 18, Crestview Community Center, 1446 Commerce Drive. 

FIRST TUESDAY TALK: 10:30 a.m. Aug. 1, Crestview Public Library, 1445 Commerce Drive. "The History of the Okaloosa County School District" with Bill Smith of the Okaloosa County School District.

AGES 3-5 LIBRARY CLASS: 10:15 a.m. Tuesdays, Crestview library.

READ TO DOZER: First Saturdays, 10-11 a.m.; for children ages 4 and up.

COFFEE & CRAFT: 10 a.m. second Saturdays, Crestview library. Call 682-4432 to reserve your spot.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: UPCOMING

CRESTVIEW — Gordon Martial Arts held its promotional ceremony Friday in Crestview’s Community Center where roughly 130 students moved up in rank.

Among honorees, two junior — under 18 — black belts were awarded to Bradley Johnston and Ashton Mobly.  

“They are celebrating their promotion and hard work for the past three months. There [are] three months in between testing cycles and for the taekwondo students, the first stripe is beginning moves, the second stripe is their form and the third stripe is self-defense moves,” said Mary Valdez, a Crestview resident with two black belts in Hapkido and combat jiu-jitsu. “They have to demonstrate those three things to have three stripes before they are able to test for their next color belt.”

Gordon Martial Arts offers classes in taekwondo, Hapkido and combat jiu-jitsu for both kids and adults. A local pediatrician, Dr. Alberto Barbon, was promoted to third degree in Hapkido (a martial arts form that consists primarily of joint manipulations and throws) and Amanda Howard was promoted to fourth degree in taekwondo. She also earned instructor status. A dedicated student, in 2006, Howard traveled to South Korea to test for her third-degree belt.

“Martial arts for us is a bigger picture than just a kick and punch,” said Thomas Gordon, an instructor who owns the studio. “We also teach the tenets of taekwondo, which are integrity, perseverance and the indomitable spirit, and we help the kids who are hyper [to] calm down a little bit and the kids who are shy come out of their shell a little bit.”

Jay Sanders, the principal of Davidson Middle School, was the event’s guest speaker and explained taekwondo’s tenets of perseverance as it related to the story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic distance runner who was also a prisoner of war survivor in World War II. 

At promotional ceremonies, the guest speaker also selects the charity for donating money that was raised by passing a box throughout the audience, and Sanders picked Relay For Life (a cancer walk sponsored by The American Cancer Society) as the recipient of the $180.45 raised that evening.

In August, Gordon will travel to Canada for the Korean Martial Arts Master’s Hall of Fame and in September, Gordon Martial Arts will offer a women’s self-defense clinic with the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Department. 

The next promotional ceremony will take place in September. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: More than 'just a kick and punch'

CRESTVIEW — Need help or want to volunteer for a worthy cause? Here are some local services and organizations for consideration.

EMERALD COAST HOSPICE VOLUNTEERS WANTED: ECH provides compassionate care through a team of professional staff members and volunteers. Volunteers are thoroughly trained and provided ongoing education. They can serve in a variety of areas from administrative help to offering support to a hospice patient through visits or weekly phone calls. Just a few hours a month makes an impact. Details: Ann O'Connor, 689- 0300.

SENIORS VS. CRIME VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: The Seniors vs. Crime Crestview office, which assists senior citizens of whom someone scammed or took advantage, needs help. Hours are 10 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and Thursdays at 296 S. Ferdon Blvd., Suite 8. To volunteer, contact Office Manager Sheila Parish, 306-3176, or Region 5 Deputy Director JB Whitten, 813-489-5657. Contact 306-3176, www.seniorsvscrime.com or 800-203-3099 for help.

REPORT ELDERS ABUSE: Call the Northwest Florida Area Agency on Aging at 1-800-96-ABUSE (800-962-2873) if you suspect elderly friends and neighbors are being abused. Many elders may suffer from financial exploitation, neglect or physical or emotional abuse, often caused by family members. The NFAAA is a private, non-profit agency supported by the federal Older Americans Act and the State of Florida General Revenue Fund through the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. Gwen Rhodes, 494-7100 or rhodesg@nwflaaa.org

UWF ACADEMIC ADVISING: The University of West Florida offers assistance with admissions, academic and degree advising and registration in Crestview. Contact Deborah Cluff, 863-6550, to schedule an appointment for first Thursdays at the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce, 1446 Commerce Drive.

HOMELESS ASSISTANCE: Need help? Contact the Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum of Care, 409-3070, www.okaloosawaltonhomeless.org; Opportunity Inc., 659-3190; or Helping Hands of Crestview, 428 McLaughlin St., behind First United Methodist Church. Helping Hands is open 1-4 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

ENERGY ASSISTANCE AND SERVICES FOR LOW-INCOME FAMILIES: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, Tri-County Community Council, 290 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., Crestview. 306-1134.

CRESTVIEW SOUP KITCHEN NEEDS VOLUNTEERS: Serves Mondays through Saturdays. To volunteer at Central Baptist Church, call 682-5525; Our Savior Lutheran Church, 682-3154; LifePoint Church, 682-3518; Community of Christ, 682-7474; First Presbyterian Church, 682-2835; or First United Methodist Church, 682-2018.

FREE CLOTHING GIVEAWAY: 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays; 1-3:30 p.m. Thursdays; and 9 a.m. to noon second and fourth Saturdays of the month at 247 S. Booker St., Crestview. Free items include shoes and other accessories. Presented by Concerned Citizens of Crestview. Details: 689-1582 or 428-6997.

FREE FOOD DISTRIBUTION FOR NEEDY RESIDENTS: 9 a.m. second Saturdays, 383 Texas Parkway, Crestview. Dry goods and fresh produce available while supplies last. Hosted by House of Restoration, a partner agency of Feeding the Gulf Coast. Details: Ruby Chatman, 398-0577.

WOMEN AND FAMILY INTERVENTION SERVICES AND EDUCATION: a Crestview-based Community Drug and Alcohol Council program that helps pregnant women with substance abuse. 689-4024.

CHILDCARE ASSISTANCE: Eligible low-income families can receive financial assistance through the Early Learning Coalition of Okaloosa and Walton Counties. Apply at www.elc-ow.org. Hover over “Services” and click “School Readiness” to register.

FREE MEDICARE COUNSELING: By appointment, Crestview Public Library and Elder Services of Okaloosa County, in Crestview, 494-7101 or 1-866-531-8011.

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY seeks Crestview area lots for families needing housing. 758-0779 or 315-0025.

VA VETERANS CRISIS LINE: Veterans in crisis, their families and friends can call 800-273-TALK (8255), and press 1 to talk with qualified, caring VA responders. Confidential. www.veteranscrisisline.net.

BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF NORTHWEST FLORIDA NEEDS MENTORS: Adult volunteers spend two hours weekly mentoring children. Pairs go to the library, museum, park or beach, hike, roller-skate or play sports. 664-5437.

VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATIONS ACTIVE IN DISASTERS: Group needs people to work in the Emergency Operations Center assisting county personnel. Contact: Yvonne Earle, 863-1530, extension 230.

FREE HAZARDOUS HOUSEHOLD WASTE DROPOFF: 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, Okaloosa County Recycling Office, 80 Ready Ave., Fort Walton Beach. Okaloosa residents may drop off paints, pesticides, pool chemicals, used oil, gas, antifreeze, computers, televisions, fluorescent lamps, car batteries, rechargeable batteries, cleaners, solvents, aerosols and printers.

MUSEUM SEEKS VOLUNTEERS: Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida seeks friendly, reliable volunteers to greet guests and answer phones in its gift shop 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. or 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Details: 678-2615, stop by 115 Westview Ave., Valparaiso, or email info@heritage-museum.org.

CARS NEEDED: Opportunity Inc. accepts donations of cars, boats and other vehicles to support Opportunity Place, an emergency shelter for families. Shelley Poirrier, 409-3070 or shelley@okaloosawaltonhomeless.org.

SHELTER HOUSE FINANCIAL SUPPORT: It costs just more than $100 a day to shelter a domestic violence victim. Every little bit helps. 683-0845.

DRIVE VETERANS to appointments at the VA Outpatient Clinic in Pensacola two days a month. Veterans Service Office, 689-5922.

VEHICLES NEEDED: Covenant Hospice accepts cars, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, boats and RVs. Qualified professionals pick up vehicles from Pensacola to Tallahassee at convenience. Rachel Mayew, 428-0605.

LAKEVIEW CENTER'S FAMILIES FIRST NETWORK NEEDS BEDS for local children in protective services. Cribs and beds for children must be in good condition. 833-3840.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: North Okaloosa County services calendar