CRESTVIEW — North Okaloosa County children can receive free meals this summer at eight Crestview area sites.

Nearly 13.8 percent of Florida residents, and 24.9 percent of children reportedly live in households that can’t always afford enough food. The United States Department of Agriculture funds a toll-free hotline to make it easier for them to access food from private and governmental resources.

Call 1-866-3-HUNGRY or 1-877-8-HAMBRE (for Spanish) 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST Monday through Friday for help. The National Hunger Hotline staff connects callers with emergency food providers in their community, government assistance, nutritional assistance programs, and various services that promote self-sufficiency.

During summer months, the hotline provides information about meal sites where children 18 years old and under can get free, nutritious meals through the USDA Summer Food Service Program.

See the sidebar for the Crestview area’s free meal sites. 

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FREE CRESTVIEW AREA KIDS’ MEAL SITES

●Northwood Elementary School, 501 4th Ave., Crestview

●Lance C. Richbourg School, 500 Alabama St., Crestview

●Mt. Zion AME Church, 502 McDonald St., Crestview

●Central Baptist Church, 951 S. Ferdon Blvd., Crestview

●Shoal River Middle School, 3200 E. Redstone Ave., Crestview

●Davidson Middle School, 6261 Old Bethel Road, Crestview

●Baker School, 1369 14th St., Baker

●Laurel Hill School, 8078 4th St., Laurel Hill

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 8 sites that offer North Okaloosa children free summer meals

CRESTVIEW — Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on Okaloosa and Walton County state roads as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.

Okaloosa County

Intermittent lane restrictions take place 8 p.m. Sunday, July 17 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 18 as crews perform striping operations at these locations:

●Interstate 10, from Okaloosa County rest area, east of Crestview, to the Walton County line.

●Eglin Boulevard/State Road 397, from the intersection of S.R. 85 to the Eglin Gate.

●S.R. 85: Lane restrictions near the S.R. 85N-S.R. 123 intersection, 8 p.m. Monday, July 18 to 6 a.m. Tuesday, July 19

●U.S. 90 resurfacing: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, July 18 through Saturday, July 23, eastbound and westbound lane closures, west of Summertime Drive to Old River Road

Walton County:

●S.R. 20 in the Choctaw Beach area: Intermittent eastbound lane closure, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. beginning Friday, July 15 and continuing for approximately three months as crews install rip rap rubble along the roadway’s south shoulder

●I-10 resurfacing, east and westbound lane restrictions Sunday, July 17 through Friday, July 22 as crews perform paving operations, shoulder work and sodding; between mile marker 66, just west of the Niceville/S.R 285 and mile marker 78 (Boy Scout Road)

Crews also will pave on and off ramps at S.R. 285 (Exit 70). Traffic will shift during ramp paving operations. Lane closures and shifts will be in effect 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.  

●U.S. 331N (S.R. 187): Intermittent southbound lane restrictions Monday, July 18 and Tuesday, July 19, between Liberty Church of Christ and Harrison Drive in DeFuniak Springs.  Lane closures will be in effect 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. as crews replace ditch pavement. 

●U.S. 90-westbound lanes shift 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 20, between Owen’s Drive and 25th Street in DeFuniak Springs, as crews perform utility work.    

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 8 Okaloosa and Walton County traffic changes to expect

CRESTVIEW — The Boys and Girls Club of the Emerald Coast announced that its Crestview club will close after the summer program.

A letter bearing the news was distributed to parents as they picked their children up after the July 7 weekday program, parent Lindsey McGriff said.

“They gave us the letter on July 7 and said services end on Aug. 9,” McGriff said. “They gave us zero options to find alternatives in a month.”

McGriff said like many parents who have children in the Allen Park-based program, she and her husband rely on the BGC’s sliding fee schedule to afford a quality childcare program for their two young children.

McGriff said Walker Elementary School’s $30 registration fee plus $30 each week will raise the family’s childcare expenses more than $100 a month above the $170 she and her husband currently pay. And that’s if they can get their kids into the school’s program.

YMCA BANKRUPTCY

The BGC arrived in Crestview in 2014 when the county YMCA went bankrupt, abruptly closing its Crestview after-school program.

It ran the Walker program until Walker, like other area elementary schools, opened its own after-school care program.

Emerald Coast Boys and Girls Club Chief Executive Officer Shervin Rassa said the club filled a need even though moving a program into Crestview wasn’t in the club’s plan at that time.

“We stepped in when the YMCA left,” Rassa said. “Our plan never was to open up services in Crestview at that point. Our plan was to grow strategically in the future but with the YMCA closing, we stepped in to take over the Walker program.”

Rassa said one of the reasons the GBC board decided to terminate the Crestview program was low attendance.

“We were serving about 15 kids a day,” Rassa said. “Attendance is higher now during the summer, but the decision was made before the summer.”

ALLEN PARK REC PROGRAM

Assistant Crestview Public Works director Carlos Jones said his department is making plans to take over operations of the Allen Park recreation building on Aug. 10.

“It will be kind of like what we do at the (Twin Hills Park) gymnasium,” Jones said. “People can home in and use the equipment.”

Jones said with school opening the day after the BGC program concludes, the city probably won’t be considering an after-school program other than providing recreational facilities.

 “There are so many other options at the schools that weren’t there when the YMCA closed,” Rassa said.

OPTIONS

In addition to Walker, before- and after-school childcare is offered at Antioch, Bob Sikes and Riverside Elementary Schools. Southside Primary School does not list a childcare program on its website.

Still, McGriff said, not having a Boys and Girls Club in the county’s largest and fastest-growing community is “concerning.”

“It was a huge loss for the community when the YMCA closed, then to have this organization close is just as bad,” she said. “At no point has it been presented as a fill-in-the-gap program that would eventually close.”

Rassa said the BGC might return down the road.

“Hopefully as we grow strategically in the future we will be able to provide services in Crestview,” he said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Boys & Girls Club closing Crestview program

CRESTVIEW — Gordon Martial Arts recently recognized student achievements with its latest round of promotions.

The ceremony was held July 1 at the Crestview Community Center.

Promotions began with students going up on stage in groups of similar age and rank. They then demonstrated some of their new skills for attendees.

Additionally, GMA introduced its newest members to the crowd. First-degree black belts — student Ian Rodriguez and military fireman Jimmy Acol — have trained for over five years to achieve their current levels.

Fourth-degree taekwondo students Alberto Barbon, a pediatrician, and Jeremy Morgan, a Fort Walton Beach fireman, also joined GMA.

The session’s guest speaker, Okaloosa County Commissioner Wayne Harris, spoke of the importance of military and first responders such as firemen and police officers. Then he spoke about not giving up, and how some things take more effort to succeed when you’re not successful the first time.

After the promotions ceremony, former Crestview City Councilman Charles Baugh gave a short prayer and  attendees enjoyed a meal and fellowship.

The next  promotions ceremony is Sept. 30.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Gordon Martial Arts holds promotions ceremony

CRESTVIEW — Going to the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours networking event?

Attendees may dress in their patriotic best for the event, as prizes well be awarded to the person with the best Dressed Up costume.

The event, set for 5-6:30 p.m. July 14 at Beltone Hearing Center, 2670 Ferdon Blvd. S., includes finger foods and wine. It also is an opportunity for chamber members to meet Beltone's staff and tour the facility. 

Note: Chamber events are not open to the community, as previously stated in this article. They are for chamber members only.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Beltone hosts Crestview chamber 'Business After Hours'

CRESTVIEW — The community has stepped up to help secure a Crestview Manor resident’s stash of aluminum cans he collects for recycling.

Thieves recently stole a month’s haul of cans Elvit Enlow painstakingly collected around central Crestview neighborhoods.

The News Bulletin’s recent story on the thefts went viral, sparked outrage, and helped draw support to protect a man’s cans.

Susan Hollingshead of Friendly Florist, who is spearheading a drive to have a chain link fence built behind the Manor to secure Enlow’s cans, said response has been heartwarming.

“People have just called and called,” she said. “I’m just overwhelmed about how good everybody is in Crestview.”

Hollingshead said Charlie’s Fence in Holt offered to provide materials to construct the fence.

“We’re very familiar with Mr. Enlow picking up cans,” Kerrie Stillman, of Charlie’s Fence, said. “It bothered us a lot that someone would go to a nursing home and steal from someone like that.”

Resident Paul Lawson offered the services of himself, members of his church and a troop of Boy Scouts to erect the fence.

Ward Lewis, owner of Precision Tactical Arms Company, said he remembered Enlow well from when the company had a shop north of U.S. Highway 90.

“He used to come behind the alley of our old shop,” Lewis said. “All of us would share our aluminum cans or scrap aluminum with him. We’d put it out back for him.”

Lewis offered to buy a shed from Lowe’s to secure Enlow’s cans, “or do anything else we can to help. At end of day, we just want to give him a little bit of help.”

By Monday morning, donors had given $200 toward materials, Hollingshead said, but by lunchtime the business had reached its $500 goal toward materials.

But the outpouring of help didn’t stop there. As of Tuesday morning $745 had been received, Hollingshead said.

“This place was a zoo with so many people calling and coming in,” Friendly Florist employee Bonnie Knecht said Tuesday morning. “A man donated another $100 to ‘Bob’ himself to cover his losses.”

Hollingshead said Enlow sometimes goes by “Bob.”

“We’ve been given so much it does our hearts good that we can give back whenever we can,” Stillman said.

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WANT TO HELP?

Donations for a chain-link fence to secure aluminum cans that Crestview Manor resident Elvit Enlow gathers for recycling can be brought to Susan Hollingshead at Friendly Florist, 586 Ferdon Blvd. N., Crestview, 682-2571.

Donations for a chain-link fence to secure aluminum cans that Crestview Manor resident Elvit Enlow gathers for recycling can be brought to Susan Hollingshead at Friendly Florist, 586 Ferdon Blvd. N., Crestview, 682-2571.

WANT TO HELP?

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Community steps up to secure Crestview man's can collections

NICEVILLE — Area residents interested in refereeing Northwest Florida soccer games may attend a  United States Soccer Federation basic training course.

There are about 20 referee shortages in Okaloosa and Walton counties a this year due to retirements, referees going to college and folks moving, Emerald Coast Soccer Officials Association member Bernie Busovne.

To qualify as a referee, all three classroom sessions must be attended and an online exam is required at the end.

Training is 6-9 p.m. Aug. 5, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 6, and 1-2 p.m. Aug. 7 at Niceville City Hall, 208 Partin Drive N.

This class for the beginner referee consists of on-line education, classroom training and participation.

Registration costs $100 per person, which is nonrefundable and must be paid before July 31 online via Paypal. Additional information is available at www.fsr-inc.com under the "Become a Referee" tab.

Contact Mike Rarick, 496-0770, for details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Northwest Florida soccer referees wanted, training scheduled

CRESTVIEW — A Baker man is dead after a Tuesday morning accident.

Edward F. Edwards, 52, of Baker, was traveling south on State Road 189, south of the intersection with Nana’s Road, around 4:30 a.m.

His 2004 Dodge Ram left the roadway on the west side and traveled across the west grass shoulder, according to a Florida Highway Patrol media release.

The front right of his vehicle struck a large tree, shearing the right front wheel and suspension from the vehicle.

His vehicle continued forward, rotating clockwise, and came to final rest in the forest west of State Road 189, upright and facing south.

An alcohol investigation is pending, according to the FHP. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Baker man dies in traffic accident

MILTON — Santa Rosa County and surrounding areas saw an economic impact from this spring's Tough Mudder event, according to an SRC spokesperson.

Almost 6,000 people participated in the April 9-10 obstacle endurance course at the Ates Ranch in East Milton. Another thousand-plus joined them as spectators. 

As part of their contract with Santa Rosa County, Tough Mudder commissioned the Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development to assess the event’s value.

Analysis showed that overnight visitors spent almost $168 per day, excluding lodging; day-trippers spent almost $69 per day, with most dollars allocated primarily on food, beverage, clothing or retail, including fuel. Hotel operators saw 2,023 room nights filled as a result of the Tough Mudder, generating $255,681 in regional lodging spending.

“Santa Rosa's investment of around $100,000 to bring Tough Mudder back in 2016 resulted in approximately $1.5 million of economic benefit to the county's residents and businesses," Haas Center director Zachary Jenkins said. The assessment showed a total regional impact of $2,753,229.

Approximately 35 percent of respondents had never traveled to Santa Rosa County before attending Tough Mudder. Most were from the Gulf Coast area or other Florida counties, however visitors reported traveling from California, Washington, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Most said they would return to the area within the next year for a non-Tough Mudder event.

See www.santarosa.fl.gov for a complete copy of the Haas Center report on the 2016 Tough Mudder.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Tough Mudder's significant economic impact on Santa Rosa, Northwest Florida

Mary Roach, best-selling author of “Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers” and “Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal,” has now tackled the science behind some of a soldier’s most challenging adversaries — panic, exhaustion, heat, noise — and introduces us to the scientists who seek to conquer them.

In "Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War," Roach explores the science of keeping human beings intact, awake, sane, uninfected and uninfested in the bizarre and extreme circumstances of war.

Take a tour of duty with Roach, and you’ll never see our nation’s defenders in the same way again.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: DREADEN: Crestview Library Staff Pick