CRESTVIEW — A cold weather shelter in Crestview will be open this week if weather drops below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
If so, the Community of Christ in Crestview will be open from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. starting Wednesday evening, March 2.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview cold weather shelter set to open
SHALIMAR — The Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners hired a new airports director March 1.
Tracy Stage has been with Okaloosa airports for almost 10 years, earned Accredited Airport Executive distinction from the American Association of Airport Executives and had a successful military career prior to his employment with Okaloosa County.
"Tracy has earned this promotion and exhibits high energy in all he does for our airports. 'Home cooking' works lots of times," commission chairman Kelly Windes said.
Two new airlines, Allegiant and Glo, were added to the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport while Stage was acting interim director.
"I am absolutely thrilled and most of all, extremely proud of our team and what we have accomplished together. This is my home, and I look forward to the opportunity to continue to serve Okaloosa County and lead our airports," Stage said.
For more information, call 311 or 651-7160, extension 4.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa County commissioners name new airports director
CRESTVIEW — Two Northwest Florida workshops on cheese and yogurt making are scheduled by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Attendees will learn to make mozzarella, ricotta, goat cheese and Greek yogurt at these workshops:
●6:30-8:30 p.m. April 14 at the Okaloosa County Extension Office in Crestview
●6:30-8:30 p.m. April 19 at 127 Hollywood Blvd., Fort Walton Beach
Cost is $20 per person, with preregistration required by April 1. Call 689-5850 to register.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview cheese and yogurt workshop scheduled
PENSACOLA — REBUILD Northwest Florida is advising local homeowners impacted by the recent tornado winds to be aware that in most cases, the roofing contractor is required to re-nail the roof’s decking at the same time they are replacing the shingles.
To that end, the organization advises that any roof repair should include the 8-penny nails approved in Florida Building Code.
The type of nail used to repair a roof is very important to the overall safety of the home. The spacing of the nails is also a critical factor.
These details are so significant – it can mean the difference between a home standing after a storm, and one that does not withstand storm force winds.
According to the current Florida Building Code, reroofing, repairs and roof deck attachment require 8-penny ring shank nails, spaced 6 inches or less across the roof. The length of the 8 penny nails (2.5 inches) and the nail spacing of 6 inches or less is the construction standard.
“When we walked through neighborhoods and saw that the REBUILD-fortified homes were left intact while surrounding houses had significant damage, we wanted to send an urgent message to homeowners who are anxiously trying to repair their roofs quickly,” said William Merrill, RNWF licensed structural engineer. “We urge everyone who is contracting for roof repair to be aware of the code requirement and insure their roofer observes these Florida Building Code requirements.
"This method of re-nailing roof/deck is very simple and should cost very little, but is very critical to the future windstorm worthiness of the house.”
RNWF has helped more than 12,500 homeowners fortify their homes as part of their wind mitigation program. They’ve witnessed damage from Hurricane Ivan and other extreme storms and have seen that once a roof is damaged, the entire house becomes less stable and more susceptible to impact from high winds and storm debris. To learn more about wind mitigation and what RNWF offers, go to rebuildnwf.org.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Roof repair tips to help prevent storm destruction
CRESTVIEW — “Europe Bound: Planning, Packing, Eurailing and Accommodations” is 6 p.m. March 22 at the Crestview Public Library.
Crestview News Bulletin and Northwest Florida Daily News writer, and Crestview Area Sister City program president Brian Hughes will share:
•How to plan an independent trip around Europe
•Choosing affordable accommodations
•Which sort of luggage to use
•How to pack lightly
•How to manage a travel budget
•How to travel cheaply by Eurail
•Enjoying local food on a budget
A free 48-page “Europe Bound” booklet will be distributed to the first 20 participants.
View Hughes’ “Europe Bound” exhibit — featuring mementoes and information about packing, Eurailing, food and souvenir shopping — during March and April in the lobby.
The library is located at 1445 Commerce Drive in Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Planning European travel? Attend this Crestview presentation first
CRESTVIEW — Many former Crestview students have exciting lives away from their hometowns. Ann Rivera, then Ann Kelly, once had an adventure more thrilling than most.
An airliner on which she was a flight attendant got hijacked to Cuba in 1975.
FULFILLING A DREAM
“I had always wanted to be a flight attendant, so after doing a couple years of (child services) casework, I decided to go for the gusto and got hired by Eastern (Airlines),” she said.
“It was basically because I wanted to travel and see the world without having to go into the military. Being a flight attendant was a little more glamorous in that day.”
During her 13 years at Eastern, Kelly worked through the ranks, beginning as a flight attendant, then an instructor, a supervisor, then a manager. But her biggest thrill — and not in a good way — came during a routine flight from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Miami.
Kelly realized one of the passengers stood out.
“He had a big boom box around his neck,” she said. “He didn’t look quite right. As soon as the flight took off, I saw him go forward to the flight attendant. She picked up the phone and called the cockpit and I knew exactly what was going on.
“She told the pilot he had someone onboard who said he had a bomb and he wanted to go to Cuba. I got up and intervened because I had trained flight attendants in hijacking, or skyjacking, as we called it.”
Thus began the longest three-hours of her life.
'THIS IS IT'
From her training, Kelly knew she had to earn the skyjacker’s trust.
“One of the things we were trained to do was you always try to stay between him and the cockpit, and generally it’s better for one of the females to intervene and try to win him over,” she said.
Cuba wasn’t really the skyjacker’s preferred destination.
“He wanted to go to Russia and save the Biafra children,” Kelly said. “He had pictures of poor children pinned on his shirt. He wanted to go to Russia and take care of the poor starving children.”
As Kelly earned his trust, she tried to learn details of the boom box bomb.
“By this time, I had agreed to marry him, have his children and take care of him the rest of his life,” she said.
The hijacking was foiled by Fidel Castro, who refused the plane permission to touch down in Cuba, so they turned toward Miami. By then, the pilot felt the boom box didn’t really contain a bomb, though the hijacker had a knife.
“The captain came back and decided this was it,” Kelly recalled. “He grabbed the skyjacker’s wrist and got the knife out of his hand. Meanwhile, I was more concerned with the potential bomb.
“A knife — that is just going to put your eye out. I grabbed the boom box and gave it to a flight attendant and told her lock it in the back lav. I then asked passengers for their ties and we proceeded to tie him (the hijacker) down.”
Without further incident, the flight landed in Miami, and Kelly’s experience became incorporated into Federal Aviation Administration and Eastern Airlines hijacking training.
ANN THE MODEL
While helping thwart a skyjacking was the highlight of her commercial aviation career, she did have another. She was asked to be a model in a print ad with former astronaut Frank Borman, who was then Eastern Airlines' president.
While the ad again spread her fame around the country, Kelly counts the hijacking as a life-defining moment.
“It was quite an experience, and it was the one thing you learn about yourself in a situation like that, which was I can be calm in the midst of crisis,” Kelly said.
“You really don’t know that about yourself.”
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview native recalls hijacking, modeling at Eastern Airlines
FORT WALTON BEACH — The Daughters of the American Revolution hope to set a world record, and they need your help.
The organization wants to collect and mail at least 10,000 letters to deployed military personnel. The feat could land the organization in the Guinness Book of World Records.
DAR chapters from across the country, including the Choctawhatchee Bay and West Florida Chapter-Destin, will participate in the effort.
The DAR is partnering with the Northwest Florida Daily News and its sister publications, the Crestview News Bulletin, The Destin Log and the Walton Sun, to collect the letters.
These are the rules:
●Individuals may submit one letter each. Envelopes must not be sealed.
●Letters may be addressed to specific deployed individuals or to active duty personnel serving at military installations listed at www.DAR.org/WorldRecord.
●Every letter must contain three components: a greeting (e.g. Dear Soldier or Dear John Smith); an original message of support/appreciation; and a closing (e.g. love, thanks, sincerely) and a signature.
●There is no age restriction, so letters from children may be included.
●All letters must be the original submission of the participant — no form letters/templates may be used. They should be handwritten and include your return name/address on the envelope.
●All letters must bear a 49-cent first class U.S. postage stamp; letters without postage will be discarded.
Readers who would like to participate may drop their missives off at our offices at 2 Eglin Parkway NE in Fort Walton Beach, 638 N. Ferdon Boulevard in Crestview or 5597 Highway 98 West in Santa Rosa Beach.
See www.DAR.org/WorldRecord for more information on the project.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: DAR seeks letters for deployed service members, world record
CRESTVIEW — Twin Hills Park referees now have bragging rights after winning a coaches vs. referees basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27 at the Twin Hills gym.
The final score was 104-68.
An event attendee said, "It was a lot of fun to watch and the stands were filled … It was fun seeing the kids cheering on their coaches and parents.
"The workers, coaches and referees both work so hard to make do with the small facility we have, they deserve a morale day!
"The referees led the whole game, but the coaches did have a couple of comebacks and were within 15 points of the Refs at one point."
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Twin Hills referees battle coaches in Crestview basketball game
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Boys & Girls Club's Crestview open house brings free food, fun
CRESTVIEW — "A Thousand Cranes," a Ten Talents Youth Theatre production directed by Nancy Black, hits the stage this weekend.
The play, with theatre direction by Nancy Black and magic direction by Corey Black, is based on the true story of Sadako Sasaki, who lived through the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945.
Being 2 years old at the time, she had no personal memory of the day, but her family was personally affected by the catastrophe.
At age 12, Sadako was diagnosed with a form of leukemia, and folded a thousand paper cranes, as was custom, to ask the gods for healing.
The audience will see Sadako's journey from illness to freedom.
Show times are 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. March 5 at Warriors Hall, 201 Stillwell Blvd., Crestview.
Call 826-3409 to order tickets, which are $5 each; ages 3 and under get in free.
Ten Talents, a tuition- and sponsor-supported organization, will begin new classes starting late March at New Beginnings Church.
Upcoming shows include:
●"The Wizard of Oz," to be presented early August 2016
●"POEtry in Motion," selected works of Edgar Allen Poe, to be presented early November 2016
See www.tentalentscrestview.com for more information.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview stage production shares Hiroshima survivor's story
