CRESTVIEW — The Emerald Coast Dragway's track is cracked, the control room's windows are shot out, and weeds surround the bleachers. The lone sound comes from rushing vehicles on Interstate 10.

But Ozzy Moya and Robert Brown envision engines screaming, the smell of burning rubber and packed bleachers.

Reviving race tracks is Moya's passion. After selling a chain of auto racing supplies stores in the late 2000s, he rehabilitated the Lakeland Drag Strip, Orlando Speed World Dragway and the South Georgia Motorsports Park near Valdosta.

“He’s amazing. He’s the man,” Brown said. “He’s the 'track whisperer.'”

Now it’s the local track’s turn.

REBIRTH OF A TRACK

Emerald Coast Dragway, between Holt and Harold, was foreclosed in 2011, and crumbled over the past four-and-a-half years as it worked its way through financial and legal systems.

Moya and Brown credit real estate agents Gary Watson of Exit Realty in Pensacola and Jake Maurer of Premier Property Group in Miramar Beach for guiding them through the complicated acquisition. “Without them, it would have been a very hard battle,” Brown said.

The partners anticipate the track's purchase to close on Feb. 26. Within three months, they hope the sound of auto racing will again pierce the air of west Okaloosa County’s rural countryside.

But first, they plan several improvements to the facility, including:

●Repaving the track and bringing the surface up to industry standards

●Replacing metal trackside walls — Moya and Brown call them “can openers” because they can slice open a racecar that hits them — with formed concrete barriers 

●Renovating the vandalized control building

●Replacing the front gate and lighting

●Expanding the sand pit at the end of the strip, a safety feature that arrests cars unable to stop

EVENTS AND SAFETY

When the gates open, possibly by Memorial Day weekend, area residents can expect more than high-performance cars zooming down the track.

Moya and Brown want events that attract drivers of all ages and skill levels. “At one of my tracks, we gave a (winning Big Wheel racing) kid 150 bucks in singles,” Moya said.

For a fee, backyard mechanics will be able to test their souped up cars on the track at “test-and-tunes.” Young hopefuls can get their first experiences before embarking on a NASCAR career.

“We’re going to promote the junior drag strip events,” Moya said.

And the partners want to provide a safe place for inexperienced drivers to race. “I cringe when I see these street-racing shows that encourage kids to do that,” Moya said. “We can save some lives here, get the kids off the street.”

“It’s all about safety,” Brown said.

'A LABOR OF LOVE'

As Moya and his wife, Marie, walk the track, they see 5,000 fans in the bleachers, and families sharing an evening together.

“Racing’s a family sport,” Moya said. “Anytime you can offer a sport where you can keep the family doing things together for a long time, it’s a good thing.”

And it benefits the area economy, he said. When tournaments come to the track, drivers and pit crews will stay at Crestview area hotels. They and race fans will dine at local restaurants.

“This is a labor of love for me,” Moya said. “We have big plans for this place.”

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'Race track whisperer' to re-open Holt dragway (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

Editor's Note: Valentine's Day is Feb. 14 — here's the story of a happily married couple of 56 years, and their advice for a successful relationship.

CRESTVIEW — Louis and Lola Becker's story began more than a half-century ago at Vitro Systems, a longtime Eglin Air Force Base contractor.

It started simple enough: Louis' boss sent him to the motor pool to meet the newest employee. “My supervisor told me, ‘There’s a new girl coming to the motor pool to work,’” Louis said. “He said, ‘I’d like for you to meet her.’

That was all it took — "He introduced me to Lola and, as soon as I saw her, I said, ‘That’s the woman I want to live with the rest of my life,'" Louis said.

Despite love at first sight, Louis had to attract the object of his affection. “I was really bashful,” he said. “I told this other fellow I worked with, ‘I’d like to go in and speak to Lola,’ and he said, ‘OK, I’ll go with you,’ because he had some keys to drop off from time to time.

“ I finally got up the encouragement to ask her to go out a time or two,” Louis said.

Fifty-six years later, Louis and Lola Becker are still happily married.

BUILDING A LIFE

While Lola moved to Okaloosa County from Alabama in 1951, Louis — born in Santa Rosa Beach — remained close to home. “I found my love close by,” he said. “I couldn’t ask for it to be any better. The Lord has blessed me from day one.”

The couples' careers with Vitro Systems spanned 41 years.

He began as a surveyor, overseeing the company’s operations on the Air Force’s Okaloosa Island property. His crew helped maintain the property and delivered range services, including taking care of range equipment, towers and buildings, and establishing targets for ordnance tests.

Lola moved up from the motor pool, working in personnel and administration before retiring from the company’s publications section.

All along, the couple worked and built their lives together at Vitro. “We met each other there and got married,” Lola said. “We had babies and retired the same way, still working for Vitro.”

The company that brought the couple together is no longer an Eglin contractor, but it’s never far from the Beckers’ hearts. In fact, on Thursday, the couple organized a reunion lunch in Crestview for 100 people who used to work at Vitro.

SIMPLE ADVICE

Today, the couple have three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren from their daughter, Dusty; their son, Randy, gave them two grandsons.

One of their biggest joys was taking the grandchildren camping and fishing in Cherokee, N.C., where friends owned a campground with a creek running through it.

“We used to go to the mountains and volunteer at their campground park,” Lola said. “We did that for years. We’re retired from doing that. We still go up there and see them, but we don’t go up to work anymore. We just love it up there.”

So, what's the secret to a successful marriage?

"We’re pretty simple folks,” Lola said, so it really comes down to a few things.  

“Be kind to each other and talk if you got a problem,” she said. “You can’t let it go on and on. Talk it out.”

“And belong to a church,” Louis said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: For Crestview couple, it was love at first sight

CRESTVIEW — Area couples planning shotgun weddings need look no farther than Pawn Nation.

During the "Buy a Bling, Get a Boom" promotion, customers who purchase jewelry totaling $1,000 or more will receive a free shotgun.

The offer, available now through April, to celebrate the store's first year in business, helps the guy who might rather have a shotgun than the jewelry preferred by his significant other.

"My partners and I … wanted to combine the two," Pawn Nation owner Ron Bonavita said.

But there are a few other requirements to snag this deal.

Buyers must be 18 or older and fill out Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms form 4473, Bonavita said.

"You must fill out the form, which is a background check. It has to be filled out before we can release the shotgun into your possession," he said.

The shotguns part of the deal is "a brand new, pump-action 12-gauge," Bonavita said. The brand name will vary depending on what he has in stock.

Visit Pawn Nation — 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday or 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at 3301 S. Ferdon Blvd., Crestview —  or call 306-2483 for details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Shotgun wedding? This Crestview pawn shop has a gun for you

DESTIN — A fundraising party for the Junior League of the Emerald Coast will feature a live showing of the142nd Kentucky Derby, a silent auction, and more.

 The 2nd Annual Derby Party is 3-7 p.m. Saturday, May 7 at Emerald Bay Golf Club.

Attendees may enjoy Run for the Roses Raffle and contests for the best Derby hat, best dressed couple, best bow tie and biggest hat. Guests will enjoy classic mint juleps, a southern-style luncheon and live music and dancing.

Early bird tickets are $45 through April 10, and increase to $55 afterward. Purchase at https:www//jlec.org.

For more information about sponsorship or donation opportunities, contact 269-7234 or hq@jlec.org.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Emerald Coast Junior League schedules Kentucky Derby showing, silent auction

FORT WALTON BEACH — The Emerald Coast Public Relations Organization's next Lunch and Learn will focus on PR crises.

The presentation, "Prepare for PR Crisis Management but Try Not to Use It," is set for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 23 at Chapala’s Mexican Restaurant, 67 Eglin Parkway NE, Fort Walton Beach.

Ken Hair, president and CEO of Children in Crisis Inc., will share ways to manage a crisis and negotiate your way through its associated publicity.

Hair, a senior practitioner in public relations, recently received national Accreditation in Public Relations. He has been with Children In Crisis for 10 ½ years, and has a bachelor’s degree in occupational education from Southern Illinois University. In addition, he has a master’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in management from Webster University.

He served in the U.S. Air Force for 29 years, and at retirement was Command Chief Master Sergeant, Air Education and Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas.

Lunch costs $15 for members, $20 for non-members and $10 for students. If you do not want to eat but want to hear the program, the cost is $10. Guests are welcome and should bring business cards for networking.

Contact Kathy Morrow, 974-3662, or visit www.ecpro.org for more information about ECPRO.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Public relations crisis management takes focus Feb. 23

CRESTVIEW — Don’t expect 76 trombones leading a big parade, or 110 cornets. But at least two or three rows of local musicians may perform during a Fourth of July picnic celebrating Crestview's 100th birthday.

That’s if Lee Emerson’s plans to organize the North Okaloosa Community Band come to fruition.

“There seems to be a need for a community band,” said Emerson, UpBeat Music's repairs manager. “A number of adults in the area have come in and inquired about it."

With support from UpBeat owner Dick Reinlie — who provided a set of John Phillip Sousa music charts — and area high school band directors, Emerson believes such a band is possible.

He envisions an adult band — with musicians of all skill levels — supplemented by 11th- and 12-grade band students whose directors have given them written permission to participate in it.

The first rehearsal is Monday, March 14 in Shoal River Middle School's band room. Emerson plans for 10 or 12 rehearsals to prepare for a 30-minute Sousa concert during the old-fashioned Independence Day picnic, currently scheduled for Twin Hills Park.

“This is going to be ambitious,” he said. “We have to be aggressive to make this come together. But it’s going to fun and exciting.

"No one ever regrets the time they spent making music.”

What: North Okaloosa Community Band

When: first rehearsal 6:30 p.m. March 14

Where: Shoal River Middle School band room, 3200 Redstone Ave. E., Crestview

Notes: Open to adult musicians of all skill levels, plus 11th- and 12th-grade band students with written permission from their band director.

Contact: Lee Emerson, 398-4009, lee@upbeatmusic.com

WANT TO JOIN?

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: North Okaloosa's new adult band sets centennial performance rehearsals

A Crestview man has serious injuries after his vehicle overturned around 3:10 p.m. Feb. 10 in Jackson County. 

Jelterow McKinnie, 70, was driving eastbound on Interstate 10, near State Road 69, when his vehicle traveled left onto the median, according to a Florida Highway Patrol media release.

McKinnie overcorrected the steering to the right, which caused the 2007 Ford van to cross both eastbound lanes, then overturn, landing on its left side on the grassy outside shoulder, according to the FHP. 

He is receiving treatment at Southeast Medical Center.

His passenger, Lori Ann Morgia, 52, of Crestview, was uninjured, according to the FHP.

Both the driver and passenger were wearing their seat belts, and an alcohol investigation is pending, according to the release. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview man injured in Jackson County car wreck

CRESTVIEW —The Lewis & Clark Circus is coming to town.

Performances are 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 19, and 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 20 at Spanish Trail Park, Stillwell Boulevard, Crestview. Seating is first come-first served, one hour before showtime.

Foods, toys and rides will also be available for purchase at the event.

Ticket prices range from free to $12 online, and increase on performance days. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information or to purchase advance tickets, visit http://lewis-clarkcircus.com/ or the company's Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Circus plans Crestview stop

CRESTVIEW — A downtown dance studio will host a workshop for children who want to perform or do stage work in a production of "The Little Mermaid."

Ballet & Barre's Feb. 22 through May 14 workshop will focus on character development, movement for the stage, vocal control and basic technical theatre training. It closes with a May 14 performance alongside Ballet & Barre dancers and musicians from The Pearl Mabry School of Music.

Attending the workshop — open to 8-year-olds and up — costs $200. This covers a child's costume, two tickets to the performance and production costs.

Registration begins Feb. 12 at the 520 N. Main St. studio. Call 306-3913 for more details. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview workshop set for 'The Little Mermaid' production

FORT WALTON BEACH — The Society of Human Resource Management of the Emerald Coast is hosting a presentation on time management. It is sponsored by Bradford Health Services.

Guest speaker Sam Slay will present "Time Management is a Myth!" He'll address the changes necessary to merge person and organizational priorities and make them work for you.

Registration is at 7:15 a.m. Feb. 17, and is followed by SRHM business, then the 8 a.m. program at the Two Trees Restaurant on the Fort Walton Beach golf course, 1959 Lewis Turner Blvd.

Cost is $15 for members and $20 for nonmembers.

For details, contact Meribeth Poole, mpoole@okaloosaclerk.com, or 651-7200 extension 4303.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Time management presentation set for Emerald Coast professionals