CRESTVIEW — When Lisa Reeves lost her house in an Oct. 15 fire, a group of people she'd never met before sprang into action.

ACCIDENTAL FIRE

Reeves and her 11-year-old daughter, Marissa, weren't home when a blaze claimed their single-story home and its contents, valued at $50,000.  The fire was an accident; Marissa had hatched a chick from an egg, and it wasn't in the best of health. Reeves put the chick in a box with a heating lamp in a back bedroom, which later caught fire.

Reeves — who now lives in a mobile home in Auburn — said she salvaged a few items, including "some pictures and some paperwork and stuff like that." Residents have dropped off necessities at 3034 Log Cabin Lane, Crestview, or the Crestview Sears to help with the situation. Antioch Elementary School collected clothes for Marissa, a student there.

But Reeves didn't expect help outside Northwest Florida.

BOOK LOVERS UNITE

Reeves, an author known as L.M. Glenn, received an unprecedented response from book lovers and authors who heard about her situation and purchased Reeves' e-books to help her family.

Angel Martinez of New Mexico was among those who wanted to help this perfect stranger — "never met her, never heard of her, never read her books," she said — but having lost everything in a house fire herself, she wanted to do more. "$1.99 for a Kindle book is not enough to help someone start over," she said.

Martinez recalled Giftapalooza, an annual event run by author T.E. Ridener, who collects Christmas gifts and food baskets for needy children. She thencreated Amazon and Wal-Mart wish lists — with necessities and extras for Marissa in mind — for an Oct. 21-26 fundraiser on Facebook.

Donors' generosity led to some $1,300 in cash and gift cards — "It's not much to start over, but it's something to keep (Reeves') faith going," Martinez said. "Most people donated from the heart."

STARTING OVER

The book lovers' efforts surprised Reeves, who expressed gratitude and appreciation. "No one has ever done anything like that for me before," she said.

Now, she's in rebuilding mode.

"Big items have been taken care of," Reeves said. "We don't need any big items. Just the small stuff." That includes cooking pans, cleaning supplies, bathroom items, pillows, towels and washcloths. And women's shoes, size 7 1/2 — for Reeves and Marissa.

In the meantime, Marissa, an avid reader, is rebuilding her library, thanks to some of the Amazon donations. That makes mother and daughter happy, Reeves said.

"When my daughter is smiling, I am smiling," she said.

WANT TO HELP?

Donate: http://www.gofundme.com/fw2ino

Amazon wish list: http://amzn.to/1thxMLX

Wal-Mart wish list: http://bit.ly/1zz8mlq

Email Renee Bell, Crestview News Bulletin, or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Strangers, neighbors help family after house fire

NICEVILLE — Kusten Kruezers Volkswagens of the Emerald Coast has donated $1,650 to Children in Crisis. The club used proceeds from its recent car show at the Mullet Festival grounds.

“The donation was a tremendous help and will be used to help feed, clothe and care for the children living at the CIC Neighborhood in Fort Walton Beach," said Ken Hair, CIC president and CEO.

Children in Crisis Inc. is a nonprofit that serves abused, neglected and abandoned local children. Call 864-4242 or visit www.childrenincrisisfl.org for more details.  

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Volkswagen club helps support Children in Crisis

MOSSY HEAD — The Emerald Coast Association of Realtors is hosting a Nov. 22 golf tournament at Blackstone Golf Course in Mossy Head. All proceeds will benefit the Emerald Coast Toys for Tots.

“We have a big need for toys and, with that, comes a big need for monetary donations, which is why fundraisers such as our upcoming golf tournament are so important to the Emerald Coast Toys For Tots mission,” Ashley Botelho, the toy drive's coordinator, said.

Contact emeraldcoasttoysfortots@gmail.com or see http://bit.ly/EmeraldCoastToysForTots to learn more about the toy drive.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Golf tournament to benefit Toys for Tots

BAKER — Baker Block Museum's staffers already have ideas for the 2015 Baker Heritage Festival.

“Next year we’ll be celebrating the county’s centennial,” museum director Ann Spann said. “We’re definitely going to tie into that.”

See 82 photos from the Baker Heritage Festival>>

But for now, staffers are calculating income from Saturday's festival, including booth space rentals and sales of food, raffle tickets, books and the 2015 “Lost North Okaloosa” calendar. Proceeds benefit the museum and the North Okaloosa Historical Association.

DEMONSTRATIONS, RE-ENACTMENTS

As the sun rose on a chilly morning, the Jeannette and Charles Henderson Heritage Park rang with traditional bluegrass, gospel and country music, the clang of a blacksmith’s hammer, and the chug-chug of a mechanical ice cream churn.

Demonstrations included a powder horn maker, a flintknapper and Carl Commander, a festival fixture's, cypress shingle making.

“We usually give some of the shingles to the kids,” Commander said. “We make small dog houses and club houses with the leftovers, and occasionally a smoke house.”

In the park’s dog-trot house, costumed re-enactors quilted and made butter, cornbread and apple treats.

On one side of the museum, the Choctawhatchee Spinners Guild and Nauti Knitters, clad in period costumes, practiced traditional fabric arts. On the other, Model A and T Fords lined the front of the building and folks sat on the veranda exchanging pleasantries.

HOMEMADE GOODS, JOY

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' elders and sisters offered free family ancestry search services.

Homemade pickles, jams and jellies, locally produced honey and beeswax candles, cane syrup and crafts — ranging from embroidery to wooden toys, birdhouses and finely crafted jewelry boxes — were among available handicrafts.

Churches and community organizations, set up among arts and crafts vendors, sold baked goods. And Holt Assembly of God members literally spread Joy to attendees, passing out bottles of the dishwashing soap.

“Nobody turns down a little Joy,” member Jay Tyler said.

Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Baker Heritage Festival attendees step back in time (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

CRESTVIEW — The coat drive sponsored by Concerned Citizens of Crestview Community Outreach is coming to an end. Anyone who still has coats to donate may do so by Nov. 13.

The coats members collected from the community will be given away from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 15 at 247 S. Book Street. Clothes and shoes will also be given away.

There is no charge for the items. You are welcome to attend if you need a coat, shoes or clothing.

For details, contact Pearl Bess, 850-682-5733.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Concerned Citizens Group to present coats Nov. 15

BAKER — Being in the dog house isn’t so good. Living in a dog-trot house, on the other hand, was typical for Crackers, rural North Okaloosa County's early residents.

Cracker, locally, refers to oxen team drivers whose cracking whips drove the beasts as they hauled logs out of the forest or plowed the fertile fields.

The term came to refer to the area’s hard-working, independent-minded rural residents, and also describes the regional traditional architectural vernacular, and sometimes the area’s cultural heritage.

During Saturday’s Baker Heritage Festival, Lillian Van Houten came home to the log dog-trot house in which her mother was born, and which she donated to the Baker Block Museum’s Heritage Park.

“When mama was born here, it was just two rooms,” Van Houten said.

The rooms are on either side of the covered open corridor that gives the style its “dog trot” or “dog run” name.

Van Houten pointed to tacks still holding the corners of long-faded pieces of paper to one wall in the room where volunteer Cindy Bronson prepared apple treats for visitors.

“Mama tacked up pages from catalogs here,” Van Houten explained. “I got married in 1953 and my mama was still living in this house.”

Throughout the house and on its broad verandas, as well as the house next door, costumed re-enactors demonstrated folkways that would not have been uncommon in homes when they were new.

Across the dog trot, Sue Aughtman and Vivian Lee, dressed in gingham and bonnets, worked on a “step around the mountain” pattern quilt in front of the brick fireplace.

“Of course, the fireplace wasn’t so fancy when I was a little girl,” Van Houten said.

“I had one man ask me, ‘What religion are you that you dress like that?’” Aughtman said. “And I said, ‘Oh no, it’s a time period, not a religion.’”

In the house next door, connected by a covered extension of the dog trot, Jane Kelly and Vickie Lake baked corn bread over the fireplace and smeared it with freshly churned butter, made by vigorously shaking two pints of heavy cream in a quart jar.

“Our ancestors were pretty smart,” Lake said. “They get a pound of butter and a pint of buttermilk this way.”

WANT TO GO?

WHAT: Baker Block Museum Heritage Park

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and third Saturdays

WHERE: Baker Block Museum, corner of Highway 189 and State Road 4, Baker

NOTES: The North Okaloosa Historical Association’s museum and pioneer homestead village provides insight on regional history, heritage and folkways.

Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: In the dog-trot house: Folkways demonstrators bring old homes to life in Baker

CRESTVIEW — Residents can honor U.S. military veterans with an American flag display in front of Crestview High School. The Exchange Club of Crestview is coordinating the event.

“We put up 150 flags for the week (of Veterans Day),” said Mayor David Cadle, who serves on the club’s board of trustees. “They are in place to honor our veterans, both past and present.”

Here's a printable registration form for the Exchange Club of Crestview’s Veterans Day flag display>>

The 149 American flags, and one flag representing prisoners of war and those missing in action, will be displayed Nov. 8-15.

For a $25 donation, residents can honor a specific veteran, having a flag labeled in that veteran’s honor. A laminated label on the flag pole will feature information including the veteran’s name, rank, branch of military service, and number of years served. When the display is taken down, each label — not the flag — will be presented to the donor in a frame.

Crestview High's JROTC program will assist in setting up the display. Donations will help the Exchange Club fund two scholarships for CHS seniors, club officials said.

Sharlene Cox, the club’s secretary, said she gets a patriotic feeling while watching the display being set up.  

Motorists passing by the North Ferdon Boulevard school usually slow down or honk their car horns to show support for the display, she said.

 “It’s really for the people to enjoy and remember our veterans,” she said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Exchange Club to display U.S. flags, honor veterans (FORM)