Crestview AMVETS members, for another year, will deliver Thanksgiving dinner to Hub City residents who can't afford it.  

Meals include turkey with gravy, stuffing and rolls, green beans and corn, a fruit cup and dessert.

The delivery area includes Shoal River in the east and south, Yellow River to the west and Auburn Road to the north.

Call 682-8435 before 5 p.m. Nov. 25 to have a free meal delivered to you. Provide your name, address, phone number and the number of meals needed, along with directions to your home.

You may also call and reserve meals to be picked up instead.

This is the 14th year that Crestview AMVETS have delivered Thanksgiving meals to needy residents.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview AMVETS members delivering Thanksgiving dinners

Thanksgiving is coming up, and that means family get-togethers.

Yes, there are certain people with whom you can't stand to spend more than a few moments before having bad thoughts and expressing cross words.

However, practice these tips before Thanksgiving Day:

•Think of at least one good attribute about each person you'll be around.

•Think about why these people are your loved ones; there is a reason you will spend time with them this holiday season, right?

•Think of non-confrontational topics to discuss.

•Remember the true spirit of the season. Thanksgiving is about expressing gratitude for our blessings. One tool my family uses is the "Thanksgiving hand." Name things you're thankful for and count them off on your fingers. It shouldn't be hard to find five things.

Even with this recession, we live in privileged times.

And with that, here's what's happening on the Hill:

•Laurel Hill School Book Fair: Nov. 18-22 at the school, in honor of American Education Week.

•Nov. 22 is the final day to order fruit to support the Hobo Athletic Department.

•Scream Free Parent Workshop: 6 p.m. Nov. 20, Laurel Hill Head Start, 8264 Stokes Road, Laurel Hill. Child care available in advance. RSVP: Marilyn Parks, 586-7737.

Amber Kelley lives in Laurel Hill. Send news or comments to Hobo.homefront@gmail.com or P.O. Box 163, Laurel Hill, FL, 32567.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: THE HOBO HOMEFRONT: Count your blessings — including relatives who try your patience

Shelter House, serving Okaloosa and Walton counties, is accepting donations for its annual holiday food drive. The agency collects food and prepares holiday meal baskets for domestic and sexual violence survivors and their families.

Suggested donations include: turkeys, hams, mashed potato mix, stuffing mix, gravy, soups for casseroles, cranberry sauce, crispy fried onions, fresh fruits and vegetables, pie filling, pie crusts, condensed milk and laundry baskets. Gift cards are always welcome.

Volunteers accept non-perishable food items at any time. Perishable items — such as hams, turkeys, bread and fresh fruits and vegetables — will only be accepted Nov. 25 for Thanksgiving meals and Dec. 18 for Christmas meals.

All donations should be delivered between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, to the Shelter House administration office, 102 Buck Drive in Fort Walton Beach, or call the Crestview office, 683-0845, to arrange drop-off.

Contact Shelter House, 243-1201, for more information or to volunteer for meal basket assembly.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Shelter House seeks donations for holiday meals

CRESTVIEW — More than two dozen residents attending the Crestview Public Library's First Tuesday lecture now know more about beekeeping.

Maj. Ken Bundrick, a senior Crestview Police officer, traded his patrolman's cap for a pith helmet with netting for the meeting, during which he explained the hobby's dos and don'ts.

He also displayed several items that Bundrick Honey Farms bees produce, including honey — "your simplest sugar," which the digestive system doesn't have to break down, he said.

Other products include bee pollen, beeswax and hand cream made from propolis, a waxy resin bees produce to seal holes in the hive.

Beekeeping 101

Bundrick offered advice for aspiring beekeepers, whose initial equipment investment can expect to be between $500 and $600 for a two-hive operation. Need-to-know information about beekeeping is as follows:

• "Stay off YouTube," Bundrick said. "There's so much bad information there. Someone thinks he's reinvented beekeeping. He uploads a video but forgets to go back and add, 'But my bees died.'"

• Suit up. "Nothing ruins things for a beekeeper more than not wearing protective gear," Bundrick said. "There's nothing like having a mean bee around your nose. If people say it doesn't hurt to get stung, they're lying." Start-up equipment — a wooden hive, protective clothes and a colony of bees — costs about $500.

• Blossoms on north county gallberry, blackberry and blueberry bushes are bees' favorites. Bees also make honey from cotton blossoms, but beekeepers dislike it because it granulates quickly.

• Planting flowers particularly attracts honeybees, but home gardeners should avoid insecticides.

• A hive can produce between about 60-80 pounds of honey a year, Bundrick said. It takes bees about 20 pounds of honey to make one pound of beeswax.

• Most wild honeybee colonies have fallen victim to insecticides and organic pests like mites; Bundrick said it's up to amateur and professional beekeepers to keep the species strong.

Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview beekeeper shares advice on getting started in the hobby

CRESTVIEW — Faulty machinery was to blame for a minor structural fire at L-3 Crestview Aerospace, according to Lance Martin, L-3 Communications Group's manager of public relations.

A caller dispatching first responders about an hour ago initially reported a structural fire with injuries, but the latter part wasn't  the case; all employees are safe, Martin said.

The company released this statement:

"L-3 Crestview has contained a small mechanical fire at its facility. The safety and security of Crestview employees are the company’s top priorities and the protocols in place were effective in controlling the situation. All employees at the location have been accounted for and there have been no injuries reported, though there was minor damage in the area of the incident.  The facility is returning to normal operations and L-3 Crestview is working with local authorities to ascertain the cause of the issue."

L-3, a defense contractor that provides aircraft modifications and fabricates and assembles parts and frames for various aircraft, employs more than 1,000 people.

L-3’s Crestview office started hiring in June 2011 and has created more than 150 new jobs since then.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Update: Structural fire, 'minor' damage at L-3 Crestview Aerospace

CRESTVIEW — Fixed route bus service will be free for all riders Nov. 12 in honor of Veterans Day, Okaloosa County Transit representatives announced.

Free rides will be offered on all WAVE fixed routes. Buses begin running at 7 a.m. and will continue service until 7 p.m. See a complete listing of routes and schedules at www.rideoct.org or call 833-9168.

“Our community is filled with veterans,” said Lani Birchett, the Okaloosa County Board of County Commissioners' transit coordinator and grants manager. “They have given so much to our nation, so we wanted to try to find a small way to give to the community in their honor. We are so grateful to them and encourage all who board a bus on the 12th to thank a veteran.”

Beatrice Love-Moore, Okaloosa County Veteran Services' director, expressed gratitude for the service. “We are truly honored to have our area veterans recognized by the county,” Love-Moore said. “This effort shows that the county cares about our veterans and acknowledges their service to both our nation and our local community. Additionally, this day of free service will help a huge number of local veterans because many of them use public transportation.”

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Anyone can ride the WAVE bus free Tuesday to honor veterans

The holidays are upon us, with Thanksgiving and Christmas just around the bend. I know things are tight this time of year, but if you have something extra to give, consider the Helping Hands Fund, which assists unemployed and disabled Laurel Hill residents. The fund helps pay our needy neighbors' bills and provides them food and clothing. I am directly involved, so contact me at the address below for more information.

You know, many of us don’t count our trials and tribulations as blessings, but if we didn’t have bad times, how would we be able to be thankful for the good? Without tests, how would we know our strengths and weaknesses? One way to look at this hectic season is to simply breathe and be thankful that we are able to even experience it.

Every day can be a blessing and an adventure if we simply have the desire to look at it that way.

OK, enough of my rambling — let's review what's been happening on the Hill!

Nov. 1, Laurel Hill Head Start, along with a few other Okaloosa County Head Start centers, voyaged to Niceville for the annual Pow Wow. There, they learned about Indian culture and witnessed tribal dances and rituals. The children were allowed to participate in the dances and try on traditional clothes. Needless to say, they thoroughly enjoyed that!

Oct. 31, parents readied Laurel Hill Head Start's playground in just an hour for a Halloween festival. The playhouse became "the ooey gooey house," where children used their senses, minus vision, to identify objects. The slide became a "spooky slide" haunted by ghosts, witches and bats. Additionally, children could roll pumpkins in competition. From there, they took their prize pumpkins to the painting station and decorated them! Face painting, a fish-for-prizes booth, bobbing for apples and pin-the-tail-on-the-kitty were other enjoyed areas. All the 3- and 4-year-olds had a blast!

Following the festivities, I headed over to Laurel Hill School, where the annual trunk-or-treat took place. Pre-k, kindergarten and first-grade students paraded around the parking lot trunk-or-treating. What wonderful costumes! The rain caught us off guard, but that didn’t deter our Hoboes! Each vehicle was festively decorated, and some facilitated children's games. This year's trunk-or-treat received a very large turnout — I believe the biggest yet — so thank you to all the volunteers!

Amber Kelley lives in Laurel Hill. Send news or comments to Hobo.homefront@gmail.com or P.O. Box 163, Laurel Hill, FL, 32567.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: THE HOBO HOMEFRONT: Fund set for needy Laurel Hill residents

CRESTVIEW — Crestview Housing Authority staffers say they are working to challenge unfavorable opinions about affordable housing.

"We really want to change the public's perspective of us," CHA Executive Director Judy Adams said.

"Unfortunately, people have an idea that we are a project," CHA program analyst David Clark said.

The CHA — which manages 273 housing units with up to five bedrooms in the Lakeview Drive, Virginia Court and West Edney Drive areas — receives funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Eligibility for housing depends on a household’s financial situation and size, Clark said.

"In our area, a single-person household that makes less than $36,000 (a year) is eligible for housing," he said.

Within the past seven years, CHA maintenance staffers have upgraded units — some built as far back as the 1960s — on the outside and inside. They’ve set new driveways, walking paths and metal roofing, and have added new door locks and energy efficient windows.

In addition, CHA maintenance staffers — who regularly inspect units, replace air filters and encourage use of energy efficient water heaters, toilets and interior lighting to lower utility costs — check for potential signs of crime.

"We have done extensive drug training … to target methamphetamines and other illegal substances (used inside each unit)," Maintenance supervisor Mike Riley said.

The goal is to make CHA’s properties safer, and for the public to see them that way.

"Now we are trying to get it up to the standards, where the tenants can now see it as a community,” Riley said.     

  Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Matthew Brown at 850-682-6524 or matthewb@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbMatthew.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview Housing Authority improving properties to change public opinion