CRESTVIEW — Crestview and surrounding residents can help raise money for cancer research on Saturday at the 5th Annual Davidson Dash Run for a Cure. The 5K, 10K and 12-and-under fun run events begin at 8:30 a.m. at Davidson Middle School.

Top winners in several categories, particularly for the 5K and 10K races, will receive awards and recognition on the school website, okaloosaschools.com/davidson.

A children's bounce house will be available throughout the event. In addition, Pace Home Depot employees will show kids how to make personalized toolboxes.

The Relay for Life event helps raise money for the American Cancer Society.

Many attendees usually honor a loved one who has died from cancer or currently battles the disease, Daniel Richards, event organizer and seventh-grade life science teacher at Davidson, said.

He his wife, Jennifer, had a scare when their son, Caleb, 6, was diagnosed with child kidney cancer at 4 months old.

"It just turned our worlds upside down," Richards said. "I just couldn't understand how a healthy little boy could be sick all of the sudden."

 The couple took their son to a Pensacola specialist who removed Caleb's cancerous left kidney and administered 13 chemotherapy treatments.

More than 400 participants are expected Saturday; 350 people participated last year, organizers said.

Putting the event together usually costs $2,000, but since sponsors are covering the cost, all registration proceeds directly will benefit the society.

"With the help of the sponsors (namely the Crestview Publix and Main Street Medical Center), we are looking at the potential of writing a check of $7,000 to the American Cancer Society," Richards said.

He hopes that one day there will be no need to raise money, he said.

"Ultimately, I would want to not even have the race, or (we could) race for something else," Richards said. "I would love for there to be a cure for cancer and not need a cancer society."

"I know one day it's coming, but until then we have to keep fighting back."

Two fundraisers benefiting American Cancer Society Relay for Life teams are as follows:

•Davidson Dash Run for a Cure 5k, 10k and fun run events begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at Davidson Middle School. Register at http://bit.ly/10JXUSk.

•Super Bowl Sunday Boston butt fundraiser is 4-5 p.m. Saturday at the Crestview Publix parking lot. Butts cost $25 each; proceeds benefit the Duke it Out American Cancer Society Relay for Life team of Crestview. Call Loney Whitley, 603-3500 or 537-4654, to place your order.

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: Relay for Life team 10k, 5k and fun run coming Saturday

Do you need help saving money or energy, preparing your taxes, or tending your garden?

The Eco-Nomic Living Expo is 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Emerald Coast Convention Center. Admission is free.

You can learn how to protect your family’s health, wealth and environment.

Document shredding, free tax preparation (with annual income up to $51,000), children's identity kits, and Chia pet centers will comprise the event.

Seminars are as follows:

10 a.m.: Rain barrel workshop, vegetable gardening, retirement planning, conserving energy and benefits of massage

10:45 a.m.: ID theft, Florida-friendly landscape, outdoor experiences, backyard poultry and olive oil

11:30 a.m.: Nine Winning Ways to Talk About Money, with Dr. Victor Harris

1 p.m.: Lawn management, weight management, using herbs and talking about money

 “The Eco-Nomic Living Expo is an educational and fun experience and our audience grows each year,” Extension Agent Elaine Courtney said. “Additionally, University of Florida Professor Dr. Vic Harris will talk about ‘Winning Ways to talk about Money.’” 

Vendors, sponsors, businesses and organizations whose focus aligns with the expo's overall theme, “Smart Choices: Money, Home, Health & Environment" will participate.

See www.economiclivingexpo.com for details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Eco-Nomic Living Expo coming Saturday

CRESTVIEW — North Okaloosa Medical Center on Friday will kick off "Dressing the Town Red," in support of the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women and National Heart Month.

The kick-off begins 11:30 a.m. at 151 E. Redstone Ave. for those who want to raise awareness about heart disease, women's No. 1 killer. Friday is also a day to celebrate 10 years of Go Red for Women by wearing red.

The hospital will sell “Red Dress” signs to be displayed at Crestview and surrounding area businesses and homes.  The signs will be $20 each; proceeds will benefit the American Heart Association.

Fast facts

•Heart disease kills more women than men, at an average rate of one death per minute.

•Heart disease kills more women than all kinds of cancer combined.

•Heart disease affects an estimated 43 million women in the U.S.

•Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Hospital to 'dress the town red,' raise heart health awareness

HURLBURT FIELD — Applications for the Funded Legal Education Program (FLEP) and Excess Leave Program (ELP) are being accepted through March 1. Interested officers are encouraged to compete. The number of FLEP and ELP applicants selected in any academic year is determined based on the needs of the Air Force.

“Our Air Force missions are constantly changing, and commanders deserve to have access to legal advisors with a broad background of military experiences,” said Lt. Col. Rebecca Vernon, Staff Judge Advocate, 1st Special Operations Wing Office of the Staff Judge Advocate. “The FLEP and ELP will ensure that we can continue to maintain a Corps of officers whose military experience complements their legal training providing commanders with the highest caliber of legal support.”

According to Vernon, Air Force JAGs do more than just provide legal assistance. In addition to prosecuting and defending clients brought before courts-martial, JAG officers routinely participate in nearly every facet of the Air Force mission including developing and acquiring weapons systems, ensuring availability of airspace and ranges where those systems are tested and operated, consulting with commanders about how those systems are employed in armed conflict, and assisting commanders in the day-to-day running of military installations around the world.

The FLEP is a paid legal studies program for active-duty Air Force commissioned officers and is an assignment action. Participants receive full pay, allowances, and tuition. FLEP applicants must have between two and six years active duty service (enlisted or commissioned) and must be in the pay grade O-3 or below as of the day they begin law school. The FLEP is subject to tuition limitations and positions may be limited due to overall funding availability. The Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) establishes the tuition limit and in Academic Year 2012 was set at approximately $16,000 per year. While in 2012, due to unfortunate budgetary constraints, the Air Force was unable to offer any FLEP seats, the Air Force has secured a handful of seats in 2013 and encourages all eligible officers interested in becoming a member of the Air Force JAG Corps to apply.

The ELP is an unpaid legal studies program for Air Force officers. ELP participants do not receive pay and allowances but remain on active duty for retirement eligibility and benefits purposes. ELP applicants must have between two and ten years active duty service and must be in the pay grade O-3 or below as of the first day of law school.

Applications for FY12 FLEP and ELP will be accepted from Jan. 1 through March 1. Both the FLEP and ELP programs require attendance at an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school. Upon graduation and admission to practice law in the highest court of any state, commonwealth, or territory of the United States, candidates are eligible for designation as judge advocates. To be considered for FLEP or ELP, applicants must complete all application forms, apply (acceptance is not required at the time of application for FLEP/ELP) to at least one ABA accredited law school, receive their Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) results, and interview with a Staff Judge Advocate by Feb. 15. Officers must provide a letter of conditional release from their current career field. Selection for both programs is competitive.

Applications meet a selection board in early March, and selections are made based on a review of the application package using a “whole person” concept. The total number of applicants selected for any academic year is based on the needs of the Air Force. AFI 51-101, Judge Advocate Accession Program, Chapters 2 and 3, discuss the FLEP and ELP.

For more information and application materials, visit http://www.airforce.com/jag, contact the base legal office at 884-7821, or contact Maj. Sean Elameto, HQ USAF/JAX (sean.elameto@pentagon.af.mil or 1-800-JAG-USAF.)

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: JAG announces law school programs for Air Force officers

CRESTVIEW — Earlier in life, Masuko Gartman created hundreds of paintings that appear in private and public collections in the U.S. and abroad, particularly Japan, Canada and France.

These days, the 82-year-old, who can barely speak, lives at Carrington Manor in Crestview, where she uses a wheelchair and receives care for her declining health.

Masuko is one of 15 patients whom Sara Tyler, a registered nurse and Covenant Hospice case manager, visits per week. Tyler gives a head-to-toe assessment of each patient, verifies medication amounts, informs patients and their families about illnesses, and coordinates with physicians and pharmacies.

Covenant Hospice, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, continues its tradition of comforting some 6,000 terminally ill patients and their families in Florida and south Alabama.

"Our mission is to ensure our patients live as fully and comfortably as possible, accepting all patients, regardless of the ability to pay," its website states.

"We go to wherever the patients are; that includes nursing homes, homes and hospitals," Tyler said. 

It's a mission that the Gartman family appreciates, having received Covenant's care before.

"They did a great deal for us before our son passed away," Billy Gartman, Masuko's husband, said. "Anything we needed, they were there for us — anytime.

"We didn't have to ask for anything … It couldn't have gone any better.

Eddie, the couple's son, died from pancreatic cancer in 2005 at age 48.

"No words can express how I felt. It was like the end of the world," Billy, 81, said.

Masuko took the loss of their son the hardest.

"To be honest, I don't think she ever got over it," he said. "It could be part of the reason she is in here."

Earlier in life, Masuko honored Eddie's 20-plus years in the U.S. Navy with "Night Fighter," a painting displayed in the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Mississippi.

"She did some portraits, but seascapes seemed to be more of her liking," Billy said. 

Generosity and philanthropy accompanied her artistry.

She donated a painting of waves crashing on a sand dune beach to Carrington Manor.

In addition, she frequently donated her artwork to the annual Cox Cablethon, which auctions items donated from local businesses to benefit Covenant Hospice.

"She would set up during the show and paint," Tyler said. "It would be marvelous just to see her sit there and create a masterpiece."

Masuko has been Tyler's patient for the past two weeks. In that time, the two have grown close.

"She always has a smile when I come to visit," Tyler said.

 "It's very rewarding for me to help people in the community," she said. "It makes you feel good."

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: Hospice helps two generations among 6,000 patients

View a video promotion of the event.

The World War II veterans will be coming home in a way. They trained at then Eglin Field for the famous April 18, 1942, bombing attack on Tokyo that some say changed the course of history.

Each year, the remaining members of the 80-person team, of which there are now only five, gather at different cities to remember the raid. This year, the men who are in their 90s have chosen to visit the Emerald Coast. It could be their last.

“If you want to see the Raiders, if you want the chance to honor them, it’s going to be here in your backyard,” said Ted Corcoran, president of the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce, which is organizing the event. The reunion, scheduled for April 17-20, already is attracting interest from across the country. Last year’s reunion in Dayton, Ohio, sold out in three hours, Corcoran said.

The event will include a lunch and banquet April 18 at the C.H. “Bull” Rigdon Fairgrounds and Recreation Complex in Fort Walton Beach, with the possibility of meeting the Raiders in person. All World War II veterans from Northwest Florida are invited to attend free of charge.

The chamber plans to decorate the fairgrounds as a World War II barracks, with people in period attire, a makeshift USO, and jeeps and tanks that were used during the war.

There will be a flyover April 19 on Okaloosa Island that organizers hope will include a B-25, the plane the Raiders flew, as well as other aircraft from fleets at Hurlburt Field and Eglin, Corcoran said.

Gen. Mark Anthony Welsh III, chief of staff of the Air Force, will be the guest speaker at the banquet April 20.

That day also will feature a historic Parade of Heroes through Fort Walton Beach.

Veterans from all wars will march together, led by the Doolittle Raiders, then World War II veterans, then Korean veterans and so on through the Afghanistan war. Active-duty service members from all branches will follow the veterans.

Corcoran said that to his knowledge, the parade will be the first of its kind held in Fort Walton Beach.

“Our community will be lining the streets of Eglin Parkway waving flags and truly acknowledging the love they have for the military,” he said. “We’ll make it the best reunion they’ve ever had.”

Tickets for the events will go on sale in February, although the exact date has yet to be announced. About 500 will go on sale, and Corcoran expects a sellout.

Beach Community Bank is sponsoring of the event. Proceeds will go to set up a Doolittle Raider scholarship at Northwest Florida State College and to the Fisher House.

The chamber bid with several other cities for the reunion.

“It’s a huge honor for us to be able to pay tribute to them and to bring them back to where it all started,” said Eppi Azzaretto, marketing director for the chamber.

Contact Daily News Staff Writer Lauren Sage Reinlie at 850-315-4440 or lreinlie@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenRnwfdn.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Organizers prep for Doolittle Raiders reunion coming in April

NICEVILLE — Nancy Sorenson was a mother, a wife and a friend. The woman from East Rockaway, N.Y., was one of more than 100 people in the United States who died from Hurricane Sandy last October.

Sorenson‘s cousin, Niceville resident Mary Quinn, said the mother of three left a legacy of love and faith. Now, Quinn wants to cherish that memory and help to ease the devastation up north by raising funds for Catholic Charities of Brooklyn and Queens.

On Oct. 29, Quinn said her cousin was trying to retrieve some mementos from her home when the storm surge sent water rushing into her home.

A large mirror fell off the wall and shattered and severely cut Sorenson’s arm. No emergency personnel could respond at the height of the storm, so Sorenson’s family watched as she bled to death.

“Being from here, you know the damage (hurricanes) can do, the disruption, the devastation,” Quinn said. “When you’re looking at somebody crying because she’s looking at her destroyed home, what amounts to a pile of her life — the photos, the mementos, all the things you can never replace — it makes you want to do something.”

Quinn has asked Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida to help raise money for the victims of the super storm. Some people still are without power in below-freezing weather.

The “Grab a Fork, Lend a Hand” fund-raiser will be at 6 p.m. Saturday at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church’s Parish Life Center in Niceville.

“Our goal is to raise $2,000,” said Kelly Humphrey, director of marketing and development with Catholic Charities. “We just want to tell them we’re thinking of you, we’ve been there. It’s a chance for us to support our brothers and sisters in New York.”

The event will feature booths with foods from around the world as well as southern treats and New York classics. There also will be door prizes and a 50-50 donation drawing.

“If we can alleviate some of the suffering on the financial end for everyone involved, perhaps it will help them heal. It can be us and it has been us going through this.

“We need to pay it forward.”

TO LEARN MORE For more information about the fund-raiser, call Catholic Charities at 737-0864. Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church is at 1200 Valparaiso Blvd. in Niceville.

Contact Daily News Staff Writer Angel McCurdy at 850-315-4432 or amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @AngelMnwfdn.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Fundraiser scheduled to help victims of Hurricane Sandy