EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE — The 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) activated a fourth line battalion on Friday. The activation marked the last expansion that included a new battalion for each of the five active duty Special Forces Groups. The ceremony took place on the 7th's Meadows Field.

Lt. Col. Martin Schmidt assumed command of  the new battalion.

"The activation of the fourth battalion enables the 7th Special Forces Group (A) to better sustain repeated back-to-back worldwide special operations,” Lt. Col. Jimmy Brownlee, the group's public affairs officer, said. “A fourth battalion relieves some of the stress our soldiers and families face by providing more dwell time at home station between deployments."

Operational experience over the past several years has validated the Special Forces mission sets, demonstrating their specific relevancy and application in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Since 2001, 7th has maintained a continuous deployment rotation in support of Operation Enduring Freedom while maintaining a constant presence in their assigned area of responsibility:  Central and South America.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 4th Battalion presents activation ceremony

CRESTVIEW—A request for a budget reallocation by Fire Chief Joe Traylor to achieve his department’s top priority budget request was rebuffed by the city council at its Monday evening meeting. The fire department hoped to convert a part-time dispatcher into a full-time position to provide more adequate staffing.

Explaining the necessity of the position, Traylor described the sequence of events that leads to his department’s response to an emergency, beginning with a citizen’s call for help that is answered by a dispatcher at the Woodruff Avenue main fire station.

“This position is one of the key elements in starting that chain of events,” Traylor said. “That’s why my staff determined this is a priority.”

Traylor stressed that he was not asking for additional funds.

“What I’m asking is to take the money within the fire department budget that was approved to reallocate it based on the priorities that we submitted to the budget process back in June, and defer the lower priorities,” Traylor said. “The number one priority was to take our part-time dispatcher full time.”

Traylor said the fire department’s dispatch staff is “limping along” because it is understaffed, with trained firefighters sometimes having to fill in as dispatchers when a shortage occurs.

“We have certified people waiting to move into position,” Traylor said. “This position has a history of turnover. It’s not about the individual; it’s about the position. We have six people covering 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are more hours than there are people. Somebody ends up working overtime or we pull a firefighter in.”

Councilman Charles Baugh Jr., saying he was playing devil’s advocate, questioned why, among budget reallocations Traylor proposed, he would defer buying new sets of protective gear.

“I don’t feel comfortable taking clothing and equipment from the firefighters,” Baugh said.

“I find it incredible that you think I would put any firefighter at risk by not providing protective clothing,” Traylor responded. “We bought protective clothing last year and we did the year before….At no point did we not have anybody who didn’t have good, certified clothing.”

“Chief, I respect your judgment,” Councilwoman Robyn Helt said. “I just wonder why you didn’t raise this in the budget hearing when we were scrambling to find money under any rock, nook or cranny.”

Traylor said the dispatcher position was clearly indicated as his department’s top priority in a June 4 letter submitted to the council and city clerk. When it wasn’t funded during the budget process, he and his staff began finding a way to locate the money within the budget that was allocated to the fire department.

By eliminating some communications equipment, the uniform allocation, and firefighter physicals, which are already covered under each fireman’s city-provided health insurance, and estimated fuel savings under a cooperative purchase agreement with the county, Traylor and his staff found $27,000 to fund the position.

“Once we attained a balanced budget, we didn’t ‘find’ money, we reallocated,” Traylor said. “Our priorities changed. I haven’t changed the budget.”

Councilman Tim Grandberry moved to approve Traylor’s adjusted budget, but for lack of a second, the motion died.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Council denies fire department allocation

A Walker Elementary student this morning received quite a surprise when his father made a pit-stop in his classroom, marking a return home from Afghanistan that was much sooner than expected.

First-grade students had created timelines marking their short lives' milestones, and the students explained their timelines before their classmates at the front of the classroom. However, Pedro Massa Jr., had a little help. His mother helped him read through the timeline, which ended with simply, "Daddy comes home today."

Pedro Massa Sr., of the U.S. Army's 7th Special Forces Group based south of Crestview, made an appearance at that point. His son saw him, screamed, "Daddy!" and jumped in his arms.

The elder Massa had been in Afghanistan since January. The school's principal, Jeanine Kirkland, thanked him for his service.

See the Sept. 29, 2012 Crestview News Bulletin for the full story.

WATCH THE VIDEO: Click on the link in "Related Media" left of this page.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Soldier surprises son with early homecoming (VIDEO)

CRESTVIEW — Mayor David Cadle has announced that former Fort Walton Beach police officer Tony Taylor will be the city’s new police chief.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am to have been selected,” Taylor said Monday evening after Cadle’s announcement.

In his brief remarks, Taylor promised that the beleaguered Crestview Police Department’s “No. 1 priority” will be accreditation.

Taylor will take over Oct. 1. He will earn $70,000.

During his report at the City Council meeting, Cadle acknowledged that the turmoil surrounding allegations against Police Chief Brian Mitchell and his operations commander, Maj. Joseph Floyd, has resulted in a lack of public confidence in the force.

“This department is still suffering from the stigma of what happened months ago,” Cadle said. “It is critically important that we restore the trust of the citizens of Crestview. We have not done that yet.”

Taylor said he will work to do that.

“I look forward to working with you, with the community, to pull us out of this quagmire,” he said. “We survived this in Fort Walton and we’ll survive it in Crestview. We’ll be able to hold our heads up.”

Cadle said the search for a new chief, which under the current city charter falls to him, attracted 17 applicants. That list was narrowed to four finalists, including Maj. Kenneth Bundrick, the department’s interim chief.

Cadle said a major difference him and Bundrick’s was the future of the now disbanded Street Crimes Unit, which Floyd had commanded.

“I spoke to Chief Bundrick. We realized some differences of opinion on the Street Crimes Unit,” Cadle reported. “We have seen a spike in crime. I would like to see a narcotics crime unit put in place. He disagrees with me on this.”

Taylor retired from the Fort Walton Beach Police Department in June 2010 after 33 years.  He most recently served as a consultant to the force.

Taylor promised an open-door policy and encouraged citizens to meet with him to express their concerns and offer suggestions. Matthew Brown contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Tony Taylor named Crestview police chief

PENSACOLA— The Naval Aviation Museum's 50th anniversary celebration starts at 10 a.m. tomorrow at 1750 Radford Blvd., Pensacola.

The event includes an 11 a.m. presentation and book signing by author Brad Elward in the museum's Hangar Bay 1. Attendees will receive a commemorative anniversary coffee mug while supplies last.

At 1 p.m., the museum will host a "Magic of Flight" viewing, featuring the Blue Angels, on the IMAX giant screen.

Visit www.NavalAviationMuseum.org or call 453-2389 or 800-327-5002 for more details.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Naval aviation museum celebrates 50th anniversary Saturday

LAUREL HILL — Clifton Hall during Tuesday night's regular meeting was voted to fill the council's seat that has been vacant for the past 18 months.

"He is a smart man," Mayor Joan Smith said after the meeting. "He will definitely be an asset." Hall wasn't present at the meeting, but he is expected to be sworn in as a council member at the next meeting.

Hall has been listed as a potential candidate to fill the seat for the past several months. His candidacy joined that of former council member Johnny James, Charles Lennard and Mike Blizzard.

Members couldn't fill the seat due to a lack in majority votes.

All of the council members were present, except for Willie Mae Tolles. Her absence allowed council members Betty Williamson and Larry Hendren to vote in Hall 2-1 against councilman Robby Adams, who was looking forward to meeting Hall.

"I would just like to welcome him aboard," Adams said. "I'm glad we can put this behind us so we can move forward."

Also that night, the council voted in favor of lowering the transaction fees for water bill payments to $2.75. Customers were paying a $3.50 fee to use a credit or debit card to make payments.

During the meeting, city water clerk Cindy Oloughlin announced her resignation from her position. Oloughlin, who served at the position for more than a year, said her last day would be on Oct. 10.

"I just wanted to say thank you for everything that you have done for me and giving me the opportunity to serve the citizens of Laurel Hill," Oloughlin told city officials.

Oloughlin stated that she had found another job opportunity closer to where she lives.

The council voted to hold the next meeting on the second Tuesday of next month so that it wouldn't coincide with Election Day on Nov. 6.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Laurel Hill council appoints new member

CRESTVIEW — Past met the present Friday at the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Rural Diversity Healthcare Center, when the Crestview Chamber of Commerce welcomed the pharmacy school with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. That afternoon, the school’s 21 students met women who worked in the same building when it was a sewing factory.

The Alatex building — on the corner of Woodruff Avenue and Wilson street — opened in 1937 as a sewing factory, Baker Block Museum historian Ann Spann said. Briefly, the structure housed city hall, Spann said. "There was a lot of growth in the community after it opened. People would make the commute from surrounding cities just to work there."

“I worked here for 30 years,” said June Busbee, who began sewing men’s undergarments at the factory in 1956, during a time of much different social attitudes. “Back then, we all had to wear dresses; we couldn’t wear slacks” she said.

Like factory workers before them, many students, like Brittani Ricks, 24, moved here for opportunity. "(Crestview) is quite a bit smaller than Jacksonville, but the people here are friendly," Ricks said, contrasting Crestview with her hometown. She added that she enjoys FAMU, too. "It's working well here. It's a really nice facility. Our online professors have been teaching us a lot."

Busbee and several of her former co-workers toured the facility following the ribbon-cutting ceremony. They visited study rooms, computer labs and interactive classrooms, where students can communicate with virtual professors teaching them from other FAMU campuses.

Several chamber members and Mayor David Cadle, City Clerk Betsy Roy and police Chief Tony Taylor were among attendees. Taylor and his wife, Lilia, greeted students before the tour.

“It really warms my heart to see these people are interested in what is going on here,” said Margarth Larose-Pierre, the school’s associate dean of academic affairs. "I wanted the people that worked in this building in the (19)30s and ’40s to see what the building looks like now."

County Commissioner Wayne Harris, chamber executive director, said he estimates the school will bring millions to the local economy within the next five years.

 In addition, Harris asked students to take care of the facility on behalf of those who once worked there.

"This place means a lot to these ladies, so they ask that you show it the same love and respect they did,” he said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Past meets present at FAMU ribbon cutting ceremony