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Golf-themed soiree draws community support, sponsors, and donors to provide homes, healing, and hope through Embrace Florida Kids. 

Embrace Florida Kids, a nonprofit faith-based organization, has announced that its second annual A Walk Down Magnolia Lane event raised over $80,000 to provide homes, healing, and hope for vulnerable children across the Florida Panhandle. The annual event took place on Monday, April 7, 2025, at the WaterColor LakeHouse in Santa Rosa Beach.

A Walk Down Magnolia Lane is a golf-themed soiree celebrating the environment of The Masters and features a tournament-themed menu, golf-related activities with top-tier prizes for the winners, signature cocktails, outstanding company and music by Jacob Mohr.

“There is a tremendous need in Northwest Florida and events like A Walk Down Magnolia Lane help close a critical gap,” said Blake Horne, Ph.D., president and CEO, Embrace Florida Kids. “We are especially grateful to our sponsors, who supported this evening; our community, who joined us as we celebrated this special event; and our staff and volunteers, who are steadfast in their dedication to the families we serve.”

The event’s Nicklaus sponsor, Good News Church, was joined by Tiger sponsors Peaceful Family Oklahoma and Shoreline Title. Palmer sponsors were Hancock Whitney, Hill Coleman LLC, La Free Film, Liufau McCall, Jennifer and Larry Mintman and Kim and Paul Stagner, while Hogan sponsors were A-1 Storage South Walton, Emerald Wellness, LLC, Florida Haus, Mona and Mark LaBranche, Review Harvest, Tallahassee Orthopedic Clinic, Tracewater Homes and the United Methodist Foundation.

“I proudly attended and sponsored Embrace Florida Kids’ A Walk Down Magnolia Lane – a fundraiser held to support the organization’s mission of empowering and uplifting Florida’s communities,” said Mike Barcum, Chairman Emeritus, Peaceful Oklahoma. “ The event brought together supporters for an evening of philanthropy, networking, and golf-inspired festivities. It was an honor to support Embrace Florida Kids’ vital work at such a creative and inspiring event.”

Embrace Florida Kids’ mission is to embrace and nurture vulnerable children and families by providing homes, healing and hope through foster care, family preservation and residential services. The organization meets kids experiencing neglect, abuse and abandonment where they are and provides them with an individualized support system to help them flourish.

To learn more about A Walk Down Magnolia Lane and Embrace Florida Kids, visit WalkDownMagnoliaLane.org and EmbraceFLKids.org or follow Embrace Florida Kids on social media at @EmbraceFLKids.

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By Mackenzie McClintock, SWFD Public Information Officer 

South Walton Fire District reached a historic milestone on April 19, 2025, by placing its new Engine 6 into service at the Inlet Beach Fire Station.

This additional engine was a multi-year project in the making and translates to improved emergency medical response and fire suppression capabilities for the South Walton community.

This is the first time the District has put an additional fire engine into service since the early 2000s. The strategic decision to make this investment comes from increased residential development and call volume.

“Our primary goal with the staffing of this new engine is to improve our response times within the eastern portion of South Walton,” said SWFD Fire  Chief Ryan Crawford. “Prior to this addition, the next available firefighters were traveling from WaterColor to the Inlet Beach area in the event of multiple  911 calls. Engine 6 now fills that gap for our taxpayers and brings at least three  additional personnel to any scene.”

The scope of work to design, order, equip, and staff a new fire engine involves several years’ worth of budgeting and planning, however, the pay-off is significant for the community.

While Engine 6 was under construction, SWFD set out to hire nine additional dual-certified firefighters, meaning each firefighter is either a Firefighter/EMT  or Firefighter/Paramedic. This staffing allows Engine 6 to carry at least three firefighters per shift who are capable of handling fire-based emergencies, as well as providing Advanced Life Support-level care.

“We respond to all hazards, but our call volume is primarily medical based, with the busiest time of year being in the summer,” Crawford said. “It’s  imperative to us that our frontline apparatus are ALS-capable and staffed with  at least one Firefighter/Paramedic who can perform medical skills such as airway management and administering an IV and medications, as well as  advanced cardiac interventions.”

Adding another fire engine also resulted in promotional opportunities for existing SWFD firefighters to become “company officers” and lead the engine through its first days responding to calls.

In the future, SWFD is planning to build its sixth fire station near Serenoa  Road, which is situated halfway between the existing Fire Stations 1 and 2. Once the sixth station is built, Engine 6 and its staffing will be relocated to that new station and respond to calls from that location in order to best fill response gaps.

The District wants to thank its Board of Fire Commissioners and the South  Walton community for the continued support, which allows additional apparatus and staffing enhancements to be possible.

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The Point Washington Medical Clinic is excited to announce that beginning May 6th, the Clinic will expand its operations to include a fourth day of service on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The expanded operations are thanks in part to a newly established partnership with the University of Florida Emerald Coast Family Medicine Residency program and will allow the clinic to increase its care for more patients and also offer an opportunity for additional volunteers wishing to serve.

PWMC’s Executive Director, Hillary Glenn, DNP, worked together with local and regional community partners to establish a partnership enabling medical residents to provide patient care at the Point Washington Medical Clinic. In August, residents toured the PWMC facility and were eager to begin the collaborative effort. Roger Hall facilitated an introduction between PWMC and Dr. Joshua Hodge, the residency program director.

This comes just following the launch of the PWMC’s dental, physical therapy, and mental health programs. These programs are available exclusively by appointment for existing patients.

“When we first opened the clinic, we offered services one day a week,” said Glenn. “But, as demand has grown in the community, so have the services we are providing.”

The PWMC began as a pop-up, mobile clinic in 2017 and moved into its permanent building in early 2024. In the eight years since their founding, PWMC has provided the equivalent of $4 million in health care services across more than 18,000 patient visits. Today, PWMC sees more than 300 patients a month and serves as the area’s only no-fee-for-service, volunteer-driven primary care clinic.

To learn more about how you can help, visit thepwmc.org or email Jackie Ward at jackie@thepwmc.org

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Diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin) are the only brackish water turtles in the United States. Terrapins spend most sunny days basking in the sun and eating snails and other shellfish. On sunny days in late April, gravid females leave the salt marshes and move to sandy beaches for nesting.  Each female lays eight or nine eggs, which incubate for about two months. Hatchlings stay hidden in the beach wrack, eating invertebrates, before heading to the salt marsh. Each spring, volunteers survey salt marshes and beaches in and around Walton County for ornate terrapin nesting sites and search dune lakes for the characteristic white heads.

Figure 1. Top is an adult female and bottom is a hatchling. O’Connor, M. https://www.flseagrant.org/citizenscience/panhandle-terrapin-project/. 2024. Sea Grant. Panhandle Terrapin Project.

Terrapins are medium-sized turtles, about the size of a box turtle. Female terrapins are about 10 inches long and weigh about a pound. Males are smaller, only about five inches and weighing about half a pound.

Figure 2. White head of terrapin swimming near marsh grass. O’Connor, M. University of Florida Extension. 2021.  https://nwdistrict.ifas.ufl.edu/nat/2021/12/22/searching-for-terrapins-in-the-florida-panhandle/.  Searching for terrapins in the Florida Panhandle.

Terrapins need both salt marsh grass and sandy beaches in proximity. Females begin nesting in April, and tracks are visible in the sand. Terrapins are much smaller than gopher tortoises. Terrapin tracks are only about six inches wide.

If you see a terrapin, tracks, or the white head of a swimming turtle in brackish water, please contact Helen Petre by emailing petrehelen@gmail.com.

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By Kathleen Edge for District 1 Florida Federation of Garden Clubs

Sponsored by National Garden Clubs, Inc., the 2025 National Garden Week Celebration is June 1-7.  Garden clubs across America will be conducting educational programs, garden tours and beautifying the environment.

The ten Panhandle garden clubs in the four counties of District 1 of the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs will offer a variety of activities focused on promoting a healthy gardening lifestyle that lasts a lifetime by reducing stress and showcasing the rewards that come from diligent efforts.

In Walton County, Green Thumb Garden Club’s beautification project will be the refurbishment of the Butterfly Garden at Eden Gardens State Park in Point Washington.

On June 6, District 1 of the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs will host a ceremony to commemorate the refurbishing of the William Bartram Trail Marker at Fort Pickens Gulf Island National Park, Pensacola Beach.  The prominent Philadelphia Bartram family was deeply involved in horticulture during colonial times.  The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. and the exact location will be available via signs at the entrance gate.

Please join NGC and FFGC in the celebration of National Garden Week.

To find events near you, go to https://gardenclubsnwfl.com/localclubs.

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