Community happenings

Family fun fest
Childcare Network in Destin will hold a free fun fest from 10 a.m to 1 p.m. Aug. 15 at 502 Benning Drive in Destin. Enjoy bounce house, popcorn, hot dogs and drinks with activitie inside for children.

Fill the Boot
Members of the Destin Fire Control District and Destin Professional Firefighters Local #3158 will collect donations for MDA at the intersection of Danny Weurffel and U.S. 98 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 15.

Garage sale
Okaloosa/Walton Covenant Hospice garage sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 15 at 1419 29th Street in Niceville. Call 729-1800.

Madden ’09 Tournament: Video gamers of all ages will have the chance to test their toughness on the digital gridiron. Registration begins at noon Au. 15 at the Destin Library. Kick-off is at 12:30 p.m. Call 837-8572 or 650-1241.

Florida Trail Association
The Florida Trail Association will hold the following events. Visit http://westgate. floridatrail.org or call the listed number. 
•Aug. 16: Rise and shine hike with breakfast afterwards at 6:30 a.m. Call 995-4267.
•Aug. 22: Canoe/kayak for a 4-5 hour float trip down Yellow River at 9 a.m. Call 682-6098.
•Aug. 23: Canoe/kayak float trip on Coldwater Creek at 9 a.m. Call 484-9111.
•Aug. 25: Monthly meeting at 6 p.m. at Bayou Blues in Niceville. Call 682-6098.•Aug. 29: Volunteers needed for trail maintenance on Eglin reservation at 8 a.m. Call 492-8258.

Destin Library
The following events are held regularly at the Destin Library. Call 837-8572
•Tai Chi for Arthritis: At 7 a.m.  Wednesdays. Cost is $5/class. 
•Cuddlers & Toddlers Storytime: From 3 t 3:45 p.m. Tuesdays and 9:30 to 10:15 a.m. Thursdays for ages 4 months to 4 years.
•Independent Film Series: Independent and foreign films shown at 7 p.m. the third Tuesday of each month.
•Friends of the Destin Library: Monthly meeting held at 10 a.m. the second Friday of each month.

Destin Community Center
All activities are at the Destin Community Center, unless noted. Call 654-5184 for information and to register. Persons with disabilities who require assistance are asked to notify the center 48 hours in advance.
•Brazilian Martial Arts: Offered at 8 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays.
•Ballroom dance classes: Learn swing, Latin and ballroom dance from 7 to 8 p.m. every Wednesday. Cost: $10/person.
•Duplicate bridge: At 9:30 a.m. Mondays and Thursdays and 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the Community Center Annex. Entry fee: $5. No partner needed.
•Fencing: From 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays. Call 678-9190.
•Game room: Open to children 10 and older and under 10 accompanied by adult from 1 to 9 p.m. Monday-Friday.
•Intermediate party bridge: At 12:45 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at Buck Destin Park. Call 837-1967.
•Jazzercise class: 6 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and 9 a.m. Saturdays.
•Walk to music: From 8 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday.
•Woodcarving: Coastal Wood Carvers meet at 9 a.m. Fridays. Fee: $3 per class.

Destin YMCA
If interested in the following events, contact the Destin Family YMCA at 837-8440.
•Swim lessons: Classes for ages 6 months to adults, group or private, morning or afternoon. Call for times and days. $48/members and $62/program participants.
•Water exercise classes: Aquacise I at 9 a.m. Monday, Wednesday, Friday; Aquacise II 5:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday. Classes free to members.
•Masters Swim Club: 6 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Free to members.
•Aquatic Center: Water walking classes from 9 a.m. Tuesday and Thursday.
•Scuba classes available. Call for information.
•Swim team: For developmental group and age group to seniors. Call for information.Senior seminar
Sacred Heart Senior Services and Mainstay Financial Group, Inc. present a free seminar on “Housing Issues and Choices for Seniors” at 10 a.m. Aug. 17  in the Suite 3 Resource Center conference room at Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast. Register at 278-3600 or (877) 416-1600.

Bridgeway Senior Program
Bridgeway Senior Program will deliver the following meals the week of Aug. 17-21:
•Monday: Meatloaf.
•Tuesday: Pork chop piccata.
•Wednesday: Hamburger.
•Thursday: Grilled beef fingers.
•Friday: Turkey pot roast.

Garage sales
Okaloosa/Walton Covenant Hospice will hold a garage sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, the second and fourth weekends of the month, at 1419 29th Street in Niceville.
Items include furniture, new books and Halloween costumes and Christmas decorations.
Donations and volunteers to help are needed. Call 729-1800.

Economic Symposium
The 13th annual Gulf Power Company Economic Symposium will be held Sept. 2 and 3 at the Baytowne Conference Center in Sandestin. This year’s theme, Northwest Florida — Prepare to Launch, brings together civic, government and business leaders to share views on developing an economically competitive region.
Conference materials, continental breakfasts, breaks, lunches and Wednesday’s reception are included with $75 registration. There is a separate fee of $100 for golf on Sept. 2.
Deadline to register is Aug. 18 at www.gulfpower.com/symposium

DMS open house
Destin Middle School will have an Open House from 2 to 4 p.m. Aug. 20 for sixth grade students and seventh and eighth grade students new to DMS.
The fifth grade Open House will be at 1 p.m. Aug. 20.
Schedules will be available from 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 20 to all returning seventh and eighth grade students in the front office and student services.

Floral program
Floral designer Russ Barley will present a program “Floral & Art Interpretation” at 11:30 a.m. Aug. 19 at the Blount House, Kylea Laird Drive in Freeport. Cost is $20/person and includes a luncheon. For reservations call 835-5611 or 835-2654.

Purses with a Purpose
Shelter House and the Ronald McDonald House will hold a benefit purse auction and sale from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Aug. 20 between Nike and Restoration Hardware Clearance Center at Silver Sands Factory Stores.
The evening will include new and gently used purses, appetizers donated by Carrabba’s Italian Grill and wine. Admission is free and all proceeds will benefit the Ronald McDonald House and Shelter House. 

Leadership conference
The Emerald Coast Advertising Federation will host the Advertising Federation Summer Leadership Conference Aug. 21-23 at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Resort. The theme will be “1974” and includes workshops, luncheons and a sunset catamaran cruise on the Bimini Breeze out of the Destin harbor.
For the full conference schedule and registration, visit www.4aaf.com

Rotary Barbeque Challenge
The Rotary Club of Destin will present Smoke On The Harbor, a Rotary Barbeque Challenge, from 12 to 5 p.m. Aug. 22 at HarborWalk Village.  Admission is free and open to the public.
Five local Rotary clubs representing Crestview, Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Mid-Bay and South Walton will  compete for the entry fee purse from their signature barbeque cuisine.
Barbeque and rib plates will be available for purchase with beer and soda beverages sold through HarborWalk Village restaurant merchants.
Proceeds will benefit Rotary International's Polio Plus program and other local humanitarian projects. Call 830-1091.  

Fill the Boot
Members of the Destin Fire Control District and Destin Professional Firefighters Local #3158 will collect donations at the intersection of Danny Weurffel and U.S. 98 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 22 and 29. Donations will benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

ACT/SAT workshop
A workshop to assist students in Okaloosa County High Schools who will take the Sept. 12 ACT and the Oct. 10 SAT will be held from 2:15 to 5:15 p.m. Sept. 9, 10, 14 and 15 at Fort Walton Beach High School. All materials, snacks and drinks are furnished. Students need to bring calculators. Registration deadline is Aug. 24. For information, contact Alice Hart at (615) 585-2401, e-mail Amhart1966@aol.com or contact your high school Guidance Department.

Public lecture
The Mattie Kelly Cultural & Environmental Institute at Northwest Florida State College will host Dr. Patricia “Tricia” Kelley, a National Association of Geoscience Teachers Distinguished Lecturer, at 7 p.m. Aug. 27 on the mainstage of the Mattie Kelly Arts Center on the Niceville campus. She will present a free public lecture on “Evolution and Creation: Conflicting or Compatible?”
The lecture kicks off a special semester-long series on evolution as part of the college’s regular free “Science Friday” seminar series held on the third Friday of the month from 11 a.m. to noon on the NWFSC Niceville Campus. Call 729-5376.

College Surplus Sale
Northwest Florida State College will hold a Surplus Sale from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 28 at the Niceville Campus in Building G-2. The sale is open to the public and conducted by closed bid with no prior inspection. Property is sold in “as-is” condition. Various items are available including computers, computer parts, printers, office type furniture, a 26 passenger bus, a van and various miscellaneous items. Call 729-5380.

Model search
ModelScoutBennet and BPP photography and Haute 98 magazine will host Elite Model Management for a model search at 10:30 a.m. Aug. 29 at Country Inn and Suites on Commons Drive in Destin. Venue fee to participate is $40. Call 424-6095.

JobsPlus
The JobsPlus Mobile One-Stop will be at the Destin Area Chamber of Commerce, 4484 Legendary Drive, Suite A, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 1. JobsPlus will offer “Job Searching and Resumes for Today’s Market” résumé classes at 10 a.m. and noon in the chamber conference room. The general public and veterans are encouraged to attend. Call 837-6241.

Cottages for Canines
In conjunction with the Ultimate Air Dog Southern Championship, Children’s Volunteer Health Network will host “Cottages for Canines” Sept. 18-27 in the Village of Baytowne Wharf at Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. All proceeds benefit the Children’s Volunteer Health Network.
Doggie dream houses designed by artists, architects and creative locals will be on display with “Buy it Now” pricing in the Village. The event culminates Sept. 27 with a live auction of the dog houses remaining.
In addition, the Ultimate Air Dog Southern Championship will be held during the last weekend of Cottages for Canines.
Information can be obtained at www.cvhnkids.org or call 622-3200.

Boating seminar
A boating seminar, Border Crossing, will start at 7 p.m. Aug. 31 at the University of West Florida Coombs Campus on Lovejoy Road in Fort Walton Beach. Call 315-0686 or 474-2914. Registration is available on-line at www.uwf.edu

Braille course
The Northwest Florida Visionnaires will offer a course to learn to transcribe textbooks into braille for blind students from 10 am to noon Sept. 14 in the Community Life Center at the First United Methodist Church of Niceville.
The class meets each Monday, except holidays, through April. No experience in braille is required, but you must have a computer. Call 897-3383.

Book sale
The Friends of the Niceville Library annual Book Sale will be held Sept. 18-19 in the Niceville Community Center, 204 N. Partin Drive.
A presale for members of Friends will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Sept. 18 and the sale will be open to the public from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 19. Baked goods will also be on sale.
All proceeds benefit the Niceville Public Library. Call 729-4090.

YOLO Board Seaside Celebration
A YOLO Board Seaside Celebration to benefit Holly Burke and Jason Thompson who are both battling cancer will be held Sept. 19 in Seaside. The event is free and open to the public.
Plans include paddleboard races from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., stand-up paddling demos, YOLO Yak fishing guide demos, silent auction, a YOLO Yak giveaway and silent auction, and a concert from the Gulf coast group Heritage from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Seaside Amphitheater.
Tickets for the Giveaway will be $5/ticket or $20/5 tickets and are available at select participating Seaside merchants or the YOLO Board retail warehouse, 820 Hwy 393 N in Santa Rosa Beach.
Sponsors for the event and donations for the silent auction are needed. Call 622-5760 or visit www.yoloboard.com

Destin Woman’s Club fundraiser
The Destin Woman's Club fall fundraiser benefiting Children In Crisis will be held Sept. 26 at the Sandestin Hilton Hotel and Spa. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Enjoy a silent auction, raffle row, heavy hors d’oeuvres, cash bar, and music by Deja Vu.
The “Timeless” fashion show will feature fashions show from local stores.
Tickets are $60/person and can be purchased at Kitchenique in Destin, Spa 98 in Sandestin, Bayou Books in Niceville and PS Gifts in Fort Walton Beach. Call 240-6275.

Kids in the Kitchen
Sarah K's Gourmet and 30a Media Inc will film a regular segment featuring local children ages 4 to 14 who aspire to be chefs. Segment will teach nutrition, cooking skills and math skills while showcasing a young chef.
Send recent picture of child along with age, contact information and age appropriate recipe to Sarah K's Gourmet, 34940 U.S. 98, Suite 183 Destin FL 32541.
The recipes must meet be 10 ingredients or less, simple and fresh ingredients, family friendly and age appropriate cooking processes.