News Archive

Before every performance, Pamela Strecker made one final walk.
She moved through the backstage area from one side to the other, checking on every actor, calling out final cues, making sure nothing had been missed. Then, just before heading up to the booth, she would turn around, look out at the cast and raise a hand in the air.
“Be brilliant.”
It caught on. Cast members started saying it to each other.
Strecker,61, who served as stage manager and eight-year president of Stage Crafters Community Theater in Fort Walton Beach, died earlier this month after a battle with cancer. She had been part of the organization for more than two decades, arriving as a shy backstage helper in 1999 and becoming the heartbeat of one of Northwest Florida’s most beloved volunteer arts organizations.

Local base commanders and Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-FL1) made the case on May 27 that the area’s congested roadways are not just a quality-of-life problem, it is also a threat to national security.

A new gas station may be coming to Navarre Parkway.

Plans for a Circle K convenience store with a gas canopy were submitted to Santa Rosa County in May. The planned location is 8510 Navarre Parkway.

Over two dozen lifeguards gathered at Tower 3 on Navarre Beach Friday, May 22, for a special competition.

The group was there for the Iron Guard race, a relay event in which lifeguards test their endurance and skills on land and in the water.

In November 2025, a jury ruled in favor of plaintiffs in the Midway Water Crisis lawsuit.

The lawsuit was in response to reported damages caused by Midway Water System, Brown Construction of Northwest Florida and the City of Gulf Breeze for their roles in a 2021 incident where Brown Construction mistakenly connected a sewer line with a water line.

The Legislature will convene on Monday, June 1, in a special session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis to consider the governor’s proposal to cut or even eliminate property tax bills.

If approved, the measure would appear on the November ballot for voter approval. At least 60% of voters would need to support the plan for it to take effect.

Following a monthslong effort to replace their current financial accounting software, Holley Navarre Water System board of directors met May 19 to discuss and vote on whether to move forward with Sage Intacct software.

Currently, HNWS uses Edmunds GovTech for their financial accounting needs. According to water system staff, the software has left much to be desired and wrong numbers have been inserted into their accounting.

The Holley-Navarre Fire District is looking to increase its fire assessment this year, a process which will require voter approval.

Monday, May 18, HNFD commissioners approved a resolution to increase the assessments for all building and land types within the district’s non-ad valorem rate structure.

The Pirates on the Panhandle, a social group which organizes fundraisers for local charities and nonprofits, recently delivered a check for $12,000 to Friends of Santa Rosa Veterans Treatment Court.

Thursday, May 21, Midway Fire District Station 35 played host to Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Florida Department of Emergency Management Executive Director Kevin Guthrie.

The two state officials were in the area as part of a statewide hurricane preparedness tour.