A former leader of the Catholic Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee died May 20. Most Rev. John H. Ricard, SSJ, who served as the fourth bishop of the Diocese, was 86. Ricard served as bishop over Catholic churches in the Florida Panhandle from 1997 to 2011.

Santa Rosa County District Schools has announced the locations where families can get free breakfast and lunch this summer.

Through a partnership with Summer Break Spot, the school district is offering nutritious meals at a time when some families may be facing food insecurity.

Nicknamed “Flash,” Gulf Breeze resident Gordon Sprague, 88, has always had a penchant for adventure.

Not many people can say they’ve been a racecar driver, an assistant to the owner of the Kansas City Royals, an Air Force mechanic, a top selling international businessman, parks and recreation director for several major American cities and have their name on the Florida State University football coach’s office. But Sprague can.

Two teams of Navarre High School students competed in a national drone competition last month, with one team finishing first in one category.

The drone teams are part of the school’s experimental science course. According to Tami McConnell, who teaches the class, Navarre High was the only school in the nation to have two teams competing in the national competition.

In his fourth year as county commissioner, Ray Eddington remains focused on infrastructure improvements and meeting the needs of constituents he hears from.

Eddington is pursuing a second term this year. He faces one challenger in the primary race.

A June 4 brush fire on Smallwood Drive in Holley by the Sea could have been much worse, according to Holley-Navarre Fire District Chief Kevin Lewis.

At Navarre Beach Fire Rescue District’s May meeting, the fire commission reviewed expense items which still needed to be paid. These included a payment for a debt on the district’s fire engine and apparatus repairs.

Incumbent County Commissioner Kerry Smith didn’t qualify for the 2026 ballot based on petitions and now must pay $5,460.06 to stay in the race for Commission District 2.
Smith, along with fellow District 2 candidates Michael Rinaldi and Shawn Kay, failed to garner the required number of petitions by the May 11 deadline.

Pickleball’s overall popularity has skyrocketed in recent years. According to SFIA Topline Participation Report for 2025, at least 19.8 million Americans played the sport in 2024.

With the gaining popularity, churches are using it to reach people, both in their own congregations and throughout their communities. One church in Navarre, Gathering House, hosts pickleball nights on the last Friday of each month.

This May brought the first days of summer heat. It also brought termites.

In Florida, termites generally swarm between April and July. Florida is inside Termite Infestation Probability Zone 1, the highest-risk category for termites in the United States.