Out and About
I’m looking through the paper as I write my column and now my column is going to turn into a brief synopsis. It won’t be everything – so don’t think you don’t have to read the paper after reading my column. Also, last week was Dickie Williams’ 1,000th paper anniversary. He has now officially laid out more than 1,000 Navarre Press issues since he joined our team in August 2005. We had five years of issues of Navarre Press before he started working here, but we really started to shine with his design in 2005. He said he hid something in the paper last week that had to do with his 1,000th issue. If you can find it – let us know and you could just possibly win a prize. I haven’t found it yet. I also haven’t had a minute to look…but I will. And, if you happened to see the ad for Don Gaetz, we didn’t intend for him to be green. The printer mixed up the plates. He looked like the Incredible Hulk. We sent a picture and called before the paper came out to warn him and he was very gracious. He knew it wasn’t our intention or our fault. If I were him, I’d frame it. Sometimes you just have to laugh.
According to a story on the front page of this paper, the pier and the sidewalks in Navarre Park are going up for bid – finally. They were damaged during Hurricane Sally, and it has taken this long due to FEMA. To refresh your memory, Sally hit Baldwin County Alabama on September 16, 2020, and this was the same storm that caught a lot of us by surprise because it intensified and headed our way at the last minute. This was the same storm in which the barges broke loose at the (more than) three-mile bridge and destroyed a portion of the bridge…four years ago.
And side note – there is a storm in the Gulf that may come close to us this weekend. I’m sure we will know more by the time you are reading this column.
Monday is Veteran’s Day and as a refresher, this is when we honor the veterans among us that are active duty and retired – and are still living. Memorial Day is when we honor the veterans that have passed away. There will be a lot of Veteran’s Day deals with local restaurants and more. The best site I have found for a comprehensive listing is themilitarywallet.com. I’m excited because my son will be visiting us from Montgomery, Alabama, where he is attending Air Command and Staff College. He was stationed in Tokoyo, Japan, for five years and he has been in Alabama since July but I think he forgets he isn’t in Japan anymore and can easily call and visit us. So – I called dibbs on Veteran’s Day weekend. Hopefully he will have found out where his next duty station will be.
We have a story on “Religion and Politics” on our Faith page based on data from the Pew Research Center. Spoiler alert, protestant churchgoers are more likely to vote Republican. There is a lot more to the research – and it is definitely a good read. There is also an awesome column by local pastor, Michael Bannon. That is a must read each time he is gracious enough to send us a column. Those of you that go to church and know your pastor or priest, we welcome columns by others as well. Speaking of churches, the new Destiny church in Navarre looks like it just has the parking lot to finish up on the outside, and I’m not sure where they are inside. I heard that they are doing their best to be finished by Christmas.
I enjoyed reading the story about James Fox being named “Educator of the Year” at Navarre High School on our Education page. I’m glad he is teaching construction. We need more skills taught in the high schools which can be used in life, no matter where they end up.
And, our front page story is awesome. I am a fan of Michael Jackson’s talent and it is really cool that we have a Navarre resident that is playing in the Michael Jackson musical on Broadway.
Quote of the Week: “Whatever you do, always give 100% — unless you’re donating blood.” Bill Murray (1950 – ) American Actor and Comedian