Inaugural ODA 595 Horse Soldiers Reunion 2022
On October 22, 2022, the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce hosted the Inaugural ODA 595 Horse Soldiers Reunion at the Northwest Florida Fairgrounds. Ted Corcoran, CEO of the FWB Chamber, was Master of Ceremony.
Below is a replay video of the event. If you have a Smart TV, search for and install the VidFlow app to watch this video on your big screen TV. This video player also also you to select chapter points to specific speakers and presentations.
Ten of the original 12 members of ODA 595 were in attendance for this inaugural reunion event.
Captain Mark Nutsch – Detachment Commander
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Bob Pennington – Assistant Detachment Commander
Master Sergeant Paul Evans – Team and Operations Sergeant
Sergeant First Class Andy Marchal – Intelligence Sergeant
Sergeant First Class Steve Kofron. – Weapons Sergeant
Staff Sergeant Mike Elmore – Weapons Sergeant
Staff Sergeant Chad Jacklet– Engineer Sergeant
Sergeant First Class Steve Bleigh—Medical Sergeant
Sergeant First Class Vince Makela – Communications Sergeant
Staff Sergeant Will Summers– Communications Sergeant
Not in Attendance:
- Staff Sergeant USAF Steve E. Tomat – Tactical Air Control Party (TACP)
- Staff Sergeant USAF Joseph Matt Lienhard– Air Force Special Operations Combat Controller from Special Tactics Squadron
Several prominent guest speakers included Florida House District #4 representative Patt Maney, former CIA Directorate of Operations officer Alex Hernandez, former USAF Chief of Staff for a Theater Special, retired Col Glenn Thomas, and the son of Doolittle Raiders Col Dick Cole, Richard Cole.
A special commemorative canteen cup was created by the Bohlin Company and presented to each member of ODA 595 in honor and recognition of their heroic actions in America’s first response against the Taliban after the 911 attack.
If you are interested in learning more about ODA 595 as well as other stories about America’s 1st response to the 911 attacks, check out these sources:
First Casualty by Toby Harnden
Horse Soldiers by Doug Stanton
Swords of Lightning – Green Beret Horse Soldiers and America’s Response to 911
12 Strong – The Declassified True Story of the Horse Soldiers
Inaugural Dragon Boat Festival & Races 2023
Here’s a highlights video of the aerial coverage of the Inaugural Dragon Boat Festival & Races at The Gulf restaurant on Okaloosa Island in Fort Walton Beach, Florida on Sept 10, 2023. This was a charity event benefiting Bring Hope Now, a peer to peer suicide prevention program for schools and military.
To learn more, donate and/or volunteer, go to www.BringHopeNow.com
2023 FCSAA/NJCAA Region VIII Basketball Championships
Watch the LIVE STREAM of the 2023 FCSAA/NJCAA Region VIII Tournament at the Northwest Florida State College as the top Men’s and Women’s basketball teams from across the state of Florida battle it out to determine who will go the the 2023 NJCAA National Championships.
Scroll down below to find the specific game dates or use the links below:
Women’s Playoff Games – March 8, 2023
Game #1 – #2 Northwest Florida vs #7 Chipola – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #2 – #3 Gulf Coast vs #6 Florida Southwestern – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Game #3 – #1 Eastern Florida vs #8 Sante Fe – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #4 – #4 Indian River vs #5 St. Petersburg – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Men’s Playoff Games – March 9, 2023
Game #1 – #2 Daytona State vs #7 Eastern Florida – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #2 – #3 Tallahassee vs Florida Southwestern – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Game #3 – #1 Chipola vs #8 Miami Dade – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #4 – #4 Northwest Florida vs Indian River – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Women’s Semi-Final Games – March 10, 2023
Game #5 – Northwest Florida vs Florida Southwestern – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #6 – Eastern Florida vs Indian River – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Men’s Semi-Final Games – March 10, 2023
Game #5 – Eastern Florida vs Tallahassee – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #6 – Chipola vs Northwest Florida – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Championship Games – March 11, 2023
Women’s Championship Game – Winner of Game #5 vs Winner of Game #6- 5pm CDT / 6pm EDT
Men’s Championship Game – Winner of Game #5 vs Winner of Game #6- – 7:30pm CDT / 8:30pm EDT
Women’s Playoff Games – March 8, 2023
Game #1 – #2 Northwest Florida vs #7 Chipola – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #2 – #3 Gulf Coast vs #6 Florida Southwestern – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Game #3 – #1 Eastern Florida vs #8 Sante Fe – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #4 – #4 Indian River vs #5 St. Petersburg – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Men’s Playoff Games – March 9, 2023
Game #1 – #2 Daytona State vs #7 Eastern Florida – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #2 – #3 Tallahassee vs Florida Southwestern – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Game #3 – #1 Chipola vs #8 Miami Dade – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #4 – #4 Northwest Florida vs Indian River – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Women’s Semi-Final Games – March 10, 2023
Game #5 – Northwest Florida vs Florida Southwestern – 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT
Game #6 – Eastern Florida vs Indian River – 3pm CDT / 4pm EDT
Men’s Semi-Final Games – March 10, 2023
Game #5 – Eastern Florida vs Tallahassee – 6pm CDT / 7pm EDT
Game #6 – Chipola vs Northwest Florida – 8pm CDT / 9pm EDT
Championship Games – March 11, 2023
Women’s Championship Game – Winner of Game #5 vs Winner of Game #6- 5pm CDT / 6pm EDT
Men’s Championship Game – Winner of Game #5 vs Winner of Game #6- – 7:30pm CDT / 8:30pm EDT
If you have an event you would like to be available for online viewing, contact Emerald Coast TV at 850-244-7100.
68th Krewe of Bowlegs Coronation Pageant
The 68th Krewe of Billy Bowlegs Coronation Pageant as Captain Billy Bowlegs 67th, his Queen and his Honor Guard bid farewell and welcome the 68th Captain & Krewe. The coronation took place at the Mattie Kelly Arts Center on June 10, 2023 at 6:30pm.
Catch up with last year’s coronation here
67th Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival – May 18-22, 2023
Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival is an event that takes place the 3rd weekend in May in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. It kicks off with a Children’s Meet & Greet on Thursday night. On Friday evening, the Krewe of Bowlegs sail up to The Landing park and attempts to negotiate a surrender of the city with the Mayor, who puts up a good fight, and they promise to return the following day The city celebrates its victory with a fireworks show. On Saturday, Capitan Billy Bowlegs returns with the entire Krewe of Bowlegs to capture the city and then pass out booty (beads) to the crowd. After a day of rest from the pillaging, Capt Billy & his krewe sails off on the Blackhawk ship float during the Torchlight Parade on Eglin Parkway on Monday evening.
This is the replay of the parade on May 22, 2023.
2023 Commencement Ceremony at Northwest Florida State College
Watch the live stream of the Northwest Florida State College 2023 Commencement Ceremony from Raiders Arena on May 6, 2023.
10AM Ceremony for the presentation of the following: Certificate, AAS, AS, and Bachelor’s Degree Graduates
2PM Ceremony for the presentation of Associate of Arts (AA)