Watch the HD Replay of the “End of Watch” ceremony for K9 Officer Blue, scheduled for August 26, 2022 at the Northwest Florida State College’s Mattie Kelly Arts Center at 10am CST.
Northwest Florida State College
Mattie Kelly Arts Center
100 E College Blvd, Building 100
Niceville, FL 32578
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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.
This event was made possible through the support of several local community sponsors.
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
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2018 Graduation Ceremonies of Northwest Florida State College
This is the LIVE Stream of the 10am CDT commencement ceremony at Northwest Florida State College for Graduates of Certificate, Associate of Applied Science, Associate of Science, and Bachelor Degrees on April 5, 2018.
This is the LIVE Stream of the 2pm CDT commencement ceremony at Northwest Florida State College for Graduates of Associate Arts and Florida High School Diplomas (GED).
More information about the graduation ceremonies can be found at www.NWFSC.edu/commencement
If you have an event you would like to be available for online viewing, contact Emerald Coast TV at 850-244-7100.
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Doolittle Raiders – Final Goblet Ceremony, Farewell Flyover & 71st Reunion Lookback
LIVE STREAM
The live-stream of both the Doolittle Raiders Final Goblet Ceremony AND the Doolittle Farewell Flyover events can be view below.
INFORMATION
On April 18, 2022, at 1pm Central, at the Mattie Kelly Arts Center at Northwest Florida State College, the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce will host the “Final Goblet” a ceremony that will mark the passing of Doolittle Raider, Col. Richard E. “Dick” Cole. Since April 1947, a ceremonial “roll call” has honored the eighty Doolittle Raiders. Cole and all of the members of Doolittle Raiders were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in May 2014 “for outstanding heroism, valor, skill, and service to the United States in conducting their bombings of Tokyo.” Many historians’ credit the raid as the critical factor of the Japanese defeat at the Battle of Midway, often cited as the turning point in the Pacific war. Participating in this event will include invited attendees, Raider family members, government officials, and military dignitaries. Eighty active-duty airmen from Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field will sit among family members to represent each Doolittle Raider during the ceremony.
General Admission tickets are available for $10.00 and can be purchased at Mattie Kelly Arts Center Box Office 850-729-6000 or by visiting the website at www.mattiekellyartscenter.org.
At 5pm that same day, a “Flyover” with 30 vintage and current Air Force planes will take place at The Boardwalk on Okaloosa Island in Fort Walton Beach, FL, in honor of the Doolittle Raiders.
71st REUNION LOOKBACK
In 2013, the Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce host the 71st Doolittle Raiders Reunion, which was the final reunion due to their only being 4 remaining Raiders. Below is both a Highlights video of that multi-day event and a Farewell documentary. The event highlights video was produced by RJ Murdock and the documentary was produced by Kevin Almodovar. Also included at the end is a short Doolittle Reunions video provided by West Fields.
