The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) announces its new Board of Directors for 2012-2013. The Executive Board of Directors are: President-Susan Kneller, Chair of the OAA Grants Committee, Vice President- Ken Hair with Children in Crisis , Treasurer- Ashley Bailey with the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Dept, and Secretary-Amy Baty, also the Executive Director for the OAA. The Board of Directors are: Nellie Bogar with the Youth Village, Demetrius Fuller with Sinfonia Gulf Coast, Ursel Behnken with the German Club, Becky Belcher with the Emerald Coast Concert Association, Delores Merrill with the Mattie Kelly Arts Center of NWFL State College, Chris Manson with the Beachcomber, Keri Woods with Pyramid Inc., Ann Wagner with NWFL Symphony Guild, Jean Starkey with Stage Crafters, Gayle Vann with HarborWalk Village and Bill Johnston with the Emerald Coast Pipes & Drums.
Family Fun Arts Fest & Poster Contest Recap
The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) would like to thank everyone who participated in the the 6th annual Family Fun Arts Fest on Saturday, May 18 and Sunday, May 19th at HarborWalk Village and helped make it a success. The Okaloosa Arts Alliance would like to thank HarborWalk Village for generously hosting the Family Fun Arts Fest and for all their assistance in putting on the Family Fun Arts Fest.
The Okaloosa Arts Alliance would also like to thank everyone who donated to the Family Fun Arts Fest. In addition to HarborWalk Village, sponsors include Boeing, Emerald Grande, and the Beachcomber. Silent Auction donators include: Newman Dailey Resort Properties, ResortQuest, Ramada Plaza Resort, A.C. Moore, Mattie Kelly Arts Center at NWFL State College, Silver Sands Premium Outlet Mall, Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation, Sinfonia, Big Kahunas, Destin Commons Belk, Emerald Coast Concert Association, Heritage Museum, The German Club, MoonBranch Glass Art, Big Kahunas, and Southern Star Dolphin Cruises. The OAA would also like to thank all the volunteers that helped make this event happen; a special thank you to A.C. Moore volunteers, Children in Crisis volunteers, Destin Target volunteers, and HarborWalk Village volunteers. The OAA would like to thank all the local businesses and media that supported the Family Fun Arts Fest. Thank you also to the vendors, and the performers including: Emerald Coast Pipes & Drums, Pyramid Players, Act4Murder, Fort Walton Beach High School Drama Club, High Voltage, Ballet Conservatory, Randall Sherwood, Rewind 74, Emerald Coast Theater Company, Brite Starz Studio, Pittman Magic Show, Irish Blend, and Highsteppers.
Finally, I would like to thank all of the Okaloosa County School students that participated in the 5th annual OAA Okaloosa County School Poster Contest. Although we were not able to make everyone a 1st place winner, all 261 entries were on display at the Family Fun Arts Fest. The theme of the poster entries is “Summer Fun”. There are 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners for Elementary School (K-4 grade) and Middle School (5-7 grade) and High School (8-12 grade). The winners will all receive gift cards ranging from $25 to $75. Eglin Federal Credit Union provided all the first place winners gift cards, and the Fort Walton Beach Wal-mart, the Destin Wal-mart, the Crestview Wal-mart, Sam’s Club, Destin Target & Mary Esther Target provided 2nd and 3rd place winners gift cards. Participating Schools include: Baker Elementary, Youth Village, Bruner Middle School, Liza Jackson Prep School, Rocky Bayou Christian School, Homeschool, Wright Elementary, Mary Esther Elementary, Bob Sikes Elementary, Davidson Middle School, Florosa Elementary, Kenwood Elementary, Edge Elementary, Elliot Point, Bluewater Elementary, and Calvary Christian School. And the winners are:
Elementary School (K-4)-
1st Place Winner-Mathew Seitz-4th grade-Kenwood Elementary
2nd Place Winner- Lauren Noggle-4th grade-Rocky Bayou Christian School
3rd Place Winner-Rohan R. Puri-2nd grade- Edge Elementary
Middle School (5-7 Grade)-
1st Place- Jason McCauley-7th grade-Rocky Bayou Christian School
2nd Place- Douglas Black-7th grade- Rocky Bayou Christian School
3rd Place- Emily Royal- 7th grade- Liza Jackson Prep School
High School (8-12 Grade)-
1st Place- Mackenzie Shinnick- 8th grade- Liza Jackson Prep School
2nd place- Dien Dewever- 8th grade- Max Bruner Middle School
3rd place- Katie Zatophana-8th grade-Liza Jackson Prep School
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About the Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA)- The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) is the officially designated non-profit arts agency for Okaloosa County. The purpose of OAA is to support and promote art and culture in Okaloosa County. The Okaloosa Arts Alliance enhances the cultural environment of its community, and promotes, coordinates, and nurtures high quality arts and cultural resources that enrich the lives of residents and visitors. The OAA is supported in part by the Florida Department of State and from Arts auto license tag revenues but could not exist without its members and community support. Go to www.okaloosaarts.org for more information.
About Emerald Grande at HarborWalk Village- Park, stay, and play at Emerald Grande at HarborWalk Village. Enjoy shopping, dining, weekly free events, concerts, fireworks, parades, and nightly entertainment throughout HarborWalk Village. Take a cruise on the pirate ship, The Buccaneer, then stroll for a happy hour cocktail at Poppy’s Crazy Lobster or Crab Island Cantina, all before sitting front row at Harry T’s to the best sunset view in Destin. Whether you’re in the mood for fishing, dolphin cruises or jet skis, the opportunities for water adventures on the Destin Harbor are endless. Join us for one of our many Pardi Gras Parades for beads, brass bands, and fun for all ages as our lighted floats, stilt walkers, jugglers, and musicians stroll through HarborWalk Village. The opportunity for fun can be found in every corner here, and at the end of the night, your suite is only an elevator ride away. Once inside, enjoy all the amenities of our full service resort, including a relaxing Spa, fitness center, outdoor pool overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, covered parking garage, daily housekeeping, room service and full service concierge.
Wine & Hors d'oeuvres Reception Recap
The Wine & Hors d’oeuvres Reception held on Sunday, Jan 13, 2013 at the Magnolia Grill in FWB was a success. The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) would like to thank Tom & Peggy Rice for generously hosting the reception. The OAA would also like to thank Cox Media and The Beachcomber for their generous advertising donations. The OAA would like to thank the Pyramid Players and FWB High School for entertaining the guests at the reception and the Emerald Coast Concert Association, StageCrafters, Sinfonia, and Mattie Kelly Arts Center at NWFL State College, Niceville, Heritage Museum and StageCrafters for their donations. Finally, the OAA would like to thank the OAA Board members that volunteered, Jean Dutton of the Emerald Ladies Journal & Chris Manson from Beachcomber for taking photos, and to all the guests that supported the Okaloosa Arts Alliance on Sunday.
The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) is the officially designated non-profit arts agency for Okaloosa County. The purpose of OAA is to support and promote art and culture in Okaloosa County. The Okaloosa Arts Alliance enhances the cultural environment of its community, and promotes, coordinates, and nurtures high quality arts and cultural resources that enrich the lives of residents and visitors. The OAA is supported in part by the Florida Department of State and from Arts auto license tag revenues but could not exist without its members and community support. For more information go to www.okaloosaarts.org.
Boeing Awards Grant to OAA
The Boeing Company is generously donating a $3,000 grant to the Okaloosa Arts Alliance for its 5th annual Family Fun Arts Fest. The grant will be used to cover the costs associated with the Family Fun Arts Fest. The 5th Annual Family Fun Arts Fest will be on Saturday, May 12, 2012 at Henderson Beach State Park from 10am-5pm and is a free family event.
The Okaloosa Arts Alliance (OAA) recently awarded 4 grants totaling $6,000.00. The organizations that received the grants were Fort Walton Beach High School, Okaloosa Chamber Singers, Pyramid Inc., and the NWFL Symphony Guild.
Along with giving grants, the OAA supports and promotes art and culture in Okaloosa County by sponsoring workshops for arts organizations and individual artists, offering art programs and performances in public schools, acting as a clearinghouse for arts related information to art organizations and artists, and promoting corporate involvement in support of the arts. If you would like more information on the OAA go to www.okaloosaarts.org.