Remember the days when you could go way out in the country and practice shooting your firearm? It wasn’t the safest practice, but it was all you had at the time. Though that’s still a possibility for some, the majority of people buying firearms for safety and sport find that gun ranges are their best shot at getting real experience.

The Powder Room Shooting Range & Training Center, owned and operated by The St. Joe Company, opened last December and has rapidly become “the” place to turn for training, to improve accuracy, and to learn more about all types of firearms. Managed by Joe Preston, the facility is on Hwy 98 at Griffin Blvd., in Panama City Beach, and is open seven days a week. Preston is certainly no stranger to firearms having served in the Walton County Sheriff’s Office for 18 years.

“I grew to appreciate and respect firearms quickly as a result of my job. I also observed all too often that people just hadn’t been properly trained in how to handle, use and maintain their firearms,” said Preston.

The Powder Room is a 13,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility. In the firing range portion of the building, there are nine pistol lanes and five lanes for rifle shooting. As more and more people show an increased interest in firearms, visitors to The Powder Room will have 3,000 square feet of retail space to shop. “We were very gratified to have been named by Sig Sauer as an Elite Dealer for their product line. There’s fewer than 15 such dealers in the country,” Preston shared. This association provides the range with exclusive product releases only available to Elite Dealers, priority allocation of product, training events featuring instructors from the Sig Sauer Academy and other promotional and sales events.

In addition to the firing range and retail store, The Powder Room offers a number of classes ranging from novice to experienced. For those just purchasing their first firearm, there are classes that teach proper handling, safety and maintenance of the firearm. “We find that these courses are even helpful to the most experienced gun owner because they serve as a gentle reminder of what should take place,” said Preston. More and more people have taken an interest in obtaining a concealed carry permit, which in Florida requires that the applicant meet a strict set of criteria including a prescribed training course.

The training courses are designed to progress the participant along a path to proficiency in all aspects of gun ownership. What begins as a series of classroom lectures and hands-on demonstrations will ultimately lead to the range, where instructors thoroughly orient the new gun owner in the proper etiquette while in a controlled environment.

For the more experienced gun owner, The Powder Room has a simulator room that can produce six hundred different scenarios. “This type of simulation has been in use by law enforcement for many years. It teaches the students how to react to many different situations. In doing so, they become better acquainted with a multitude of things as they encounter the simulation,” Preston said. The simulations are “real life” and as such, the participant feels very much a part of the scene.

Don’t own a firearm? The Powder Room has a variety of brands that can be rented to use on the range. Drop by anytime and meet the team. They would love to show you around.

By Ruth Corley, Public Affairs Specialist for BCSO

They say time flies when you’re having fun. Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford has spent the last four years—his first term—in almost continuous crisis mode with barely the time to catch his breath between each challenge. It’s not what the Sheriff would call fun, but he feels his agency has faced each crisis in a competent manner that has left him proud of his support staff and the men and women who carry the Bay County Sheriff’s Office badge.

After taking office in 2016, Sheriff Ford and his agency have taken on, among other daily incidents, an active shooter situation, a double homicide and intense manhunt for the suspect, Category 5 storm Hurricane Michael, and the Coronavirus pandemic.

In the case of the active shooter, Ford watched as his deputies took gunfire for several hours before the suspect was shot and the incident ended. During the manhunt for the double homicide suspect, Ford and his deputies worked all night in wooded areas in Fountain before the suspect was taken into custody.

Hurricane Michael damaged or destroyed communication and infrastructure in most of Bay County and surrounding counties, challenging the ability of Sheriff Ford’s deputies to respond and help the citizens of Bay County. But help they did, driving when they could, walking when they could drive over or through debris no longer, all while they wondered about the fate of their own families and the conditions of their own homes.

When faced with a pandemic, BCSO deputies adapted and put on masks, learning new protocols related to working in a world battling a virus called COVID. “Quarantine” became a common word among conversation. Calls for service still needed to be answered, COVID or no COVID, and all BCSO employees rose to the challenge.

Each crisis, as well as changing issues facing law enforcement across the country, revealed to the Sheriff new areas of training needed to help equip his people to respond even more competently. Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training has been held multiple times at the BCSO, expanding the capabilities of deputies to respond to people with mental health crises. Use of Force training has increased, with emphasis on de-escalation techniques. Sheriff Ford has also worked to nurture and strengthen relationships between law enforcement and all communities within Bay County.

Also evident to Sheriff Ford was the need for additional equipment and buildings, both at the main location of the BCSO on Highway 77, the substations across the county, and at the Bay County Jail. The BCSO acquired a Bearcat, an armored vehicle to protect law enforcement as they approach an armed and barricaded subject or need to rescue innocent hostages. A BCSO Drone Team was formed to assist in the response to barricaded subjects, lost children, or the elderly. Ford, working with County Emergency officials, was able to find the money to design and see the delivery of a state-of-the-art Command Post vehicle. This will allow law enforcement and County Officials to manage crisis situations under one mobile roof, with the ability to communicate from the scene. A new building is currently under construction on the campus of the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. Built to withstand the strongest storm, it will house a small emergency operations center which will permit the BCSO to remain fully operational in a weather crisis. Building projects underway at the Bay County Jail will help handle the increasing numbers of inmates housed at the facility.

Sheriff Tommy Ford began his second term in January 2021, as relieved as anyone to leave 2020 behind. But he knows there is no place for complacency in law enforcement, especially in a time when crisis is becoming more commonplace. No matter what the challenge, the mission for the Bay County Sheriff’s Office will remain the same: to serve the people of Bay County with professionalism and integrity, and keep them safe.

By Deniece Moss, Principal of West Bay Elementary School

“Every student by name and need.” This phrase has been the daily mantra here at West Bay Elementary School since reviving our school in 2015. These are words the teachers, administrators, and staff at our “Small School, with a BIG Heart” do not take lightly. Every single scholar who walks on our campus is seen as more than a student in a classroom; they are our number one priority. At West Bay Elementary you will see rigorous and engaging learning experiences across all grade levels and content areas. However, the most important lessons our teachers provide our students with are those that go beyond the four walls of a classroom.

Mrs. Ezell, our amazing speech pathologist, had these words to say about West Bay Elementary. “West Bay Elementary is an elementary school that functions as one cohesive unit. We may all have different job duties (teacher, para, administration, office staff, custodial, food service, SLP, OT, PT, Guidance, Psychologist, RT, nurse, SRO) but we all work together to meet the needs of each student. Our scholars are not just students, they are “our kids.” We are “the small school with a BIG heart” and everyone sees and feels that when they visit West Bay Elementary. It is a feeling that consumes you when you enter the school. Our climate is welcoming and loving. It is intrinsic and something very special. Our students do not just acquire academics at West Bay Elementary. They acquire academics, love and character trait guidance from those that love them and want the best for them. Our students know that they are loved.”

At West Bay we truly believe in “relationships first, then everything else.” These are words spoken frequently by the teachers and staff here at West Bay Elementary School. Educators must provide students with love, acceptance, and respect before they can teach them any standard or skill. On our campus the number one priority is to make sure students have connections school wide with adults and other students. When students feel valued by their teachers, they are willing to put in the work needed to be successful in the classroom. Our school wide house system, lunch bunches, morning meetings, and teacher led mentoring are just a few ways teachers work to connect with students campus-wide. The focus on relationships extends to faculty as well. There is little faculty turnover each year. This stable school environment can be attributed to positive relationships between administration and faculty. A supportive environment is felt by all at West Bay Elementary.

In 2018 West Bay implemented a school wide HOUSE system to help teach our scholars the importance of good character. Scholars are sorted into one of the four houses: Harmony, Empathy, Courage, and Kindness. When creating our House System, we ensured that our “why” stayed at the forefront of our minds by structuring our Houses based on what was best for scholars. The goals of the House System are to ensure that our school has a small feel, to promote positive relationships and mentoring for students, to promote positive relationships between faculty and students, to give every scholar another caring adult, to instill a sense of pride in being a West Bay scholar and member of a House, and to boost character education.

At West Bay we offer many after school programs/activities for our scholars. Currently we offer the opportunities for our scholars to participate in Chess Club, Chess Club Jr., Lego League, Lego League Jr., FCA Kids Club, FCA Kids Club Jr., Chorus, and Girls on the Run. (Note: some clubs are currently held virtually.)

For more information about West Bay Elementary, located at 14813 School Drive in Panama City Beach, please contact the school at 850.767.1850. We would love the opportunity to meet you and your family and give you a tour of our “Small School with a BIG Heart.”

By Bill Husfelt, Superintendent, Bay District Schools

By now I hope you’ve heard that we’re getting a new school on the beach when A. Gary Walsingham Academy opens in August of 2021 for students in pre-kindergarten through second grade. We anticipate adding a grade a year to the school until it reaches K-5 status. At some point in the future, board members could decide to add middle school grades, which would make A. Gary Walsingham a K-8 facility. This school, which will have a Wahoo mascot, will focus on conservationism and environmentalism to take full advantage of the amazing location which was donated by the St. Joe Company.

But before we get too far along in that conversation, we need to talk a little bit about zoning. Obviously, we’re building a new school based upon anticipated growth and we need to rezone a few beach neighborhoods to ensure that Breakfast Point is no longer at, or over, capacity and that the new school has an adequate zone.

Rezoning is always difficult because, in my experience, most parents are pretty happy with the school their child attends and change is hard. Rezoning is also challenging because neighborhoods, and roads, are not always aligned equitably and natural boundaries can be hard to find.

In this case, all of the students for the new school will be coming from areas previously zoned for BPA due to the exponential growth in that area. Likewise, there’s a huge development planned adjacent to Walsingham Academy and several hundred new apartments are being constructed. We know that this area will quickly experience significant growth and that’s why we’re so excited that the School Board had the foresight to begin construction on the new school this year. That project was slated to begin before the hurricane but, as you know, new construction was delayed so we could focus on rebuilding hurricane-damaged facilities.

At the January 12th board workshop, new zone boundaries were discussed and later approved at a meeting for advertising. As you can see from the graphic attached, we’ve selected a highly-concentrated area of students to pull out of the BPA zone to create the zone for the new school.

Additionally, many parents want their children to attend a new school so parents in all school zones will have the opportunity to apply for out-of-zone attendance and, eventually, hardship waivers, for the new school.

Conversely, we also know that some parents will NOT want to leave BPA for the new school … particularly if they have a fourth grader at BPA (not eligible currently for the new K-2) and a kindergartener. We completely understand the challenge that would be associated with two elementary school students at different schools and we will do ALL we can to accommodate “grandfathering” students into BPA as long as space is available.

There will be a public hearing on the new zone (date and time TBA). Stakeholders are welcome to attend and board members are always willing to listen to suggestions and concerns.

I know that change is hard for many people and changing schools for entire neighborhoods is a momentous adjustment. However, as I’ve seen in the past, everything generally works out and parents are always excited when their students have a chance to become part of the founding student body at a brand new school.