Contents: Website Activity Birthday Club of the Air Homemade; Spring & Easter Thank You, Mr. Johnson Estate Planning, R.O. Adams

Transcription

1 Svea, FL North Okaloosa Historical Association Near Laurel Hill, ca 1908 Canoe Community, Church, ca 1920 Pyron Chapel Community, 1915 Bakerblockmuseum.org Corner Rt 189 & SR 4 (850) bakermuseum@aol.com Winter Spring Summer Fall Contents: Website Activity Birthday Club of the Air Homemade; Spring & Easter Thank You, Mr. Johnson Estate Planning, R.O. Adams We are a 501(3)c Non-profit February 2012

2 Send your address to The Birthday Club of the Air This annual event began as a radio show a Friday Feature from 9:30 to 10:00 a.m. on WDSP, DeFuniak Springs, FL and 11:00 12:00 noon on WCNU, Crestview, FL. W.D. Cooter Douglass originated the weekly program and the annual picnic event. The radio show was started on Nov 14, 1948 with 171 members. It was originated by Cooter and he dedicated the unique feature to the memory of his father, William M Douglass who died in May of that year. W.M. was a newspaper man, journalist and publisher. At the first annual Picnic, in 1948, fifteen hundred people were in attendance for the all day event. Citizens regardless of age were invited; among them were 176 club members. By 1956 the membership had grown to The 1952 event was a BCOA Fish Fry Dinner held at Wayside Park (along the Shoal River) 12,000 visitors were served that year. Cooter insisted that everything be free for the Old Folks at his annual party. The reoccurring theme was A Tribute to Our Senior Citizens Who helped Carve America out of the Wilderness. Club membership was scattered throughout West Florida and South Alabama. An event program was printed each year. It contained photos and We never dreamed it would be so large. Everyone took an interest and we have always been swamped with applicants to sponsor our program. said, Douglass. news about the BCOA members and displayed business ads from both Okaloosa and Walton Counties. The cost of a program was twenty-five cents. Those who attended listened to more than five hours of fast-moving presentations and features from a large platform. There were prizes and featured notables. State government officials spoke to offer salutations. Bios and features of the club members were in the program and some of the oldsters also performed on the platform. They played violin, guitar, and some danced. Eglin s USAF band performed, and there were various other bands - hillbilly music and more. The oldest club member was featured. County officials and School Board members and statics of county population and growth was also listed in the program. Prizes given away during the event by drawing. Only those attendees over age 70 who registered at the picnic site in DeFuniak and Crestview were eligible to win. Winner had to be present to win. Among the prizes were items donated by the program sponsors: watches; basket of groceries; radios; 100 gallons of gasoline; wearing apparel; blankets; newspaper subscriptions; appliances and more. One program contains this note : Solicitors and all types of salesmen are requested to not solicit or harass anyone at the Picnic, during the entire day. We never dreamed it would be so large. Everyone took an interest and we have always been swamped with applicants to sponsor our program. said, Douglass. However, when the 11th Annual Picnic for the BCOA which was held in the Courthouse Square on Saturday, November 8, 1958, the program cover was In Memory of W.D. Cooter Douglass who died that year. The annual programs continued into the 1990s

3 Send your address to Birthday Club of the Air, continued... Thanks to the efforts of Paula Kerns, who compiled and donated a 3 binder, the museum has the Birthday Club of the Air history. Here is a sampling of the gold mine of documentation in the binder. (Surnames referenced in print and photo include) : Brown; Campbell; Cawthon; Corbin; Daniels; Davis; Dollar; Dougl ass; Gunter; Harr is on; Hurston; Jones; Kelley; King; Lundy; Mapoles; Mayo; Owens; Pittman; Richardson; Sikes; Steele; Townsend; Tyner; Weeks; Wicke; Williams; and more.

4 Send your address to Birthday Club of the Air, continued... Solicitors and all types of salesmen are requested to not solicit or harass anyone at the Picnic, during the entire day.

5 Send your address to Birthday Club of the Air, continued...

6 Send your address to & Easter Come in and look over our new selection of handmade bib-aprons. Just in time for Easter and Spring, they make perfect hostess gifts. We also have farm yard & barn yard themes for children's aprons. Be sure to get one with the tag which contains a poem you ll love. Proceeds benefit the museum. $7 and $10. Last week we received a new batch of the homemade Okaloosa Blueberry Jam (Dorcas, FL). It is favorite of our patrons so don t wait too long or they'll all be gone. Proceeds benefit the museum. $3. Thank You - we appreciate all our members, volunteers, and friends of the museum who support our mission and donate their time, energy and financial support. (It is a new year, have you paid your annual NOHA dues, yet? Go to bakerblockmusem.org and find out how). We would like to thank Wendell Johnson of Daphne, Alabama for his generous donation of a 1940 s era Coca- Cola icebox that he recently made to the Baker Block Museum. The coke box was used by his parents, Olen and Ida Johnson in their small country store in Crist County Georgia during the mid 1940 s. The box has a new home on the porch of the Otahite Post Office & General Store in our heritage park and will be used to serve cold drinks during events at the museum. It is contributions such as Mr. Johnson s that help with the museum s growth and our continued efforts to preserve local history and heritage. Thank you to the Reginald O. Adams Estate This may be a good option for someone you know - estate planning can include a gift to a non-profit group such as ours. It is a means of creating a legacy for the family; of investing in the f u t u r e o f o u r community.