May 16, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA)– The Orange Beach Garden club has chosen to support the City of Orange Beach new Wind & Water Learning Center with a portion of their fundraising proceeds.The club is having picnic tables constructed that will be installed at the City’s new Sail Camp site.

The new location, directly on Wolf Bay behind the Orange Beach Library, gives this unique program a permanent site of operation. Summer Sail Camp has been conducted from Waterfront Park over the past eight years and has taught hundreds of children, both locals and visitors, to sail. The program is for youth ages 9 – 14 and is divided into classes for Beginner and Intermediate Sailors.

May 16, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - The Old River Optimist Club of Perdido Key would like to thank the Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce for generously donating $2,500 to the Old River Optimist Club's Gulf Coast Junior Golf Qualifier.

The tournament will be at Perdido Bay Golf Course on June 2nd. Junior golfers from the Gulf Coast including Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi ages 10 through 18 (boys and girls) will be competing to qualify for the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships held in July in Palm Beach Gardens, Fl a.

MAY 16, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA). – It’s only a few short weeks until the first Summer Sail Camp is held and the city of Orange Beach Parks and Recreation Department has added additional Beginner Classes in an effort to accommodate as many children as possible.

“We initially had seven weeks of camps designated for summer 2012, but the demand is greater for Beginner sessions this year so we have adjusted one class to be a combined Beginner/ Intermediate Class and also added another week at the end of the program,” Sail Camp Coordinator Jeanne Fitzgibbons said. “We rarely have the chance of adding weeks but the way the calendar falls this summer has given us this opportunity. Depending on demand we could go another week as well.”

April 24, 2012 - Gulf Shores, AL (GSA) & Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - The 41st Annual National Shrimp Festival Committee, chaired by Ron Kutter, is proud to unveil the 2012 Official Annual National Shrimp Festival Poster. This year's winning design was created by Keith White, a native of Shallotte, North Carolina.

The poster design contest is an annual tradition and in past years the winning design has not only been featured on the official poster sold at the festival, but elements of the art are also incorporated into other merchandise items including t-shirts, visors, and the like.

Keith is a graduate of the Art Institute of Atlanta and the American College for the Applied Arts, earning his Bachelor's degree in commercial art. After living in Atlanta for eleven years and working as a computer graphic artist, Keith moved back home to Shallotte in 1998. Until 2003, Keith worked as a graphic artist at Kool-A-Brew in Calabash, North Carolina. Starting in early 2004, Keith began working for The Brunswick Beacon, a weekly newspaper focusing on local news and events for the southeast, North Carolina coast.

By Jenny Hart

April 22, 2012 - Gulf Shores, AL (GSA) - An Inspiration To All Returning Veterans: Curtis Childress, iPhone Guru in Gulf Shores Alabama.

Walking through downtown Gulf Shores or Foley you can tell things are tough. Small businesses are boarded up and some may never return. As the wars in the Far East wind down and our heroes return home to the beautiful Gulf Coast many are wondering what their futures hold. For one it was a tale of frustration, perseverance, and finally, elation.

By David Rainer
Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

April 20, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - Capt. Billy Neff was at the helm of the Fish Trap and didn’t see the fish that nailed the pinfish trailing behind the boat on the drift line.

The captain didn’t really think too much about it when 8-year-old Andrew Quinn, in Gulf Shores on a spring break trip with his family, grabbed the rod and started to crank.

Little did Neff realize that 30 minutes later a state record king mackerel would be lying on the deck of the boat, illustrating, as Jack Holmes of the Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) notes, that you don’t have to be a seasoned angler to catch big kings.

April 16, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - It’s been almost nine years since the City of Orange Beach Parks and Recreation Department took over Sail Camp from the Point Yacht Club. During that time the summer program has introduced the sport of sailing to hundreds of area youth and visitors to Orange Beach. Registration is now underway for summer 2012 Sail Camp. Children who participated last year will be sailing on the same body of water, Wolf Bay, but will start from a new and unique location.

For the past eight years the program has been conducted from the shores of Waterfront Park on Canal Road. This year, however, a new permanent site is being prepared as the summer Sail Camp relocates to an official home just west of the former location. Parks & Recreation Office Manager and Sail Camp Coordinator Jeanne Fitzgibbons noted, “After our 2011 program ended, we approached the City Council during the budget process and asked that waterfront property behind the Orange Beach Library be designated as a permanent site for Sail Camp. The Council approved the site and funding request and work is underway to have the area ready for camp this summer”. Due to the popularity of the program and with the intent of building toward more water related sports activities, the new building is being referred to as the Wind & Water Learning Center and will become a unique educational center for the City of Orange Beach. In recent years, the weekly camps fill up quickly so be sure to reserve your child or grandchild’s spot immediately and watch the progress on the construction.

April 16, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - From its wildlife to its landscape, there is no more photographic a state than Alabama. Are you a photographer with an eye for its natural beauty? If so, then show us your work. Outdoor Alabama magazine is pleased to announce its 2013 Photo Contest, with winning entries to be published in the February 2013 issue.

The contest is open to any amateur photographer except employees of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) and members of their immediate families. An amateur is defined as someone who does not earn a living from photography. Photographers may enter up to 10 photos. The photos may be in the same category or spread among different categories.

The categories include: Youth categories ages 6-12 and 13-18, Alabama State Parks, Birds, Mammals, Reptiles and Amphibians, Other Native Wildlife, Scenic/Pictorial, Nature-Based Activities, and Wild Flora.

By Jonathan D. Ellis

April 14, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - There is an enormous shift in education that is happening NOW for our students on the island. This is incredibly exciting as the Learning for Life Program, which combines Career Academies and the Digital Renaissance, is progressing toward implementation this fall. If you have not seen the PowerPoint on our website, please visit www.OrangeBeachElementary.com so that you can gain an understanding.

What has been done?
This past year, funds have been donated or allocated to make needed advances in education for our schools, including wireless internet access in all island schools, teacher Macbooks in grades 4-12, student Macbooks in grades 4-6 at GSES, student Macbooks in part for 7th at GSMS, student Macbooks in grades 8-12, foreign language programs, coordinator positions, and career academy options for our students.

April 11, 2013 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) – Bob Baumhower loves to tell the story of the Compleat Angler, an old Bahamas Hemingway haunt where he spent many happy hours while playing football for the Miami Dolphins.

That’s how he wants people to feel when they visit his restaurants – nearly a dozen and counting. He wants folks to have fun.

Baumhower’s company, Aloha Hospitality, is taking over two spots in The Wharf in Orange Beach and one of those will be called the Compleat Angler. It’ll be located in the old Guy Harvey Grill space overlooking the marina. In the former Live Bait space, the flagship franchise of Aloha, Baumhower’s Restaurant will open with the familiar sports theme he started with and will feature 60 televisions.

“We’re a fun place,” he says. “We’ll have lots of activities going on. We’re going to have some old-school games from back in the day. The same type of atmosphere when you come in off the boat, come in get a bite and go in there and play a game of pool or ring game. That kind of stuff.”

The mainstay for entertainment will be veteran musician John Reno who brings to the stage a selection of songs written about experiences in the area. “The main theme we are going to do here is LA (Lower Alabama) with a little Caribbean accent,” Baumhower said. “That’s very important.”

This is Baumhower’s second Compleat Angler. The first is in Daphne in the old Nautilus location.

First and foremost the former football star says he needs staffing for both enterprises. His company will hold job fairs every Saturday in April to get the employees necessary to run the restaurants.

Fairhope Author Releases “Bushwhacked at the Flora-Bama” Detailing History of Iconic Roadhouse

April 10, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - Author Chris Warner, a resident of Fairhope, Alabama, after following the actions of Joe Gilchrist for two years, is set to release the long-awaited book April 27-29 at the annual Mullet Toss at the Flora-Bama Lounge & Package Store. Warner also wrote the untold story of HealthSouth Corporation, “The Wagon to Disaster,” with Aaron Beam and “A Tailgater’s Guide to SEC Football,” among other titles.

“This book explains the amazing story of how an American dream became an unbelievable reality, birthing a legend in the process. I spent two years closely following the actions of Joe Gilchrist, originator of the legendary Flora-Bama Lounge, Oyster Bar & Package Store. The place, molded in the spirit of its remarkable creator, is a stunning, Southern innovation of good times for great people.

It has been called one of the last great American honky tonk roadhouses, the perfect blend of beer and whiskey, laid back and wild, where you wipe your feet on the way out, an otherwise tattered, white sandy blip on the teeming gulf coast radar that for more than three decades has served as a romantic, raunchy, roadside respite for good music, good times, good views and most importantly—great people.

Gulf Coast Family Chiropractic is hosting educational events on Toxicity throughout the month of April.

April 9, 2012 - Gulf Shores, AL (GSA) – Remove toxic interference from your life by using the 5 essentials of real health from Maximized Living. Join Dr. Alicia Farrell on April 12th for the “Maximized Living Makeover on Toxicity”, located at 3865 Gulf Shores Pkwy Suite 5 in Gulf Shores, AL at 6:15 pm. Toxicity is a major, unseen influence in the widespread pandemic of disease in North America. With Maximized Living’s 5 Essentials, learn how you can take action to build your health and create a safe environment for you and your family.

“Most people have no idea,” said Dr. Alicia Farell. “Things we use every single day have toxic properties, and they are taxing our health. We want to educate the community on easy action steps they can take to reduce toxicity in their lives.”

Gulf Coast Family Chiropractic is offering the Maximized Living healthcare delivery system in order to bring real health to the community. Learn the resources and tools for total wellness. Call Rachel Sawyer at 251-948-2225 to learn more about these events and the Maximized Living healthcare system, and find out if you are in a toxic environment by taking the toxicity test at www.MaximizedLivingMakeOver.com.

March 2, 2012 - Orange Beach, AL (OBA) - Mandeville’s Tanya Dischler will display her work in an exhibit entitled “Beyond the Bayou” at the Coastal Arts Center at Orange Beach (formerly Orange Beach Arts Center) March 21-April 28 with an opening reception Thursday March 22 5-7 p.m.

Dischler, an established artist from the Bayou Sale area of South Louisiana, studied at the University of Southwestern Louisiana, Louisiana Tech University and various artist workshops throughout the United States, Mexico, France and Indonesia.

Her subject matter is predominately the wildlife of South Louisiana, which she combines with interesting background shapes and patterns, giving the work a complexity beyond typical representational paintings.

These compositions appear to ‘come to life’ through her considerable facility for technique, imagery, and color application. Dischler’s mysterious and intensely bright acrylics possess the visual and visceral impact of abstraction, while the main subject matter of each painting remains easily recognizable. After Hurricane Katrina, her Mandeville studio flooded and she faced the possible loss of her watercolors. While experimenting with different ways to save these works, Dischler discovered a process where ‘once-ruined paintings took on a new life.’