MILTON — Results have been tallied: 1,000 participants attended the Santa Rosa County-sponsored Military Appreciation Picnic on May 13.
The event included active duty, reservist, military dependents, Department of Defense civilians and contractors. The community hosted the event as part of their Military Appreciation Month festivities.
The picnic featured a human gyroscope ride, the Cow-Tow ride, a wood working craft, prize give-a-ways, corn-hole games, toss and checker games, food and bounce houses.
Cmdr. Mark Nagel of VT-3 and his daughter Sierra Nagel recalled attending the base picnics in the years past and were glad to be a part of this year’s event as well.
“My favorite part … is the cow ride; this has been lots of fun,” Sierra said.
The picnic featured the entertaining sounds of local favorite, musical duo Segars and Shumate, which played a wide range of music from classic rock to contemporary country music like songs from Tom Petty, Jimi Hendrix and Otis Redding.
“This is a great event and our first time we’ve been to the picnic. I’m glad we decided to come, and glad there’s stuff for the kids to play on and do, we missed not being able to come last year,” said parent Gina Gonzalez. The annual appreciation picnic was canceled last year due to a Navy-wide increase in security posture.
Tracy Allen, Military Appreciation Month Coordinator, said it is vital to hold events like these. “We appreciate what they do every day for us; when you think about what they do on a daily basis, I don’t think they get told thank you enough.”
The majority of the activities, resources and food were provided by The Santa Rosa County community and made the picnic a success. Vendors from across the county contributed to the event’s success. These included: Chamber of Commerce, Sheriff’s Office, Boogie Inc., Buffalo Rock, Event Designs, Pensacola Tent Rental, Henry Company Homes, Whataburger, Southern Sno, Firehouse Subs, Chick-Fil-A, Sweet Season Farms, Emerald Coast Hospice, Navy League Santa Rosa Council, Santa Rosa Medical Center, Hall’s Hardware, and Walmart Supercenter.
“The Northwest Florida and Southeast Alabama communities support the military more than any other community I’ve experienced and we’re proud to serve in this area of the country,” Commanding Officer Capt. Todd Bahlau said.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: 1,000 military members attend appreciation picnic