Duane Brewton Jr. has lived a long life. From fighting in World War II to providing for his family to helping found Pensacola’s Brownsville Assembly of God, Brewton has done many things across his 109 years.

Despite his lifetime achievements, he had not been read into the Congressional Record until Feb. 12.

When Southern Raceway in East Milton went up for sale, some in the local racing community feared the property would be sold to a developer and that days at the dirt track would be a thing of the past.

That was also the fear of the Joiner brothers, Jonathan, Joseph and Joshua. As Joshua puts it, the brothers were practically raised at the track.

Caleb Champion is headed to the Super Bowl.


Not as a player, but as a pilot. The Milton High alum is set to be part of a flyover for the NFL’s biggest game Sunday night at Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.

It was March 6, 2024, when Joy Zuraff returned home from the park with her 5-year-old daughter, Kenlee. The afternoon had been ordinary — swings, sunshine, a brief escape from the medical stress that had shadowed their lives. Then Zuraff’s phone rang. A friend told her the Department of Children and Families planned to stop by, take a quick look at Kenlee and close the case.

What happened next would upend her family’s life.

On Saturday, Jan. 17, people from across Santa Rosa County gathered at Santa Rosa Auditorium in Milton to share a breakfast meal in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Late last month, a Milton resident posted a picture of a river otter swimming through Annie’s Basin near the Blackwater River. The woman was on her dock when a little furry head stuck out of the water.
While not an uncommon sight, river otters are not exactly the poster child for Florida animals. Despite not being as famed as alligators, manatees and Florida panthers, river otters play an important ecological role.

Red clay bluffs that look like they belong in Alabama or Georgia tower over a part of Santa Rosa County’s Juniper Creek.

The Krewe of Airship Pirates took toy drives to a new level this year, hosting a toy drive and a celebration on the drive’s final day that featured circus performers, chili dogs, hot chocolate and Santa Claus arriving in style by helicopter.

Patients and families at Studer Family Children’s hospital received a special visit from two members of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron on Dec. 11, just before the holidays.

Santa Rosa County Animal Services (SRCAS) invites the community to attend a holiday adoption event at the Santa Rosa County Animal Shelter, 4451 Pine Forest Rd. in Milton, on Saturday, Dec. 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.