Niceville crawfish boil among weekend activities to support veterans

EOD Warrior Foundation invites the community to the Annual Memorial Weekend benefiting veterans and their families. Niceville crawfish boil May 6 in the BWB Winn Dixie parking lot.

The EOD Memorial Weekend is scheduled for May 5-6, 2017, and is guaranteed to be a memorable weekend with several events that are open to the public. The community is encouraged to come out and honor these warriors who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Activities scheduled for the annual weekend include a golf tournament, auction, memorial ceremony (where six new names will be added to the Memorial Wall), ball, and crawfish boil. The events will take place in Niceville and Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

“We are in our 49^th year of the EOD Ball and the 48^th for the EOD Memorial Ceremony. Both of these are incredibly important annual events to honor and remember those fallen EOD warriors who gave all for our continued freedom,” explains Nicole Motsek, executive director of the EOD Warrior Foundation. “The weekend offers something for everyone. It is a weekend that people love to support because it’s all about paying tribute to our country’s brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice, and showing support for their families.”

The EOD Memorial Weekend will include:

• • The 10^th Annual EOD Warrior Foundation Golf Tournament, will be held on Friday, May 5, 2017 at the Eglin Golf Course, located at 1527 Fairway Drive in Niceville, Fla. Check in for the event opens at 6:30 a.m., with a shotgun start scheduled for 8:00 a.m. Registration for the tournament is $70 per person or $280 per team. The price to play includes green fees, cart rental, lunch, and gift bag.

• EOD Auction will be held on May 5, 2017 at the Emerald Coast Convention Center, located at 1250 Miracle Strip Parkway SE in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Auction items can be dropped off at 4:30 p.m. and doors open at 5:00 p.m.  The auction is free and open to the public. It includes nachos, Buffalo Wild Wings, and a cash bar. Along with a traditional live auction, there will be a silent auction for bidding on select items from companies like Savvy Travelers, WonderWorks (indoor amusement park), the new Alcatraz East Crime Museum, BiGR Audio and many more. Also, concert tickets and CD’s from Grammy award-winning jazz bassist extraordinaire Christian McBride.
• The 48^th Annual EOD Memorial Ceremony, will be held on May 6, 2017 at NAVSCOLEOD, located on Range Road in Niceville, Fla. The ceremony will begin at 9:00 a.m. This ceremony honors EOD Warriors who died while carrying out an EOD mission.  This year we will be placing six fallen EOD warriors on the EOD Memorial Wall.
• 8th Annual EOD Memorial Crawfish Boil, will take place on May 6, 2017, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. It will be held in Niceville, Fla. in the BWB Winn Dixie parking lot, between The Schnitzel Lodge, Tisano’s Garlic Grill, Ciao Bella’s, and Beef O’ Brady’s. Stop by for crawfish and refreshments. Other food items can be purchased at the participating restaurants.
• The 49^th Annual EOD Ball, will be held on May 6, 2017 at the Emerald Coast Convention Center, located at 1250 Miracle Strip Parkway SE in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Doors open at 5:15 p.m. Attire is semi-formal, formal, and military equivalent. The keynote speaker at the ball will be Admiral John Richardson, who has been serving as the Chief of Naval Operations since September 2015. Tickets for the ball are $75 per person.

“There are several ways for people to get involved with this special weekend and show their support for these brave warriors and their families,” added Motsek. “Individuals and businesses can sponsor the events, participate or volunteer.  It all helps with our mission to improve the quality of life for the EOD family by providing financial relief, scholarship opportunities, physical, social, and emotional support. Get involved in this weekend and love giving back to those warriors and their families who have given so much.”

For more information on attending or registering for the events, visit the site: http://www.eodwarriorfoundation.org/2017eodmemorialweekend .

The EOD Warrior Foundation is an organization that helps the families of the 7,000 people in our military who are Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians, and perform bomb disposal duties. The EOD Warrior Foundation helps this elite group by providing financial relief, therapeutic healing retreats, a scholarship program, care of the EOD Memorial Wall located at Eglin AFB, Fla. and more. Their work is supported by private donations and the generosity of those who support the organization.  To learn more about the EOD Warrior Foundation, or see their fundraising events calendar, visit their site at: www.eodwarriorfoundation.org.