"Life is better here"
Welcome to the City of Orange Beach's
community newsletter.
Vol. 5, Issue 22
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MEMORIAL DAY - REMEMBER AND HONOR
The city hopes everyone has a safe holiday weekend and sets aside time to honor and remember all those who died serving our great country.
City offices, the library and facilities (except the Golf Center) will be closed on Monday, May 30th in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. Trash and recycling will not be affected. All routes will run as normal. Normal business operations will resume Tuesday, May 31st.
Holiday weekend safe boating -
Heed No Wake / Idle-Only zones
With the busy Memorial Day weekend upon us and Red Snapper season open - as of today - for private anglers, it’s important for all boaters and those on watercraft to please help keep everyone safe by knowing and abiding by the No Wake / Idle-Speed rules, which covers Terry Cove, Cotton Bayou and Old River, among other areas. For more information and maps, visit www.orangebeachal.gov/departments/community-dev/orange-beach-no-wake-zone-map.
SAVE THE DATE
2nd Annual Orange Beach Freedom Fest set for Sept. 30-Oct. 2, 2022
After the success of the Inaugural Freedom Fest on Oct. 9, 2021 - which came together in less than a month - plans are underway for the 2nd Annual Orange Beach Freedom Festival that will be held on Friday, Sept. 30 to Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022. It will be a true, down-home celebration of America with a car show, concerts, special speakers, arts & crafts, children's activities, food... just an All-American red, white and blue weekend in Orange Beach, Alabama.
Mark your calendar as the planned schedule for Friday, Sept. 30 and Saturday, Oct. 1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. will include arts & crafts and food vendors, entertainment, children's activities and a fall edition of Bama Coast Cruisin'. That Friday night will also include entertainment at the Orange Beach Performing Arts Center. Then on Sunday, Oct. 2, a full afternoon of activities - including a special keynote speaker and benefit concert- is being planned for the Amphitheatre at The Wharf. Stay tuned for more details on the Friday night and Sunday events.
For vendors interested in participating on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 30-Oct. 1, please fill out the following form to be placed on the mailing list: https://www.orangebeachal.gov/events/freedom-fest-vendor-spaces. Applications for Crafters & Commercial spaces will be sent out June 1 with a July 22 deadline. Booth spaces are 10x10 and the cost will be $200 for the two-day event. All vendor fees will benefit the Alabama Chapter of Folds of Honor, which is a nonprofit that helps provide families of fallen and disabled service members educational scholarships. Find more information on Folds of Honor at https://foldsofhonor.org/.
For those wanting to sign up for the Bama Coast Cruisin' fall car show, visit https://bamacoastcruisin.com/fall/.
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SCHOOL NEWS
2A STATE CHAMPS - CONGRATULATIONS TO OBHS SOFTBALL!
Congratulations to the Orange Beach High School Softball Team for winning back-to-back 2A Softball Championships! During the state playoff 2A championship game in Oxford last Saturday, freshman Daigle Wilson hit a walk-off single to left field for Orange Beach in the bottom of the seventh inning to take a 2-1 victory over Mars Hill and the 2A title. The community welcomed the teams home on Sunday afternoon.
NEWS:
Orange Beach earns 2nd straight Class 2A softball championship: https://www.ahsaa.com/Media/AHSAANOW/News-Articles/orange-beach-earns-2nd-straight-class-2a-softball-championship.
Daigle Wilson’s walk-off single lifts No. 1 Orange Beach to second straight Class 2A title: https://www.al.com/highschoolsports/2022/05/daigle-wilsons-walk-off-single-lifts-no-1-orange-beach-to-second-straight-class-2a-title.html.
ORANGE BEACH MIDDLE SCHOOL
Congratulations OBMS Teachers, Students and Staff for being named an A+ College Ready School of Excellence! Excellent growth and benchmarks were demonstrated on the PSAT 8/9!
Over the two school years, the 8th grade class improved their overall PSAT 8/9 score by 66 points and exceeded the required growth metric of 111 points. In addition, the students' aggregate evidence-based reading and writing score improved by 43 points and the math score improved by 69 points. The percent of students who met the evidence-based reading and writing college readiness benchmark score improved from 27% to 63%; the percent of students who met the math college readiness benchmark score improved from 25% to 63% and the percent of students who met BOTH the reading and math benchmarks improved from 23% to 55%!
MAKO ATHLETICS
Summer Sports Camp 2022
Orange Beach High School is partnering with the City of Orange Beach in creating a full slate of summer sport camps during the month of June. Each camp is for rising first-graders to rising 6th-graders and the cost is $20. Camps will include softball, tennis, cheer, football, soccer, basketball, volleyball and baseball.
The participant can be registered for more than one camp at no extra cost.
Campers will receive a free Mako Athletics Youth Camp T-shirt. Campers can also wear this T- Shirt to gain free admission to ALL Mako Athletic home regular season events.
The camps will be run by the Head High School Coaches and their teams.
All parents wishing for their child to participate must sign up through Activenet from May 23rd through June 10th.
Click here to register for the 2022 Summer Sports Camp(s).
For more information, please contact John Mcintosh at 251-200-8155 or jmcintosh@orangebeachal.gov.
Find all of the latest school news on Facebook at:
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Protecting Paradise...
With the summer season officially kicking off this Memorial Day weekend, Orange Beach Fire and Police personnel and city officials gathered Friday morning to bless the new Ono Island Fire Station No. 4, Fire Rescue 1 ambulance, Fire Boat 2 and Police Marine 2. Pastor Fred Franks, the fire department’s chaplain, led the blessing.
The Ono Island Fire Protection Authority will hold an open house for the new 6,085-square-foot fire station later in June. The City of Orange Beach and Ono Island have a fire protection and emergency services agreement in place since Ono is not in the city limits. The new station, designed by McCollough Architecture, is designed for 175 mph wind speed and includes six bunk rooms, a private office, an emergency medical service room, two apparatus bays and storage space.
See more photos on the City of Orange Beach's Facebook page.
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Sargassum Removal Update
With the help of public works and beach chair vendors, the City of Orange Beach Coastal Resources department is doing its best to clean up the immense amount of sargassum on the beach.
They are using tractors to drop the sargassum off at the dune line and then adding sand on top of it to help with decomposition. Sargassum is a natural solution for dune restoration and this method should promote dune growth.
For those of you curious about the sargassum, here are some cool facts:
- It floats in island-like masses and is home for 70 different species of marine life
- It provides protection from predators and food for small sea turtles
- It is great for composting and is frequently used as fertilizer
We appreciate everyone’s patience and kindness regarding the seaweed and we hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!
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Full Moon Paddle fundraiser set for June 12
The City of Orange Beach Wind & Water Learning Center will host a Full Moon Paddle on Wolf Bay on Sunday, June 12th.
The fundraiser for the Baldwin County Child Advocacy Center will include dinner, provided by Luna’s, starting at 6:15 p.m., with entertainment by Spicy Danger. The paddle will start at 7 p.m.
The Wind & Water Learning Center is at 26267 Canal Road, behind the Orange Beach Public Library.
Registration fee is $30 per person. Pre-registration is required. Registration closes at noon Friday, June 10th. Online registration is available at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wolf-bay-full-moon-paddle-june-12-tickets-348049404137.
Print out a registration form for the June 12th Full Moon Paddle or pick one up at any city recreation facility in Orange Beach.
All funds raised go directly to the Baldwin County Child Advocacy Center.
- Participants must bring their own kayak or canoe, lifejacket and white light (headlamps work best).
- Participants must wear life jackets during the paddle.
- Paddling experience is necessary for this event that covers 3-5 miles depending on condition.
- It is not an event for beginners or young children.
For more information, contact WWLC Coordinator Jackie McGonigal at 251-974-7245 or on her cell at 251-424-5909 or via email at jmcgonigal@orangebeachal.gov.
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SUMMER FUN AT THE ORANGE BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY
There is a full calendar of events for the kids and "Oceans of Possibilities" at the Orange Beach Public Library this summer! Stop by to pick up a calendar and sign up for the library’s 2022 "Oceans of Possibilities" Summer Reading Program to get a free summer reading swag bag!
Summer Kick Off Party
The Summer Kick Off Party will be held on Saturday, June 4th from 10 a.m. to noon. There will be an inflatable water slide, a bounce house, a movie singalong and craft popsicles, an obstacle course, and summer reading sign-up! Also available at the library are summer reading Teen Event Calendars.
Visit the Orange Beach Library Facebook page or call 251-981-2923, for more information. The library is at 26267 Canal Road.
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Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation to hold free Kids Camp this Sunday
If you're in town this Sunday, May 29th, the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation (GHOF) will hold a free Kids Camp at the Orange Beach Marina during the Gulf Coast Masters, the Mobile Big Game Fishing Club's traditional Memorial Day sport fishing tournament. The GHOF will be on site from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. conducting a youth activity of teaching kids about protecting the marine environment and also teaching them to painting their own artwork. They will also have Kona Ice of Coastal Alabama on site providing snow cones. This is all free of charge.
The tournament's live weigh-ins at Orange Beach Marina will be held Saturday from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. and the main weigh-in on Sunday 3 p.m.-8 p.m.
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IN THE NEWS
WKRG-5:
- Firefighters tackle boat fire in Orange Beach
- ‘I don’t want to go home without him’: Search continues for Orange Beach drowning victim
- For anyone wanting to help the family of Tyreke Walker, a GoFundMe page has been set up. Tyreke was tragically swept out into the Gulf on Saturday, May 21st and all searches have been unsuccessful so far. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Walker family. Details from the GoFundMe page: Tragedy has hit our family and we are asking for help. Whether it be monetary donations, shares, and especially continued help, prayers, and support in finding Tyreke and bringing him home. Any comments you may see on social media about him being found is false. Please do not rely on sources that are not the police or authorities. He is still out there. The Walker family live in Baton Rouge, LA and were on a day vacation for Tyreke’s 14th birthday, but has turned into a terrible unwanted stay in Orange Beach, AL as they await hopeful news that he has been found. Because of this, it can be quite costly and both parents will be out of work during this difficult time. Anything is appreciated. If you see anything at all, please contact the authorities. Thank you. - https://www.gofundme.com/f/donate-to-help-the-walker-family
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