Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson today opened a new Operation Outdoor Freedom facility solely dedicated to offering wounded veterans recreational opportunities free of charge.
Pensacola News Journal
An organization that helps wounded and disabled veterans connect with the outdoors is hoping to make its program more inclusive with a new dormitory at the Blackwater River State Forest specifically designated for female veterans.
The participants of Operation Outdoor Freedom s whitetail deer and turkey hunts used to be exclusively men, but five women have recently joined trips to the Blackwater River State Forest. That prompted the organization to apply for grant funding totaling $26,700 from the Fish and Wildlife Foundation of Florida to construct a women s dormitory.
The dorm will house up to seven women at a time, and construction is scheduled to begin in the spring, according to grant documents. The project will provide an alternative to the bunkhouse-style, wide open lodging the program currently uses.