Category: Upcoming Events

Wild Blackberry Festival

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Hamilton County is the Wild Blackberry Capital of the Sunshine State. This is rather impressive as most of North America’s blackberry production occurs on the West coast due to weather needs. Blackberries, like many deciduous berries, require a set amount of chill hours to produce fruit. The phrase ‘chill hours’ refers to the accumulation of hours at temperatures under 45°F. Blackberry varieties have chilling requirements ranging from 300 to 900 hours; here in North Florida, the average chill hours range from 500-700. Suffice to say, Hamilton County farmers’ work hard to make sure their berries produce prolifically!

To celebrate, the City of Jasper is hosting a Wild Blackberry Festival on June 9th. Visit Heritage Village from 8am-1pm to enjoy a jam-packed day of family fun. The festival kicks off with a blackberry pancake breakfast. Other entertainment throughout the day includes a concert by Teddy MacElvis and the Legends, craft vendors, the Miss Blackberry pageant, kids games, and food vendors. And, of course, all things blackberry! There will be homemade cobblers, jams, jellies, and pints of fresh-picked blackberries. There will even be blackberry plants for sale if you want to try your hand at growing your own. 

Learn more by visiting the Festival Facebook page. 

Blue Angels

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The Blue Angels are back in town for practice, and this year they’re allowing the public in to watch! The National Naval Aviation Museum will be hosting the practices. The gates will open at 9:30am, with the Blue Angels soaring into the skies at 10:30am. The Museum parking lot fills up quick, so be sure to be at the gates early – once the lot fills up, the gates will close. 

The last of April’s dates include today and tomorrow, April 30th. But no fear! The Blue Angels will be practicing through October. Best of all, some of the practice sessions will end with autograph sessions. Visit the Museum website to learn more about the autograph sessions, including the specific dates. 

 

Summer Fun Passport

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Jackson County is once again offer the Summer Fun Passport! The Passport kicks off Memorial Day Weekend, and gives kids’ the chance to explore, play, and discover the coolest spots in Jackson County. The Passport will include point collection, prizes, and unforgettable memories. Kids’ will receive their Summer Fun Passport from their school. There will also be some available at the Russ House in the Visitor Center. Keep an eye on the Visit Jackson County website for future announcements and details! 

2nd Annual Sandhills Celebration

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Founded in the Bay County, Sandhills Native Nursery is hosting their 2nd Annual Sandhills Celebration! It’s an event focused on education and conservation taking place on April 12th &13th. Join them for two family-friendly days of scheduled educational talks, local community organizations, animal ambassadors, local artists, food, trails, and more! The event is free to attend but bring cash for art vendors, food and drinks from local cafe Wild Root, plant purchases, and more. Parking is limited, please carpool. 

 

Coastal Plant Giveaways

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Escambia County is hosting two FREE costal plant giveaways for the public this April. The giveaways will take place at Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key. The plants will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Additionally, there will be a limit of one plant grouping per household. Participating citizens will receive a small grouping of several species to encourage diversity and resiliency within the coastal ecosystem. The giveaway plant species include sea oats, blue stem, dune sunflower, blazing star, blanket flower, beach morning glory, and other coastal natives. The plants are being donated by Gulf Coast Fencing and Dune Restoration following local seed collection as part of the Pensacola Beach Dune Restoration Project. Please bring small boxes or baskets to transport plants.

Plant giveaways will take place at the following locations at the following times:

April 25: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Perdido Key Community Center, 15500 Perdido Key Drive
April 26: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Pensacola Beach Community Church, 920 Panferio Drive

 

Firework Displays

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 Do you enjoy fireworks? Want to see them more than once a year in July? HarborWalk Village has you covered! They are putting on firework displays multiple time this year; March, May, June, July, and more! Click the image to see specific dates or visit their website for more information.

2025 Event List – Jackson County

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The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce is excited to share a list of events occurring in the county from now until December. Click the image to see the full list. Want to see your event listed? Please email lacey@jacksoncounty.com with an event flyer and event details. 

Jackson County Master Gardener Volunteer Sale

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The annual Jackson County Master Gardener Plant Sale is coming up quick. Come fill all your spring plant needs on March 22nd at the Jackson County Extension Office (located at 2741 Penn Ave, Marianna, FL 32448). Beginning at 7am, come out to get fruit trees, vegetable starts, small fruit plants, flowers, and more! There will also be various craft vendors set up AND the Jackson County 4-H Program will be selling concessions for any hungry shoppers.

For any questions or concerns, please call 850-482-9620 or email payne.abigial@ufl.edu. Follow the Facebook event page to stay up-to-date with announcements. 

Comedy Festival in Walton & Bay County

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The Emerald Coast’s official comedy festival is coming to select venues in Walton and Bay County. Taking place in six venues from February 13th to 15th, the Sand Up Comedy Festival is three-days of non-stop laughs. Featuring over 20 national and Florida-based comedians, the event is headlined by Jeremy Alder, Ian Aber, Paula Kosienski, Eeland Stribling, and Bob Place. Learn more by visiting the festival website. 

Snow Much Fun Day

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Northstar Church invites you and yours to a Snow Much Fun Day on Sunday, December 22 from 10am-1pm! Open to all Bay County residents, there will be fun for all ages. With real snow, inflatables, food, Christmas photo ops, and much more! The event is being thrown in collaboration with FOR Bay County, so if you would like to volunteer to help create holiday joy, visit the FOR website here. Want to learn more about upcoming Northstar Church events? Visit their website here.