SANTA ROSA COUNTY

SHERIFF'S OFFICE

Sheriff Wendell Hall

SHERIFF'S OFFICE HOSTING HONOR GUARD ACADEMY

The Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office is currently hosting a three day Honor Guard Academy designed to put current or potential honor guard members at the top of their game. The Academy is being taught by the National Honor Guard Academy at the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office. The purpose of this academy is to prepare deputies to honor their fallen brothers and sisters and their years of service should the unfortunate situation arise. Santa Rosa as well as Okaloosa County Sheriff's Deputies are attending the academy. This course is being taught in a strict, well organized setting. Besides the traditional drill and ceremony procedures used for years by the military, deputies are also trained in profession specific duties such as line of duty funeral procedures and parade etiquette. The majority of the class time is spent executing maneuvers in a hands-on setting. Students are given the opportunity to work one-on-one with instructors in order to perfect their skills. All deputies will have the opportunity to display their accuracy and excellence as they participate in mock funeral ceremonies, mock graveside services, firing details, church protocol, and many other elements that Honor Guards may come across. Other course exercises include basic and advanced marching, color guard protocol and execution, rifle and parade tool manual of arms, and more. On Saturday, November 10 th , the academy will be conducting practices at Lewis Funeral Home in Pace, Memory Park Cemetery in Pace, and First Baptist Church in Milton. The graduation ceremony will be held on Saturday, November 10, 2007 at 4:30 pm at the Santa Rosa Correctional Institution Training Room located on East Milton Road . All deputies at the graduation will be in full honor guard attire and this will make a great media opportunity. All media is welcome to attend. ** FOR MEDIA ONLY ** Sgt. Leonard Thomas with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office is in charge of the operation and can be contacted at 393-8126.

Press Release By:

Sgt. Scott Haines

Media Relations Unit

(850) 981-2136 or shaines@srso.net