Candidate: William (Boots) McCormick

 My name is William ‘Boots” McCormick, and I'm running for Walton County Commisioner, District-1.I was raised in Freeport, as a fourth generation Walton County resident. At birth, I inherited my father's nickname, “Boots", and have kept that aliases my whole life.  Matter of fact, it's only been recently that many folks who have known me since grade school have recognized that my real name is actually William Henry McCormick Jr.

I graduated from Freeport High School in 1979, where I lettered in basketball, track, and played on the school's first three football teams. Sports were an incredible outlet for me, and I appreciate how important it is for our youth in Walton County to have access to extra curricular activities, and the best facilities we can provide.

At the age of 18, I married my best friend, Sandy (Adams) McCormick.  Thankfully, God has blessed her with an incredibly loving and patient heart. This past September, we celebrated our 40th anniversary.  Sandy and I have one son, Blake McCormick.  Blake and was raised in Freeport and after serving in the Army, and deploying twice to Iraq, Blake returned home and became a Deputy with the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, and is also a local sportswriter.  He and his wife, Shara, have blessed me with a granddaughter and two grandsons, all who attend Walton County Schools.

I grew up swimming and fishing in our local county waters, and playing my youth away in our nearby woods and forest. From rural North Walton, down the winding roads of the Eucheanna Valley that lead to the creeks of the Choctawatchee River, and our amazing Emerald Coast, Walton County is blessed with the State's more beuatiful natural landscape, and I want to do my part to see it is protected and preserved.

I began working at the age of 12, spending my teenage years doing everything from washing dishes to rotating tires.  After high school, I worked retail sales with Coca-Cola before being employeed as a forestry equipment operator, then spending the better part of my twenties as a Merchant Mariner on various Tug Boats.  My past work experience in the blue collar sector gave me an appreciation for hard work, and the needs of our working class citzens.

I eventually left the Tug-life to pursue my life-long dream job as a Law Enforcment Officer, and was forutnante enough to be hired by the Walton County Sheriff's Office in 1990.  There, I served the citizens of Walton County for over 30 years as a Patrol Deputy, Patrol Sergeant, Criminal Investigator, member of the SWAT team, and School Resource Officer.  I also spent 15 years as a volunteer fire-fighter for the City of Freeport, and achieved the rank of lieutenant.

During my time as a Deputy Sheriff and Firefighter, I had to resolve countless tense issues with guts, common sense, and compassion. I will do the same for the great Citizens of Walton County, as a County Commissioner.

I retired from full-time work with the Sheriff's Office in 2015, but continue to serve on a part-time basis, standing by for whenever my service is needed. Primarily, I fill in as a School Resource Deputy.

Public Service is not a job to me, it's a calling, and that's what led me to run for a seat on the Freeport City Council in 2017. After being elected, I had to learn how to manage one of the fastest growing cities in the State, and learned first hand the immediate need to balance development and infrastructure.

I'm proud to have worked with an administration that has used practical, common sense budgeting to:

*Upgrade our current water and sewer capabilities.

*Land a grant that covered half-the-cost of developing a new, much needed, water treatment plant.

* Made expansions to our recreational parks, including, developing a soon-to-open 20-acre trail walk, building new facilities at the Freeport Regional Sports Complex, and adding a splash pad.

*Improved the wage and benefits for our employees

*Purchase and replaced several pieces of work equipment

*Added several new positions to keep up with increasing demands throughout the city, and provide better customer service.

All, while not raising property taxes, and continuing to offer some of the lowest Sewer and Water rates in the Panhandle.

While no candidate knows the answer for every issue that they may be faced with, I do promise to exercise a fair and common sense approach to each issue that may come my way.