What just a few years ago felt like a healthcare desert is now becoming a landscape of hope and healing. With the groundbreaking of a $19 million emergency facility by HCA Florida Healthcare, and the recent opening of North Walton Doctors Hospital, DeFuniak Springs is emerging as a model of progress for small towns across the region.
Sure, the communities of Authentic Walton are filled with great restaurants, shops and historic attractions, but all the scenic space in between them is just as big of a draw across Freeport, DeFuniak Springs and Paxton. Hike along a peaceful trail through the woods.
A new wave of creativity is coming to Freeport, anchored in both history and imagination. The Anchored in Freeport Art in Public Spaces Project is a collaborative initiative between the City of Freeport and the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County (CAA). Rooted in the city’s legacy as a historic port town, the project will feature a series of 4.5-foot concrete anchors, each uniquely transformed by local artists and displayed throughout the city.
Planning a legendary Fourth? You’re in the right place. Whether you’re rolling slow through a small-town parade or claiming your spot in the sand for fireworks at sunset, HWY 331 connects it all—from Lake of DeFuniak to the Gulf.
Frost Lane Farms recently joined Wonderful Walton on a field trip to Tallahassee to visit the Red Hills Farm Alliance, a 20-year-old cooperative that has revolutionized the way local farmers connect with their communities. What they saw wasn’t just a model for marketing produce—it was a blueprint for how to build stronger, healthier, more resilient communities from the ground up.
