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Station/Boat Location~
ANT Ponce De Leon and Station Ponce De Leon

Date there~
2007-2010

Weather~
Hot and Humid in the summer May-Septemeber, mild in the fall and spring, it does get jacket cold in the "winter" months mid November to February. Don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes and it will change.

Military facilities~
Facilities There is a small PX on base, or there will be again when they have finished building it in the fall. The closest commissary is an hour and ½ way on Patrick Air Force Base.

Medical~
Tri-Care Prime, great PMC in New Smyrna, we used a doctor for the kids in Ormond, which is 45 minutes away, but worth it. Active Duty uses Patrick. Dental for everyone can be found in Port Orange. The closest Peds Dentist is in Titusville which is about 20-30 minutes away. There are several hospitals in the area. Bert Fish in New Smyrna is the main one used by everyone.

Housing~
Married people are on the Economy. There are barracks for non-married members. There are affordable houses in Edgewater, 20 minutes from base, and Port Orange, 20 minutes from base. Look in the New Smyrna Beach Penny Saver on line for rentals. Water bills are in-between $70-$100 a month and electric, for a family of four with a pool, and a DH who likes to wear his snow suit in the house during the summer, is $140-$300.

Shopping~
Everything you could want in Port Orange, and Daytona Beach., except a Christmas Tree Shoppe. Mall is in Daytona. New Smyrna has Wal-Mart and K-mart. Lots of cute little shops in New Smyrna. Publix and Winn-Dixie are where we shop for in-between shopping since it is right up the road.

Child Care/Schools~
Lots of pre-k and daycare in the area. Indian River Elementary is the best, grades k-5. No buses, a lot of kids ride their bike, make sure they have a lock. Port Orange elementary is really good as well. The high schools are also fantastic from what I hear. There are a couple private schools, Discovery Academy and Sacred Heart, that are also really good. If your child has an IEP, there is a scholarship that Sacred Heart offers. It's a complete full free ride to the school, uniforms included. After and before care is offered at the schools for a reasonable price. The YMCA also offers after care and a bus takes the kids from the school to the Y.

Adult Schools~
Daytona State College is really good. They have a satellite campus in New Smyrna. UCF also has a satellite campus at the main campus of Daytona State. Right now there is a program for the active duty members that it taught at the unit two times a week.

Fun Activities~
The beach, beach, beach. The sand is white and soft and the water is blue and warm. Active duty sticker allows you to drive on the beach for free, otherwise it's $5.00 a day or you can by a year round pass, but I don't know how much it is. Disney is about an hour away. If you are a NASCAR fan there are two big races, the Daytona 500 in February and the Sprint Cup race in July. Biketoberfest in October and Bike week in February for the bikers is fun for everyone. I recommend going during the day and checking it out. Daytona Lagon is a fun water park that is reasonably priced. Gator Land is about 45 minutes away, there are also two zoo's near by as well as several smaller family fun places. There is also a dog beach and a dog park to keep the furry family members happy. The YMCA offers a lot of great activities, summer, spring and fall soccer, basketball, baseball, and flag football.

Additional Info~
We had a lot of fun here. The weather wasn't to bad and if you are from the north you do get to pull out the jackets for a couple of months so don't give them away. Take advantage of all the discounts you get at the parks and check for places that offer military discounts. I HATED the beach before we moved here, but it is so easy here and beautiful.

Homeport FL

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