WFDA serves the western panhandle of Florida, home to one of the highest concentrations of active duty and civilian military personnel, veterans, and military retirees in the nation.
What is WFDA?
The West Florida Defense Alliance is the lead organization for all military-related issues throughout Northwest Florida. Our mission is to actively facilitate community and government support to sustain and enhance current military missions, pursue future missions, and promote the region’s contributions to the nation’s defense.
The region hosts four installations, including NAS Pensacola, NAS Whiting Field, Corry Station, and Saufley Field, as well as parts of Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field. To support these installations and the military-connected families and veterans that reside in the region, the Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce formally established the West Florida Defense Alliance, or WFDA.
WFDA works closely with our local community to identify and execute military-friendly initiatives to enhance the region’s military value and improve the quality of life for our service members, veterans, military retirees and their families. WFDA acts as the liaison between local installations and the community and represents our region’s military interests at the state and federal levels.
WFDA Supports Local Military Installations and Surrounding Communities
Military communities throughout our nation have organized over the last several years to more effectively support the needs of their local installations. Those communities proactively established working partnerships with the military in their communities and significantly increased the value the Department of Defense places on those installations — thus helping to secure and grow the long-term military footprint throughout the region.
The issues facing our military installations are often vast, and resolving them requires a focused effort by the community and the military. By formalizing this organization, WFDA ensures the continuity of community support for generations to come. The core of our mission at WFDA is to facilitate this effort. We look forward to working closely with you, your organization, and the greater community to promote and enhance our region’s military presence.
How Does WFDA Execute its Mission?
The West Florida Defense Alliance utilizes a bottom-up framework to successfully build relationships between the military and the community. Several working groups have been created and charged to respond to the needs of the regional military community.
These working groups consist of interested community members and military representatives collaborating to develop solutions to real-world problems. As these needs evolve over time, so too will the makeup and mission of each working group. While each group is designed to address separate issues, they all serve to ensure their actions support the priorities and needs of the military community.
Governor's Office & Legislature
- Governor's Meetings With Base Commanders
- Florida Defense Support Task Force
- Florida Defense Alliance
- Defense Grant Programs
Why WFDA Works
The West Florida Defense Alliance was established through grant funding from the state to leverage the efforts of the Florida Defense Support Task Force and the Florida Defense Alliance. WFDA adds to the five existing regional Defense Alliances in Florida providing similar support to their local military communities. When needed, each regional alliance coordinates with other regional alliances as well as the Florida Defense Alliance and the Florida Defense Support Task Force.