FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herselfSurrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
GOLDEN GATE Collier commissioners approve agreement for golf complex in Golden Gate Collier commissioners unanimously approved a long term lease and operating agreement to reopen the Golden Gate golf course Tuesday.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcyclists ride in SWFL to help veterans battle suicide A group of veterans from the American Legion are grabbing their helmets and boots for a motorcycle ride to bring awareness to the staggering rates of suicide among veterans.
SARASOTA Alleged sexual abuse victims of Port Charlotte priest comes forward Father Riley worked at three churches in Charlotte County and another in Naples. On Friday, new allegations emerged from a news conference in Sarasota.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte priest accused of sexual abuse appears in court A priest accused of sexually abusing four altar boys in Iowa nearly 40 years ago returned to Charlotte County court.
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
GOLDEN GATE Collier commissioners approve agreement for golf complex in Golden Gate Collier commissioners unanimously approved a long term lease and operating agreement to reopen the Golden Gate golf course Tuesday.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcyclists ride in SWFL to help veterans battle suicide A group of veterans from the American Legion are grabbing their helmets and boots for a motorcycle ride to bring awareness to the staggering rates of suicide among veterans.
SARASOTA Alleged sexual abuse victims of Port Charlotte priest comes forward Father Riley worked at three churches in Charlotte County and another in Naples. On Friday, new allegations emerged from a news conference in Sarasota.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte priest accused of sexual abuse appears in court A priest accused of sexually abusing four altar boys in Iowa nearly 40 years ago returned to Charlotte County court.
SpaceX launches Falcon 9 rocket, lighting up SoCal skies. Photo via Celine Flores. SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from California Friday evening, boosting a fourth batch of 10 Iridium NEXT satellites into orbit in the rocket-builder’s 18th launch this year — a modern record — and its fourth for the satellite telephone company. It was the fifth launch of a previously flown Falcon 9 first stage and while SpaceX normally attempts to recover stages for refurbishment and relaunch, the company said before launch no attempt would be made to land the first stage this time around Instead, engineers carried out a series of tests before the stage crashed into the Pacific Ocean south of Vandenberg Air Force Base. WOW!!! The view from LA is amazing!!!! People are going to freak out #spacex #IridiumNEXT pic.twitter.com/0mznMRvDKI — Amanda Knez (@alias_amanda) December 23, 2017 Here’s the video. #spacex #IridiumNEXT pic.twitter.com/mnVKrPjCcB — Amanda Knez (@alias_amanda) December 23, 2017 The second stage, meanwhile, boosted 10 Iridium NEXT spacecraft into a preliminary orbit around Earth’s poles. After a second upper stage rocket firing, the 10 spacecraft were expected to be released to fly on their own about an hour after liftoff. It was the fourth batch in a $3 billion 81-satellite constellation intended to replace Iridium’s current fleet of aging low-Earth-orbit mobile voice and data relay stations. SpaceX successfully launched the first 10 Iridium NEXT spacecraft on Jan. 14, a second set on June 25 and a third on Oct. 8. The new satellites are being phased in as first-generation relay stations are retired. The complete Iridium NEXT network requires 66 satellites in six orbital planes to enable users anywhere in the world to make and receive satellite phone calls. Iridium plans to eventually launch 15 in-orbit spares, using SpaceX to put 75 of the 81 planned satellites into orbit. With the fourth batch successfully in orbit, SpaceX will turn its attention to readying a new heavy-lift rocket for its maiden flight from historic pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center early next year. The Falcon Heavy, made up of three Falcon 9 stages strapped together with an upper stage atop the center core vehicle, will have a liftoff thrust of 5.1 million pounds, making it the most powerful rocket since NASA’s space shuttle. The rocket’s long-awaited maiden flight, carrying SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster sports car as a whimsical test payload of sorts, is expected in January. SpaceX also plans to launch three other missions in January using standard Falcon 9s. Friday’s flight got underway at 5:27:34 p.m. PT when the nine Merlin 1D engines in the Falcon 9’s first stage ignited with a burst of flame, generating 1.7 million pounds of thrust. Moments later, the rocket was released from its firing stand to begin the climb to space. Racing away to the south over the Pacific Ocean west of Los Angeles, the first stage engines burned for about two minutes and 33 seconds to boost the rocket and its payload out of the thick lower atmosphere. The engines shut down on time, the stage fell away and the second stage’s single Merlin engine then ignited for the first of two “burns” needed to get the Iridium satellites into a roughly circular polar orbit. The first stage, meanwhile, fell back to Earth, crashing into the Pacific Ocean after a series of tests. Each satellite in Iridium’s constellation is able to communicate with up to four others to provide a global network that services hand-held phones, machine-to-machine devices and ship- and aircraft-born data transmitters. The new spacecraft carry equipment provided by Harris Corp. to track ships at sea on a minute-by-minute basis and another Harris-built device, provided by a multi-agency consortium known as Aireon, that can track aircraft anywhere in the world. The 1,896-pound Iridium NEXT satellites were designed by the European aerospace giant Thales Alenia Space and built by Orbital ATK in Arizona.