Bay Street Yard set to open in late MayAetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
FORT MYERS Students affected by COVID-19 able to graduate for the first time For many young people, COVID stripped away one of their greatest rites of passage: graduation.
Deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County Authorities are at the scene of a deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County on Friday afternoon.
Celebrating Free Comic Book Day in SWFL JP Sports store manager Jonathan Powell said this is a generational event that brings families together to reminisce on comics and other hobby-related knickknacks.
FORT MYERS Group rescues dogs before getting put down in Lee County Our animal shelters are packed with amazing puppies who have the sole desire to be loved.
FORT MYERS FGCU student beats all odds and is able to graduate Nearly four years ago, Marisa Manning had her heart set on going to Florida Gulf Coast University but never thought she’d find her passion for studying parasites.
FORT MYERS Victim in MLK Blvd. shooting identified as social media influencer The victim of the Martin Luther King Boulevard shooting has been identified as a local social media influencer.
FORT MYERS Could a Ferris wheel in downtown Fort Myers work? Right now, there are talks to bring a Ferris wheel to downtown Fort Myers, but several things are still up in the air.
LITTLE HICKORY BAY Improving ‘Hell’s Gate’ safety, a notoriously dangerous waterway for boaters A push to make an area known as “Hell’s Gate” safer since it’s a dangerous stretch of water with several blind corners within Little Hickory Bay.
Fixing failed back surgeries More than a million and a half people in the U.S. undergo back surgery each year. However, classic back surgery has one of the highest failure rates of any surgery.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
FORT MYERS Students affected by COVID-19 able to graduate for the first time For many young people, COVID stripped away one of their greatest rites of passage: graduation.
Deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County Authorities are at the scene of a deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County on Friday afternoon.
Celebrating Free Comic Book Day in SWFL JP Sports store manager Jonathan Powell said this is a generational event that brings families together to reminisce on comics and other hobby-related knickknacks.
FORT MYERS Group rescues dogs before getting put down in Lee County Our animal shelters are packed with amazing puppies who have the sole desire to be loved.
FORT MYERS FGCU student beats all odds and is able to graduate Nearly four years ago, Marisa Manning had her heart set on going to Florida Gulf Coast University but never thought she’d find her passion for studying parasites.
FORT MYERS Victim in MLK Blvd. shooting identified as social media influencer The victim of the Martin Luther King Boulevard shooting has been identified as a local social media influencer.
FORT MYERS Could a Ferris wheel in downtown Fort Myers work? Right now, there are talks to bring a Ferris wheel to downtown Fort Myers, but several things are still up in the air.
LITTLE HICKORY BAY Improving ‘Hell’s Gate’ safety, a notoriously dangerous waterway for boaters A push to make an area known as “Hell’s Gate” safer since it’s a dangerous stretch of water with several blind corners within Little Hickory Bay.
Fixing failed back surgeries More than a million and a half people in the U.S. undergo back surgery each year. However, classic back surgery has one of the highest failure rates of any surgery.
FILE: Purple Heart medals, bearing the image of Gen. George Washington, are seen prior to the start of a ceremony at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington in this April 2007 file photo. AP PHOTO/CHARLES DHARAPAK/FILE Today is Purple Heart Appreciation Day. While the Medal of Honor is still the highest military decoration, the Purple Heart is the oldest. It began as the Badge of Military Merit … an extraordinary piece of American history, created on August 7, 1782. “The Badge of Military Merit is significant, because it is the inspiration for the modern Purple Heart,” said Peter Bedrossian, program director of the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, in New Windsor, N.Y. The hall has one of only three known original cloth-and-silk Badges of Merit issued and designed by George Washington himself. “Let it be known,” he ordered, “that he who wears the Military Order of the Purple Heart has given of his blood in the defense of his homeland, and shall forever be revered by his fellow countrymen.” One was presented to Sergeant Elijah Churchill of the Continental Army. He crossed Long Island Sound with his company and was awarded the badge. The color purple, said Bedrossian, signified royalty: Purple dye was expensive — the average person couldn’t afford a purple garment — and so purple would signify an elevation of your status above those around you.” After Independence, though, the Merit Badge was forgotten. But in 1932 — on the bicentennial of Washington’s birth — Gen. Douglas MacArthur revived it. It would no longer be a stitched patch, but a medal featuring a bust of Washington and his coat of arms, given to service members killed or wounded by enemy action. “It’s the warrior being honored,” said Bedrossian. “What the warrior goes through remains the same.” Tony Lassiter is one of those warriors; he served in Vietnam. “We were on a convoy and that’s when we were ambushed,” he recalled. “I had two of my soldiers killed.” Nearly two million Purple Hearts have been awarded since 1932. Among the recipients: Michael Clemente’s father. His son, Michael Clemente Jr., brought pictures and paperwork so that his father’s name could be added to the Purple Heart Honor Roll. “He was in the Battle of the Bulge, in a lot of battles,” Clemente Jr. said. As for Tony Lassiter, he keeps his framed … a reminder of his service and sacrifice. “It’s one medal that you don’t want to receive, because you gotta get wounded or killed to receive it,” he said. “But I mean it’s just special to me. Every morning when I walk out that door, there’s my medal hanging there. But there’s a lot of pain to get that medal.” To enroll names in the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor’s database of medal recipients, please contact toll free 1-877-28HONOR, or complete their enrollment form (pdf). Instructions for submitting enrollment form (pdf) For more info: National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, New Windsor, N.Y. Military Order of the Purple Heart Military Order of the Purple Heart Services Foundation, Annandale, Va. Badge of Military Merit (George Washington’s Mount Vernon)