The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increasesSenior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
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 raises 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.
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
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 raises 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.
If you’re a domestic violence victim who needs someone to talk to, here’s where you can call: Lee County – (239) 939-3112 Charlotte County – (941) 627-6000 Collier County – (239) 775-1101 FORT MYERS, Fla. Tiffany Nemec hung on to life by an intestine. She narrowly escaped death, but even nine years later, she still considers it. “There are days when I feel like my children are the only things worth sticking around for,” she said. “Because if it weren’t for them, I would just want to end the pain. And I’m not a suicidal person. That’s just complete honestly. Because the physical and mental pain gets so bad.” Organs outside her body Nemec woke up to gunshots at about 5 a.m. Her ex-boyfriend, Richard Lawrence, shot the locks off her front door. She grabbed her then 10-month-old daughter out of her room. They, along with a friend who was spending the night, hid at first. “We were in the closet and I realized there was nowhere to go,” she said. “He’s going to find us. It wasn’t a bravery thing. It was a fight or flight thing. So I gave Lori my daughter and went out to confront him.” Lawrence threw her onto the bathroom floor, aimed his gun at her, and fired. “I realized I couldn’t stay there,” she said. “I had to pick everything up and get through the house. My entrails, my intestines, organs were outside my body.” Nemec made it to the kitchen. “I heard him behind me, and I kind of turned, and I seen him, and as I did, I was pretty dizzy from the blood loss,” she said. “So I fell, and as I fell he shot at me again. And that one hit my face.” The second shot took off most of her face. The next shot was fatal. “He was standing over me, but he never said a word,” she said. “He put the shotgun to his head and shot himself.” Physical, financial costs Nemec, who was 20 years old at the time, had most of her stomach and large intestines removed in surgery. Doctors also removed half of her liver and colon. Her spleen was taken out. “Whatever I would eat would come back out of my gunshot wound,” she said. Her facial injuries require surgery every year. “Physical pain that’s so bad some days I can’t even get out of bed,” she said. One in three women will be a victim of intimate partner violence in their lifetime, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This means 20 victims every minute. Or one every three seconds. The total cost of domestic violence is estimated at $8 billion a year, according to the CDC. Most of the cost – $5.8 billion – is direct, in addition to $4 billion for healthcare and nearly $2 billion in lost productivity. “When I was shot, I was going to school to get my RN,” Nemec said. “And now I have the physical, mental disability. I can’t really hold a job. I can’t remember half the things I’m supposed to do.” If Nemec spent 40 years as a nurse earning an average of $65,000 a year, she would’ve earned and paid taxes on about $2.6 million. Instead, she survives on disability. “As you can imagine, disability for a 20-year-old who had never really paid into the system is not very high,” she said. Domestic violence victims are more likely to develop other health, sociological and psychological issues. “That’s something I have to learn to deal with, that it’s not my fault,” she said. “Because there are days where it feels like it’s completely my fault.” Why not leave? Domestic violence centers around an abusive partner who needs to be in constant control of the relationship, said Dr. Laura Streyffeler, who treats domestic violence victims. “Obedience is synonymous with love, and if you disobey me, you’ll be punished,” she said. Nemec, in a story that ran on WINK News at 11 p.m., explained why she didn’t leave her boyfriend right away.