Crews on scene of 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village DriveJake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people
ESTERO Crews on scene of 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive San Carlos Park Fire District is on the scene fighting a 2.5-acre brushfire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive.
FORT MYERS Jake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people One Fort Myers mom is turning her pain into purpose after her son, who she refers to as her “heavenly Angel,” took his own life.
CAPE CORAL New renderings for the Cape Coral Yacht Club promise a bright future The Cape Coral Yacht Club, which has been part of this community since the 1960s, will now have a new look after Hurricane Ian’s devastating effects.
LEHIGH ACRES Owner bars public from Barefoot Lake, LCSO installs Watch Tower Every weekend, roughly 200 people go to Barefoot Lake in Lehigh Acres to relax, fish, swim and have a good time.
CAPE CORAL Concern over water shortage in Cape Coral Concern is flowing through Cape Coral as neighbors are seeing their canal levels low and their wells run dry.
FORT MYERS FSW softball swinging for success in the postseason Now their focus shifts to states which means the newbies are looking to the experienced sophomores for advice.
BONITA SPRINGS Young SWFL tennis player competing with professionals You may not know her name now, but you might want remember it because 16-year-old Cookie Jarvis-Tredgett is already competing with professionals.
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
ESTERO Crews on scene of 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive San Carlos Park Fire District is on the scene fighting a 2.5-acre brushfire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive.
FORT MYERS Jake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people One Fort Myers mom is turning her pain into purpose after her son, who she refers to as her “heavenly Angel,” took his own life.
CAPE CORAL New renderings for the Cape Coral Yacht Club promise a bright future The Cape Coral Yacht Club, which has been part of this community since the 1960s, will now have a new look after Hurricane Ian’s devastating effects.
LEHIGH ACRES Owner bars public from Barefoot Lake, LCSO installs Watch Tower Every weekend, roughly 200 people go to Barefoot Lake in Lehigh Acres to relax, fish, swim and have a good time.
CAPE CORAL Concern over water shortage in Cape Coral Concern is flowing through Cape Coral as neighbors are seeing their canal levels low and their wells run dry.
FORT MYERS FSW softball swinging for success in the postseason Now their focus shifts to states which means the newbies are looking to the experienced sophomores for advice.
BONITA SPRINGS Young SWFL tennis player competing with professionals You may not know her name now, but you might want remember it because 16-year-old Cookie Jarvis-Tredgett is already competing with professionals.
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
2018 Edison Festival of Light Grand Parade. Credit edisonfestival.org. The 2021 Edison Festival of Light Grand Parade has been canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. The parade, the largest nighttime parade in the southeast, is attended by many Southwest Floridians. Spectators will mark off their spot along the sidewalls more than a month in advance to ensure their spot for their lawn chairs. And for many, it’s a family tradition. Bill Kohl of Fort Myers would sit with his neighbors, see the floats and marching band from their lawn chairs, “Oh yeah, you saw everybody. When I first moved down here I would see these lawn chairs strapped against the fence and tape, and I said what is this? People were taping out their areas … I did it right there in the front yard. I have people over, say hey look at my private firework show.” Next year, the show will not go on. No grande parade. No junior parade either. “It’s a tradition. It was a tradition here. So yeah, there’s a lot of people that are going to be upset I think,” Kohl added. Cape Coral almost lost their Holiday Festival of Lights to the pandemic as well. The chamber of commerce saved the event with a change to make it a day event from Noon to 6:30 p.m. on December 5, with the tree lighting at the end, instead of night and adding online registration. Donna Germain, president and CEO of the Cape Coral Chamber of Commerce said, “We definitely think it will control the number of people that are coming out having an actual entry point because if you’ve been to the event in years past it’s just one big block party” The Edison Festival of Light board of directors didn’t see a safe way to carry on. But Kohl has his memories to keep the day bright, “People running around, the police, there’s a lot of activity with the clydesdales the big Budweiser trucks. It’s kind of fun just kind of watching it take place and come together, so yeah I’m going to miss it.” The Edison Festival of Light organization said: “This week, the Edison Festival of Light Board of Directors made the difficult decision to cancel the 2021 Edison Festival of Light Grand Parade. Known as the largest night parade in the southeast, the parade paying tribute to Thomas Alva Edison, has been around for more than eight decades. More than that, the tradition has become one of Southwest Florida’s largest events with estimated spectators of more than 250,000 and participants of nearly 2,000. It brings the community together like no other event during the year. Therein lies the concern for the all-volunteer Board of Directors. “It was not a decision that came lightly. We are passionate about this parade and it is our responsibility to ensure the health and safety of attendees and participants this year more than ever,” said Board President Steve Sizemore. Under normal circumstances, safety is always a number one priority for the Grand Parade Committee and there are a lot of moving parts. Add COVID-19 to the equation and the risks become escalated. There are 12-14 high school bands participating in the parade each year. Some of them travel from other states and are gathered in a staging area for pre-parade coordination – typically not six feet apart. Corporate, civic, and community groups join to ride on floats, march, and provide entertainment along the parade route – typically not six feet apart. And spectators begin marking/reserving their viewing areas along US 41 and throughout the Downtown River District months before the events begin in February – definitely not six feet apart. “We hope that the COVID-19 threat is gone or reduced by February but we don’t have a crystal ball. For planning purposes, we had to decide now. We opted for better safe than sorry,” said Sizemore. Some of the smaller Edison Festival of Light events that allow for social distancing measures will still take place in February. More details will be announced as the planning develops. And the Board, supported by a host of community sponsors such as FPL, Galloway Ford, Morgan & Morgan, Family Thrift Center, Florida Weekly, LCEC and many others are committed to keeping the tradition alive when the timing is right.”