Entryway work temporarily closes North Port LibraryMore changes near Colonial Blvd. and Six Mile Cypress in Fort Myers
NORTH PORT Entryway work temporarily closes North Port Library The North Port Library will be closed through Saturday while work is being done to the entryway. During the closure books and other borrowed items can be returned to nearby locations.
FORT MYERS More changes near Colonial Blvd. and Six Mile Cypress in Fort Myers An already jam-packed, headache-inducing area for traffic is expected to get worse on Monday.
National Hurricane Preparedness Week: Preseason preparations With less than a month until the official start of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has designated May 5th to May 11th National Hurricane Preparedness Week.
CAPE CORAL Temporary closures planned for Cape Coral athletic fields Three athletic fields in Cape Coral will temporarily close in May and another in June.
FORT MYERS Influencer shooting victim ‘Hood Fishing’ is stable and recovering A local internet star injured during a shooting in broad daylight on Fort Myers Street is still recovering from what happened.
NAPLES $8K reward offered for information on 2 brothers wanted in fatal stabbing More money is up for grabs if you’re able to help police find two brothers who allegedly stabbed two men in Collier County.
NEW YORK Trump fined $1K for gag order violation in hush money case as judge warns of possible jail time The judge presiding over Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial has fined him $1,000 for violating his gag order and has sternly warned the former president that additional violation could result in jail time.
Exclusive: More than 100 American Flamingos counted in Florida Audubon Florida has revealed the numbers of flamingos in the state to WINK News, in advance of an official statement scheduled for later Monday.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested after police respond to shooting outside Cape Coral home A man has been taken into custody after a reported shooting in a Cape Coral neighborhood where a car was found with at least one bullet hole.
Charlotte County home sellers had 2nd highest profit margin in Q1 While nationwide profit margins for home sales decreased 55%, in Charlotte County the profit margin for sellers rose to 103.1% for the first three months of the year.
FORT MYERS Second teen accused in murder of Kayla Rincon-Miller to face charges as an adult A second teen will face adult charges in murder of Kayla Rincon-Miller.
FORT MYERS Man accused of murder in Fort Myers will be in court for arraignment The man accused of shooting and killing a man near Roberto Clemente Park in Fort Myers is scheduled to be in court today.
FORT MYERS Black bear sighted in downtown Fort Myers parking lot captured, relocated Officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission tranquilized and captured a Florida black bear spotted in downtown Fort Myers on Monday morning.
LEHIGH ACRES 2 ATVs ticketed at Barefoot Lake after owner bars public Two ATVs were issued tickets at Barefoot Lake and towed away over the weekend after the property owner decided to bar the public.
WINK NEWS Hot and dry Monday afternoon before isolated storms pop up this evening On Monday morning, the weather is starting mild and humid with temperatures in the upper 60s and lower 70s.
NORTH PORT Entryway work temporarily closes North Port Library The North Port Library will be closed through Saturday while work is being done to the entryway. During the closure books and other borrowed items can be returned to nearby locations.
FORT MYERS More changes near Colonial Blvd. and Six Mile Cypress in Fort Myers An already jam-packed, headache-inducing area for traffic is expected to get worse on Monday.
National Hurricane Preparedness Week: Preseason preparations With less than a month until the official start of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has designated May 5th to May 11th National Hurricane Preparedness Week.
CAPE CORAL Temporary closures planned for Cape Coral athletic fields Three athletic fields in Cape Coral will temporarily close in May and another in June.
FORT MYERS Influencer shooting victim ‘Hood Fishing’ is stable and recovering A local internet star injured during a shooting in broad daylight on Fort Myers Street is still recovering from what happened.
NAPLES $8K reward offered for information on 2 brothers wanted in fatal stabbing More money is up for grabs if you’re able to help police find two brothers who allegedly stabbed two men in Collier County.
NEW YORK Trump fined $1K for gag order violation in hush money case as judge warns of possible jail time The judge presiding over Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial has fined him $1,000 for violating his gag order and has sternly warned the former president that additional violation could result in jail time.
Exclusive: More than 100 American Flamingos counted in Florida Audubon Florida has revealed the numbers of flamingos in the state to WINK News, in advance of an official statement scheduled for later Monday.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested after police respond to shooting outside Cape Coral home A man has been taken into custody after a reported shooting in a Cape Coral neighborhood where a car was found with at least one bullet hole.
Charlotte County home sellers had 2nd highest profit margin in Q1 While nationwide profit margins for home sales decreased 55%, in Charlotte County the profit margin for sellers rose to 103.1% for the first three months of the year.
FORT MYERS Second teen accused in murder of Kayla Rincon-Miller to face charges as an adult A second teen will face adult charges in murder of Kayla Rincon-Miller.
FORT MYERS Man accused of murder in Fort Myers will be in court for arraignment The man accused of shooting and killing a man near Roberto Clemente Park in Fort Myers is scheduled to be in court today.
FORT MYERS Black bear sighted in downtown Fort Myers parking lot captured, relocated Officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission tranquilized and captured a Florida black bear spotted in downtown Fort Myers on Monday morning.
LEHIGH ACRES 2 ATVs ticketed at Barefoot Lake after owner bars public Two ATVs were issued tickets at Barefoot Lake and towed away over the weekend after the property owner decided to bar the public.
WINK NEWS Hot and dry Monday afternoon before isolated storms pop up this evening On Monday morning, the weather is starting mild and humid with temperatures in the upper 60s and lower 70s.
Brian and Gay Valimont (CREDIT: WINK News) In a tiny home office in North Naples, Brian Valimont is quietly hard at work. The 44-year-old is a proud father to his son Eli and Eli is pretty fond of his dad, too . “Because he’s the best of the best,” Eli said. But the two are living on borrowed time. Valimont has ALS, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the cells in the brain and spinal cord. In the year since Valimont’s diagnosis, a lot has changed. “He’s lost the ability to speak, feed himself and walk. “He used to be able to stand up and throw me up in the air and catch me and it felt like a roller coaster,” Eli said of his father. While Valimont’s body is deteriorating, he still works because his mind is still sharp. “He also has to continue to work to keep our health insurance, to keep life insurance,” said his wife Gay, who is always by his side. “You’re essentially trapped in your body. His mind is perfect. He can do, you know, quantum physics, but he can’t make his body get up and walk.” A machine attached to Valimont’s wheelchair helps him communicate. He uses his eyes to type letters on a keyboard. It takes him almost five minutes to complete a sentence. “This is a cruel disease that robs you of everything that outwardly makes you who you are, then it kills you with 100% certainty,” Valimont said. Gay misses speaking with her husband. “I miss getting advice, he always made the right decisions,” she said. “And now we can still have conversations, it just takes a little longer.” Just 25 miles south of the Valimont family is Pat Joyce. She knows what makes Gay emotional. Joyce’s husband of 46 years, Dan, was diagnosed at the age of 70. She was with Dan when he learned he had ALS. “June 6, 2017. I’ll never forget the day,” Joyce said. “He was shocked. I’ve never so rarely seen him cry. And he just had walked out of the office. And we were shocked and fearful tears were like how we could tell our kids?” ALS worked through Dan’s body fast. “We get a spelling, you know, kind of Wheel of Fortune thing to spell out words. And…he just…his last word words he spelled out or I’m so sorry. And I love you,” Joyce said. “And he went.” His death was peaceful and he was surrounded by his family, Joyce said. “He was free of that monster. Finally,” she said. ALS is incurable but there are promising drugs in the pipeline that could slow its progression and give families more time together. Until those drugs complete FDA trials, patients can’t access them. “That devastation in the depression of living every day, knowing there might be drugs, or treatment out there that you can’t access, it’s indescribable,” Joyce said. The Valimonts understand how precious that time is because their time is running out. Eli was diagnosed with a brain tumor early this year. It’s inoperable, incurable and terminal like his dad’s ALS. “We break down often and well, I have a disease too. And he does too,” Eli said. “So, it’s hard.” Gay, Eli’s mother, agrees. “I just find it hard to believe a righteous God would do this to anybody,” she said. “For someone who loves somebody so much that has ALS, it is, I think cruel and unusual for him not to have everything available for him.” Eli is now at home with his mother and father and he is under hospice care. The Valimonts and Joyce shared their story because they want leaders to pass the “ACT for ALS,” which will give more access to critical treatments which could give families like them just a few months longer. MORE: For more information about ACT for ALS, visit the I am ALS website. To advocate for the passage of ACT for ALS, visit here.