NORTH FORT MYERS LCSO searching for missing endangered adult Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a missing person.
The Weather Authority: Scattered storms for your Saturday The Weather Authority is tracking afternoon scattered storms for Saturday this Labor Day weekend.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 2 The Golden Eagles took down the Cougars 64-7 to win the Crosstown Showdown for the 26th year in a row.
NAPLES Naples mayor speaks out after DUI arrest Naples Mayor Teresa Heitmann has sent a statement to WINK News after being charged with a DUI.
FORT MYERS Woman stabbed at Fort Myers gas station Authorities responded to an active scene at a 7-eleven in Fort Myers after a woman was stabbed early Friday evening.
FORT MYERS FMPD investigating a van that followed a student from bus stop Police said a suspicious van followed a middle school student home from the bus stop on Thursday and yelled, “Get in the van.”
CAPE CORAL Report: Teen was on crosswalk when she was hit The driver of the box truck told officers he didn’t see Kendra as she rode in front of him, and he started to go.
FORT MYERS BEACH Celebration of Jimmy Buffet Day at Margaritaville Friday was Jimmy Buffett Day at Margaritaville and Fort Myers Beach is gearing up for a fun party all weekend long.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte County deputies hold training for mental health encounters Charlotte County deputies are entering the community equipped with a new tool for handling mental health: the crisis initiative training.
Neighbors worried about flooding in Rotonda Heights Neighbors in Rotonda Heights are fed up with the flooding and they want to see it fixed.
ORLANDO Smart living moms reclaim their careers Betsy Gardner president and CEO of the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce started Relaunch, a program to help stay-at-home moms.
FORT MYERS BEACH A closer look at the gas leak that killed 2 men at Fort Myers Beach home A closer look at the gas leak that killed two men in Fort Myers Beach has revealed some new details leading up to the deaths.
SANIBEL Sanibel CVS Pharmacy reopening after Hurricane Ian The CVS Pharmacy in Sanibel is reopening nearly two years after Hurricane Ian caused severe damage to it.
FORT MYERS Woman transported after boat hits large wake under Midpoint Bridge A woman had to be transported to the hospital after suffering an injury when the boat she was in struck the wake of a yacht.
NEW YORK (AP) Trump has history sparking outrage for incidents around veterans even as military voters backed him The reported altercation at Arlington National Cemetery involving Donald Trump’s staff was far from the first time that veterans or the families of service members have criticized the former president for words or behavior they saw as disparaging.
NORTH FORT MYERS LCSO searching for missing endangered adult Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a missing person.
The Weather Authority: Scattered storms for your Saturday The Weather Authority is tracking afternoon scattered storms for Saturday this Labor Day weekend.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 2 The Golden Eagles took down the Cougars 64-7 to win the Crosstown Showdown for the 26th year in a row.
NAPLES Naples mayor speaks out after DUI arrest Naples Mayor Teresa Heitmann has sent a statement to WINK News after being charged with a DUI.
FORT MYERS Woman stabbed at Fort Myers gas station Authorities responded to an active scene at a 7-eleven in Fort Myers after a woman was stabbed early Friday evening.
FORT MYERS FMPD investigating a van that followed a student from bus stop Police said a suspicious van followed a middle school student home from the bus stop on Thursday and yelled, “Get in the van.”
CAPE CORAL Report: Teen was on crosswalk when she was hit The driver of the box truck told officers he didn’t see Kendra as she rode in front of him, and he started to go.
FORT MYERS BEACH Celebration of Jimmy Buffet Day at Margaritaville Friday was Jimmy Buffett Day at Margaritaville and Fort Myers Beach is gearing up for a fun party all weekend long.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte County deputies hold training for mental health encounters Charlotte County deputies are entering the community equipped with a new tool for handling mental health: the crisis initiative training.
Neighbors worried about flooding in Rotonda Heights Neighbors in Rotonda Heights are fed up with the flooding and they want to see it fixed.
ORLANDO Smart living moms reclaim their careers Betsy Gardner president and CEO of the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce started Relaunch, a program to help stay-at-home moms.
FORT MYERS BEACH A closer look at the gas leak that killed 2 men at Fort Myers Beach home A closer look at the gas leak that killed two men in Fort Myers Beach has revealed some new details leading up to the deaths.
SANIBEL Sanibel CVS Pharmacy reopening after Hurricane Ian The CVS Pharmacy in Sanibel is reopening nearly two years after Hurricane Ian caused severe damage to it.
FORT MYERS Woman transported after boat hits large wake under Midpoint Bridge A woman had to be transported to the hospital after suffering an injury when the boat she was in struck the wake of a yacht.
NEW YORK (AP) Trump has history sparking outrage for incidents around veterans even as military voters backed him The reported altercation at Arlington National Cemetery involving Donald Trump’s staff was far from the first time that veterans or the families of service members have criticized the former president for words or behavior they saw as disparaging.
The price of living in paradise is growing, and soon, some families may be forced out of Southwest Florida. Marissa Stafford is a Southwest Florida native, born and raised. She says recently, she’s had to work multiple jobs to support her family. They rented the same house for years, where they were happy. That was until the pandemic hit more than two years ago. I got COVID. I was very, very sick,” Stafford explained. “I didn’t work for a good solid two months.” As Stafford recovered, she connected with Lee Cares, an emergency rental assistance program in Lee County. It helped her pay rent, and Stafford was able to get current on her bills. “I made sure they were all caught up. Every penny,” Stafford says. “Nothing was owed to them. I stayed in communication with them.” She kept using rental assistance as the pandemic continued to affect her work. But once the moratorium on evictions ended, Stafford felt her rental company treated her differently. “Towards the end, they just became very nasty,” Stafford claims. “Because I received assistance, they looked down upon me.” The Staffords claim they were informed their lease wouldn’t be renewed. WINK News reached out multiple times to their leasing company, Marshall Reddick, hoping to get more information on why. We haven’t gotten an answer yet. With barely a month’s notice and a limited budget, the Staffords faced homelessness. FGCU professor Dr. Thomas Felke said this experience is becoming more regular. “The most common type of homelessness that we see is called transitional,” Felke says. “We see individuals that experience some sort of major life event, maybe the loss of a job; that’s been a very common thing that we’ve seen recently.” The family eventually found a new rental where they pay more money to live in a smaller house. They’re OK for now but wonder what life will be like when this lease ends. “This can’t keep continuing. Something’s got to be done,” Stafford insists. “These people are struggling; it’s not easy out there. I don’t understand why it’s allowed.” Lois Healy, CEO of the Affordable Homeownership Foundation, says these types of situations are happening more often than ever before. “We get this every day,” Healy said. “We’ve lived here all of our lives, why can’t I afford an apartment?” She says the trend has gotten worse recently. “The last six months we’ve seen an uptick since rent started going crazy and housing prices went even higher.” WINK News requested Lee County’s most recent budget for homelessness aid. It totaled more than $21 million from 23 different sources. But the money is not all spent on housing. More than $4.4 million went toward “mandated behavioral health.” $2.7 million was allocated to emergency solutions grants, while almost $2 million went toward energy assistance. The fight against homelessness isn’t as simple as finding money to put roofs over people’s heads. It takes different shapes and requires a variety of approaches. “Homelessness is not as simple as taking an individual and putting them in a home,” Felke says. “They have to be able to maintain it and be responsible for it.” It can also be challenging for families to know where to turn for help. “This is a complex issue. Who is ultimately responsible for this?” Felke asks. “Is it the city? The county? Government agencies? My estimation is, everybody has a role to play in this.” WINK News reached out to Lee County for an interview about how the county is tackling the homelessness problem, but they declined our request. We also tried more than a dozen times to schedule an interview with Lee County Homeless Coalition’s Continuum of Care group, but no one ever sat down for an interview. Healy says local resources are overwhelmed. “The county’s having the same problems as every other business is,” Healy explains. “Getting employees to actually work. This job is not easy.” And even when families get connected to funding, like the Staffords did, Healy says community partners are less likely to cooperate with families that need help. “We’ve seen a change,” Healy says. “These large corporations come in, they change the rules. Landlords need to get a grip.” “This is to the point where this is not expensive; it’s now scary,” Stafford says. “It’s to the point where you don’t want to live here.” “We’re going to have a lot more homeless people,” Healy worries. “A lot more homeless families. We’re gonna have a huge problem.” RESOURCES Lee Cares Lee County Coalition of Care Housing Authority of Fort Myers Affordable Housing Foundation Intake Form Charlotte County affordable housing Collier County assistance program