Punta Gorda Veterans Village helping veterans during the holidaysFamily pushes for class action against Heritage Insurance
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda Veterans Village helping veterans during the holidays Residents and businesses at the Punta Gorda Veterans Village are stepping up to make military transitions a little easier this holiday season.
NORTH PORT Family pushes for class action against Heritage Insurance A North Port family is battling against Heritage Insurance over the damage Hurricane Ian did to their home.
Trails End Drive suspected double murder hit man and organizers back in court There are new developments in the murder-for-hire case that made headlines for weeks at the start of the year. The defendants are back in court.
CAPE CORAL 4 arrested on drug-related charges after FBI investigation Some Cape Coral residents woke up in the early morning hours to their neighbors’ homes being raided by federal agents.
Hope Card program protects victims of domestic violence in Lee County Lee County has implemented the Hope Card Program, a new statewide initiative to help victims of domestic violence.
NAPLES Vigil held for teen shot and killed at Collier party Family, friends and loved ones gathered at a candlelight vigil to remember and honor the life of 18-year-old D’eisha Arthur.
SANIBEL 36th annual Sanibel Luminary Festival begins The Luminary Festival kicked off on Sanibel Island on Friday. This community-wide holiday event puts residents and visitors in the holiday spirit.
FORT MYERS Future unsure for Rachel at the Well During Hurricane Ian, Rachel at the well was uprooted from its spot in front of the Edison Park neighborhood.
NAPLES Naples Yacht Club appoints first woman commodore After 78 years, the Naples Yacht Club has appointed its first woman commodore. Kathy Parks King is her name.
FORT MYERS Mano Santa Tattoos, a woman-owned tattoo shop, opens in Fort Myers Mano Santa Tattoos is the newest tattoo studio in Fort Myers, offering an immersive tattoo experience to clients. The shop is woman-owned and women-staffed.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda residents awaiting Gilchrist Park repairs The City of Punta Gorda has yet to complete repairs or remove the boats that remain stranded in Gilchrist Park after Hurricane Milton.
Unlocking Alzheimer’s mysteries Research shows that some older adults have signs of the disease in their brains after they die, even though they never had symptoms while they were alive. These cases could be key to developing new treatments.
IMMOKALEE 64-year-old drug dealer sentenced in Collier County A 64-year-old drug dealer has been sentenced in Collier County for possession and distribution of cocaine.
WINK NEWS Disaster tax relief bill passed after over 2 years After more than two years of uncertainty, victims of Hurricane Ian and other disasters are getting some financial relief.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda Veterans Village helping veterans during the holidays Residents and businesses at the Punta Gorda Veterans Village are stepping up to make military transitions a little easier this holiday season.
NORTH PORT Family pushes for class action against Heritage Insurance A North Port family is battling against Heritage Insurance over the damage Hurricane Ian did to their home.
Trails End Drive suspected double murder hit man and organizers back in court There are new developments in the murder-for-hire case that made headlines for weeks at the start of the year. The defendants are back in court.
CAPE CORAL 4 arrested on drug-related charges after FBI investigation Some Cape Coral residents woke up in the early morning hours to their neighbors’ homes being raided by federal agents.
Hope Card program protects victims of domestic violence in Lee County Lee County has implemented the Hope Card Program, a new statewide initiative to help victims of domestic violence.
NAPLES Vigil held for teen shot and killed at Collier party Family, friends and loved ones gathered at a candlelight vigil to remember and honor the life of 18-year-old D’eisha Arthur.
SANIBEL 36th annual Sanibel Luminary Festival begins The Luminary Festival kicked off on Sanibel Island on Friday. This community-wide holiday event puts residents and visitors in the holiday spirit.
FORT MYERS Future unsure for Rachel at the Well During Hurricane Ian, Rachel at the well was uprooted from its spot in front of the Edison Park neighborhood.
NAPLES Naples Yacht Club appoints first woman commodore After 78 years, the Naples Yacht Club has appointed its first woman commodore. Kathy Parks King is her name.
FORT MYERS Mano Santa Tattoos, a woman-owned tattoo shop, opens in Fort Myers Mano Santa Tattoos is the newest tattoo studio in Fort Myers, offering an immersive tattoo experience to clients. The shop is woman-owned and women-staffed.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda residents awaiting Gilchrist Park repairs The City of Punta Gorda has yet to complete repairs or remove the boats that remain stranded in Gilchrist Park after Hurricane Milton.
Unlocking Alzheimer’s mysteries Research shows that some older adults have signs of the disease in their brains after they die, even though they never had symptoms while they were alive. These cases could be key to developing new treatments.
IMMOKALEE 64-year-old drug dealer sentenced in Collier County A 64-year-old drug dealer has been sentenced in Collier County for possession and distribution of cocaine.
WINK NEWS Disaster tax relief bill passed after over 2 years After more than two years of uncertainty, victims of Hurricane Ian and other disasters are getting some financial relief.
Players from the pickleball US Open at the podium. (CREDIT: Wink News) The popularity of pickleball continues expanding across the country, but Southwest Florida is quickly becoming the sport’s epicenter. Sweeping tennis and basketball courts across Southwest Florida is a sport that’s been around since the 1960s, leading tennis players to put their rackets down and pick up a paddle. “I wanted to get back into tennis, but it took me a little longer,” said a Naples pickleball player, “so I’m sorry to say it, let me check pickleball. I kept seeing people play pickleball, and I’m thinking, what is this? So I decided, and that’s what happened. I became addicted.” “It’s a game that you can play very quickly, unlike 10 years of humility. Pickleball is just fun to go out there, you meet a lot of people. The courts are being taken over. Tennis is kind of disappearing,” said another pickleball player. Carlos Sanchez, the owner of Southwest Tennis, told WINK News for every one regulation tennis court, you can have four pickleball courts. With the sport on the rise, his business is booming throughout the region. “The pickleball courts are very versatile because they’re smaller, more attached, and a lot of communities like to integrate them into their tennis courts so that they can have a multi-sport facility,” said Sanchez. Sanchez told WINK News his company has done at least 60 pickleball courts in 2023. With the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships hosted in Collier County, the interest is only growing. “Naples is becoming kind of one of the capitals of pickleball,” said a pickleball player from Naples. “We’ve got U.S. Open championships, and we’ve got a lot of courts being built. Every real estate development that’s coming out of the ground has to. It’s just absolutely table stakes to have, you know, at least ample number of pickleball courts.” Only time will tell if the popularity of tennis diminishes and people shift more toward pickleball, possibly the hottest-growing sport in Southwest Florida.