NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Ian.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office: Parent brings weapon to Lehigh Acres school According to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office report, there is probable cause to believe a woman unintentionally brought a firearm to school.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for December 11, 2024 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for Wednesday, December 11, 2024.
Second leading cause of chest pain The leading cause of cardiac chest pain is coronary artery disease, which affects over 18 million adults in the United States.
Vicky Bakery opens 26th location, first in Fort Myers A Fort Myers location just opened at 4429 Cleveland Ave., at El Dorado Plaza, just east of the Ginza sushi restaurant.
WINK News’ Matt Devitt, officials address resident flooding concerns In a slide presentation, WINK News Chief Meteorologist Matt Devitt showed surrounding coastal counties have the sensors that are installed and monitored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
FORT MYERS RSW offering remote parking for the holidays Southwest Florida International Airport, RSW, is offering passengers RSWRemote, a reserved holiday parking option.
NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Ian.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office: Parent brings weapon to Lehigh Acres school According to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office report, there is probable cause to believe a woman unintentionally brought a firearm to school.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for December 11, 2024 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for Wednesday, December 11, 2024.
Second leading cause of chest pain The leading cause of cardiac chest pain is coronary artery disease, which affects over 18 million adults in the United States.
Vicky Bakery opens 26th location, first in Fort Myers A Fort Myers location just opened at 4429 Cleveland Ave., at El Dorado Plaza, just east of the Ginza sushi restaurant.
WINK News’ Matt Devitt, officials address resident flooding concerns In a slide presentation, WINK News Chief Meteorologist Matt Devitt showed surrounding coastal counties have the sensors that are installed and monitored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
FORT MYERS RSW offering remote parking for the holidays Southwest Florida International Airport, RSW, is offering passengers RSWRemote, a reserved holiday parking option.
Saturday, dozens of local designers will be showcasing their extravagant clothing for the Naples Art Institute Scene to be Seen Signature Gala and Runway Show. Gulfshore Life reporter, Jacquelyn Kisic went behind the scenes with some of the local artists who are a part of this year’s annual show. The first Scene to be Seen Gala launched in 2017 to create a way for local artists to use their imagination and to inspire others with fashion. A live auction will be held during the fashion show to raise funds for the arts. In Fort Myers, luxury brand designer Ilkay Turk, of Turk and Turk Miami, has been a part of the Scene to be Seen Gala for the past five years. For six months, Turk has been hand stitching her five-piece outfit named “Our Goddess Queen” that will exemplify “inner beauty” for her model. “Saturday you will be seeing everything is going to be gold,” said Turk. “Even her makeup will have the gold paints and lots of rhinestones.” To create a lighter feel, Turk decided to use a loofah material. Starting from the bottom with black loofas to becoming more gold toward the top of the crown. “It’s little, and it’s so light. The shape is closest to the flower,” said Turk. “The first idea came from the flower, making the dress floral.” In East Naples, Bejay Rouse and her daughter Kaylee Rouse have decided to take their skills to the next level. Bejay Rouse, has been working with the Naples Arts Institute for several years. Her daughter Kaylee, inspired by her mother, started taking classes there a couple of years ago. For the mom and daughter duo, this is the first year that they will be competing together in this year’s runway fashion show. According to Kaylee Rouse, it will be a “neck-to-neck” going against her mom. The family not only wanted their fashion to be a statement but also to raise awareness on recycling. Bejay Rouse’s two outfits are incorporated with pop-tops. One dress has over 10,000 pop tops. Kaylee Rouse is creating a new type of material, melting layers of plastic together to create a harder, flexible material. “One’s going to be like a cocktail dress,” said Kaylee. “The other is going to be a little bit tighter, sophisticated with pants and this big giant boa.” According to the Florida Department of Enviromental Protection, they found 2.5 million pounds of textile materials are recycled in Southwest Florida. For the Rouses, they believe more needs to be done. “I got into dumpster diving like heavily,” said Kaylee. “I noticed that there’s a lot of really, really good like brand material, new, untouched clothing.” With the concerning levels of trash in Southwest Florida, Kaylee decided to create a non-profit organization called Dumpster Witch Coalition, an effort to reuse materials rather than throwing clothes away. In South Naples, another designer, Marie Rhatigan, started sewing clothes as a young teenager. Rhatigan, throughout the years, has created clothes, bookmarks, cards and accessories. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Rhatigan started to create more elaborate clothes for the Scene to be Seen Gala Runway Show. “I would say I’m getting braver as I get older,” said Rhatigan. “I think a big part of my growth, doing my artwork, was during COVID, saved my life.” At the age of 20, Rhatigan married her husband, Joesph. The two would attend Broadway shows on a regular basis, inspiring her two outfits for this year’s show. “One of them is my Ode to Broadway,” said Rhatigan, “because as somebody who grew up in Brooklyn, I wanted to kind of pay homage to Broadway and all the different shows, and the pleasure that I got out of it.” Rhatigan’s second outfit was inspired by Rhatigan’s favorite songs growing up as a child from Brooklyn, New York, including the song called “Bubbles, Bangles and Beads.” The outfit is covered in several different colors of beads, pearls and rimstones. For anyone who wishes to design clothes, Rhatigan has some advice that helped her along the way. “I would tell anyone that wants to do it, to just try it,” said Rhatigan. “You make mistakes, you learn from them.” The Scene to be Seen Gala will be held on Saturday at the Naples Grand starting at 6 p.m.