ALVA Woodpeckers build home in woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
There are kids in Southwest Florida who need your attention and your time. What you get in return is probably better than any award you could receive. You know Chris Cifatte from here at WINK News. He’s in your living room every night. What you may not know is that he became a mentor through Big Brothers Big Sisters shortly after moving here 22 years ago and was named Big Brother of the Year in 2006. “This is something I always wanted to do, and when you move to a new place, sometimes it’s kind of easy. It’s a way to meet people and get out and do things, and I had no idea what I was walking into at that time before everything was computerized,” he said. Cifatte talked about how it allowed him to gain a little more knowledge about the area before the internet. “They pulled out a book that was like an old Sears catalog and said, these are the boys in this area that are waiting for big brothers, and she asked me how ambitious I was before she showed me twins,” he said. Twin brothers Austin and Justin grabbed Chris by the hand the moment they met. The twins loved to go swimming and, according to Cifatte, do his errands. RELATED: WINK News’ Amanda Hall named Big Sister of the Year in state “One of the things that their mother and grandmother always said to me is that, ‘I want them to see what somebody who’s successful with a good heart does or looks like because I want them to see that that’s what you’re growing up to be,'” Cifatte said. John Osbrink is one of Cifatte’s predecessors. He was a Big Brother of the Year in 2000, also pulling double duty to mentor two brothers, Scottie and Marcus. But this story is different. Marcus was shot and killed on his grandmother’s porch. He was just 18. Growing up in a bad area, time with Osbrink was a brief escape. “I was just trying to get him out of there as much as I could to have some fun, take him out of that world, and, of course, sadly, you got to take him back,” Osbrink said. Scottie reunited with Osbrink for our interview. Scottie didn’t hide his criminal past but said he’s on a good path now. Former Big Sister of the year Michelle Ciuffetelli would love to reconnect with her little sister Johnny someday. They lost touch when Johnny’s family relocated seven years into their match. “I do believe we’re going to reconnect. You just hope that those memories are in there and we seek each other out someday because I think it’d be super fun,” she said. One particularly fun memory was a trip to Washington to see President George W. Bush. “I mean, really just sat down and did a crash course on it. Got on the airplane and to see life through her eyes, to look out a window and know that’s her first; there’s so many firsts that we get to expose them to, and that’s the joy as a big,” Ciuffetelli said. There’s a common theme here. If you can be a Big, you get something too: Joy and the privilege of impacting someone’s life, maybe even two, with something priceless: your time. “Our job is to expose them to other choices in life, and then it’s up to them what they do with it, but I think our job is to show them,” Ciuffetelli said. And they’d all do it again. In fact, Ciffate is in the process of being matched again. This will be his fourth. Cifatte and WINK News anchor Amanda Hall, 2023’s Big Sister of the Year, are going to team up to host A Toast to Potential on Thursday night. It’s a fundraiser to make sure these matches continue to happen. If you’re interested, click here.