Punta Gorda RV residents concerned about hurricane damageHow Hispanic voters in SWFL are casting their ballots
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda RV residents concerned about hurricane damage The people at the Harbor Belle RV Resort had concerns about their homes before hurricanes Helene and Milton.
WINK NEWS How Hispanic voters in SWFL are casting their ballots The Hispanic community in Southwest Florida is seemingly divided as they cast their votes for the next president of the United States.
WEST PALM BEACH Trump and supporters gear up for election night in West Palm Beach All eyes are on the presidential election between Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.
SANIBEL City of Sanibel to open time capsule for 50th anniversary It’s a chance to see what the past was like. 41 years ago, the city of Sanibel put items in a time capsule to be opened on the 50th anniversary of the city’s incorporation. On Tuesday, WINK News was there to see what people had to say about the island decades ago.
FORT MYERS BEACH Lee Commission approves contract to restore 2 waterfront parks on Fort Myers Beach The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted to award a contract for the design of the restoration of two waterfront parks on Fort Myers Beach.
Direct approach to hip replacement Surgeons in the United States perform more than 500,000 hip replacements every year, and that number is only expected to increase as our population ages.
ARCADIA DeSoto County Jail employee accused of trafficking contraband into facility An employee at the DeSoto County Jail has been arrested after allegedly trafficking illegal contraband into the jail.
Soluna Restaurant & Bar launches at Bayfront in Naples Emulating its namesake fusion of the sun and moon, Soluna Restaurant & Bar has arisen to illuminate the Naples dining scene.
NAPLES CFO Jimmy Patronis reminds Floridians to check their constructor contracts for post-storm fraud The Florida Department of Financial Services’ Chief Financial Officer, Jimmy Patronis, will hold a news conference in Naples on post-storm fraud prevention.
Know where your voting precinct is in Southwest Florida Election Day is only one day away, so it is important to know where to go and if you qualify to vote in Southwest Florida.
The Weather Authority Tracking Tropical Storm Rafael; expected to become hurricane The Weather Authority Meteorologists are watching the Caribbean as Tropical Storm Rafael will strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane later Tuesday night.
The Weather Authority Scattered rain and storms on this Election Day The Weather Authority is tracking scattered rain and storms along with warm temperatures throughout this Election Day Tuesday.
Where to drop off your mail-in ballots on Election Day Those who still have their mail-in ballots in Southwest Florida have two options on Election Day: vote in person or drop them off at a specified location.
WINK NEWS Lee County race for Sheriff It is now Election Day, and two candidates for the Lee County Sheriff are vying for the position.
WINK NEWS Floridians to vote on legalizing recreational marijuana With Election Day in full swing, WINK News is monitoring the results of the most controversial amendments on the ballot, including Florida’s Amendment 3.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda RV residents concerned about hurricane damage The people at the Harbor Belle RV Resort had concerns about their homes before hurricanes Helene and Milton.
WINK NEWS How Hispanic voters in SWFL are casting their ballots The Hispanic community in Southwest Florida is seemingly divided as they cast their votes for the next president of the United States.
WEST PALM BEACH Trump and supporters gear up for election night in West Palm Beach All eyes are on the presidential election between Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.
SANIBEL City of Sanibel to open time capsule for 50th anniversary It’s a chance to see what the past was like. 41 years ago, the city of Sanibel put items in a time capsule to be opened on the 50th anniversary of the city’s incorporation. On Tuesday, WINK News was there to see what people had to say about the island decades ago.
FORT MYERS BEACH Lee Commission approves contract to restore 2 waterfront parks on Fort Myers Beach The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted to award a contract for the design of the restoration of two waterfront parks on Fort Myers Beach.
Direct approach to hip replacement Surgeons in the United States perform more than 500,000 hip replacements every year, and that number is only expected to increase as our population ages.
ARCADIA DeSoto County Jail employee accused of trafficking contraband into facility An employee at the DeSoto County Jail has been arrested after allegedly trafficking illegal contraband into the jail.
Soluna Restaurant & Bar launches at Bayfront in Naples Emulating its namesake fusion of the sun and moon, Soluna Restaurant & Bar has arisen to illuminate the Naples dining scene.
NAPLES CFO Jimmy Patronis reminds Floridians to check their constructor contracts for post-storm fraud The Florida Department of Financial Services’ Chief Financial Officer, Jimmy Patronis, will hold a news conference in Naples on post-storm fraud prevention.
Know where your voting precinct is in Southwest Florida Election Day is only one day away, so it is important to know where to go and if you qualify to vote in Southwest Florida.
The Weather Authority Tracking Tropical Storm Rafael; expected to become hurricane The Weather Authority Meteorologists are watching the Caribbean as Tropical Storm Rafael will strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane later Tuesday night.
The Weather Authority Scattered rain and storms on this Election Day The Weather Authority is tracking scattered rain and storms along with warm temperatures throughout this Election Day Tuesday.
Where to drop off your mail-in ballots on Election Day Those who still have their mail-in ballots in Southwest Florida have two options on Election Day: vote in person or drop them off at a specified location.
WINK NEWS Lee County race for Sheriff It is now Election Day, and two candidates for the Lee County Sheriff are vying for the position.
WINK NEWS Floridians to vote on legalizing recreational marijuana With Election Day in full swing, WINK News is monitoring the results of the most controversial amendments on the ballot, including Florida’s Amendment 3.
The discussion surrounding mental health is an important one; it also should never be taken lightly. The National Alliance on Mental Illness in Collier County raises awareness one step at a time. The NAMI of Collier County hosted its Hope Shines’ mental health awareness walk at the Arthrex Center on Saturday. More than 600 people walked one mile around the campus with a purpose. Some of the participants WINK News spoke to shared a common story about the mental health challenges they’ve endured and conquered. Carol Anderson’s journey began when she started to feel isolated. “It was not good for me to be that isolated without any inner social interaction or anything,” said Anderson. So they sent me all the materials about NAMI, and sure enough, I went over, and I’ve been there every day since.” For Donna Ginter, her journey started with her son’s depression. “What really brought me out here is helping my son; to find to help him to be what he wants to be because of his depression and so forth, being his father passed away,” said Ginter. “NAMI is helping me to help him to cope with all his behavioral issues.” Barbaro Alvarez’s journey started with a health diagnosis and separation anxiety when he moved to the U.S. from Cuba. “I started feeling a little depressed. And at the same time, I was trying to ignore everything, my feelings, but I was crying every night, just thinking of my family,” said Alvarez. “I’m just so happy to be part of NAMI.” Each person conquered the obstacles but was never alone. Beth Hatch, the CEO of NAMI, said she wants to further expand the topic of the importance of mental health. “The more help and early intervention and advocacy that we can give each of these individuals, the more success stories and the more wins that we’re gonna have, and truly, as we always say, no one is ever gonna be alone,” said Hatch. “It’s our mission all together to be ambassadors to remove that stigma. Mental health needs to be equal to physical health.” Resources for help NAMI Collier County 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org/. 988 is a confidential, free crisis service available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Lifeline connects people to the nearest crisis center in the Lifeline national network. These centers provide crisis counseling and mental health referrals.Crisis Text LineText “HELLO” to 741741The Crisis Text hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, throughout the U.S. It serves anyone in any type of crisis and connects them with a crisis counselor who can provide support and information.Veterans Crisis LineCall 1-800-273-TALK (8255) and press 1 or text to 838255The Veterans Crisis Line is a free, confidential resource that connects veterans 24 hours a day, seven days a week with a trained responder. The service is available to all veterans, even if they are not registered with the VA or enrolled in VA healthcare.National Disaster Distress HelplineCall or text 1-800-985-5990The disaster distress helpline provides immediate crisis counseling for people who are experiencing emotional distress related to any natural or human-caused disaster. The helpline is free, multilingual, confidential, and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 Text ” LOVEIS” to 22522 TTY 1-800-787-3224 National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) Text 1-800-422-4453 National Sexual Assault Hotline 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) Online Chat The Eldercare Locator 1-800-677-1116 TTY Instructions Support Websites National Helpline or call 1-800-662-HELP (4357) Mental Health Treatment National Alliance for Children’s Grief National Runaway Safe Line Stop Bullying Florida Council Against Sexual Violence Florida Narcotics Anonymous National Eating Disorders Association Hope for Healing Local Community Resources Tobacco Free Florida 211 Support Hotlines National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) Florida Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-500-1119, Florida Relay 711, TTY: 1-800-621-4202 Florida Sexual Violence information line 1-888-956-7273 National Runaway Safe line 1-800-RUNAWAY National Teen Dating Abuse Hotline 1-866-331-9474 – Text: LOVEIS to 22522 National Human Trafficking Hotline 1-888-373-7888, Florida Relay 711, or Text 233733, https://humantraffickinghotline.org/ Florida Abuse Hotline 1-800-962-2873 or TTY:1-800-955-8771 Florida Elder Helpline 1-800-963-5337 or TTY: 1-800-955-8771 Non-emergency Legal Hotline 1-800-500-1119, prompt 3 General Resources and Hotlines | Florida Department of Health Mental Health Helplines NAMI HelpLine | NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness is a free nationwide peer-support service providing information, resources, referrals, and support to people living with a mental health condition, their family members and caregivers, mental health providers, and the public. HelpLine staff and volunteers are experienced, well-trained, and able to provide guidance.The NAMI HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m., EST.1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or helpline@nami.org Teen Line: An anonymous, nonjudgmental space for youth. Teen Line Teens can access personal peer-to-peer support from highly trained teens supervised by adult mental health professionals.The Teen Line can be reached at 800-852-8336 Nationwide.