Professional Experience:
 
I joined the WINK News team in June 2022 and worked as an Environmental Reporter for the first year and a half. Now I work as a general assignment reporter.
At the University of Florida, I reported, produced, and anchored for WUFT News.
Awards & Recognition:
 
National Student Edward R. Murrow award and first place in BEA's news magazine category for coverage of Hurricane Ida's aftermath in Houma, LA.
Education
 
Bachelor of Science in Telecommunication-News, University of Florida. GO GATORS!
Likes best about Southwest Florida
 
The beach, the people, and the lack of a winter.
Memorable Assignments
As a native Floridian, I have witnessed the impact of hurricanes and tropical storms throughout my life. During my senior year at the University of Florida, I took an investigative reporting class and traveled to Houma, Louisiana, after Hurricane Ida. There, I saw the devastation from the storm and the resilience of a community rising from the rubble. That story solidified what I wanted to do - become a broadcast journalist.
Just months after joining the WINK News team, Hurricane Ian struck, and once again, I saw the familiar sight of a community uniting in the wake of disaster. Those stories of hope, moments of kindness, and the people within hold a special place in my memory.
Hobbies and Interests: 
I love doing anything outdoors! On weekends, you can find me on a walk at one of my favorite nature preserves, including Six-Mile-Cypress and Audobon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, and then at one of our beautiful beaches.
Hometown: 
I was born and raised in Orlando. My mom, dad, and two brothers still live there. They are the reason WINK News viewership out of Central Florida spiked starting in June 2022.
Fun fact: 
My number one goal is to be on Jeopardy one day. Growing up, my dad and I watched every night we could, and I continue that tradition today.

Pretty plants on a Cape Coral canal are actually bad for the native environment

Pretty flowers and lush green leaves sound like something you might want in your backyard, but water hyacinths can take over an entire body of water in a very short time. The aquatic weed kills other plants and depletes the water of oxygen. A blanket of water hyacinth sits like a green carpet over a […]

Red Sox fans, former players help clean up Bunche Beach

People took time out from a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help clean up after Hurricane Ian. Thirty Red Sox fantasy campers took a break from baseball on Wednesday and headed to Bunche Beach to clean up Ian’s mess. The fans found things similar to what many people likely had around their homes after Ian, planks of […]

Calusa Waterkeeper to retire after decades defending clean SWFL water

Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani, a man who has dedicated himself to the preservation of Southwest Florida’s waterways, plans to retire soon. Cassani has been the face of the region’s water for years. Whether you’re talking about issues of fecal matter in Billy’s Creek, blue-green algae in the canals, or red tide near Sanibel, John Cassani […]

NOAA’s latest Arctic report card has impacts in Southwest Florida

Just like students get report cards, the Arctic does too. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, produces an Arctic report card every year, showing how things are going up there. The Arctic, an area more than 3,000 miles from Southwest Florida, is a landscape quite different from the sunshine and sandy beaches we […]

First eaglet of the season hatches in North Fort Myers

The first of the two eggs laid by Harriet, Southwest Florida’s most famous mother eagle, hatched on Wednesday. The eaglet gets the designation E21 and was confirmed to have hatched by the Dick Pritchett Real Estate Southwest Florida Eagle Cam at 8:22 p.m. Wednesday. Harriet laid the first egg on November 29 and the other […]

Pip spotted on one of eagle Harriet’s two eggs

A pip, or crack that signifies the beginning of the hatching process, has been spotted on one of the two eggs laid by bald eagle Harriet. “A pip is when they are breaking out of the egg. And there’s first in an internal pip where they’re like pecking on the inside kind of in a […]

bald eagle

Waiting for Harriet and M15’s eaglets to hatch

More than 1,000 viewers were watching Southwest Florida’s favorite bald eagles, M15 and Harriet, hoping to see a pip or a newborn eaglet. People from across the country watched the live stream in North Fort Myers and some even wanted an in-person view of the eagles. Tito Saunders is a wildlife photographer who comes by […]

Southwest Airlines cancellations impacting hundreds at RSW

Travelers across the country are losing their luggage and patience as they put holiday festivities on hold because of flight cancellations. The issue is also one impacting those in Southwest Florida. Southwest Florida International Airport’s flight board is full of cancellations, most of which are from Southwest Airlines. This is a days-long issue that is […]

New Year’s Eve events across SWFL

New Year’s Eve is around the corner, which means friends and loved ones will get together and celebrate through midnight to usher in 2023. Fireworks will light up the night sky, champagne will be toasted at midnight, and downtown Fort Myers will be filled with people ready to ring in the new year. Lisa Sbuttoni […]

Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines cancels nearly 2,800 flights

A flurry of canceled Southwest Airlines flights happened Monday evening while people headed home after the holiday weekend. Southwest Airlines announced they canceled about 2,800 flights on Monday. At RSW, those trying to get on a Southwest Airlines plane are feeling the pain and waiting in line at the counter for an explanation. The severe […]