Professional Experience

2014 to present: Anchor for WINK News This Morning. Previously worked at KMGH-TV in Denver, WSJV-TV in South Bend, Ind., and KOMU-TV in Columbia, Mo.

Hobbies, Interests & Community Service

Enjoys participating in marathons and triathlons.

Education

The University of Missouri.

Likes best about Southwest Florida

As an island girl at heart, I'm thrilled to be back by the beach. While there are so many fantastic things about Southwest Florida, one of my favorites is Captiva, which holds a special place in my heart because that is where I celebrated my marriage.

Hometown

I don't have one. I've never lived anywhere longer than four years.

Family

Husband and two young children.

Memorable Assignments

Covering the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., and historic floods that destroyed parts of Colorado.

Interesting Fact

As the daughter of U.S. Navy parents, I've lived in 10 states, Guam and Sweden.

Italy dishes up pizza world record, nearly a mile long

ROME (AP) – The wait was on the long side for the pizza — 18 hours — but this was an extraordinary pie: 1.59545 kilometers, or nearly a mile long. More than 60 of Italy’s best pizza-makers worked through the night to create the pizza at Milan’s world fair, Expo 2015. Their toil was rewarded […]

AME Church in Charleston reopens for service

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) – The congregation at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal swayed and sang and welcomed the world into their sanctuary Sunday, holding the first worship service since a gunman opened fire during a Bible study and killed nine church members. Messages of love, recovery and healing were interspersed throughout the service, which was marked […]

Mother and two children die in Florida Keys house fire

RAMROD KEY, Fla. (AP) – A mother and her two young children have died in a house fire in the Florida Keys. Sheriff’s officials say the fire broke out shortly after midnight Sunday. When they arrived at the home on Ramrod Key, the home was fully engulfed. Robin Ferrer, 46, her 7-year-old son Roman and […]

Orlando man accidentally shoots himself during gun safety class

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – A man accidentally shot himself during a gun safety class at an Orlando pawn shop. Orange County Sheriff’s officials did not identify the 23-year-old victim but said the incident happened Saturday at the Instant Replay Pawn Shop and Shooting Range. The Orlando Sentinel reports the bullet grazed his leg. He was taken […]

Boat flips in Punta Gorda, sending four to the hospital

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. – Florida Fish and Wildlife officials are investigating what happened just moments before a boat flipped under the Punta Gorda U.S. 41 bridge. Crews received the call just after 6 p.m. Saturday. Fire crews said when they arrived they found four people in the water. All four of them were taken to […]

15 weirdest things found in lost suitcases

(USA Today)- The Unclaimed Baggage Center in tiny Scottsboro, Alabama is where all of the suitcases, carry-ons and other checked bags go if an airline can’t reunite luggage with its owner. And although the center estimates that only between 0.5% and 1% of luggage is permanently lost, that still adds an estimated 7,000 items to […]

U.S. works with Cuba to restore Hemingway house

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN)- Ernest Hemingway’s home near Havana is expected to soon receive an infusion of badly needed building supplies from the United States. An American foundation restoring the legendary writer’s home in Cuba on Saturday signed an agreement with the Cuban government to — for the first time — import construction materials directly from […]

Camper burns to the ground in Lehigh Acres

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. – Investigators are working to figure out what sparked a Saturday morning fire. A WINK News crew on scene said a camper burned to the ground on Leroy Avenue. WINK News talked to the property owner, who said squatters were staying in the camper. No one was hurt in the fire. Trust […]

Man drowns in Tampa pool while playing with daughters

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Deputies say a man who was playing with his children drowned in a swimming pool at a Tampa apartment complex. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office says a call came in about 11 a.m. Saturday regarding a possible drowning at Somerset Park Apartments. Paramedics pulled Kenson Gilles from the pool and took […]

Crews investigate whether lightning caused a boat fire

CAPE CORAL, Fla. – A 20-foot sailboat was destroyed after it caught fire on a boat lift Saturday afternoon. Pictures taken by a WINK News crew show heavy smoke rising from the boat. Cape Coral Fire Battalion Chief, Christopher Moore, said the boat was on a lift in the homeowner’s backyard along SE 41st Street. […]