WGCU Staff

A new utilities billing system for the Town of Fort Myers Beach means some residents may need to re-register for auto pay service.

The Midwest Food Bank was founded on a farm in Illinois in 2003 and has grown ever since, adding branches around the country including one that covers Florida. The Midwest Food Bank Florida branch opened in Fort Myers in 2014 and has been providing food to its more than 200 partner agencies ever since. These days they’re providing tens of thousands of meals every month. They pretty much runs on volunteers — they had about 2000 last year — and they only have six paid employees so they’re able to turn every dollar donated into 34 meals. We meet their new Executive Director to get to know him and better understand what they do.

Charlotte County business owners and entrepreneurs can take advantage of free, one-on-one consulting sessions hosted by Florida Gulf Coast University’s Florida Small Business Development Center.

Florida’s 2025 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday is now open for business and runs until Sunday, August 31. The holiday will now occur annually, every August, according to the Florida Department of Revenue.

Collier County Domestic Animal Services will officially reopen for feline intake on July 31, following a temporary pause to stabilize shelter operations. However, though DAS is once again accepting animals, due to ongoing space limitations and medical concerns, DAS would like to continue prioritizing critical feline intakes, focusing on cats and kittens who are sick, injured, or in immediate danger.

If you’ve ever called 211 here in Southwest Florida to find assistance with things like housing, food, healthcare, mental health — the list goes on — the United Way of Lee, Hendry, and Glades is who is supporting the 211 service, and is helping to fund the many agencies and nonprofits around the region who are there to help. Each year their fundraising campaign is designed to raise the money they need to help fund more than 90 partner agencies who help around a half-million people each year. Put simply, the United Way of Lee, Hendry, and Glades provides an essential backbone for social services in southwest Florida. We learn about a breakfast on Monday, Aug. 4 that will help set the tone for this year's campaign.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will break ground Thursday on a new Fort Myers Regional Operations Center to be built on a site in South Lee County.A noon media briefing will announce construction of the new FMROC nearly three years after Hurricane Ian caused structural damage to the current FMROC building at Page Field.

Community Blood Center, an affiliate of the NCH Healthcare System, is in critical need of platelets and types O negative and A negative blood, due to sudden and increased patient usage.

Lee County’s Clerk and Comptroller Kevin Karnes and Property Appraiser Matt Caldwell are offering a free class on the property assessment and dispute process Thursday, Aug. 7 from 2-3 p.m. at the Cape Coral-Lee County Public Library on SW 39th Terrace in Cape Coral.