Florida, Punta Gorda | featured news

PUNTA GORDA — When she turned 6, Brooke Pabon had only one birthday wish. She wanted to ride a horse.
“I was begging for it for a very long time,” she said.
And she got her wish. The Pabons gift-wrapped a riding lesson for their daughter, then leased a h...

NORTH PORT — Tommy O’Connell doesn’t live in North Port, but that doesn’t stop the Deep Creek resident from wanting to fight for the city’s miles of off-road trails — pathways that attract thousands of ATV riders each year, he said.
But those trails have ...

NORTH PORT — The Winn-Dixie plaza at 14253 S. Tamiami Trail will be the site of a soft opening at 9 a.m. Tuesday for Habitat for Humanity South Sarasota County’s new North Port ReStore.
Habitat ReStores are owned and operated by local Habitat for Humanity...

NORTH PORT — When students return Monday to Imagine School at North Port, the much-anticipated $1.8 million gymnasium won’t be fully open at the city’s only charter school.
In a letter to parents, Imagine Upper Campus principal Steven Black explained the ...

NORTH PORT — The North Port Family YMCA is seeking participants for a 12-hour endurance challenge next month.
Called “Chaos,” the event will begin at 6 p.m. Sept. 21, and is set to end at 6 a.m. the next morning, according to Davon “Holiday” Naylor, a mem...

NORTH PORT — The North Port Family YMCA is seeking participants for a 12-hour endurance challenge next month.
Called “Chaos,” the event will begin at 6 p.m. Sept. 21, and is set to end at 6 a.m. the next morning, according to Davon “Holiday” Naylor, a mem...

Sandee Pellerin was born and raised in the ghettos of Detroit.
As a little girl, her family moved around a lot. Every six months or so, she found herself in a new home, and sometimes in completely new neighborhoods. When she moved to her little green hous...

The Harold Avenue Recreation Center Gymnasium was renamed the Vivian Hall Gymnasium on Saturday in honor of Vivian Hall, also known as “Coach Cookie.” Recently diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer, Hall will remain another year as a volunteer coach for...

ENGLEWOOD — Patients of the Charlotte County Health Department’s clinic will have rides next month from Englewood to the Community Health Center of North Port.
Dr. Pierre Leroux still is seeing primary care patients Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Englewoo...

The Sunrise Kiwanis Shoes for Kids Project provided more than 4,500 new pairs of sneakers to students in Charlotte County Public Schools during the summer 2013 drive.
At the conclusion of the five-week drive, an additional plea of support was sent to the ...