Friday, December 20
COLLIER NAMED HEALTHIEST PLACE IN FLORIDA
Collier County ranked No. 1 in Florida for SmartAsset’s “America’s Healthiest Places” list. To help find the healthiest places in Florida, SmartAsset analyzed three metrics, including length of life, health behaviors and healthcare access. Collier County was reported with 5,292 in years of potential life lost before the age of 75 per 100,000 residents; 11.1% adult smokers; 21.4% adult obesity; 15% excessive drinking; 72 primary care physicians per 100,000 residents; 21.6% uninsured rate; and an overall Healthiest Places index of 83.41. For more information on the study, including the methodology and interactive map, visit https://smartasset.com/life-insurance/life-insurance-quotes#Florida.
Thursday, December 19
PICKLEPLEX OF PUNTA GORDA TO HOST FIRST-EVER WORLD PICKLEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
The first-ever World Pickleball Championship in the history of the sport will take place Dec. 27– 30 at the brand new PicklePlex of Punta Gorda on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. Professional players will vie for their share of the $100,000 prize purse while amateurs will compete in their age and skill categories over this four-day event. Players from across the globe have been invited to compete for the title of World Pickleball Champion. Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in the U.S., with over three million players participating, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association. The tournament will offer the largest cash purse in history to the professional and senior professional players. Sixty projected World Champions will reign at the end of the event from all categories and divisions. The Pickleball Global World Championship will be the PicklePlex’s largest tournament to date, as it’s expected to draw in an estimated 500 participants. For more information, visit www.worldpickleballchampionship.com or contact Pickleball Global at (239) 301-2141 or info@pickleball.global.
Wednesday, December 18
GULF COAST MEDICAL CENTER NAMED TOP TEACHING HOSPITAL
Gulf Coast Medical Center has been named a “Top Teaching Hospital” nationally by The Leapfrog Group, a national watchdog organization focused on health care quality and safety. Over 2,100 hospitals were considered for a Top Hospital Award, and Gulf Coast Medical Center is one of just 120 hospitals in the country to earn this recognition. The hospital is one of three top teaching hospitals in Florida and the only Leapfrog top hospital in Southwest Florida. Performance across many areas of hospital care is considered in establishing the qualifications for the award, including infection rates, practices for safer surgery and the hospital’s capacity to prevent medication errors. The Top Hospital Award comes on the heels of Gulf Coast Medical Center’s “A” Hospital Safety Grade earlier this year. The Leapfrog Group issues their safety grades twice per year, and all Lee Health adult hospitals earned straight A’s on both 2019 report cards. To see the full list of institutions honored as 2019 Top Hospitals, visit www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals.
Tuesday, December 17
LEE COUNTY TOURISM UPDATE
The Beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel Tourist Development Council has released its latest tourism statistics. The October Smith Travel Research Summary showed an average occupancy rate of 61.1% in 2019, up 4.5% from 2018. The average daily rate was reported at $115.19 for 2019, up 3.6% from 2018. The revenue per available room (RevPAR) was reported at $70.34 for 2019, up 8.2% from 2018. The preliminary resort tax collected for October was reported at $2.086 million, a 19.7% increase over October 2018 preliminary collections of $1.743 million. Fiscal year-to-date preliminary tourist tax collections are $2.147 million, an increase of 17.96% year-over-year. Jeff Mielke, Lee County Sports Development director, reported that between June and September, 61,158 room nights were sold, with direct visitor spending of more than $26 million. To view a complete tax collections report, go to www.LeeVCB.com.
Job A Palooza 2019
Monday, December 16
LARC TO HOST JOB-A-PALOOZA
LARC (Lee Association for Remarkable Citizens) is hosting the second annual Job-A-Palooza from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Jan. 18 at Crowne Plaza Fort Myers Bell Tower in Fort Myers. At Job-A-Palooza, students ages 14 to 21 with disabilities meet local employers while peer-mentors assist them in navigating the job fair experience. Students will explore job skill stations from local businesses in industries such as retail, food service, administration, automotive and more. There will be demonstrations, friendly competition activities, awards and more. Space is limited and students must pre-register for the event by visiting
www.larcleecounty.org
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