This is southwest Florida.

InFocus.

Coming up, the Florida black bear hunting season returns for the first time in a decade.

And despite receiving the elusive bear tags, some people are refusing to take part in the controversial hunt and look into the art exhibit that sheds light on those who have recovered from the struggles of homelessness.

And one woman offers advice to the next generation of entrepreneurs by sharing her journey from a Mexican orphanage to a leader in the culinary world of salsa.

Hello I'm Jennifer Crawford.

Thank you for joining us.

For the first time in ten years, Florida's a black bear hunt is underway.

The The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports they received over 163,000 applications for the chance to win one of only 172 bear tags.

Conservationist opposed to the bear hunt say they applied and won almost one third of the 172 bear tags permits they are not using in order to save the bears.

In a statement to WGCU, FWC says the data from unused permits will be evaluated and could shape future hunts.

I had the chance to speak with two men who were fortunate to win permits, but for very different reasons.

I'm excited.

I've got a couple areas I've scouted, enables, Hunter says a camera he recently set up on game trails.

Captured this image of a massive bear.

He's probably 450 500 pounds.

He's big, big bear.

Big old bear.

It's the one he's targeting during the Florida bear hunt.

I'll use a crossbow.

It's safer than a gun.

DeGraw says he hopes to get the bear well before the hunting period ends on December 28th.

I plan on harvesting everything.

I'm going to harvest the.

Me too.

So I am going to make a rug out of it.

I mean, I'm going to make my son a bear claw necklace.

You know, the whole thing.

But it's not just for the trophy.

I'm not throw the meat away or anything.

I'm harvesting it for use.

Groww is one of 172 people to receive a bear tag, authorizing them to hunt a bear for the first time in ten years in Florida.

About 19,000 people applied, some multiple times, for a reported total of 163,000 applications submitted.

Another man beating the odds to win a bear tag.

Joel Cleveland from Tampa I was overjoyed.

Cleveland says he received this packet after getting the news he was a lucky winner.

This diagram that's color.

That's which I think is helpful, but it really drives home.

This is how you shoot a bear with a crossbow or a rifle or whatever is authorized.

And and that's where it starts to hit home, like, okay, this is a beautiful animal and an apex predator, and this is how you have to kill it.

The green bear tag stamped with numbers accompanied the bear hunting guide.

I call it like a zip tie, but this would be the tag that you put through a bear's ear or some some part of the bear to show that you are a permitted hunter and you've paid your fees, but he won't be hunting with the bear tag.

Instead, he's returning it, unused to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

I can say I've given a bear a stay of execution for 2025 hunting season, and there's one more black bear that's going to be walking in Florida, in the Panhandle that has a new lease on life.

A longtime conservationist and member of the Sierra Club, Cleveland says his successful efforts are part of a peaceful protest by environmentalists and that of the 172 bear tags issued, about 50 went to bear protectors.

I put my head on my pillow at night and I go, I fought the fight.

That's where my passion is.

This is Christmas.

Come early for you.

This is.

And my daughters.

I have to.

It's very emotional for me because they've followed my passion and they're so proud of me.

And so I've.

My legacy is don't ever give up.

In the meantime, in communities like this one in Lee County.

Bears are commonly seen at night.

Their images caught on surveillance cameras and by residents simply driving down the road.

There's too many bears out there that are becoming a nuisance.

The state of Florida and proponents of the bear hunt say the hunt is necessary to help properly manage the bear population, with numbers reported to be above 4000.

Opponents of the bear hunt dispute the bear counts regardless if all goes as planned.

A bear hunt is expected to take place next year in Florida as well, something hunters like Groww are already looking forward to.

We're going to probably hunt next year with dogs, as they'll be allowed next year.

Black bear hunting season ends on December 28th.

But it could end sooner if the quota of 172 bears is met before that date.

All unused permits are required to be sent back to the state.

If you have the flu, you are not alone.

The centers for Disease Control and Prevention say December is the beginning of peak flu season.

The CDC says numbers are already up, reporting a 7% increase in flu cases in recent weeks.

While doctors say the flu vaccine can help reduce the severity of symptoms.

It does not prevent the virus entirely.

Doctor Rene Harvey is a family medicine physician at Cleveland Clinic.

Recommends everyone who can receive the vaccine to get one to protect themselves and those around them.

It's very important to get the influenza vaccine, both in the U.S.

as well as in the rest of the world.

Influenza is a major cause of mortality and morbidity.

It can affect all ages, including the very young, the very old, those with compromised immune function, those who have chronic medical conditions, those who reside in group homes or nursing homes, and those who are pregnant.

For people who are receiving the influenza vaccine for the first time, they may need two vaccines separated at least a month apart.

And we have a special vaccine for our patients over the age of 65 that has a special component in it that will help boost their immune response against the strain of influenza.

The flu is just one of the seasonal illnesses that Lee health is preparing for.

Lee health offers advice for anyone dealing with symptoms of a respiratory illness.

WGCUs Cary Barbor learned the steps you should take in dealing with the flu.

When you or a loved one has an unexpected illness or injury, your first thought might be to race to the hospital emergency department.

But as the season for respiratory illnesses like flu, RSV and Covid 19 ramps up, the physicians at Lee health want you to know that not every case requires emergency care.

Lee Health Chief Medical Officer Ian Johnson Houser explains, our Lee health convenient care locations.

You will see the same physician that you would see in an emergency department.

Their emergency medicine, trained physicians or other highly trained physicians, with emergency medicine, experience.

And they can handle the majority of things that even folks that show up in our emergency department need.

The convenient care locations are similar to other urgent care facilities.

Johnson, however, does add that there are certain symptoms that should still be seen in the emergency department.

When you have those new sense of life threatening symptoms like crushing chest pain, like shortness of breath, that is, significant.

Those are the types of things that we want you to pursue care at the emergency department for.

There are four Lee health convenient care facilities in Lee County.

A fifth is scheduled to open in Cape Coral next month.

For exact locations, go to dcu.org.

Finally, to avoid extreme illness from flu, RSV and Covid 19, follow the vaccine schedules recommended by trusted groups such as the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

For WGCU news, I'm Cary Barbor in Fort Myers.

After the break, the secret to success is in the salsa.

The journey of one entrepreneur from an orphanage in Mexico to a multi-million dollar business owner.

No business experience, no connections, and no money.

Despite those limitations, Maggie Cook went from homelessness to building a $200 million salsa business.

The Mexican native spoke to aspiring entrepreneurs at an event in Venice, Florida, called fierce Encouraging People to chase their dreams.

WGCUs Sandra Victorova has her story.

mindset.

Now you saw it.

She's treated like a rock star in arenas.

Motivational speaker Maggie Cook tours the world, inspiring both ordinary folks and corporate executives with her rags to riches story, one that began with a simple recipe and admittedly terrible cold calling skills.

So hey, my name is Maria de la Cruz Garcia.

I have an awesome pico de gallo desousa.

I think you guys will love it.

Despite finding herself homeless in the woods shortly after college, she kept on making her salsa.

I had even friends tell me that I should quit, that I should get a job, that I was not making money.

I even went to local food manufacturers that made ready to eat products like mine.

And I said, how did you get your products into the stores?

And they said, no, they're not going to listen to you because you're nobody.

What makes Cook's financial success so remarkable are her difficult beginnings a childhood of physical, mental and sexual abuse in a Mexican orphanage which her parents ran.

We are.

We didn't have food for weeks sometimes, and I don't know if you've ever been hungry for that long, but you can't even think.

So I became a hunter, and I have a horse that I now actually visualize in future cast myself into success.

Even though I was stuck in that place, I would imagine that I would was a super successful woman.

Cook shares that being bold, going outside your comfort zone is one of the first steps to success.

In her case, it was taking the risk to venture beyond the compound.

I met some villagers, the peasants, and they took me in.

They gave me these amazing taquitos.

Every hole.

Oh my gosh.

Food that I've never tasted so good in my life.

And they gave me salsa and they taught me their trade.

Cook thought basketball would provide her escape from poverty.

The Mexican national team recruited her, but then she broke her collarbone.

My father, after this incident with basketball, he told me that I wouldn't be anything, that I would die in prison and with Aids.

Exactly his words.

But cook kept playing.

She believed that she could still build a brighter future.

A chance encounter with an American college basketball coach changed everything.

She saw me play.

To my father.

I want her to come play for me on a scholarship.

If I would have listened to my father, which sometimes the people closest to you tell, it could hold you back.

If I would have listened to him and I played that day, I wouldn't be speaking to you today.

And because of that, I came to the U.S., went to this university where there's nobody that spoke Spanish.

Studied interior design.

Graduated, became homeless, couldn't find a job.

After a while, somebody from the University of Charleston, one of their cooks, recognized me on the street and told me, what are you doing?

This is crazy.

Friends entered cook into a state salsa competition in West Virginia, and she won with $800.

She began growing her business.

She knew her fresh salsa was unique.

Back then, other salsas were cooked.

Still, her cold calls to small stores kept failing, so she decided to go big.

Many supermarkets said no before Whole Foods said yes.

When I turned the list upside down and I called them.

And that year we went from making 12 K to $1.9 million year with Whole Foods.

So I was making about 250 pounds of salsa a week for my friends and selling it by the pint.

That first order for Whole Foods 10,000 pounds.

Working day and night with a friend to cut 60,000 tomatoes, she realized she needed help in a hurry.

The state of West Virginia said it could help find her.

The manpower folks who she didn't realize needed a break, too.

He says, Maggie, thank you for hiring me.

Nobody else would hire me.

He says, I just got out of prison and I did this season.

And I was like, I don't want to know.

And I said, just go back to work because you're awesome.

Because he was.

But I call the state and they're like, yeah, they're all from prison.

But they're the best people I ever had.

I said, guys, I believe that we're going to become the largest fresh salsa company in United States, and you guys are going to help me take it there.

Cook says successful business leaders know when to ask for help.

One mistake that I made was that I didn't keep asking for help, because you never know who will come your way that might even want to partner with you because they see something amazing and beautiful.

So never stop asking for help.

Something like this Maggie teaches that resilience, relentlessness, and resourcefulness are the three keys to success, and perhaps also a touch of humor.

The first time that I had to deliver that Whole Foods delivery, I had to give my truck driver's license, and I had to wear a piece of wood work on my foot because I couldn't touch the pedals.

Orders from companies like Walmart soon followed.

She eventually sold Garden Fresh to Campbell Soup for $231 million.

The truth is that your subconscious mind is always guiding to your purpose, but we don't listen.

So what is your gut telling you?

I really believe that all of us have a purpose.

And this is why we're here.

Cook has a new purpose now.

She's investing her wealth to help people battling addiction and improve life for orphans in Mexico.

For WGCU news, I'm Sandra Victorova If you want to learn how to make salsa like Maggie, she shared her special recipe with us.

You can check it out on the WGCU app or at wgcu.org.

A recent Gallup poll estimates over 47 million Americans are suffering from depression.

Have Florida Gulf Coast University.

One graduate has developed a tool to help college students, especially men, report whether their mental health is on shaky ground.

WGCUs Cary Barbor explains.

For many male students, it can be especially difficult for them to seek help.

I think it's struggles that a lot of people here on campus face.

And addressing them, or kind of even realizing you have them was the first step.

That's Fletcher Peake, a junior majoring in construction management at Florida Gulf Coast University.

He was at an outdoor event at the school last month that was meant to raise awareness for men's mental health.

Fgcu graduate Jack Helmer organized the event.

Mental health, especially for men, has been important to Helmer since he was a student.

Amid the mounting pressures of work and school.

He found himself struggling with anxiety after experiencing the death of a beloved uncle.

To make matters worse, he discovered it was harder as a man to reach out for help.

Men's mental health is not talked about very often, especially because amongst guys it's a very stigmatized topic.

And the results can be tragic.

In the U.S., we have over 100 male suicides a day.

A healthy mind study last academic year found that of 84,000 college students, more than half reported high levels of loneliness, 37% reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms, and 11% had seriously considered suicide.

Helmer created an app specifically for university students.

It's called u b u. That's the letter U. The letter b y o u. It helps users reflect on how they are doing and offers whatever help might be warranted.

We provide them with tailored on campus resources, resources in the community, and mental and physical health support.

Helmer has worked to expand the app's influence beyond Southwest Florida.

So something that we've done as well with supporting men's mental health on a national level is with a partnership with a national fraternity.

The alpha tall mega fraternity, 26 chapters across the country.

So in 17 different states, we have students utilizing our app, at all of these different, populations of students.

So it's not just an impact here at Fgcu, but we're branching out and supporting men across the country.

As a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, peak has seen how the app helped squash the stigma.

Even though you're in the fraternity, it's okay to have mental health problems.

It's okay to seek out help.

But knowing you're not alone and that there's plenty of other people, especially other guys that are right there with you.

The app has also changed his behavior around his fraternity brothers.

He says.

A simple question of, hey, how are you doing today?

And if they say, oh, I'm doing all right, well, maybe say, hey, let's talk about it and make sure that's really doing okay.

Through his app and through his event at Fgcu, Helmer is spreading the good word for men about seeking help for their mental health.

And it begins with him starting off as a student at Fgcu.

I did not know what mental health was and then expanding to.

I've learned the highs and lows when battling mental health more, conscious of my actions, of what do I need to do to take care of myself or self care?

What are the good habits?

What are the bad habits?

And we all have them.

But it's one of the things of learning day by day is of how do we continue to improve ourselves and improve, your mental health.

And that's that's what I try to practice.

I started this table here.

For WGCU news, I'm Cary Barbor in Fort Myers.

Coming up, putting a face to the struggles of homelessness, a new art exhibit that captures the journey of southwest Floridians getting their lives back on track.

In 2025.

The Florida Department of Children and Families conducted their annual point in time, or pit count.

They found over 28,000 people are experiencing homelessness across the Sunshine State.

The journey back from that situation can be arduous.

One local artists wish to capture the experience of Southwest Floridians who struggled with their own homelessness.

WGC Dana Harpster offers a look at this unique art exhibit.

Jaylene was in a toxic relationship in an unsafe home.

Nina is a new mother who has struggled with addiction.

Richard was left unhoused by Hurricane Ian.

Living from shelter to shelter, they are three of ten current and former Saint Matthew's House residents whose portraits grace an art exhibit called Faces Beyond Homelessness.

Naples artist Wendy Wagner used charcoal, graphite and red chalk to draw portraits while the residents told her their stories.

A lot of them suffers depression, anxiety, bipolar illness and some don't have family to go to.

That's why a lot of us that are homeless the way they are, it's not the first shelter I've been.

I've been out of the shelter before for three months, and then I return them back to the abuser, which is my kids father and I messed up by doing that.

And, you know, the abuse started again.

Saint Matthew CEO Ben Bridges shares the point of the exhibit now at Wagner's Gallery in Naples.

This exhibit exists to tell the stories of many of our Saint Matthews House residents.

Stories of Hope stories, a restoration stories of struggle that they've experienced all with the idea of lending a little bit of humility and humanity.

Bridges and others at the recovery center talk about the idea of people moving from crisis to contributor.

Residents work with case managers, counselors, employers and others to make that transformation.

And I'm really just overwhelmed as you walk by and you see the faces, you hear their stories.

It's really inspiring.

Gives me a lot of hope for the future.

So now I'm sitting here expecting a baby and wanting a lot more change and a lot more desire for sobriety.

People are often surprised to find out the extent of homelessness in Naples.

We couldn't go a day without somebody saying, I didn't realize that there were people experiencing homelessness here.

I didn't realize that people will experience food insecurity in a place like Naples, but the reality is they're right around the corner.

These are our neighbors.

Wagner, a self-described contemporary realist, sketched the volunteer subjects at Saint Matthew's.

I got to hear, you know, their stories get their energy, that kind of feeling.

After the exhibit travels to different sites around Southwest Florida, each subject will be given a copy of their portrait.

Hopefully they feel like I caught them and honored them because that's really what I wanted to do.

For WGC news, this is Dana Harpster with Andrea melendez.

Faces Beyond Homelessness is a traveling exhibit presently showing at the Saint Matthew's Thrift Store.

The store is located at 2601 Airport Pulling Road in Naples.

The exhibit will be on display until December 21st.

You can visit the Saint Matthew's House website to see future locations.

Last week, WGCU came up big, bringing home two Suncoast Regional Emmys.

The WGCU production team was honored for their work on reflections of a Colored Girl in the category of diversity, equity and inclusion for short form content and in the category of public Affairs Single Program.

The WGCU TV news team picked up the statues for this very special program.

We are now joined by Teddy Byrne, producer of Southwest Florida InFocus.

And Teddy, it was a magnificent night.

It was it was, special to be nominated for this award.

And we were in a category with a lot of great, colleagues from across the state.

So once they called our name and we were able to get up there and show what Southwest Florida InFocus has done in only our first year of existence, it really was a true honor to receive this Emmy and just to be part of that celebration at that moment.

It was absolutely wonderful.

And we have, a large number of people that took part to make Southwest Florida in focus happen.

Well, it's, you know, it's really a small team that gets to do it for us because we are working in a public media setting here.

But I cannot thank everyone who has helped us reach this so fast to be able to share this moment with my friends here at WGCU whether it's our production team, our photographer, our team of reporters, what we've been able to do and accomplish is just a good reflection of what we get to bring to our viewers, and it's because of our viewers support that we get this opportunity to create a program like Southwest Florida InFocus, bring it to you every single week.

And when we receive an Emmy like this beautiful one right here, it just lets me know that we're in the right direction.

And it allows us to know that in the future, we will continue bringing forward great programing for our viewers and anyone else across Southwest Florida.

Well, congratulations to everyone involved.

Exactly.

It's a team effort.

Yes it is, and I can't be more happy with this team.

That's wonderful.

Well, coming up next week, the psychological impact of interacting with artificial intelligence, why more people are dealing with what's being called A.I.

psychosis.

Thank you for joining us.

And make sure to download the WGCU app or visit WGCU.org where you'll find all of our stories.

And those extended interviews.

Have a great weekend and join us again here next week on Southwest Florida InFocus.