I spent a few months with photographer Dania Maxwell checking in on a Lehigh Acres family whose daughter just started attending school as a girl. We wrote about Dee-Vyne Valentine’s transition from Dante Valentine and explored what the future will look like for this young girl, who also has learning disabilities.

I hope we’ve brought some awareness to the issue locally and that by publishing a story like this, we can pave the way as a society for other girls like Dee.

Dee-Vyne “Dee” Valentine, 11, plays in the backyard of her home on October 18, 2014, in Lehigh Acres, Fla. “Judge(s) should make rulings about letting me in the girls’ locker room and the girls’ bathroom because I’m a girl,” Dee said. Photo by Dania Maxwell

A story I worked on for a few months with photographer Scott McIntyre recently ran in the Naples Daily News. We had the story behind a paywall but I’m posting it now that it’s free.

We followed a kid in a juvenile detention program as he completed his stay and returned to his life on the east coast of Florida. The story looks at how he completed the Swamp Boys program and transitioned into real life as an adult. The story and photos got a lot of play in the paper when it ran one Sunday in January. Enjoy.

Jan. 4, 2015 front page.

Last week, I wrote four front-page stories about the shooting death of a Naples man following a 10-year feud with his neighbors.

The first story after his death outlined the rising problems between the two families using public records and accounts from others on the street.

The next day, I caught a lucky break when the victim’s daughter told me during a phone interview that the woman who would later be charged in her father’s death had returned to her home after a brief stint in jail. We drove to the scene in time to see the woman Baker Acted into custody. She was later charged in the murder as well.

The next day, the man’s widow broke her silence in a statement and we obtained documents showing she had filed for another restraining order.

All week, I chipped away at a Sunday story looking at what people can do if they’re having serious problems with their neighbors and which area agencies can help.

I’ve covered a few killings in Naples since starting the morning shift, but this has garnered the most interest.

Our newspaper recently started a monthly award in which staffers from any department are nominated by their peers and vetted by editors before winning cash prizes. I was one of three winners for my work in December, and I won a shiny $100 gift card. Let the shopping begin.

Here are a few headlines that were mentioned as part of my coverage.

1) Two Marco Islanders were each retrieving something from home when they collided in a fatal crash.

2) The father of a man arrested after shooting up a bar told me his son was likely mentally ill. I wrote about how law enforcement tracked him down in another state after he fled.

3) An accused killer and his accomplice were tracked to Wyoming where they were found stranded on the side of the road in a truck with no gas. I reached out to local authorities there and a small town newspaper editor to paint a picture of the area where they were found.

4) This one was a double byline with fellow reporter Jessica Lipscomb. I talked to neighbors of a man who shot another person on their street and admitted the crime to his father the same day.

That’s just a few of the more than 30 December bylines I had. It was a busy month.