Rood Emmanuel, a UF psychology sophomore, is using his personal struggles to help others. He founded Igniting Dreams, a nonprofit organization that provides mentorship and scholarships to students in Gainesville and Palm Beach County. The organization will award its first scholarship to a student in Palm Beach County this year.

The Alachua County Humane Society recently started offering low-cost checkups and vaccines for pets. Wellness exams at the new clinic cost between $20 and $30, and vaccine tests are free, making it easier for residents to care for their pets.

After five cycles of chemotherapy and 13 surgeries for Stage 1 lymphoma, Francisco Lourenco hand-wrote a nine-page book on his cancer experiences for other cancer patients at UF Health.

Gainesville House of God plans to donate 100 percent of its proceeds from its annual pumpkin patch to feeding centers locally and in Guatemala.

Alachua County's Farm to School to Work program, a place for disabled students to work in gardening and farming, expanded to a new location this Fall. This gives the students more space to grow and process healthy foods to distribute to local schools.

UF international studies senior Gillian Shaw spent her summer in the North African country of Morocco, a trip she said was to gain experience in Arabic, Spanish and French. Shaw shares the story of her linguistic journey and her experience traveling abroad, which included having to eat American fast-food restaurant McDonald's more than she expected.

Steve Parnell, the owner of the Peanut Corporation of America was sentenced to 28 years in prison due to a salmonella outbreak. The outbreak was due to the company not following food sanitation rules, said Keith Schneider, a professor in UF’s College of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

Alachua County Sheriff candidate Zac Zedalis argued during a county commission meeting that 10 deputies would be able to keep their jobs if resources were reallocated within the departmental budget. Sheriff Sadie Darnell said the positions would have to be cut without extra funding.