Pete Behringer knows chocolate. Son of Peterbrooke founder Phyllis Geiger, Behringer grew up around candy, and he followed his mother's footsteps into the family business. When his mother began selling the Peterbrooke stores off in 2009, Behringer knew that times were tough for small business owners. Knowing he'd have to think outside the box to gain a competitive edge in this market, he got together with his wife, Allison, and partner Dane Baird, and Sweet Pete's All-Natural Sweets was born.

The national spotlight was placed on the University of North Florida Jan. 26 as the four top competitors for the Republican party nomination met up for the final debate of the Florida primary.

On New Year's Eve, a day when political news is almost annually thrown under the bus, President Obama signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 (NDAA), a law that threatens the basic civil rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and could potentially turn the United States into a whole new front in the war on terror.

Bus fares for individual riders, disabled riders and shuttle services are going up.

Anyone who has seen the 2005 documentary Murderball knows that the sport of quad rugby is intense. It is a 4-on-4 full-contact sport played by athletes who navigate the court in specialized wheelchairs. The rules are similar to those of traditional rugby, but instead of running around an open, grassy field, the players fly around a basketball court in technically advanced wheelchairs, attempting to carry the ball across the opponent's goal line.

The Occupy Wall Street movement has arrived in Jacksonville and has no plans of leaving, much to the dismay of several Jacksonville City Council members. Six weeks after beginning their protest in front of City Hall, Deputy General Counsel Howard M. Maltz sent Occupy Jacksonville a letter stating they were not allowed to have signs or store items in front of City Hall. The city issued an order Jan. 17 to shut down the electrical outlets surrounding the protest, including those in nearby Hemming Plaza that were not in use by protesters.

Although the Jacksonville Public Library is taking a $2.2 million budget cut, no employees will be laid off and no branches will be closed. All branches will be cutting back service hours effective Oct. 15, consult the JPL website (http://jpl.coj.net/lib/lib.value.html).

A new budget was proposed in June, which asked for $3.5 million budget cut. On Aug. 25 the City Council requested a $2.1 million cut by closing all branches for a day. This was there first step toward the $3.5 million budget cut. They then decided that Monday would be the day that all the branches would be closed and hours would be cut during Sunday and weekdays.

The first year of my life with my Raiser was pretty normal, aside from the intense obedience training. Like with any puppy, my Raiser played with me, fed me, took me for walks. But I'm not just any old dog. My name is Mikey. I am a twenty three month old yellow Labrador retriever. I was specially selected to be a guide dog by the Pilot Dog INC. Breeding Program, where I was handpicked to go to a Raiser, someone who would raise me for one year.

A panel of 14 West African journalists convened Tuesday, Nov. 1st to talk about how social networking can be used to overthrow the government. Sponsored by the Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalism, the group multiple topics, but stressed two major themes: Never underestimate the power of the internet, and never underestimate the power of people.

Drawing comparisons to the "Arab Spring" revolution that took place in the Middle East this year, panelists told stories of movements formed throughout their countries over social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Benjamin Honore Nahum says that only the brave take to the web to criticize the government in Benin, where social media sites are closely monitored for anti-state messages. In Gabon, Ruth Elvire Mygnolet Sandzhou says that there are only two heavily-followed Twitter accounts in the country- one for the country's president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, and another account run by members of his opposition, most of whom are exiled from the country.

A field of flowers decorated the city, as hundreds of supports and victims gathered at the start line to spread awareness about the disease that consumes a mind every 69 seconds.

On Nov. 5 the Alzheimer's Association held their annual 3 mile walk overlooking the St. John's River in Downtown Jacksonville. The Memory Walk has been up and running since 1989 and usually occurs in September and October though communities can find a walk in their area year round (alz.org/walk). "The event is primarily a fundraiser, but it is also an education event where we try to let Jacksonville area residents know that we are here for them and want to help them through this difficult time any way that we can," said Katie Garro, Development Manager at the Alzheimer's Association.

With picket signs in hand, over 200 "Occupy" protestors gathered in St. Augustine at the Plaza de la Constitucion on Saturday, Nov. 5, to peacefully protest against political issues such as banking institutions, government and corporate corruption, the wars overseas, and tax cuts for the wealthy.

They refer to themselves as the "99 percent" in reference to the difference in wealth between the top 1 percent and all the remaining citizens of the United States.