Capt. Michael Burke sailed through life with his unending spirit and romantic outlook, touching the lives of many with his cruise empire, Windjammer Barefoot Cruises.

In Florida City, Jason Leon captured the longest Burmese python recorded in Florida.

The largest oil drilling operation in South Florida is a stark contrast to the wild surroundings of the Big Cypress National Preserve.

Fueled by rising oil prices and new technology, the oil industry is planning to expand exploration and drilling across a huge swath of Southwest Florida.

Top-achieving high school students from Miami-Dade and Broward were honored at Wednesday’s Silver Knight awards.

Ian Moffett, a Miami-Dade Schools police veteran who left in 2009 to become a police major in Miami, will return as the next schools police chief.

An 18-year-old lesbian faces 15 years in prison for having sex with a 14-year-old high school classmate.

The Columbia Scholastic Press Association has recognized Café Cultura, a student literary magazine at Miami Dade College’s Hialeah campus.

While Americans argue over background checks and the like, tech changes could render firearm laws — and firearm manufacturers — irrelevant.

How did my mother raise eight of us on $105 a week? Liver sausage sandwiches and unselfish love.

The kids have found a haven in Zanmi Beni Children’s Home (‘Blessed Friends’ in Creole).

From one trailblazer to another, a salute to the NBA’s Jason Collins.

All Gaby Pacheco wants is a chance to pursue the American Dream. On Monday, she implored lawmakers to pass a bill to legalize millions of undocumented immigrants — including herself.

Miami Herald Photographer Charlie Trainor was in his regular spot — right on the basketball court, in front of the most expensive seats in the house — lens trained on the first game of the inaugural “Three Kings” Miami Heat season.

A group of dads and traveled to Tallahassee to push for fatherhood issues.

South Florida’s large gay community is celebrating the fifth annual Miami Beach Gay Pride festival at what might be a pivot point in history.

It's not unusual for a cat to get a hairball, but a 400-pound tiger needed help from veterinary surgeons in Florida when he couldn't hack up a basketball-size hairball by himself.

A manager of Chicago's Navy Pier rode the tourist spot's Ferris wheel for more than two days - 384 times, up and around - bringing the world record for the longest ride to the birthplace of the amusement park favorite.

A man was arrested Wednesday in a case involving last week's discovery of a pair of letters containing the deadly poison ricin.

Anthony Weiner knows there may be a lot of New Yorkers who would never consider voting for him again, but he says he's running for mayor because he wants to bring his ideas to the fore - and win.

Experts are forecasting a booming summer, with the threat of furlough-related delays over and gas prices lower than last year.

A gifted painter, Christie started a volunteer organization, Team HeArt, that specializes in donating large-scale murals to the community. The group, which brings its own supplies so that the murals are truly free of charge, has designed and painted murals for the River of Grass Community Center nursery, as well as the science lab at Welleby Elementary School in Sunrise. The Welleby mural is ocean-themed and includes the school mascot — a dolphin. Christie has also volunteered extensively to benefit the Falmouth Place of Safety Girls’ Home in Jamaica — donating her artwork, a small library of books, and serving as an in-person mentor at the home, which serves orphaned, abandoned and abused girls. She was named a National Merit and National Achievement semifinalist, an AP Scholar with Distinction, and will attend Yale University in the fall.

Ian Moffett, a Miami-Dade Schools police veteran who left in 2009 to become a police major in Miami, will return as the next schools police chief.

Jurors in the Jodi Arias murder trial said Wednesday they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on whether she should be sentenced to life in prison or death for killing her one-time boyfriend, prompting the judge to instruct them to keep trying.