Lakes Park was full of culture, community, and celebration at the Mid-Autumn Festival hosted by the Southwest Florida Chinese Association!

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office Ice Cream Response Team joined in on the fun, handing out free ice cream while families enjoyed delicious cultural food, live musical performances, arts and crafts, and so much more!

It was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate traditions, experience the culture, and spend time with members of our community.

Thank you to the Southwest Florida Chinese Association for bringing everyone together for such a fun and memorable celebration! ... See MoreSee Less

⭐ 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐃𝐀𝐘 ⭐
𝙲𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚞𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙿𝚛𝚘𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚛 𝙳𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚛: 𝙽𝚒𝚔𝚕𝚊𝚜 𝙷𝚎𝚒𝚔𝚔𝚒𝚕𝚊

When members of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office notice a new app on their agency-issued phones, there’s a good chance Niklas Heikkila had a hand in creating it.

In the six-member Software Support & Development Unit, Nik’s job includes writing code for new apps or troubleshoot bugs in existing ones.

“It’s what I’ve wanted to do since majoring in it in college,” Heikkila explained. “I was looking for somewhere to program and found it here at the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.”

Born in Cape Coral, Nik graduated from Ida Baker High in 2016 before heading off to Florida Polytechnic University in Lakeland. He earned a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering focused on machine learning in 2022.

“I came to LCSO right out of college and there was a lot to learn,” he said. “In the beginning it was report building, sequential reports, and managing data. Now I write different apps and helped with the search portion of the agency’s new website.”

Perhaps the most complicated app Heikkila has worked on so far is one for the agency’s Human Resources department that tracks applicants as they go through the system. It involves compiling everything from email correspondence to interview notes to medical and polygraph examination results.

He’s currently working on several inspection-related apps including one for LCSO’s Marine Unit that will track equipment utilized on each boat.

“We’re pretty close to having that one done but it’s kind of intense since we have hundreds of pieces of equipment for each vessel,” Heikkila said. “It tracks equipment for each vessel noting when service is needed and when items need to be replaced.”

Another app for Fleet Services will track oil change request forms for LCSO vehicles.

Nik’s day typically starts with checking emails to see if there are any bugs being reported by users of current agency apps. “We have to be problem solvers if those bugs exist,” he said. If everything is working as expected, Heikkila’s focus turns to working on the five or six high-priority apps his unit is currently building.

“In terms of challenges, I guess it’s how fast we can deliver the projects that are termed high priority,” he said, noting Software Support & Development is in the process of adding at least two new developers. “The reward is when we can launch a new app that has no bugs and we get thanked for doing that.”

Away from work, Nik is into working out at LCSO’s gym at headquarters. He also enjoys baking cookies and cakes for family (and sometimes his Software Support & Development colleagues), or cooking in general. Lasagna from his Italian family recipe is a favorite. Heikkila also likes video games and is currently into the Fable game series. ... See MoreSee Less