Alyssa Willetts
Multimedia Journalist
Topeka, Kan.
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I am a recent college graduate from Oklahoma Wesleyan University where I got my degree in Film. I moved to Topeka from Oklahoma City and took the Morning Producer/MMJ position at WIBW News 13.
I played soccer all through college and am a sports fanatic. Growing up I always knew I wanted to be on camera, and later on I discovered my love for storytelling.
I love meeting new people and helping them communicate and share their stories with the world. I am a huge dog lover, enjoy exploring new places, and slightly obsessed with Christmas.
I am excited to start my career in Northeast Kansas, and I look forward to meeting and interacting with our viewers.
Updated: 11 hours ago
|By Alyssa Willetts
The NFL is inviting 7,500 health care workers to Super Bowl LV as a way to thank and honor them for their heroic work throughout the pandemic.
Updated: 11 hours ago
|By Alyssa Willetts
Kansas State University is expanding its COVID-19 testing for the spring semester.
Updated: Jan. 20, 2021 at 8:22 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The League of Women Voters of Topeka-Shawnee County (LWVTSC) is collaborating with the Topeka NAACP and the League of United Latin American Citizens to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Updated: Jan. 13, 2021 at 10:44 PM CST
|By Bryan Grabauskas and Alyssa Willetts
13 NEWS has a crew on site and will update this story when more information becomes available.
Updated: Jan. 8, 2021 at 9:23 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Kansas State University announced Friday they will begin the first two weeks of the spring semester with remote learning, to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Updated: Jan. 5, 2021 at 10:59 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts, Marissa Ventrelli and Becky Goff
Kansas State University announced Tuesday that it is considering starting the spring semester completely remote.
Updated: Dec. 22, 2020 at 12:37 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Topeka Metro has remained an essential service throughout the pandemic and their drivers have had to adapt to stay safe.
Updated: Dec. 19, 2020 at 8:40 PM CST
|By Danielle Martin and Alyssa Willetts
The Topeka Fire Department said two homes suffered thousands of dollars in damage after a fire Saturday night.
Updated: Dec. 19, 2020 at 1:17 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Christmas came early this year for animals living at Helping Hands Humane Society in Topeka.
Updated: Dec. 19, 2020 at 10:09 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A Topeka man was arrested Friday on multiple drug charges.
Updated: Dec. 18, 2020 at 6:24 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Kansas Department of Labor continues working through its backlog of unemployment claims, but one Topekan said she is tired of being told to be patient.
Updated: Dec. 17, 2020 at 2:15 PM CST
|By Sarah Motter and Alyssa Willetts
The Shawnee County Community Transmission Scorecard for COVID-19 is seeing a decrease in some areas.
Updated: Dec. 16, 2020 at 9:03 AM CST
|By Chris Fisher and Alyssa Willetts
Staff at Topeka's Stormont Vail Hospital were first in Topeka to receive COVID vaccination.
Updated: Dec. 13, 2020 at 11:28 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Salina Police Department said one of its officers was stabbed during a confrontation with a suspect on Sunday.
Updated: Dec. 12, 2020 at 2:37 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Parents and students of Shawnee Heights school district rallied Saturday in support of USD 450 returning to in-person learning.
Updated: Dec. 12, 2020 at 4:59 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Topeka Police Department brought in several people for questioning after one person died Friday night.
Updated: Dec. 11, 2020 at 6:49 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Kansas Department of Labor said it is stopping about 2,300 fraudulent claims a day. Suntell, a software company in Topeka, had four of its 17 employees fall victim within the last month.
Updated: Dec. 10, 2020 at 6:26 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
With community spread of COVID-19 remaining in the uncontrolled zone on Shawnee County’s scorecard, Health Officer Dr. Gianfranco Pezzino, is extending his current emergency order.
Updated: Dec. 9, 2020 at 4:12 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Governor Laura Kelly sat down with 13 NEWS to share more about her all-of-the-above strategy to stop the spread of COVID-19 in the state.
Updated: Dec. 6, 2020 at 9:10 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library announced Saturday it’s closing the building, due to the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19 in the community.
Updated: Dec. 5, 2020 at 9:46 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, expects congress will pass a bipartisan COVID-19 relief package within the next couple weeks.
Updated: Dec. 5, 2020 at 10:54 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A Topeka holiday tradition took a virtual twist Friday night.
Updated: Dec. 4, 2020 at 6:30 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Front line workers are feeling the stress of the surge in COVID-19 patients, so a Topeka pastor started a fundraiser to offer relief.
Updated: Dec. 4, 2020 at 11:41 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
On a call Friday morning with the state’s elected officials, Gov. Laura Kelly provided an update to her COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan.
Updated: Dec. 3, 2020 at 8:36 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A proposed quarry site a mile from the city of Carbondale has some residents concerned. The city’s mayor is also raising questions about the impact it could have on Carbondale’s water supply.
Updated: Dec. 2, 2020 at 6:08 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts and Joseph Hennessy
Governor Laura Kelly said Wednesday the state expects to receive its first shipment of a COVID-19 vaccine in a few weeks.
Updated: Nov. 28, 2020 at 1:05 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A new retail shop for girls and teens opened Saturday in Topeka’s historic Westboro Mart.
Updated: Nov. 26, 2020 at 6:31 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The COVID-19 pandemic changed a lot of Thanksgiving celebrations.
Updated: Nov. 26, 2020 at 6:26 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Topeka Rescue Mission’s Operation Street Reach spent the holiday delivering meals to Topeka’s homeless.
Updated: Nov. 25, 2020 at 7:26 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
While a few of the county’s numbers on the community transmission scorecard are trending down, health officials want residents to remain vigilant through the Thanksgiving holiday.
Updated: Nov. 22, 2020 at 11:13 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Topeka’s Stormont Vail said they have requested emergency staffing assistance from the state, as the surge in COVID-19 cases in the community continues to impact its health care workers.
Updated: Nov. 22, 2020 at 8:46 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
November is National Adoption Month! On Saturday, more than 15 adoptions across the state were finalized.
Updated: Nov. 20, 2020 at 6:16 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Governor Laura Kelly, D-Kansas, joined a call with county commissioners and public health officials to discuss her new order and her administration’s COVID-19 response.
Updated: Nov. 20, 2020 at 10:31 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
On Friday, the State Finance Council approved to redistribute $38.5 million to public health response and business resiliency & workforce support.
Updated: Nov. 18, 2020 at 10:55 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Crews battled a large grassfire that started in Shawnee County Wednesday afternoon and spread to Jackson County, forcing residents to evacuate.
Updated: Nov. 15, 2020 at 12:18 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
27 year old, Tre Bolden of Topeka was the suspect taken into custody after a shooting incident in Southeast Topeka.
Updated: Nov. 14, 2020 at 12:36 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The owners of the Menninger property in Topeka announced they have begun the process to demolish the historic clock tower building, unless they can find an organization to donate it to.
Updated: Nov. 13, 2020 at 6:45 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Kansas' Director of Human Trafficking Education and Outreach will be using her skills to help people on a global scale.
Updated: Nov. 13, 2020 at 6:27 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
As coronavirus ramps up across Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly told members of the State Finance Council she has no intention of issuing another statewide shut down.
Updated: Nov. 12, 2020 at 5:44 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Shawnee County is seeing its worst outbreak of COVID-19 in the community since the pandemic began, leading the county health officer to issue new restrictions aimed at slowing the spread.
Updated: Nov. 11, 2020 at 5:51 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A local Vietnam veteran was presented with a Quilt of Valor on Veteran’s Day for his service and sacrifice to our country.
Updated: Nov. 11, 2020 at 5:34 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Washburn Rural High School’s Air Force JROTC livestreamed their ceremony honoring veterans to the rest of the school.
Updated: Nov. 9, 2020 at 9:30 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
A Nurse at Rolling Hills Health & Rehab facility in Topeka said working in long-term care is her passion.
Updated: Nov. 9, 2020 at 9:50 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Eleanor Parnell has tried to cross something off her bucket list every year since her 80th birthday. On Friday, she turned 99 years old, but due to the pandemic, she wasn’t able to celebrate in her usual daredevil fashion.
Updated: Nov. 8, 2020 at 8:06 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
One person was shot early Sunday morning in Topeka.
Updated: Nov. 7, 2020 at 1:12 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Students in Washburn Tech’s carpentry program are using their skills to create some holiday magic for the Topeka Zoo.
Updated: Nov. 7, 2020 at 11:09 AM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts and Becky Goff
The Dirty Dawg Saloon in Aggieville is being forced to close after multiple violations of a Riley County health order.
Updated: Nov. 6, 2020 at 5:35 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
With the county now in the ‘uncontrolled’ category, County Health Officer, Dr. Gianfranco Pezzino, said there is heightened concern heading into the holiday season.
Updated: Nov. 5, 2020 at 5:51 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
The Shawnee County District Attorney is beginning to review information on a shooting incident that injured three teens Halloween night in the 1300 block of NW Eugene.
Updated: Nov. 4, 2020 at 5:34 PM CST
|By Alyssa Willetts
Gov. Laura Kelly said in a news conference Wednesday that while the election is at the forefront of everyone’s mind, COVID-19 did not take a break.