April
Members of the Vero Beach High School Marching Band receive the Dyer Difference Award. Left to Right: Will Dyer, Lance Lunceford, Mikayla Tupek, Band Director Mr. Page Howell, Mary McGrath, Tatiana Dyer, John Dyer, Colin Rhodes, Jared Lamothe.
High Notes and Furry Friends Receive Dyer Difference Awards
Marching to a slightly different drummer is the Vero Beach High School Marching Band, which was chosen as the Dyer Difference Award recipient in Indian River County by the staff of Dyer Chevrolet Mazda Subaru. The band, which has received consecutive “Superior” ratings since 1988 from the Florida Bandmasters’ Association State Music Performance Assessment also earned the National Band Association’s Blue Ribbon Award of Excellence for the Southern Division and has been invited to perform in the 2019 New Year’s Day Parade in London, England. It’s an honor to be invited and a goal that the 200 students in the Vero Beach High School Marching Band is working hard to reach. As recipients of the April Dyer Difference Award and the accompanying $3,000 check, the group will be a little closer to achieving its goal.
May
Pictured are Jonathan Holmes of Dyer Chevrolet, Kim Prado of Youth Guidance Donation Fund of Indian River County, WPBF Anchor Felicia Rodriguez, Felix Cruz of Youth Guidance Donation Fund of Indian River County, and Jonathan Hardie of Dyer Chevrolet Mazda Subaru in Vero Beach.
Education and Mentoring Programs Receive Dyer Difference Awards
Youth mentoring and guidance were also priorities for the staff members at Dyer Chevrolet Mazda Subaru in Vero Beach as the decision was made to recognize Youth Guidance Donation Fund of Indian River County. Every year since 1973, Youth Guidance has been serving at-risk youth from low-income, single-parent families by providing mentoring relationships and self-esteem building guidance. In collaboration with the Exchange Club of the Treasure Coast, Youth Guidance organized a leadership club for teenagers to help provide guidance, mentoring, and leadership opportunities that change lives and focus on the values of community service, child abuse prevention, Americanism, and youth. With assistance from the May Dyer Difference Award, on June 9th, Youth Guidance will host its annual fundraiser, the Tropical Night Luau at the Grand Harbor Golf Club to help continue the important work of guiding and mentoring youth for a better and brighter future.
November
Arc of Indian River County
Everyone needs to feel useful, productive, and part of the community, and since 1975, the Arc of Indian River County has been helping to ensure that everyone, including adults with special needs, have an opportunity to work and be valued members of the community. As advocates for adults with special needs, the Arc of Indian River County employs 80 individuals and serves more than 200 adults. In addition to work opportunities, the Arc of IRC also provides group homes where special needs individuals live in a family setting with day-to-day living skills, meal planning, laundry, and household chores, and behavioral services, transportation, and even youth outreach. The Arc of Indian River County’s dedication to helping everyone achieve life goals and feel valued in the community was the reason the group was selected to be honored with the November Dyer Difference Award in Indian River County.
Staff members from Arc of Indian River County receive the November Dyer Difference Award.
January
March
Indian River County – Will & Tatiana Dyer (left) and Nicole Schneider (right) from Dyer Chevrolet present the Dyer Difference Award to 4-H Board President Katie Profeta and board members Allison Cloughley and Christine DeBraal.
Dyer Difference Awards Recognize the Fours
One of the nation’s largest youth development and empowerment organizations is 4-H, and the Indian River County 4-H Foundation is comprised of 4-H alumni, friends, and supporters dedicated to promoting and supporting the mission of 4-H, to develop citizenship, leadership, responsibility and life skills of youth through experiential learning programs and a positive youth development approach. The program focuses on hands-on learning activities in areas like science, healthy living, and food security and promotes responsibility and growth through the use of one’s head, heart, hands, and health. The March Dyer Difference Award in Indian River County recognizes the importance of the 4-H program to the youth of our community.
February
Indian River County – Will & Tatiana Dyer, Sandy Seeley - Firefighters Fair Indian River County and Jonathan Hardie from Dyer Chevrolet.
St. Lucie County – Receiving the Dyer Difference Award for St. Lucie County are Lori Hirsch, Gail Wininger, David Long, with Dyer Chevrolet’s Jonathan Holmes and Tatiana Dyer.
Dyer Difference Awards Honor Angels and Firefighters
Sometimes it’s because of a past trauma; other times it’s a series of unfortunate events, and still other times, people become homeless because of mental health or substance abuse issues. Regardless of the cause, being homeless and living on the streets is not something you would wish on anyone because it’s a hard, lonely life to live. In St. Lucie County, Angels of Hope Outreach Ministries provides hands-on service to individuals living on the streets or in the areas many homeless camps in the wooded areas and fields right in our own back yards. Each week, volunteers provide food, clothing, and hope to individuals, many of them veterans, who find themselves without a place to call home. The group also provides food and supplies for the animals who often accompany the area’s homeless population, employment, health and human service resources, transportation and counseling. It is this concern for others and the effort to help end homelessness in our community which made the decision to award Angels of Hope Outreach Ministries with the February Dyer Difference Award for St. Lucie County.
Since 1980, the Firefighters’ Indian River County Fair has provided more than 50,000 residents and visitors with a grand activity filled with fun, food, games, and a chance to benefit a variety of local charitable organizations. This year’s fair, scheduled from March 9th through March 18th, is no exception, with proceeds benefitting organizations like MDA, the Red Cross, One Blood, United Against Poverty, the Indian River County 4-H Association, local scholarships, and the Indian River County Burn Fund. Volunteers for the Firefighters’ Fair and members of the Dyer staff family celebrated the announcement of the group as the February recipients of the Dyer Difference Award in Indian River County.
Indian River County Award Recipients 2018
Empowering our communities, accelerating the future.