Subaru Awards Recipients 2024

January

Meals on Wheels Rolling Along with Dyer’s Subaru Love Promise

Left to Right Dyer Subaru’s Fixed Operations Director, Ben Williams, Executive Manager Jonathan Hardie, Mike Smith- Senior Resource Association Charity Pro-Am Golf Tournament Chair, Liz Bruner - Senior Resource Association’s director of philanthropy, Brandon Reynolds – Dyer Subaru service manager, Ronnie Franklin- general sales manager.

For the third year in a row, Dyer Subaru will be trying to give away a Subaru on Monday, February 12th to help Senior Resource Association’s Meals on Wheels Program in Indian River County.

And if you’re a good enough golfer and a little bit lucky, you might be driving that Subaru Outback home on a sunny Monday afternoon, with a crowd of other golfers cheering for you…and maybe just a wee bit jealous, too.

This year’s Charity Pro-Am Golf Tournament at Riomar Country Club is extra special because it’s the 50th anniversary of the Senior Resource Association, which helps provide healthy, nutritious, hot meals to hundreds of seniors who might not be able to shop and prepare such meals for themselves.

You might be surprised to learn how many of your own neighbors benefit from the Meals on Wheels program and activities of the Senior Resource Association. On February 12th, participants in the Pro-Am Tournament will have an opportunity to not only help those seniors, but maybe drive home in a beautiful, brand new Subaru Outback, too.

February

Dyer Difference Award Assists Families

Dyer Sales Manager Frank Felkey, Dogs for Life Founder and CEO Shelly Ferger, US Air Force Veteran and Trainer Cheryl Marshall, Dyer Executive Manager Jonathan Hardie

It’s no secret that Subaru loves our four-legged family members and doesn’t just ‘talk the talk’ when it comes to sharing that love.

Subaru’s Love Promise is all about helping to support and encourage organizations which share the love for pets, too, and in Indian River County, Dogs for Life has been ‘walking the walk’ and supporting both animals and veterans for more than twenty years.

This month, Dyer Subaru shared a little love with Dogs for Life in the form of a $5,000 donation and a ‘two paws up’ for its dedication to community and veterans it serves.

Since 2001, Dogs for Life has been turning lives around by providing independence and self-reliance for people residing in Indian River and St Lucie Counties in Florida who need assistance through specialized training.

Whether it’s through PTSD Support Group Meetings, Hearing and Service Dogs for Veterans, an off-leash dog park, or teaching veterans how to help and train service dogs themselves, Dogs for Life’s commitment to those who have served us is commendable.

One of the largest fundraisers for the nonprofit organization is a wonderful annual military-themed dance and show called Patriots for Puppies, which helps raise funds to support the work of Dogs for Life in Indian River County.

March

Tons of Turtles Make a Coastal Connection

Dyer Subaru Executive Manager Jonathan Hardie, Kendra Cope Bergman, Maddie Phelan, Celeste McWilliams, and John Dyer

Every year, the nonprofit organization, Coastal Connections, hosts over 9,000 sea turtle nests to help ensure the recovery of these beautiful and endangered creatures which have roamed the earth’s seas for millions of years. But the organization does more than host nests.

According to Coastal Connections, “During nesting season, you may see sea turtle nests protected with wooden stakes, tape, and signs. These nests are monitored daily until they hatch to track influential factors for their survival.

On Easter weekend, hundreds of runners will take part in the Tipsy Turtle 2-Mile Fun and Festival, a one-of-a-kind race that takes participants directly along the beautiful oceanside businesses and beachfront landscape that makes Vero so unique. It’s a celebration of the start of Sea Turtle Nesting Season, which extends from March through the end of October.

The race is scheduled for Saturday, March 30th at Jaycee Bach Park. The race begins at 8 a.m. and finishes up with the turtle festival in the park. There will be free kids' activities including the famous “Hatchling Dash”, and eco-egg hunt, stations where kids and be a “Biologist in training” and so much more in this true beach race that helps sea turtles survive.

April

Lights! Camera! Action!

Vero Beach Film Festival Associate Director Phil Osborne, Sponsorship and Fundraising Chair Gary Mastro celebrate the Festival with Dyer Sales Manager Frank Felkey, Dyer Subaru Executive Manager Jonathan Hardie,VBFF Executive Director David Yakir, and Sales Managers Thomas McGee and Carlos Vasquez.

The lights went down, and a hush fell over the crowd as the Vero Beach Film Festival took the stage and the city of Vero Beach by storm.

There were comedies, tragedies, and memorable moments galore as the Festival spotlighted creativity, artistry, and the importance of entertainment on a community, and the Dyer Automotive Group was delighted to participate in this year’s event, the seventh annual Vero Beach Film Festival.

Festival organizers believe that independent filmmaking enriches our lives and our community both culturally and economically, and the magic of film is that it introduces us to new places, touches our hearts, and helps us to find solutions and solidarity in challenging times.

The Vero Beach Film Festival also helps spotlight the community, its beauty, restaurants, vistas, and residents and provides support to other local charities, too, through red carpet screenings, filmmaker events, and parties during the festival weekend.

Believing that film unites us, the organizers of the Vero Beach Film Festival have created a way for the entire community to share in the creativity and entertainment that can help change lives and improve the world one frame at a time, and Dyer Subaru’s Share the Love Program was honored to help with this unifying festival that is loved by so many.

May

Dyer Subaru supports Operation Warm

The family at Dyer Subaru in Vero Beach knows that a child simply cannot be confident or succeed in school when she is cold, hungry, or aching because the shoes she is wearing are two sizes too small.

That’s why Dyer Subaru supports Operation Warm, and this month, that special pairing helped match local children in need with a chance to be fitted with brand-new shoes that will offer comfort and protection while helping to build confidence, too. It’s all part of Subaru’s Share the Love commitment to the community they serve.

Dyer Subaru and Operation Warm worked with the Hope for Families Center in Vero Beach, and the result left all participants breathless and exhilarated.

“Most of the kids had never had their feet measured or gone through the process of getting a new pair of shoes,” said Lydia Lander, Marketing and Events Coordinator for Hope for Families Center. “That’s one little life skill that goes by the wayside when homeless,” she added.

The process was equally rewarding for the staff members at Dyer Subaru, who helped the children measure their feet and find the perfect shoe to fit their style and size.

To say that the kids walked a little taller as they left the event would be a bit of an understatement; they squealed, shrieked, jumped, and sprinted off in their new athletic shoes, ready to take on the world with more comfort, energy, and confidence. And that was exactly the point.

June

Share the Love Event 2023-2024

Left to Right: Jesse Cruz, Nick Paquin, Brandon Reynolds, Angel Pietsch, Frank Felkey, Bob Ceo, Cameron Andre, Breanne Georgetown, Jason Raguz, Jonathan Hardie, Tommy McGee

The Subaru Love Promise has five core pillars — Environment, Health, Education, Pets, and Community — and the annual Subaru Share the Love® Event, aims to create change in the areas we and our owners care about the most. Subaru Share the Love retailers have donated more than $288 million and supported over 2,300 hometown charities. The program has also helped protect, rescue, and care for more than 118,000 animals, and has donated and delivered more than 4.6 million meals to seniors, too. This year, when you get an oil change or buy a car at Dyer Subaru in Vero Beach, you’re also helping LaPorte Farms and Little Birthday Angels, two wonderful charities founded and working right here in our community.

Little Birthday Angels had its start in 2014 when Brian and Angel Pietsch and their son, Hunter and Seth, learned that a local homeless shelter did not have funds available to celebrate the birthday of a young resident. The family gathered friends and neighbors to help make a birthday celebration happen and then simply continued finding a way to celebrate birthdays for many homeless children in the community, working with shelters, schools, and homeless foundations. It is a gift of love that helps children feel celebrated and valued in the community, and every time you get an oil change, have your car serviced at Dyer Subaru, or purchase a vehicle there, you’re helping to continue sharing the love.

LaPorte Farms petting farm is a uniquely beautiful farm located in Sebastian, which was established in 1994 by Sebastian resident Laura LaPorte. Laura grew up on a farm with cattle, goats, chickens and horses, and her love for animals is carried out today in this meticulously-maintained, handicap-accessible five-acre farm which provides a safe environment for individuals and families of all ages and abilities to enjoy nature and interact with animals. At LaPorte Farms, children (of all ages) create lifelong memories and share moments of joy and togetherness. LaPorte Farms becomes a magical place at Christmas-time, too, with decorations and fun for all, and the therapeutic benefits of being around animals helps make this family farm an experience of love and healing for all.

July

Subaru Share the Love Comes Wrapped in Love

Approximately every three minutes, a person in the U.S. is diagnosed with a blood cancer like leukemia, lymphoma, or myeloma. The recovery can be long and often leaves patients feeling weak, cold, and isolated.

That’s why Dyer Subaru in Vero Beach partners with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) and local cancer treatment centers to provide gifts of warm blankets and encouraging messages of hope for patients undergoing treatment.

Dyer Subaru has joined with other Subaru dealerships throughout the country to help support nearly 350,000 cancer patients with blankets and encouraging messages of hope written by Dyer Subaru customers and staff members. It’s all part of the Subaru Love Promise, which believes in being a positive force in the communities, not just with donations, but with actions that set an example for others to follow.

The program has also helped protect, rescue, and care for more than 118,000 animals, and has donated and delivered more than 4.6 million meals to seniors, too.