Photo provided by Indian River County Sheriff’s Office and Nick Verola
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Sheriff’s office personnel put a hometown spin on their #LipSyncChallenge video by singing along to a song by local country singer and songwriter Jake Owen.
“We wanted our lip sync challenge to have a hometown feel, something our residents would be proud of,” Indian River County Sheriff’s spokesman Maj. Eric Flowers said. “There are lots of other videos that don’t have connections to the town. It’s just random officers (singing) random songs.”
Flowers said he sent out an email last Wednesday asking for participants to take on the challenge, following other law enforcement agencies across the nation who made their own Lip Sync videos . About 25 employees, including deputies, dispatchers and more, joined in on the fun.
Local videographer Nick Verola of Verola Studio filmed different personnel singing Owen’s “I Was Jack (You Were Diane) for the event. It took about four hours to film all the scenes, Flowers said.
The video starts out with Owen speaking about the sheriff’s office taking on the challenge.
“I got word from a little bird that the sheriff’s office entered a lip sync contest and happened to use my song,” Owen said in the video. “I’m excited to see this.”
The video includes shots of sheriff’s personnel – some dressed in T-rex costumes- singing along to the good beat, banjo-inflected song in the dispatch room and inside the jail. Viewers can also see Flowers taking part in the contest while taking a break from hosting C.O.P.S. (Community Outreach and Public Service) Radio, at Vero’s Voice Studios.
The video shows the Indian River Lagoon and shots of downtown Vero Beach. Viewers can also spot scenes of K-9 and SWAT team training that was held at a local facility.
Sheriff’s Cpt. Milo Thorton sings to the camera while dancing at the Vero Beach High School Citrus Bowl. In one scene, sheriff’s deputy Teddy Floyd holds up a sign that reads, “We Love You Jake.”
Sheriff Deryl Loar challenges St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara to join the contest toward the end of the video.
Viewers can watch the video on the Sheriff’s Office Facebook Page.
