Each year, Indian River Impact 100 members and prospective members have an opportunity to visit with the group’s latest Community Partners during Impact Week and see first-hand what the organizations have accomplished in the nine months since being awarded their $100,000 transformational grants.
Representatives of the four 2014 Community Partners also gathered last Wednesday at the Quail Valley Boat House for a panel discussion and cocktail reception sponsored by Vero Insurance.
“We have a blue-ribbon panel here today,” said Carolyn Antenen, Impact Week chairwoman, introducing Joel Bray, founder of Shining Light Garden; Michael Naffziger, Theatre and Technical Director at Indian River Charter High School; Edie Widder, founder and CEO of ORCA (Ocean Research and Conservation Association); and Dr. Michael Kelley, executive director, Scott Center for Autism Treatment.
Judy Peschio, Impact 100 president, led the discussion, giving each an opportunity to speak about how the money was spent, where the projects currently stand and the overall impact of the grants.
The Indian River Charter High School was able to turn its previously open-air courtyard into a versatile performance and community venue, building a larger stage and purchasing chairs, two high-end projectors, and a dome with dropdown sides to shelter it from the elements.
“The No. 1 impact is enriching these kid’s lives; that’s the bottom line,” said Naffziger, referring to the students’ excitement and school pride. “It’s allowing our school to continue being a leader in the community and impacting these students’ lives, which in turn will impact the community. When we watch graduation, the top 10 percent of the class is almost always young women. Obviously they’re the leaders in the high school community, and hopefully they will go on to make the impact you have.”
ORCA is creating “Kilroy Academy,” with students interacting in real-world science through data streaming videos from Kilroy water quality monitors, 25 of which will be installed along the length of the Indian River Lagoon. “It’s designed to answer that often-asked question – ‘Why do we have to learn this stuff?’ It makes it real to them,” says Widder. “It’s having way more than just local impact; it’s having a national impact.” ORCA previously received a $16,000 grant for its Pollution Mapping project as a 2011 runner-up, and in 2012 received a transformational grant for its innovative collaboration with Charter High School students. Both received nationwide attention; most recently through an article in the Journal of Marine Education, featuring IRCHS students on the cover.
Shining Light Garden, which donates 100 percent of its farm-fresh produce to charitable organizations and those in need, purchased equipment with the grant money – a tractor to replace a walk-behind tiller, a truck, refrigerated trailer, cultivator, sprayer, utility vehicle and various other supplies, which has allowed the organization to plant all 20 acres at once and provide food for more people than ever before. “Every bushel of produce that’s going out of there now, you guys were a part of. It’s almost like you were there planting the seeds,” said Bray. “Your gift is the gift that’s going to keep on giving.”
As the result of its grant, the Scott Center for Autism Treatment was able to establish and staff a first-ever autism clinic in Vero Beach and Kelley says the response from physicians and families has been fantastic. “The need has been much greater than we actually anticipated,” said Kelley. He said the center had expected to do about three evaluations per month but is actually doing roughly three times that amount and is in the process of hiring additional staff to see children on the waitlist.
They all praised for Impact 100 for giving their organizations an opportunity to broaden the scope of their vision and touch ever more lives. Membership is open through Feb. 28 to all women who wish to contribute $1,000; the number of transformational grants is dependent on that year’s membership. For more information, visit www.impact100ir.com.
