In a moving tribute to selfless service and quiet heroism, the Rotary Club of Ponte Vedra Beach and\u00a0The Recorder honored seven individuals at the 34th Annual Local Heroes Awards on Thursday, May 14, at Marsh Landing Country Club.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Established in 1993 by Ponte Vedra Beach Rotarians Vic DiGenti and Chuck Day in partnership with\u00a0The Recorder, the Local Heroes Awards have become a cherished tradition \u2014 celebrating everyday citizens whose extraordinary acts of kindness and service uplift the community and embody the Rotary motto: \u201cService Above Self.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rotarian and Local Heroes Chair Steve Crosby served as emcee for the evening, introducing the 2026 honorees whose dedication continues to shape a stronger, more compassionate Ponte Vedra Beach: Mike Shreve, Barbara Potter, James Streit, Dr. David Yoder, Jorge Rivera, Britney Rhodes and James \u201cJimbo\u201d Stockton.<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether, these recipients embody the spirit of compassion, generosity and community leadership that the Local Heroes Awards were created to celebrate,\u201d Crosby said.<\/p>\n
Mike Shreve was honored for his decades of leadership with Bright Holidays, a Ponte Vedra Beach-founded nonprofit that provides clothing, food, toys and essential items to underprivileged children and families throughout Northeast Florida. Now entering its 23rd year, Bright Holidays served more than 1,100 children in St. Johns County during the 2024 holiday season alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Working closely with local school principals and counselors, Shreve and an army of volunteers ensure each child receives new clothing, shoes, toys, books, sleeping bags and grocery gift cards during the holidays. Remarkably, the organization operates entirely through volunteer efforts, with virtually every dollar going directly to helping families in need.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re proud of our organization, and we\u2019re going to keep it going,\u201d Shreve said. \u201cThe schools know which children are struggling, and we simply try to make sure those kids feel cared for and remembered during the holidays.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Barbara Potter was recognized for more than 11 years of dedicated volunteer service at Volunteers in Medicine, a free medical clinic serving uninsured working families across Northeast Florida. Since beginning her volunteer work in 2013, Potter has contributed more than 2,500 hours helping patients navigate medical care with compassion, professionalism and empathy.\u00a0A retired health care executive, Potter has played a vital role at the clinic\u2019s front desk, where she welcomes patients, answers questions and helps ease fears during difficult moments.<\/p>\n
\u201cVolunteering is all about the impact we have on these patients,\u201d Potter said. \u201cEvery week, you see the gratitude on their faces \u2014 whether it\u2019s helping them receive medication they couldn\u2019t otherwise afford or simply reassuring them that someone cares. That\u2019s the most rewarding part of the experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scoutmasters James Streit and Dr. David Yoder were honored for their years of mentorship and leadership with Scout Troop 277 at Christ Episcopal Church. Since 2017, the two men have guided countless young people through scouting programs, helping shape future leaders through service, responsibility and character development.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Both longtime scouting families, Streit and Yoder have devoted years to growing alongside the youth they mentor, serving in leadership roles ranging from den leaders and Cubmasters to Scoutmasters and troop committee members. Their influence extends beyond camping trips and merit badges to fostering integrity, confidence and community involvement among the next generation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBy planting the seeds of service early, today\u2019s youth become tomorrow\u2019s leaders,\u201d Streit said. \u201cScouting is really about showing up for others, and when I look around this room, I see people who\u2019ve spent their lives doing exactly that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jorge Rivera was recognized for using storytelling, journalism and documentary filmmaking to preserve the history, culture and voices of St. Johns County. Over the past decade, Rivera has produced award-winning documentaries on veterans, prisoners of war, the Korean and Vietnam wars, and local history, while also hosting his longtime television program,\u00a0\u201cFirst Coast TV.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rivera has dedicated his career to highlighting the people and stories often overlooked by traditional media \u2014 from veterans and artists to community leaders and everyday residents making a difference behind the scenes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I came to St. Johns County, I realized there were all these wonderful people who didn\u2019t have a voice,\u201d Rivera said. \u201cI figured I\u2019d become that voice and help tell the stories of people who truly love this community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Britney Rhodes was honored for founding Hatcher\u2019s Stocking, a nonprofit initiative created in memory of her stillborn son that now brings comfort, hope and healing to vulnerable children throughout the community. The organization partners with local nonprofits serving at-risk children and provides stockings filled with comforting, therapeutic items designed to help children process trauma and difficult emotions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To date, Hatcher\u2019s Stocking has served more than 1,600 children and Rhodes has become a tireless advocate for children facing abuse, foster care placement and other hardships \u2014 all while raising three young children of her own.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGod revealed His heart to me for His children many years ago,\u201d Rhodes said. \u201cOnly He could take the heartbreak of losing our first little boy and turn it into a mission to love and support children in such a unique way. We are truly more impactful together.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
James \u201cJimbo\u201d Stockton was recognized for his humanitarian work through Beaches Rescue and Recovery Mission, Island Crisis Flyers and Feeding the Hundreds. Through these ministries, Stockton has dedicated his life to helping individuals facing homelessness, addiction, mental health struggles and spiritual crises while also leading disaster relief efforts throughout the Caribbean and beyond.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Beaches Rescue and Recovery Mission \u2014 the first rescue mission in the Beaches community \u2014 provides long-term housing, meals and intensive recovery support designed to help people rebuild their lives with dignity and hope. Through Island Crisis Flyers, Stockton and volunteers have delivered more than 100,000 pounds of emergency supplies and medical aid to communities devastated by hurricanes and natural disasters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe number one thing we hear from people who graduate from the mission is, \u2018This place saved my life,\u2019\u201d Stockton said. \u201cI\u2019ve seen so many people struggling with mental health, addiction and homelessness, and it\u2019s lit a passion inside me to try to save lives and give people hope.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a moving tribute to selfless service and quiet heroism, the Rotary Club of Ponte Vedra Beach and\u00a0The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":281234,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-281233","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281233","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281233"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281233\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/281234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=281233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=281233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}