Community Activities
You’re almost as likely to find Dickie V on the streets of his
hometown as you would behind the microphone during hoops season! Learn about
Dickie V’s latest activities—from a scholarship event with the Boys and Girls Club
to a fundraiser in downtown Lakewood Ranch, there is never a dull moment when
Dickie V’s around Sarasota!
Recently, the Payton Wright Pediatric Cancer Research Grant for the V Foundation was the fortunate recipient of funds raised Anne Goyer and her team at FIN-X ’07, the international conference and expo for industrial finishers.
Anne Goyer explained, “I was inspired by the recent battle a 5-year old from our community fought against a rare form of brain cancer. Her name is Payton Wright,” Goyer continued. “Most of us have been touched by someone who has or is fighting this dreaded disease. After following Payton’s battle for the past year, I knew making a donation to fight cancer in Payton’s name was a great idea. She and her family fought a courageous and inspirational battle. Sadly, we lost Payton on May 29 of this year, but her spirit lives on.”
Read more: Payton Wright Pediatric Cancer Donation
I had a lot of fun on 10/10/07 as I shot a special Public Service
Announcement (PSA) for one of my favorite organizations, The Boys and
Girls Clubs of Sarasota County.
Under the leadership of Mack Reid, the Boys and Girls Clubs are doing some wonderful things right here in my community.
The youngsters who attend the Boys and Girls Clubs have the wonderful opportunity to engage in a wide variety of after-school activities led by some of the most dedicated and talented people serving kids.
Read more: Boys and Girls Club of Sarasota County PSA
On Tuesday, Oct. 2nd my family and I got a special treat as Tampa Bay Lightning Head Coach, John Tortorella invited us to watch his team practice before his season gets underway on Thursday.
The entire Lightning organization, including Arlynn Haarer, Jay Preble and Bill Wickett all in the Lightning PR/Communications office, could not have been nicer to me and my family. Upon arrival they greeted us with personalized Lightning jerseys (for me and my five grandkids) and allowed me to take my grandkids into the Lightning locker room to meet some players and take photos.
Read more: Tampa Bay Lightning Practice
On Tuesday, September 18th I had a terrific opportunity to speak at the Horizons Academy (Grades 4-12) in Manatee County Florida. Horizons Academy is an alternative school for some of our area’s youngsters who have had a troubled past.
Horizons Academy offers these kids an opportunity to improve upon their situation and their lives and begin a fresh start for their future. I spoke to the group as requested by Deputy Harris in the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. I took my time with the group to talk about the importance of making good decisions in life in order to lead a successful, productive and happy life.
Read more: Horizons Academy - Bradenton, FL
I was selected to be a part of the Because it Matters media campaign created by the Gulf Coast Community Foundation. The goal of the campaign is to encourage our citizens to communicate in a more civil and productive manner.
I had the opportunity to offer a personal testimonial about the importance of thinking positively each day of your life. By having a positive attitude for each day, you can achieve your goals and make your dreams a reality.
Read more: Gulf Coast Community Foundation
The Sarasota Sports Foundation is a local non-profit funding organization that is doing some amazing things to prevent the cycle of child abuse, neglect and abandonment in our local community.
Founded by Graci McGillicuddy just a few years ago, the Sarasota Sports Foundation has already raised significant funds that have been granted to agencies in our area that are helping put an end to child abuse.
I had a great time shooting the public service announcement to promote their upcoming 3rd Annual celebrity gala and golf tournament which will be held at the Longboat Key Club and Resort.
Read more: The Sarasota Sports Foundation
I had a great time on August 20th as my wife, Lorraine, and I had a special evening of dinner and a movie in our home with the members, coaches and administrators of the 2007-08 Women’s Varsity Volleyball Team from Out-of-Door Academy (ODA) here in Sarasota, Florida.
The dinner was the result of the players’ parents’ generosity by being the high bidder on the “Dinner and a Movie with Dick Vitale” at the school’s 2006 Extravaganza fundraiser event which raised over $430,000 for the school. The girls were a lot of fun and seemed very excited about having a great season this year. After the team enjoyed the great food prepared by Gordon Lippe of Gordon’s Gourmet, I invited them up to our movie theatre and shared with them some of my insights on what it takes to be successful both on and off the court.
Read more: The Out-of-Door Academy Varsity Volleyball Team
August 17th my wife and I shared a terrific evening with the head coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning, John Tortorella and his wife Christine. They drove to Lakewood Ranch to meet us for dinner and to discuss ideas about fundraising for a cause that both John and I are passionate about - cancer.
We decided to have a private dinner for all the season ticket holders before a home Lightning game in which I will talk to everyone gathered. All donations from the evening will go towards benefitting the V Foundation, specifically towards a pediatric grant for cancer research in memory of Payton Wright.
John is a terrific leader and a terrific human being. Tampa is lucky to have him on board!
I had a blast this past Friday, August 10th as I was in the studio with a great team of people to produce and record my latest motivational DVDs which will be ready to purchase on my website in September 2007. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to speak to so many great people from elementary school age youngsters to college students to world-class athletes to corporate executives of Fortune 500 companies. I have had the honor of working with the Washington Speakers Bureau who has booked me to speak to groups all across America. In doing so, I have received hundreds of requests from fans asking me to produce a DVD in which they could bring my message right into their home, school, office, etc. Well, we finally did it and I am so excited about it! We have started with three different DVDs each on a specific topic that I feel passionate about…they are:
Read more: Release of Motivational DVDs
What a fun afternoon I had when I took my twin grandsons, Connor and Jake (age 4) with me to watch a basketball camp being held for youngsters in Sarasota.
My two little grandsons love hoops so I thought they would get a thrill watching some older kids participate in a camp being run by Sarasota Christian High School Basketball Coach, Phil Helmuth. Coach Helmuth even let Jake and Connor do some of the passing drills and shooting drills.
While I was there, I spoke to the campers for a few minutes about
making good choices and about following your dreams. It was a great
afternoon on one of my days off!
Read more: Sarasota Christian Basketball Camp - 2007
On Tuesday, July 10th, I had the opportunity to go to one of my favorite places…The Lee Wetherington Boys & Girls Club of Sarasota, Florida. The work being done there by the personnel under the leadership of Mack Reid is nothing shy of remarkable. You cannot find a more dedicated and committed group of people as they work tirelessly to help the young people right here in my local community. My wife and I have been longtime supporters of the Boys & Girls Clubs across America, and locally, Lorraine and I have awarded 5 scholarships to deserving youngsters for the past ten years. This year marked the 10th anniversary of our scholarships so it was particularly meaningful for me and my family. This year’s recipients were five remarkable individuals who are incredible young people who are working hard to build a bright future for themselves, their families and their community. The winners of the scholarships were:
Read more: Boys and Girls Club Scholarships
