South Florida business leader and community activist Rodney Barreto, chair of the Super Bowl Host Committee, has been selected as the recipient of the Biscayne Bay Kiwanis Club’s 2012 Michael Shores Citizen of the Year Award.
Barreto will receive the pres- tigious award at the 33rd Biscayne Bay Gala, Oct. 27, at the Jungle Island Treetop Ballroom. The event begins at 6 p.m. with a cocktail reception and silent auction, followed at 7 p.m. by dinner and live auction.
The cocktail reception will feature an ensemble from the South Florida Youth Symphony while the Sons of MyStro, the wildly popular violin duo recently featured during a Miami Heat playoff game, will per- form during the dinner.
The award is named for Michael Shores, who as a philanthropically minded attorney, made numerous contributions to the Miami- Dade County community throughout his life.
“We are fortunate to have an individual such as Rodney Barreto as our Citizen of the Year,” said David Kahn, Biscayne Bay Kiwanis president. “He has done so much for the South Florida community and is an incredibly community-oriented person who makes South Florida a better place.”
As head of the Barreto Group Inc., a diversified company specializing in corporate and public affairs consulting, Barreto is most proud of his active involvement with the Super Bowl, beginning in 1989. During his tenure as chair of the 2007 and 2009 Super Bowl Host Committees, Barreto helped raise more than $40 million and in in-kind contributions.
Barreto also is the founding partner of Floridian Partners LLC, a consulting firm that develops and manages effective corporate and public affairs strategies for a wide variety of clients based in Florida and throughout the United States. The firm has offices in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa and Tallahassee.
A board member for U.S. Century Bank, Barreto is a member of the Florida Council of 100 and sits on the board of the Baptist Hospital Health Foundation.
“I am honored to be recognized by the Biscayne Bay Kiwanis Club, which has served our community — particularly children — since 1950,” Barreto said. “This means a great deal to me and my family because we have always believed that you must give back to your community and leave it a better place for generations to come.”
Past recipients of this award, include Dolphins founder Joe Robbie, Coach Jimmy Johnson, broadcast journalist Ralph Renick, Miami Commissioner Athalie Range, U.S. Rep. William “Bill” Lehman, former Miami Herald publisher David Lawrence Jr., Baseball Hall of Famer Andre Dawson, Richard Baron, Joseph Klock Jr. and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Dr. Pedro Greer Jr., U.S. Rep. Dante B. Fascell, and Marjory Stoneman Douglas.
Tickets to the event are $100 ($1,000 for a table of 10) through Aug. 31. After that date, tickets will be $125 ($1,250 for a table). Various sponsorships of the event — expect- ed to be attended by approximately 500 of South Florida’s leading business people — are available, ranging from $2,500 Silver Sponsor to a $25,000 Presenting Sponsor.
For information on table purchases, event sponsorship, or program advertising, contact Will Reich at 305-733-0062 or send email to gala@biscaynebaykiwanisclub.org.
