Earth Day happens to fall during National Volunteer Week, so Mercedes-Benz USA did the natural thing.

More than 75 MBUSA employees volunteered to revitalize an outdoor space at Atlanta’s Southwest DeKalb High School.

The project was one of many in MBUSA’s fifth annual National Volunteer Week initiative, during which hundreds of the company’s employees participated in service events across the nation.

In a news release, MBUSA said those efforts are all part of its Driving Your Future corporate social responsibility mission, which supports education and safety programs and resources to empower young people for future success.

“National Volunteer Week represents an important moment for Mercedes-Benz USA to demonstrate our commitment to advancing social change through volunteerism and awareness,” MBUSA president and CEO Adam Chamberlain said, “and it is just one part of a much broader, year-round effort.

“Our teams and fantastic dealer partners are deeply committed to strengthening the communities where we live and work, and through Driving Your Future we support educational programs.”

At Southwest Dekalb, MBUSA partnered with former Atlanta United goalkeeper Brad Guzan to bring a teacher courtyard and student garden back to life, adding new foliage, painting murals and assembling outdoor furniture.

“It’s always rewarding to give back to a place that supports and helps shape future generations,” Guzan said. “Providing support for Southwest DeKalb High School’s outdoor space on Earth Day was the perfect opportunity to create a space where students and educators can go beyond the classroom.”

The company also recognized 10 Mercedes-Benz dealerships with its inaugural Philanthropic Leadership Award, celebrating the impact dealerships are making in their local communities.

The award honors dealerships that best demonstrate charitable leadership and are strengthening their communities through diverse philanthropic partnerships and hands-on service. The winners, and the nonprofit organizations they’ve partnered with, include:

  • Mercedes-Benz of Annapolis (Md.) — Seeds 4 Success

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Asheville (N.C.) — St. Michael’s Soldiers

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Austin (Texas) — Center for Child Protection

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Covington (La.) — Scott’s Wish

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Edison (N.J.) — Boomer Esiason Foundation

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Orange Park (Fla.) — The Arc Jacksonville

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Owings Mills (Md.) — YMCA of Central Maryland

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Silver Spring (Md.) — ShareBaby

 

  • Mercedes-Benz of Sugar Land (Texas) — Gigi’s Playhouse

 

Mercedes-Benz of Wilkes-Barre (Pa.) — Fork Over Love

Rick Case Kia Sunrise selected for Kia President’s Club

Rick Case Kia Sunrise is once again a member of the club.

The club is Kia America’s President’s Club, and the Sunrise, Fla., dealership has now been selected for the honor for seven consecutive years. In a news release, Rick Case Automotive Group said the club includes the top 50 dealers among the nearly 800 U.S. Kia stores, based on the sales performance and customer satisfaction.

“I am very proud to represent the Kia brand,” Rick Case Automotive Group president and CEO Rita Case said. “It’s always an honor to receive recognition for the hard work my team and I put in every day.

“We take pride in our customer satisfaction, which leads to our sales success. We treat customers as our friends. This builds a longstanding relationship of trust and loyalty.”

Kia America said 2025 was its eighth consecutive year of retail sales growth in the U.S., as the brand’s reached its highest-ever U.S. market share.

“Last year marked significant milestones in the continued growth of the Kia brand in the United States, and on behalf of the Kia family, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Rita Case and the staff at Rick Case Kia for their unwavering dedication to exemplary sales performance and outstanding customer satisfaction,” Kia North America and Kia America president and CEO Seungkyu Yoon said.

Kia America noted its Accelerate the Good Dealer Match program contributed more than $4.7 million to nonprofits nationwide in 2025, providing assistance to those affected by a wide variety of issues, including childhood cancer, homelessness and hunger, natural disaster relief and environmental causes.

In December, South Florida Kia Dealers donated $150,000 to hunger-relief organization Feeding South Florida, which provides access to nutritious food, programming and advocacy to food-insecure individuals.