As staff were being honored on Friday afternoon as part of the district's annual recognition ceremony in the Ferndale High School auditorium, a special surprise was in the works for one lucky teacher.

Suburban Buick GMC of Ferndale announced at the ceremony that they would randomly draw a name among the three District Teachers of the Year and award that teacher with a free one-year auto lease.

Derek Adams, a Spanish teacher at Ferndale Middle School, was the teacher chosen. "It's an amazing thing that they are honoring the district and district teachers," he said. "I feel very honored."

Adams will get to pick out a car of his choice at the Ferndale dealership. He was still absorbing the news after the ceremony but said it will likely be a family car. "My wife will probably have a big say in it," laughed Adams, who has two children.

The other district teachers of the year for 2012 are Janet Monroe of Roosevelt Primary School and Ryan Grillo of University High School.

"We are pleased to have Ferndale join seven other school districts where the Suburban Collection recognizes an outstanding and award-winning teacher with the free lease of a vehicle for a year," said Rick Perry, general sales manager of Suburban Buick GMC of Ferndale, which became a Suburban Collection dealership in January. "Our program provides The Suburban Collection with a means of providing a special thank you for the ongoing commitment to excellence by teachers in the communities where we do business."

Ferndale Schools Superintendent Gary Meier said he appreciated the Suburban Collection's donation. "We just felt honored that they would think of us," he said.

The Suburban Collection also awarded one-year leases to "Teachers of the Year" in seven other communities, including Troy and Birmingham. They plan to expand the program further in 2013.

Stay tuned to Ferndale Patch for more photos from the staff recognition celebration.