Within the last five years, the Coalition has been instrumental in establishing community initiatives such as Historic Apalachicola Main Street, The Apalachicola Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary, City Square Community Garden, and the K.U.T. Youth Center. These programs now operate cooperatively, but independently with minimal support from the Coalition. These organizations now have their own boards, committees and volunteers who plan, gather resources, implement and evaluate the activities and services they provide. Lastly, the Coalition has build strong relationships with regional organizations and has a multi-year history of collaborative projects within the panhandle counties. Since 2012, the Coalition has served as the local lead agency for the fisheries failure declared by the US Department of Commerce. Volunteers have been critical in addressing the crisis through the A-Hand-Up Volunteer Assistance Program and the SMARRT initiative. Coalition staff and volunteer leaders received recognition in 2014 and 2015 from the Florida Association of Volunteer Resource Managers (FAVRM) and the Volunteer Florida Governor’s Champion of Service Award. Coalition staff is active in State volunteer initiatives and serves on the FAVRM Board of Directors.