On January 26, 2023, the Adventist Community Services of the Florida Conference received the Excellence in Volunteerism Award.
This award was presented by Volunteer Florida. The Volunteer Florida Foundation provides funds “to administer high-impact national service programs and promote volunteerism throughout the state, while managing the Florida Disaster Fund – Florida’s official fund to assist communities with disaster response and recovery.” https://www.volunteerflorida.org/about-us/
The FL Conference ACS was moved to action into the coast area, right after hurricane Ian hit on September 2022. Two warehouses were setup, one in Fort Myers and one in Coral Springs to receive goods from different organizations across the country. Volunteers from both Florida Conference and Southeastern Conference came together to meet the needs of the survivors right after the hurricane.
Over the past 3 months, ACS has moved over 1.5 million pieces of goods for survivors. Through our partnership with Volunteer Florida and the Federal and State government, ACS have been able to meet needs daily. They have been able to connect with a wide variety of organizations that are on the ground actively helping those who are still trying to recover.
The Fort Myers warehouse is still operating even multiple months after the initial hurricane through the work of our dedicated ACS volunteers. ACS relies on our volunteers to do what we do. It would not have been possible for any of these to have happened had not been for our volunteers at our local churches.
