Coal Creative is a group of community minded millennials who harness the power of storytelling, through video, web design, and social media, to enrich the businesses, nonprofits and organizations in our region, and beyond. It is not uncommon to see the entire Coal Creative team at various community events throughout the year, representing the company as well as the growing, energized youth of our region. Coal Creative is fueled daily by the power of creativity and the importance of maintaining a human-focus in a world led by ever-changing technology. Internally, employees are encouraged to hone their skills, collaborate, and provide support for one another during professional and personal projects.

In 2019, Coal Creative launched the "Creative Meetups" and NEPA Creative group to provide opportunity for creatives to connect within our region. The monthly "Creative Meetup” series was initially a callout to see if 10-15 creatives could sit around a table and problem solve the strengths and weaknesses facing our arts community. When nearly 100 creatives gathered in the Think Center, it was apparent that this was something bigger. Since inception, they formed a regionalized committee and have provided an opportunity for creatives to collaborate with each other and opened the door to economic movers and shakers to get feedback and ideas in the creative meetup "breakout sessions.”




Lewith & Freeman's team of realtors have had a direct impact on building, growing, and supporting the success of NEPA both through our residential and commercial real estate expertise. They share this knowledge through their new agent training program with agents at any point in their career. They host community nights at each office, trainings, mentorship and technology to allow their employees and realtors to continue their career and education while on the road. The positive impact they have made can be seen in the sheer number of transactions, as the top firm in NEPA they represent more buyers and sellers than any other real estate firm, each of these transactions is an opportunity for their team to have a positive impact. In addition to their internal efforts, they have a public facing blog, Curb Appeal, hosted on Lewith-Freeman.com which is a resource for local residents and business owners to gain insight, and publicity for NEPA.  






Volunteers in Medicine (VIM) is a non-profit, community-based organization developed to help meet the primary health care needs of the working, uninsured populations in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. The program is designed to provide free primary and preventative health services for those individuals who are employed but have no access to or cannot afford medical care or health insurance. Volunteers in Medicine hosts students from many local colleges/universities and allied and technical schools. VIM is an educational host site for the following programs:  Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's Residents, King's College Physician Assistant Program, Misericordia University Physician Assistant Program, Wilkes University Pharmacology Program, Jolie Academy's Medical Assistant Program, Fortis Institute's Medical Assistant Program, Luzerne County Community College's Dental Hygiene Program and Medical Billing & Coding Program, and Wilkes-Barre Career and Technical College's Nursing Program.

By serving as an educational host site, Volunteers in Medicine is providing real-world experience for students in the listed programs. Experience is gained working in a non-profit setting where low-income individuals receive free medical, dental and behavioral health services that they would otherwise not be able to attain. Students get a unique perspective on working in this particular setting.

Make sure to join us on September 10th at 5:30 PM at the Room at 900 in Kingston to celebrate these finalists and to hear the category winners announced live on stage! Click here to register today!