Michael Coleman, Military Liaison for the Commonwealth of Virginia Office of Veterans and Defense Affairs has been recognized as a recipient of ADC’s 2019 Community Leadership Award.
Coleman and other Defense Community Award honorees were recognized Monday at a lunch ceremony during the 2019 Defense Communities Annual Summit.
Coleman has performed in his role since 2009 and has played a key role in supporting and growing Virginia’s 30 military installations and associated activities over the past decade.
As a result of his leadership with the commonwealth of Virginia, new intergovernmental service agreements have been signed at installations from all four services. He has been a key instrument in developing a new partnership between Fort Lee and neighboring Prince George County to help reduce the response times of fire and rescue units at the installation and in the county.
He was also responsible for Virginia’s ”Growing the Military Missions” Strategic Plan, which worked to provide recommendations for military installations and communities to fully utilize the opportunities for partnerships granted in the National Defense Authorization Act.
At the core of Coleman’s leadership is a deep understanding of the value of each military installation and the importance of developing partnerships that support the community and the installations.
“Through all the various commonwealth military-community partnerships, there is one common thread: Mike Coleman,” said Carlos Hopkins, secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs for Virginia. “Mike’s leadership has produced astounding results. He cares deeply about partnerships and the benefits they bring to soldiers, sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, civilians, and families serving in the commonwealth.”