The Excelsior Springs Substance Abuse-Free Environment (SAFE) coalition has come a long way. SAFE, a community coalition that works toward preventing youth substance abuse, began when Tri-County, now Beacon Mental Health, began community coalitions 30 years ago. Today, explained Program Director Julia Mees, each of 20 local coalitions in the area is working toward seeking solutions for community problems in the realm of youth substance use and addiction. “We know that the solution has to be local because every community doesn’t have the same reasons as to why these problems exist,” Mees said. “The coalition’s purpose is to find a way to address problems locally.” In 2016, the SAFE coalition received funding from the federal government for a 10-year grant of $125,000 to be distributed each year to build the capacity around the issue of preventing youth substance abuse to decrease addiction in the community. According to Mees, SAFE functions on a multi-sector collaborative system…