FLA recognizes city councilmember with award
Sanibel City Councilmember Holly D. Smith was named the Florida League of Cities’ Municipal Official of 2023 by receiving the E. Harris Drew Municipal Lifetime Achievement Award at its Annual Conference on Aug. 11.
The city of Sanibel reported that she was nominated by Mayor Richard Johnson and Vice Mayor Mike Miller for her years of service, as well as her steadfast and effective leadership while she served as then-mayor following Hurricane Ian. Smith was joined at the presentation by her husband, Jason Smith.
Named for Supreme Court Justice E. Harris Drew, the award recognizes and honors local elected officials who have made lasting and worthwhile contributions to the citizens of Florida through their efforts and dedication in the performance of their duties at the local level.
“I am extremely honored and filled with gratitude accepting the E. Harris Drew Award,” she said. “No one leads alone. We worked together, and will for years to come, as we rebuild our beloved Sanibel Island. I could not be more proud of our citizens, council and the dedicated Sanibel staff in the aftermath of Ian.”
Smith was appointed to the city council in 2017 to serve an interim position for a vacant seat, elected in 2018 for a partial-term and then re-elected in 2019, as well as in March. She served two consecutive terms as mayor from 2021-23. Before being elected to council, Smith served as vice chairwoman of the Sanibel Planning Commission for two years and was a member of the commission from 2009 to 2017.
She is the Sanibel representative on the Lee County Tourist Development Council, serves as president of the Southwest Florida League of Cities and is president of the Lee County Horizon Foundation. Smith served on the Lee County Coalition of Mayors and is a liaison and past chair to the Lee County Horizon Council. She serves as the voting delegate for the FLC, a member at large for the FLC’s Legislative Committee and on the FLC’s Municipal Administration Legislative Policy Committee. Smith also serves on the FLC’s Board of Directors, as well as the FLC’s Federal Action Strike Team, Florida Municipal Loan Council and Advocacy Committee, which she chaired from 2021-22.
She served two terms on the board of directors for the Florida League of Mayors. During her term as mayor, Smith was a member of the United States Conference of Mayors, and she currently serves as the National League of Cities’ voting delegate for Sanibel.
In 2023, Smith was awarded the Florida League of Cities’ Home Rule Hero Award for the sixth consecutive year. Also, she was honored in June as the “2023 Woman of the Year” at the Lee County Women of Distinction Awards Ceremony.