On March 18th, the federal grant funding Smoke Free Horry runs out, but the group plans to stay around indefinitely.
"A lot of people who get grants suspend their effort after the money runs out, but we want to see it live on," said Smoke Free Horry spokesperson George Durant. "There is no way this effort has a shelf life of March 18th."
The money funding Smoke Free Horry comes from the Centers for Disease Control and is a part of the Communities Putting Prevention to Work federal grant.
The group petitioned North Myrtle Beach to pass a no smoking ordinance. The ordinance goes into effect Wednesday and bans smoking inside of all businesses within city limits, including restaurants and bars.
In 2010, the group also worked to pass the same ordinance in the Town of Atlantic Beach.
The agreement for the two million dollar federal grant said that Smoke Free Horry must use all of the money by the deadline or send what's left over back to the federal government.
But even though the group will close its headquarters in Conway, the name and its message will continue on, said Durant.
"It will have a non-profit status going forward and will carry the Smoke Free Horry name," said Durant.
The group plans to transition Smoke Free North Myrtle Beach into the Smoke Free Horry Coalition, funded by donations and other federal grants but nothing as much as the original two million dollar grant, said Durant.
Smoke Free Horry petitioned every municipality and city in Horry County including the county itself.
At this time, Conway has not written a draft but will soon hold a public discussion about putting such an ordinance into effect, said Conway City Clerk Vicki Lefler.
Smoke Free Horry wants as many no smoking ordinances within the county as possible, said Durant. "The people who are passionate about this project, like myself, want to see this to the end."
