The City of West Hollywood and its Disabilities Advisory Board are hosting two events to recognize Disabilities Awareness Month, which occurs each October.
Tomorrow from 9 a.m. to noon the city will host a health and wellness event at the West Hollywood Community Center at Plummer Park, 7377 Santa Monica Blvd. The event will provide free blood glucose screening, flu and pneumococcal vaccinations, and HIV/STD testing. General healthcare and Covered California information will be available as well. The event is co-sponsored by the City of West Hollywood, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, AIDS Project Los Angeles and AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
On Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. the city will host its 18th annual Disability Service Awards at the West Hollywood City Council Chambers, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd. south of Santa Monica Boulevard. A reception will take place prior to the meeting, beginning at 5 p.m. The Disability Service Awards event recognizes individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations for work with people living with disabilities including accessibility issues, attention to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements, or advocacy.
This year’s Disability Service Award recipients are:
• Cathy Blaivas and Stephanie Harker – Individual Award;
• Team One USA – Business Award;
• KCBS Channel 2 – Media Award, and
• ACEing Autism – Nonprofit Award.
In addition to the awards presentation, there will be a special performance by the Braille Institute’s Johnny Mercer Children’s Choir. Validated parking will be available to guests in the West Hollywood Park five-story public parking structure. Admission is free and open to the public.
The Disability Service Awards is sponsored by the City of West Hollywood, through its Disabilities Advisory Board.
As a disabled person in West Hollywood who periodically attends various board and city council meetings and always watches the council meetings I do not attend on TV, I have this observation. Many times board members will nominate friends of theirs for whatever the award du jour is and it generally happens during their first year or two on a given board. To my mind – this is the best way to classify the individual category winners of the DAB Awards this year. To be honest, I do not know any specific thing other than stopping the remodeling of West… Read more »
Congratulations to both Cathy Blaivas and Stephanie Harker on being recognized by the Disability Advisory Board for your long standing community activism.
The comments remind me of Kanye West running up on stage while Taylor Swift was receiving her Grammy.
As originally asked, could Wehoville provide specifics about the good work of the other award winners?
no idea!
@From the Board: oh great, we now have a Board of Public Opinion with an invisible spokesman? Surely the spokesman could be clear and accurate rather than feigning “misunderstanding” on part of the reader.
@ Larry Block: thank you for the fair assessment. It would be good to learn perhaps from the Disabilities Board itself, the specific, measurable accomplishments attributed to Blaivis & Harker through their advocacy. I’m sure no one takes them for granted.
@Larry Block, FYI – It was NOT Michael W. He did not post the above. I apologize for the misunderstanding. It should have read From the Board of Public Opinion.
From the board just violated the brown act and their oath of office. I am sure the board did not issue this statement by a vote of its members. This statement on wehoville is in effect a statement by one member and is a defensive argument to fair questions raised by others. As far as the award itself many are asking what did they to earn the award. And that is a fair question. Even Cathy told me she was shocked to receive the award. But their friend and co-Meister appointee Michael W nominated them. There was a first round… Read more »
Individually, and in-tandem, both Cathy Blaivas and Stephanie Harker have not only supported the work of the Disabilities Advisory Board but have acted as strong Advocates for broader Community by inserting into the larger Public Discourse the NEEDS / CONCERNS / DEFICIENCIES affecting those Living with Disabilities; this includes topics of ADA-compliance (inclusive of Hart Park & WHCHC’s Sierra Bonita Apartments), Access to Services, Housing, Public Facilities (Hearing-Visual aids) and even Transportation. Singularly and together they have stimulated public interest/input through conversations expanding awareness on multiple levels for those disabled offering guidance, insight, oversight on many endeavors past, present and… Read more »
the winners this year have lowered the bar for all. friends nominate friends and an individuals contribution to the disabled community is not even part of the discussion.
Could Wehoville please illuminate the specific contribution made by each of the winners?
What did Kathy and Stephanie do to merit an award? Before Meister was elected, they were seen as gadflys and troublemakers. Now they have commission appointments and are getting awards. Seems weird.