The City of West Hollywood and its Disabilities Advisory Board have announced the opening of nominations for the annual Disability Service Awards. The awards aim to recognize significant contributions to the lives of people living with disabilities, including efforts in accessibility, adherence to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements, and advocacy.
The city is inviting members of the West Hollywood community to nominate individuals, businesses, media entities, and nonprofit organizations for their work in this field. However, current or previous City staff, City Advisory Board members, or Commissioners who are serving or have served within the prior year are not eligible for nomination.
Nominations are to be submitted by 5 p.m. on Friday, August 4, 2023. They can be sent via email to jbritton@weho.org or mailed to Joyce Britton at West Hollywood City Hall, Human Services Division, 8300 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069. All nominations must include a contact name and phone number or email address.
The award recipients will be selected at the City’s Disabilities Advisory Board meeting on Wednesday, August 16, 2023. The winners will be notified shortly after the meeting. The awards presentation will be broadcast live on WeHoTV on Wednesday, October 18, 2023, at 6 p.m. as part of the City’s observance of Disability Awareness Month in October.
The awards ceremony will be available for viewing on the City’s WeHoTV channels and streams, and within the City of West Hollywood on Spectrum Cable Channel 10. The event can also be accessed on streaming platforms such as AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, and Roku services by searching “WeHoTV”. Additionally, the ceremony will be available live and for replay on the City’s WeHoTV YouTube channel.
The Disabilities Advisory Board, established in 1995, consists of nine members. The board focuses on issues affecting people with disabilities, including ADA compliance, transportation, housing, access to City government, and services for people with disabilities. It also makes recommendations to the West Hollywood City Council regarding the adoption of programs, policies, or ordinances of benefit to the constituency.
For more information, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Human Services Division at (323) 848-6510. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please contact wehocares@weho.org for more information and to request accommodation.
The obvious person to be nominated and to win is Mikie Friedman. There is no contest here.
For her tenacity, fortitude, strength, and commitment to safe sidewalks for people with disabilities, the clear choice is Myra “Mikie” Friedman. For her inimitable ability to speak truth to power, and eloquently call out perceived (real?) corruption in vendor relationships, the only choice is Mikie Friedman. For showing up on behalf of the disability community, regardless of the personal cost to her, we must recognize Mike Friedman with the Disability Service Award.
Mikie Friedman. The tireless advocate and protector of accessibility and the public’s safe, confident and obstacle free use of the pedestrian path.
NOT! City Council for the inability to protect fair usage of the sidewalk by anyone that has mobility issues.
Too bad Mykkie is not eligible, nominate her anyways to send a message!