I am honored, amazed, and extremely jazzed to tell you that on Monday, October 3, I received the 2016 Individual Access Award from Access Spokane, at an event hosted by Spokane Mayor David Condon.
Here’s a description of the award: It’s a solid wood 8 X 10 plaque with shiny gold print on a dark metal background, and reads “Access Spokane, 2016 Individual Access Award, Presented to Dave Reynolds, for providing outstanding and dedicated service to citizens with disabilities in the Spokane community.”
Ellen Nagourney, Vocational Services Specialist with the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, read the following statement as the Mayor presented the award:
“It is unlikely that anyone in our area that identifies as having a disability has not heard of Dave Reynolds.
“Dave started with The Arc of Spokane as a Client Support Services Coordinator in 2008. In that capacity, Dave promoted opportunities to enhance the quality of life for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.
“In 2012, Dave co-founded Access 4 All Spokane, a group that ‘celebrates and encourages accessible and disability friendly places, services, and events’ across Spokane County. He has trained a team of Accessibility Ambassadors who provide no-cost accessibility evaluations of local businesses and government campuses. These Accessibility Ambassadors help places become more aware of the challenges people with disabilities might face at their locations. In one short year, 100 places have been evaluated by Dave’s teams of Ambassadors.
“In 2013, Dave helped organize the first Spokane County Accessible Communities Advisory Committee, whose purpose is to ‘promote greater awareness of disability issues and improve access for, and inclusion and acceptace of, persons with disabilities in Spokane County’. This is accomplished in part by their advisory capacity with the Spokane County Board of County Commissioners and other local governments.
“Dave goes out of his way to advocate for individuals facing challenges within our community. The person who nominated Dave for this award, Larry Gorton, certainly appreciates the time and effort Dave spent supporting Larry in his persistent efforts to have ASL interpreters available at city neighborhood council and community assembly meetings. By the way, they were successful in their efforts.
“It is impossible for us to measure the true impact Dave has had on breaking down barriers to inclusion for people with disabilities of all ages through employment, residential, community access, training, education, advocacy, planning, and positive behavior support.”
How cool is that?
I am grateful to Mayor Condon, and appreciative of the organizers of the Access Spokane Awards.
Mostly, I am super grateful for my amazing friends with Access 4 All Spokane. It really feels awkward to accept this ‘individual’ award, considering that our work is such a team effort. I know they all would be telling me to get over myself already and accept the award. But, the truth is, none of this work could be done without their commitment, knowledge, expertise, and countless hours of work. Not to mention the personal advice and support they’ve given me, especially when things got tough.
So, if you want to watch a video of the presentation, it’s about 11 minutes into the Mayor’s weekly media briefing, on this YouTube link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW9mqFkvA6Q
Thank you so much for all you do to make the world a better place for everyone!
Dave Reynolds, Coordinator
Access 4 All Spokane
http://www.Access4AllSpokane.org
https://www.facebook.com/Access4AllSpokane/
I had the privilege to see my little brother receive this award. He has been a passionate advocate for accessibility for many years. This is because he has always been a fair, caring person. Our parents would be so proud!