Annual People's Choice Awards

Freedom Resource Center is accepting nominations from YOU, for our Annual People’s Choice Awards. This in-person event will be taking place in the evening on October 6^th, 2022 at the Avalon Event Center in Fargo. The deadline to submit nominations is August 19, 2022. The submitted nomination form must be typed.

Freedom Resource Center is the premier leader in disability rights in our area. We are a non-profit organization, and our mission is to help people with disabilities live independently and be valued and equal participants in our community. We serve 21 counties in both North Dakota and Minnesota.

Counties Served in Minnesota: Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Todd, Traverse, Wadena, Wilkin

Counties Served in North Dakota: Barnes, Cass, Dickey, Lamoure, Logan, McIntosh, Ransom, Richland, Sargent, Stutsman

The purpose of our Annual People’s Choice Awards is to show appreciation on behalf of Freedom Resource Center for significant contributions for disability rights and independent living by community members located in Freedom’s service area.

Freedom’s People’s Choice Awards include:

Advocate of the Year
Youth Advocate of the Year (21 and under)
Volunteer of the Year
Employer of the Year
Distinguished Service Award
Accessibility Advancement Award
Larry Chial Leadership Award

**Nominee’s must reside in one of the counties served by Freedom offices.

**Freedom’s current Board of Directors and Staff are excluded.

If you know a deserving individual, agency, business, or employer, please support them by nominating them for an award using the form below:

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Nominee Name

Phone

Address

Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country

Agency/Business/Job Title

Nominated By

Provide a brief history and general background information about the nominee:(Required)

List specific activities they have undertaken contributing to the advancement of Disability Rights and Independent Living.(Required)

What impact did their efforts have for people with disabilities, the community, or society?(Required)

Select the award you feel is most appropriate for your nominee. A listing of award categories can be found below. (Optional)

Awards Nominating For:

Advocate of the Year:Candidates may be an individual, an organization, or a group of concerned individuals or organizations. The purpose of this award is to recognize a candidate who has actively advocated for people with disabilities towards improving their lives, and has been a voice for people with disabilities, whether for one individual, a group, or for systemic change.

Youth Advocate of the Year (21 and under):Candidates may be one individual, a youth organization, or a group of youth. The purpose of this award is to recognize a candidate as someone who has actively advocated for people with disabilities towards improving their lives, and has been a voice for people with disabilities, whether for one individual, a group, or for systemic change.

Volunteer of the Year:Candidates may be an individual, an organization, or a group of individuals or organizations, adult or youth. The purpose of this award is to recognize a person or a group of people who have freely and faithfully given their time and talents to support people with disabilities. The nominee should display the following qualities: strong volunteer characteristics such as dependability, flexibility, initiative, cooperation, and positive interaction with others, as well as going above and beyond to make a positive impact on the agency they serve, or the community at large.

Employer of the Year:Candidates may be any small or large private businesses. The purpose of this award is to recognize the excellent work being done by an employer to improve employment opportunities for workers with disabilities and to acknowledge businesses who create a welcoming and inclusive workplace and an adaptive environment for employees with disabilities.

Distinguished Service Award: Candidates may be an individual, an organization, or a group of individuals or organizations who have an affiliation to the human service field or work with people with disabilities. The purpose of this award is to recognize a group or individual for a significant contribution to the quality of life of people with disabilities. This may include areas such as education, healthcare, recreation, civil rights, arts and culture, or community integration. Candidates may be employees in the human services field, who perform their jobs in an exemplary manner, and take steps to provide high quality services to the disability community.

Accessibility Advancement Award:Candidates may be any small or large private businesses, agencies, service providers, or businesses and agencies who specialize in, or advocate for accessibility services. The purpose of this award is to express appreciation for significant contributions to accessibility by constructing barrier-free environments and/or removing physical barriers within the counties served by Freedom CIL. The business or structure nominated must meet the minimum requirements set by the ADA and state law.

Larry Chial Leadership Award:Larry Chial was a member of the Freedom Board of Directors from 2004 to 2011. He served as Board President for three of those years. Throughout his career, Larry was always concerned about the welfare of others. Larry was determined that his Multiple Sclerosis would not prohibit him from doing good work for the community. He was a passionate leader in accessibility issues, as well as the overall advancement of independent living. Candidates may be an individual, an organization, or a group of individuals or organizations who hold a position of leadership in our communities. The purpose of this award is to bestow the honor of the Larry Chial Leadership Award onto an individual who, like Larry Chial, demonstrates outstanding leadership, political support, pioneer work, financial and charitable contributions, research, educational and organizational support, or professional support. This nominee will have made significant contributions to the advancement of Independent Living such as: leadership in disability rights, awareness of disability issues, and any work that is over and above that called for in their employment.

Annual People's Choice Awards

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