The North Texas Disability Chamber (NTXDC) hosted its first awards ceremony on September 13. The awards recognized council member Rick Grady with the first-ever Richard “Rick” Grady Public Service Award.
NTXDC’s mission is to promote and advocate for a more “cohesive, transparent, informed, regional, member-based, cross-disability community via events and education hosted at accessible locations across North Texas.” The organization was founded in 2020 and has worked closely with the disabled and non-disabled communities to not only educate but also create lifelong engagement.
The award was presented to Grady by the founder of NTXDC, Dillion Rafaty, to honor the work Grady has done for those who identify as disabled. The announcement of the award was brought to Plano City Council by Rafaty on September 19, and he spoke of his excitement for the event to honor Grady.
“He served our country,” Rafaty said of Grady during the award presentation. “But most importantly he’s served our community very well.”
Grady discussed his passion for helping the community and recognized how hard the individuals of NTXDC work to advocate for those who suffer from some kind of disability and have a difficult time doing everyday things we often take for granted. Grady spoke of how he struggled after his time in the military because of persistent knee issues. He also experienced partial blindness in one eye for some time. These experiences gave Grady an insight into just some of the things others struggle with on a daily basis.
Not only has Grady worked closely with NTXDC, but he has also spent a great deal of his time as a councilman bringing awareness to PTSD, which Grady suffered from.
During the awards, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Maria Tu and Adena Harmon, founder of C-Hear, also spoke highly of NTXDC. Both women hope to continue their work with the organization and help it grow far past its full potential.
The awards ceremony brought many people of different backgrounds together and offered networking opportunities to create relationships between them.
