2017 Winner of the Sam Miller Award

August 29, 2017
Hosted by Joyce Bender

[Download MP3] [itunes] [Bookmark Episode]

Episode Description

Joyce welcomes Kaitlyn Lore, winner of the 2017 Sam Miller Award; Gerald Homme, chairman of the Bender Lead On Team: and Ginny Emerson, mother of the late, Sam Miller, to discuss the Bender Lead On Team. The Bender Lead On Team assists high school and college students in the areas of setting career goals and championing anti-bullying efforts. The team provides a forum for young people with disabilities to speak out about instances of bullying and to support others who may be involved in similar situations. Gerald will discuss the Bender Lead On Team, his duties as chair, and his personal experience with bullying. In 2012, under Gerald’s leadership, the Bender Lead on Team established the Sam Miller Award, sponsored by Bender Consulting, to recognize a young leader who embodies the mission of the Bender Lead On Team. The award was named for Sam Miller, a dedicated member of the Bender Lead On Team, who died by suicide in 2011. Before death, Sam supported young people with disabilities.

Disability Matters

Tuesday at 11 AM Pacific Time on VoiceAmerica Variety Channel

Competitive employment and empowerment for people with disabilities is the emphasis of this show. Broadcast live and captioned in real-time for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing, we discuss how people with disabilities can secure career opportunities, and how employers, organizations and individuals can support employment and empowerment of people with disabilities.

Joyce Bender

Joyce A. Bender is the CEO and president of Bender Consulting Services, Inc. Bender Consulting recruits and hires individuals with disabilities, across the United States and Canada for competitive career opportunities in the public and private sectors. In 1985, Joyce survived a life-threatening accident caused by a misdiagnosis of epilepsy. Due to her personal experience living with both epilepsy and a hearing disability, she founded Bender Consulting Services, Inc. in 1995.

Joyce is the past-chair of both the board of the American Association of People with Disabilities and the national Epilepsy Foundation. She has received awards from both the Bush and Clinton administrations.

Joyce speaks across the United States and internationally representing the State Department on informational exchanges related to disability employment best practices. She has represented the State Department in programming with Panama, South Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Libya, and Tunisia.

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