CIL Berkeley to host Ed Roberts Day awards at Jan. 23 gala event

Berkeley-based Center for Independent Living will celebrate Ed Roberts Day by hosting a gala event on Tues., Jan. 23rd where it will confer its highest honors on three outstanding individuals: Cory Lee Woodard, Raymond Lifchez, and Zona Roberts.

The event is from 6-9 p.m. at the University Club located at the top of the UC Berkeley's Memorial Stadium, 2227 Piedmont Ave., Berkeley.  Tickets can be purchased HERE.  

Ed Roberts was a charismatic leader in the independent living movement who championed the rights of people with disabilities. In his work and life, Ed firmly believed in empowering others to be advocates and activists. In this spirit, The CIL is recognizing and honoring those individuals who, like Ed, have made major contributions to the success of CIL and the independent living/disability rights movement in the US and internationally.

The award recipients are:
Raymond Lifchez is a professor of architecture and city and regional planning at UC Berkeley and serves on the UC Berkeley Undergraduate Program in Disability Studies. In his teaching and his writing, Ray has been a leading pioneer in universal design education.

Cory Lee Woodard is a young travel blogger who has made his way across 6 continents on his wheelchair. His blog shares his experiences in dealing with and overcoming architectural and other barriers, and sharing a "can do" message with the world.

Zona Roberts will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her extraordinary support and encouragement of young people with disabilities over the past five decades for the Indepdendent Living/ Civil Rights Movement of people with disabilities.

The awards will be presented by special guest Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Lowell Bergman.  More information about the recipients can be found here.