Nevada County Fair’s 2008 Blue Ribbon Award

Tony Sauer and Sam Dardick have been named the Nevada County Fair’s 2008 Blue Ribbon Award recipients. The award was created by the Fair’s industry association, the Western Fairs Association (WFA), to recognize dedicated individuals who support their local Fair. Both Sauer and Dardick have been instrumental in providing guidance to the Fair in creating a more disabled-friendly Fair, and in creating the annual Day for People with Disabilities at the Fair.

Sauer and Dardick began working with the Nevada County Fairgrounds in 1983 when a recently installed cobblestone path created a challenge for those with walkers and wheelchairs. They worked with the Fair to develop solutions to make the path more user-friendly. Since that time they have worked with the Fair to create grounds that are safe and user-friendly to those with disabilities. They have created surveys that helped the Fair identify changes that needed to occur to make the grounds more disabled-friendly, have assisted the Fair in implementing these changes, and, even today, continue to help the Fair identify areas that can be improved upon to create a better environment for persons with disabilities.

“The contributions that Tony and Sam have made to Nevada County and the Fairgrounds are significant,” said Ed Scofield, Nevada County Fairgrounds CEO. “Their tireless efforts and work have created a better and safer Fair for our community.”

Sam Dardick, an advocate for people with disabilities, is a former Nevada County Supervisor and a founder of FREED Center for Independent Living, a non-profit group dedicated to serving people with disabilities. He also took the lead in California to lobby for the Americans with Disabilities Act, which passed in 1990 to prohibit discrimination against disabled people.

Tony Sauer currently serves as the director of California’s Department of Rehabilitation. Prior to that, he served as executive director for the Nevada-Sierra Regional In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority, where he managed the recruiting and training of more than 1,000 workers who provide services to people with disabilities. He was also the executive director for the FREED Center for Independent Living.

Sauer and Dardick will be recognized at the Fair’s Opening Ceremonies on Wednesday, August 6, and again at 12:30 on Friday, August 8, at the Pine Tree Stage. For information about the Fair, August 6 – 10, call (530) 273-6217 or visit www.nevadacountyfair.com.