2006 Secretary of Labor's New Freedom Initiative Award

Fifth Anniversary Secretary of Labor’s New Freedom Initiative Awards

The year 2006 marked the fifth anniversary of the Secretary of Labor’s New Freedom Initiative Award. Since 2002, the Secretary has presented this award to encourage the use of public-private partnerships to increase employment opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities. As Secretary Elaine L. Chao said, “We must ensure that our nation remains a leader in innovation and that our workers remain among the most productive and skilled in the world. Workers with disabilities represent an underutilized pool of talent that we need more than ever.”

On October 26, 2006, Secretary Chao recognized nine awardees – four businesses, one individual and four non-profit organizations.

Secretary Chao also presented the first Secretary of Labor’s Spirit Award at this occasion. 

Business	Individual	Non-Profit Organizations
Aetna	Ilene Morris-Sambur	disabilityworks
CVS/pharmacy		National Technical Institute for the Deaf
Highmark Inc.		PRIDE Industries
Raytheon Missile Systems		The RAVE Program

Pictured with former Assistant Secretary W. Roy Grizzard (third from left) prior to the awards ceremon are 2006 NFI Award recipients Ty Alexander, Highmark; Daisy Jenkins, Raytheon; Mike Ferdinandi, CVS/pharmacy; Rick Kressline, PRIDE Industries, Cheryl Locke, The RAVE Program, and Dr. Alan Hurwitz, National Technical Institute for the Deaf. Not pictured are indiviudal awardee Ilene Morris-Sambur, Jack Lavin, disabilityworks; and Mark Bertolini, Aetna.

Past Award Recipients
Learn about prior NFI Award winners in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.

2007 Award Application Process
Learn more about how you, or your organization, may be nominated for the 6th annual awards.

Secretary of Labor's Spirit Award

Former Major League baseball pitcher Dave Dravecky received the first Secretary of Labor’s SPIRIT (Strength, Perseverance, Integrity, Role-model, Independence, Trailblazer) Award from Secretary Elaine L. Chao and former Assistant Secretary W. Roy Grizzard. Following his battle with cancer, Dravecky and his wife, Jan, established the Outreach of Hope ministry, which offers referral services and resources for those facing significant medical or physical challenges, especially people with cancer or amputation. Award recipients are recognized for their qualities to inspire and enhance the ability of Americans with disabilities to enter and participate fully in the 21st century workforce.