County Pays Special Tribute to People Who Care

One is a professor, another a sports agent, and a third has committed her life to helping the poor. Though varied in backgrounds, they represent some of the Orange County residents honored Sunday by the county Human Relations Commission for making a difference.

“This is the event of the season,” said Becky Esparza, the commission’s chair. “Tonight represents a time and place to come and recognize the leaders of the community and honor their work.”

Among the 17 people recognized Sunday was Arthur W. Blaser, a political science professor at Chapman University in Orange. When summoned for jury duty Blaser discovered that some areas of Justice Center in Newport Beach were not accessible for people in wheelchairs, such as himself.

Though excused from jury duty, Blaser filed a lawsuit in 1998 accusing the county of violating the Americans With Disabilities Act by depriving him of his right to serve as a juror.

Last month, Blaser and the county reached a tentative agreement. As a result, all county buildings and facilities will be surveyed and a plan will be devised to make them accessible to disabled people within four years. The county also paid Blaser $30,000 in legal fees.

Blaser said he didn’t sue for money, but to help make the county’s courthouses available to people with disabilities.

Special guests at the commission’s banquet included U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) and state Assemblyman Lou Correa (D-Anaheim).

Among the organizations honored this year were the Garden Grove-based American Indian Church, also known as the Gathering, which helps the indigent; and Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays-Orange County, a support group for relatives of homosexuals.

Others recognized include Lynne Aoki, who politically mobilized her neighbors; Alfred V. Aguirre, the first Latino elected to the Placentia City Council; America Bracho, who helped link Spanish-speaking residents to health care systems; and Fernando Cibrian, who fought gang violence in Santa Ana.

Also receiving awards were Mary Anne Foo, who founded the Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance; Jean Forbath, the founder of Save Ourselves, a community group dedicated to serving the poor; and Heather Gruenthal, who empowered her students to improve relations at Lexington Junior High School in Cypress.

Others recognized were Jerry Hicks, a Los Angeles Times, Orange County Edition columnist; Carl Holmes, the Orange County Public Defender; and Alicia Lanz and Charles Thomas for their work promoting the Huntington Beach Human Relations Task Force.

The commission also singled out Robert McDonald, who founded the Orange County Sports Hall of Fame; Leigh Steinberg, a sports agent and active supporter of the human relations commission; and Glynda Rickard, a Western High School teacher in Anaheim. Meg Robinson was recognized for building bridges between the Democratic Central Committee and the gay and lesbian community, and Brette Steele, an Irvine High School student, was honored for her work with many on-campus human relations groups.