Charity, Health & Lifestyle | Posted on November 21st, 2024 | return to news
Dorset entrepreneur receives recognition as a disability champion
Dorset’s Sam Everard has been named in the Shaw Trust Disability Power 100 list of the most influential disabled individuals in the UK.
A Dorset-based entrepreneur has been named as one of the most influential disabled individuals in the UK by being included in this year’s Shaw Trust Disability Power 100 list.
Sam Everard is the founder and CEO of the Bournemouth-based charity SAMEE, (Support and Mentoring Enabling Entrepreneurship), which is committed to helping enable disabled people to start their own businesses.
Her inclusion in the Power 100 list was announced during an award ceremony on Wednesday 20 November in recognition for her work as a disability changemaker. The list is publicly nominated and judged by a panel of 25 disabled champions including international business leader Dr Shani Dhanda, chief executive of Paralympics GB David Clarke, and Coronation Street actor Cherylee Houston.
National charity, Shaw Trust, runs the Disability Power 100 to raise the profile of disabled talent and challenge the disability employment gap head-on. Head of Disability Power 100, Alona De Havilland, said: “The Disability Power 100 is all about creating change, it celebrates ambition and achievement, and plays a role in challenging society’s perceptions of disability by recognising the strengths, contributions and successes of 100 disabled individuals each year.”
Sam is a 48-year-old entrepreneur, who lives with the debilitating condition of Myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). She founded SAMEE eight years ago, and in that time Sam and her small team have built up a respected one-stop support shop for disabled people, offering self-employment guidance and mentoring.
Speaking about her award, Sam said: “I’m really humbled to be included in the top 100 but I am most proud about the disabled community that I represent daily. I know that they are all able to succeed if given the right support.
“The work of our incredible small charity proves that disabled people can be empowered to follow their ambitions with great success.
“I was diagnosed three years ago and learning to live with a disability has taught me even more about dealing with the everyday challenges faced by many of the people we mentor. Some days I’m in a wheelchair, other days brain fog leaves me unable to string two coherent words together or even remember how to carry out simple tasks like making a cup of tea. This condition is awful but the insight it has given me is incredible!”
SAMEE has won numerous awards for its work and is a Disability Confident Leader level 3 awarded charity – the highest level achievable and the first charity in Dorset to achieve the status. Visit https://sameecharity.org to learn more about the charity.
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