Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
In our ongoing commitment to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve, KCET and Union Bank honor local heroes of the Asian Pacific American community for their dedication and commitment to enrich the lives of others.
Bill Watanabe has served as executive director of Little Tokyo Service Center, a Community Development Corporation (LTSC CDC), since 1979.
Stewart Kwoh has been co-founder, president and executive director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC) since its inception in 1983.
Sandy Sakamoto is a talented community organizer and a partner at the firm of Lim, Ruger & Kim, LLP. Her practice includes dealings in real estate, litigation, and business development.
Both as a music teacher and as a philanthropist, Ruth Ding has inspired students and members of her community with her organizational expertise and unflagging optimism in all of her endeavors.
Charles Woo is the co-founder and CEO of Megatoys, an international toy manufacturing company headquartered in Los Angeles. Mr. Woo started this business with his brother Peter in 1989, and it currently staffs seven hundred employees in the Los Angeles area.
Jury Candelario has been an AIDS advocate since 1995. He began as a volunteer providing psychosocial and emotional support for terminally ill AIDS patients as part of the "Buddy Program."
Deputy Chief Terry S. Hara is the Commanding Officer of the Los Angeles Police Department's Personnel and Training Bureau (PTB), the first Asian American awarded that rank.
Over the past 35 years, Ted Tokio Tanaka, FAIA, has made significant contributions to the cultivation of Greater Los Angeles urban landscapes. Tanaka's architecture reflects his commitment to the creation of innovative spaces that assert clarity, simplicity, and elegance.
Karin Wang is Vice-President of Programs at the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC), the nation's largest legal and civil rights organization serving Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.
Dr. Gay Q. Yuen's involvement in education was a direct result of her own educational experience as a 1st-grade student at Castelar Elementary School in Los Angeles' Chinatown. Dr. Yuen has made it her life's mission to make the educational experience of immigrant children a positive one.
In 1993, Stephen Christopher Liu knew there was a gap that needed to be filled. He wanted that served professionals in the APA community, a resource that connected members with those with more experience, and a center that housed the vast talents of its members for the betterment of the community.
Chef Akira Hirose's generosity goes beyond his contributions to the culinary world as owner of Maison Akira, his Pasadena-based restaurant that has served French cuisine with a Japanese flair since 1998. He has shared his culinary passion with the causes and people who help define the Asian Pacific American community one meal at a time.
In the span of 33 years at the helm of Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment (PACE), Kerry N. Doi has touched the lives of more than 600,000 Asian Pacific Americans and other minority groups.
