Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Awards 2012

Local Hero: Bill Yoshiyuki Watanabe

Bill Watanabe

"As a Christian and a professional social worker, I have committed my life to helping those in need and strengthening our communities."

Bill Yoshiyuki Watanabe founded the Little Tokyo Service Center in 1979, a Community Development Corporation (LTSC CDC). His compassion and loyalty to meeting the needs of the community has been at the heart of the nonprofit organization.

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Local Hero: Stewart Kwoh

Stewart Kwoh

"To seek justice for the mistreated, create a stronger voice for disenfranchised Asian Americans and others, and build a united, multi-racial community - that is my passion."

In 1983, Stewart Kwoh set out to create a nonprofit organization that served as the voice of the exploited and discriminated for Los Angeles' Asian Pacific American community. What developed was the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC) - the largest and most diverse legal assistance and civil rights organization representing the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities in the United States. Mr. Kwoh is co-founder, president and executive director of APALC.

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