Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on October 22, 2013

(PRWEB) October 22, 2013

As part of its ongoing commitment to cultural diversity and responsible banking, Union Bank has joined KCETLink to honor 12 inspirational individuals at the 16th Annual Local Heroes Awards. The honorees are announced as part of the 2013 Local Heroes Program, which recognizes and pays tribute to exemplary leaders who are making a difference and enriching the lives of others by improving their workplace, community, region and the world. The year-long celebration of diversity culminates with an awards ceremony on Oct. 22, 2013, where recipients will be formally recognized. The event will air for the first time on Monday, Nov. 25, 2013 at 8 p.m. on KCET.

The 2013 Local Heroes honorees are: Angeles Echols-Brown and Richard Allen Williams, M.D., FACC, FAHA (Black History Month); Gail Farber and Belinda Smith Walker (Womens History Month); Harry Corre and Janice Kamenir-Reznik (Jewish American Heritage Month) Madame Sosei Matsumoto and Nobuko Miyamoto (Asian Pacific American Heritage Month); Thomas T. Carpenter, Esq. and Kalil Cohen (LGBT Pride Month); and Father Richard Estrada and Robert Garca (Hispanic Heritage Month).

We are excited to celebrate the 2013 Local Heroes honorees who give so much of themselves, said Union Bank Senior Executive Vice President Pierre P. Habis, head of Community Banking. We are proud of our expanded partnership with KCETLink and look forward to celebrating the achievements of many more heroes as part of our nearly 20-year tradition in Los Angeles.

KCETLink joins Union Bank in recognizing 12 incredible individuals, who dedicate their lives to serving others and the community, said Al Jerome, chief executive officer of KCETLink. We are pleased to showcase their tireless efforts at this special awards ceremony, and we are delighted to air the Local Heroes Awards for the second time on our station.

The 2013 Local Heroes honorees are:

Black History Month Angeles Echols-Brown -- founder and executive director of Educating Young Minds (EYM), a Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization she started in 1987. EYM, which provides help with homework, mentoring and counseling for students, from kindergarteners to high school seniors and their parents, has grown to help more than 3,500 inner-city students. Mrs. Echols-Browns passion is also reflected in her previous work as an instructor, tutor, counselor and teacher at Harvard Universitys Upward Bound program, Chaffey College and Los Angeles Trinity Lutheran School. She received her bachelors degree from Cornell University and has been recognized nationally for her outstanding work.

Richard Allen Williams, M.D., FACC, FAHA -- clinical professor of medicine at UCLA School of Medicine and president and CEO of the Minority Health Institute (MHI). MHIs mission is to educate physicians, healthcare professionals and the public about ways to improve health services to African Americans and other minorities in Los Angeles. The organization offers health fairs, seminars and lectures that encourage a preventive approach to improving health and scholarships for minority students who wish to pursue a career in medicine. Dr. Williams wrote Textbook of Black-Related Diseases and served as the first assistant medical director of Martin Luther King, Jr. General Hospital, and later secured $2.4 million to develop the King-Drew Sickle Cell Center.

Womens History Month Gail Farber -- the first female director of the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works, one of the largest public works agencies in the United States. She is also the county road commissioner, county engineer, and chief engineer of the Los Angeles County Flood Control District. Ms. Farber was instrumental in the development of the Womens Leadership Conference, and she is developing outreach programs for students to encourage careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). She received a bachelors degree from San Diego State University and spent 19 years with Caltrans. Ms. Farber previously served as director of public works/city engineer for the cities of Pico Rivera and Orange, California.

Belinda Smith Walker founding board of directors member of New Village Charter School, an all-girls high school that was established to meet the educational needs of young women with school histories marked by pregnancy, parenting and other hardships. Ms. Walker is also a founding executive director and board member of Girls & Gangs, a nonprofit that provides young women in the juvenile justice system with community re-entry services. She co-founded the Los Angeles Womens Foundation (LAWF), a community-based foundation that provided grants and technical support to empower women and girls in Los Angeles. The LAWF later merged with its sister organization in San Francisco to become the Womens Foundation of California, and Ms. Walker served on its governing board.

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Union Bank And KCETLink Honor 2013 Local Heroes

Category: Jewish American Heritage Month
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