next photo

prev photo

WASHINGTON–Congresswoman Judy Chu (D, CA) and Congressman Anh “Joseph” Cao (R, LA) received the Pioneer in Public Service Award at the 20th anniversary of the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership (CAPAL). Some 145 leaders and guests attended the Benefit Gala, held on October 7 at Hotel Sofitel here.

“Our commitment to ‘developing tomorrow’s leaders today’ remains as important and relevant as it was in 1989,” said CAPAL Chair David Lee. Since 1989, CAPAL has served as the sole non-partisan, pan-Asian organization here dedicated to promoting APA participation and leadership in public policy and government.

Reporter WTTG/Fox 5 Reorter Sherri Ly, who is Vietnamese American, emceed the program. Congressman Mike Honda led the special guests, along with HUD Assistant Secretary John Trasviña and Paul Igasaki, Commissioner of the U.S. EEOC and Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Equal Justice Works.

He showered both award recipients with praise for their life-long dedication to serving others. “Like myself, he’s an educator,” he said of Congressman Cao. “Congresswoman Chu understands the needs of the working class, particularly the needs of the Asian American community,” he noted. Honda also asked those present to observe a moment of silence, for the intention of the disaster victims in Indonesia, Samoa and the Philippines.

Congresswoman Chu gave an eloquent speech, tracing her road to Congress through her track record as public servant and coalition-building. Congressman Chu related his conversation with the visiting Dalai Lama, who stressed it was important “to be proud of our heritage, our culture.”

CAPAL held auction to raise funds for its programs. Among its programs are need-based scholarships for students who pursue unpaid internships related to public service. Another is CAPAL’s signature Washington Leadership Program summer workshop series. This program facilitates professional development by offering educational policy lectures and seminars and networking opportunities to interns, young professionals, and government executives in the nation’s capital.

Asian Pacific Americans make up more than 14 million of the U.S. population, yet are represented by less than 0.5% of its public officials. CAPAL strives to close this gap by preparing the next generation of APAs to serve as tomorrow’s public leaders.

CAPAL is a 501(c) (3) non-profit, non-partisan, charitable, educational organization founded by APA professionals. Its mission is to promote APA interests and success in public service careers, to provide information and education on policy issues affecting the APA community, and to serve the APA community at large.