It’s time to celebrate Hispanic Heritage.
The Bronx Chamber of Commerce, “the voice of Bronx Business,” is paying tribute to ten outstanding Hispanics making a difference in the community.
The Chamber’s 2013 Hispanic Heritage Leadership Luncheon will take place at The Lighthouse Restaurant on City Island on Wednesday, September 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. The cost is $25 for members and $35 for non-members.
“We have a group of people being honored who are leaders in education, business, and government,” said Lenny Caro, Chamber president and CEO. “I think this event is important because we are proud of these honorees. It is good that we showcase the promise of the people of the Bronx.”
Being honored this year are:
•Bronx Parks commissioner Hector Aponte, a Bronx native who migrated from Puerto Rico to the Bronx when he was three years old. A civil engineer, Aponte joined the Parks Dept. in 1995 and worked in various capacities before being named borough parks commissioner in 2004.
•NYPD Community Affairs Deputy Chief David Colon
•Author and advisor to the New York Yankees Ray Negron, celebrating 40 years with the team.
•Soundview Councilwoman Annabel Palma was a union organizer first elected to the City Council in 2003.
•Former assistant and deputy commissioner for both the NYPD and Department of Corrections, Joe Ramos, also the president and founder of Somar Consultants.
•New York State Court of Appeals Justice Jenny Rivera who joined the court in 2013 after being nominated by Gov. Cuomo. She has spent her entire professional career in public service, including clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
•Peter Rivera, New York State Labor Commissioner since 2012 after serving for 20 years as an assemblyman representing West Farms, Parkchester, Van Nest and Castle Hill.
•Hostos Community College president Feliz Matos Rodriguez. The sixth president of the college, he was trained as a social scientist. He previously held leadership positions in foundations, universities, policy centers, and branches of government.
•Director of the Westchester Square Business Improvement District Lisa Sorin is new to the job, but not to the Bronx. One of the Bronx Times Reporters’s 25 influential women in 2009, she was also the founder of LAS Consulting Services, Inc.
•R.A.I.N. executive director Louis Vasquez.
