Asian Heritage Society

5857 Mission Gorge Road, Suite B
San Diego, CA 92120
Tel: 619.521.8008

Thursday, February 18, 2010 – Tom Hom, one of San Diego’s most influential Asian Americans, will be honored as this year’s Special Recognition Honoree at the Seventh Annual Asian Heritage Awards on Saturday, July 10, aboard the USS Midway in downtown San Diego.

Hom’s mark on San Diego is everywhere, from the Chinese Historical Museum, to the Gaslamp  Quarter and Petco Park. But his most important mark has been on community service as the first Asian elected to the San Diego City Council and the first Asian from San Diego to serve in the California Assembly.  Elected official, Realtor and active in his beloved Chinese Community Church, Tom Hom has been an inspiration to many in San Diego for more than a generation.

In addition, the Awards will honor achievement in 14 categories ranging from education to community service. Other categories include art and literature, business enterprise, cultural preservation, entrepreneurship, government, health and medicine, humanitarian outreach, innovation and technology, legal affairs, media, military and performing arts. The July 10th event will also highlight entertainment representative of Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai and Japanese cultures.

Nominees are selected by the community and their names placed on an email ballot that is uploaded to the websites www.asiamediainc.com and www.asianheritageawards.com.

Last year, more than 46,000 votes were cast. Special Recognition Honorees in the past have included Ret. Major General Antonio Taguba and State Senator Leland Yee.

Hom ran for San Diego City Council in 1963 and won. Four years later, he was reelected with 87 percent of the vote in what was then a citywide election. To this day, it remains the largest plurality in the city’s history and paved the way for other minorities to run for government offices in San Diego. Elected to the California Assembly in 1968, he increased the number of APIs in the state legislature to three.

The USS Midway is the appropriate venue for this event because of its historical connection to Asia. The carrier began its service off the coast of Japan at the close of World War II and served during the Korean War, as well as Vietnam.

Unforgettable performances will enhance this gala event attended by movers and shakers in San Diego and Southern California’s Asian community as well as top government officials.

For more information, please visit our websites at www.AsiaMediaInc.com and www.AsianHeritageAwards.com,  or email editorial@AsiaMediainc.com.

The Asian Heritage Society is dedicated to developing the next generation of Asian American leaders through workshops, its mentorship and pilot projects linking U.S. schools with schools in Asia and in preserving the cultural legacy of San Diego and Southern California’s Asian and Pacific Islander communities through events such as the Asian Heritage Awards.