GREETINGS FROM ASIAN AMERICAN COALITION OF CHICAGO 2006 CHAIRPERSON

Selamat Datang (Welcome) to the website of the Asian-American Coalition of Chicago’s Twenty-Third Annual Dinner Celebration, hosted by the Indonesian Community of Illinois.

The Indonesian American community in Illinois was one of the founding members of the Asian American Coalition, but we never hosted an event prior to hosting the Asian American Festival in May 2005, in Daley Plaza. We are happy that the Festival received praise and congratulations from the officials in the Mayor’s office (the Mayor’s office is across the street from the Festival and I was told they were all watching the performances from their windows), from other local officials, and from all the Asian American communities in Chicago. There was excitement that Indonesia is bringing something new to the Asian American Coalition. Let’s bring that same excitement to the Dinner Celebration.

Our Dinner Celebration celebrates the role and achievements of the Asian community in building America. Awards are given to the Asian American of the Year, the non-Asian person who has done the most to help the Asian community, an award to “Youths who Excel” to celebrate achievements of Asian American young people (an award initiated by the Vietnamese Community last year, and which we will follow), and each community gives a Community Service Award to a person who has helped their community.

We are keeping our theme from the Festival, “Unity in Diversity,” which is also Indonesia’s national motto. The theme expresses the fact that although we are drawn here from many different nations, languages, cultures and religions, we are still united with each other and with our fellow Americans.

Just before last year’s Dinner, the tsunami hit Indonesia and the rest of Asia. The generosity of the response to that disaster demonstrated our unity and how much can be accomplished by working together. During that period, Americans of every background came together to help far-away people facing disaster. Now, America faces its own natural disaster after the effects of Hurricane Katrina, and we as Americans must pull together and help. We can celebrate our heritage and our progress in the country by coming together and helping those in need. Just as we dedicated a special contribution last year to the victims of the tsunami, we must dedicate special help to the victims of Katrina.

So please join us in this year’s adventure. We will be regularly posting information about the event, tickets, meetings, forms, awards, committees, and progress we have made, as well as general community information. So check back often. I look forward to seeing you at our planning meetings and hearing new ideas and suggestions from the leaders, members, and AACC friends who will help make our future a bigger and better one.

Thank you. (Terima kasih)


Roosy Miller
Chairman, AACC2006

E-mail of the 23rd Annual Asian American Coalition of Chicago Celebration 2006: aaccfeb2006@hotmail.com, or aaccfeb2006@yahoo.com 
Last updated: 03 February 2006 09:10 by Martino Tangkar (Webmaster)