ORLANDO SENTINEL December 1, 2006 Gala to honor Hispanic achievers Victor Manuel Ramos
Sentinel Staff Writer
Tirso Moreno was one of the activists leading the immigration march that brought more than 20,000 people to the streets of Orlando this past spring.
This Saturday he will lead another group -- Hispanic leaders whose accomplishments will be honored at a yearly community event.
Hispanic entrepreneurs, activists and business owners will be feted at The 9th Annual Don Quijote Awards -- an annual gala that attracts hundreds of professionals and businesspeople and focuses on the contributions of Latinos to life in Central Florida.
Moreno, who leads the Farmworker Association of Florida, will be the second person to receive the event's lifetime-achievement award. The honor went posthumously last year to Fernando Bujones, the former artistic director of the Orlando Ballet.
More than 1,000 people are expected to attend the gala, organized as a fundraiser for the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Orlando and the Hispanic Business Initiative Fund, a nonprofit that helps Latinos launch their businesses.
The Orlando Sentinel is one of the event's sponsors.
"This recognition is really for the community," said Moreno, 53, a former farmworker who became a statewide advocate for immigrant workers, especially in the agricultural sector. "The work that we do for immigrants is not really about individuals, but a communitywide effort."
Seventeen other Hispanics who are active in business, medicine, academia, community activism, religion and the Spanish-language media are nominated on behalf of 12 organizations they represent for four other awards. Honorees are selected from people nominated by community members.
The winners are selected for Hispanic Business of the Year, both for start-ups and established businesses; Professional of the Year; and the overall Excellence Award.
The Don Quijote Awards, named after the dreamy and valiant literary character known in English as Don Quixote, seek to encourage entrepreneurship and community involvement among Hispanics, said Ramon Ojeda, president of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Orlando.
There are about 550,000 Hispanics in Central Florida, making up about 16 percent of the region's population. |