You probably wouldn’t know the Asian American Institute by name, but you’ve gotta admire their ability to get noticed. When the issue of minority set-asides hit Asian contractors earlier this year, it was Institute members who broke a giant fortune cookie in front of Mayor Daley’s office, then read him his political for-tune. This particular evening didn’t feature a giant cookie, but AAI did order out for Stir-Friday Night, a Chicago Asian comedy troupe. The occasion was the AAI’s 2004 Milestone Awards, recognizing three community activists and professional trailblazers. Emcee and NBC anchor Nesita Kwan noted the Institute’s milestone of having three female awardees for the first time in the group’s 12-year history, a fact not lost on AAI executive director Tuyet Le. Asked about challenges she’s encountered in her leadership role, she recalled: “Early on, when I would walk into the room, I was always mistaken for the intern.”
–Terry Glover
RECIPE FOR SUCCESS
Guest of honor chef Zarela Martinez, stunning in turquoise and tulle and showing no signs of being hit by a taxi two weeks earlier in New York, signed copies of “Zarela’s Veracruz” at a benefit gala for the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum at the Drake Hotel. It was, after all, “Noche de Veracruz” but the virtues of that cuisine may have been lost on Rene Morales of Bolingbrook, a certified “grill man.” Things really heated up during dinner when someone inadvertently placed several programs over a votive candle and the smoldering papers threatened to turn the Drake’s Gold Coast Room to bronze. By dessert, the auction alone had garnered more than $11,000 for seven items, ranging from a trip to Cancun to a chef’s tasting at a local eatery. Then a man added $1,000 by purchasing another man’s tie.
–Celia Daniels
ASIAN AMERICAN INSTITUTE: 1. Kiyo Fujiu. 2. Ji-Yeon Yuh. 3. Bart Moy. 4. Glen Brooks. MEXICAN FINE ARTS CENTER: Rosalinda Pegnato. 6. Michelle Hernandez. 7. Mercedes Martinez. 8. Pam Crutchfield, Myron Szoid. Photos: Dianne Brogan.
