2009 Public Servant of the Year Award Winner
Harriet Tregoning
Director of Office of Planning, District of Columbia
Harriet Tregoning was confirmed as director of the Office of Planning in February of 2007. Prior to this she was the director of the Governors’ Institute on Community Design and co-founder, with former Maryland Governor Glendening, and executive director of the Smart Growth Leadership Institute. The Governors’ Institute on Community Design is a national, nonpartisan effort created specifically to assist governors and their top staff as they guide growth and development in their states. By harnessing the expertise of leading practitioners and academicians in key fields including land use policy, design, transportation, energy, development, and regional economics, the Governors’ Institute helps inform each state’s executive team as it makes choices that shape the future of communities throughout their state. A sister program of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design, the Governors’ Institute is funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Tregoning’s academic training is in engineering and public policy. She was a Loeb Fellow at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design for 2003-2004.
2009 Distinguished Community Leadership Award Winner
Art Ping Lee, Co-Founder
Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association and Lee’s Benevolent Association, On Leong Association and Chinese Youth Club
Born in Toisan in 1917, Lee village of Chen Kai, later came to the U.S in 1936; worked in Wilmington, DE at the Navy shipyard in 1941 where he became the #1 welder. Got married in 1947 and ran his own laundry business in Washington, D.C. His first laundry was on Pennsylvania Avenue N.W. by 24th street. In 1955 he moved to a much bigger laundry in the Shaw area at 9th and R Street N.W. In the late 60's he got out of the laundry business and partnered with friends to open The Golden Palace restaurant.
For his over 73 years of unparalleled leadership and examplary contributions to the DC Chinatown and its cultural heritage, we believe Mr. Art Ping Lee truly has commanded the utmost respect and earned highest honorary leadership position as the de-facto leader of Chinatown throughout the Chinese community at-large across the region. It will be the most fitting and timely noble action for all of us to recognize and congratulate Mr. Lee with this award.
2009 Outstanding Community Organization Award Winner
Chinese Women's League, Metropolitan Washington D.C. (CWLMW) 華府地區中華婦女聯合會
CWLMW is a DC chapter of National Women's League of the Republic of China founded by Madame Chiang Kai-shek in 1950 in Taipei, Taiwan. Presently, this organization is led by Dr. Cecilia Y. Koo, the chairwoman. It has more than 79 chapters in the world with membership exceeding 200,000. CWLMW is a non-profit public charity organization (170(b) (1) (A) (vi)), established in May, 1992. The CWLMW works closely with ethnic as well as mainstream non profit organizations in Metro Washington area in order to support its cultural and social service programs throughout the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia.
The annual Sing-for-Love Beneficial Concert is one of the major fund-raising events sponsored by CWL for assisting the under-privileged groups such as DC Central Kitchen, the Hospital for Sick Children in DC, Domestic Violence Rescue Program, Gospel Rescue Ministries, and Montgomery County Mercy Health Clinic, etc.
The Dragon Boat Race and Festival, one of the Chinese magnificent water sports with legacy of some two thousand years is introduced into this multi-cultural national capital city vicinity in 2002 by CWL. It has been held successfully for seven consecutive years.
