qualify for. steve dreams of opening a health clinic for low-income san franciscans and -- but was facing deportation back to peru. he was eventually released from arizona and at a greyhound bus back to san francisco. as i have mentioned, steve would have qualified for the dream act, a piece of legislation that would give undocumented students a pathway to legalization, but his story was important in putting a face to the broader injustice of deporting undocumented students. also, the many people that were involved in the campaign to release him easily with transition to work on the dream act when it faced a critical vote in december. since this time, since his release, steve has not stopped his advocacy purity has continued to advocate and speak out on any rights issues. many it -- much of his work included participating in press conferences and on my party's right before the dream that boat in december 2010, making himself available to other youth, dreamers have not come out yet,

and speaking about his experience in giving them the courage to speak out, and advocating directly to obama during the state of the union speech and got an answer from obama himself on whether he would support a moratorium to stop the deportation of dream accidents. his hobbies include the giants and snowboarding -- dream act students. his hobbies include the giants and snowboarding and today, on behalf of our community and our office, we would like to thank and congratulate you for your courage and standing at for equal justice. [applause] and advocating on behalf of many in our community who have felt that burden of silence, so thank you so much for being here. >> thank you all. it is an honor to be here today receive this award. after the experience last year, the experience of diving through

and learning about all this injustice that is happening to the broken immigration system we have in the united states. i feel the need to speak out against this injustice, against deported students like myself would just want to go to school and just want to get a higher education so we can get back to the communities we grew up in. i am now part of a bitter family, which is about 30 undocumented students, and i am here today with fiona. she recently got accepted to graduate school for stem cell and science but is in deportation proceedings. that is why it is so important that we continue to fight for the dream act and for equality. all we want is a pathway to be able to have the opportunities to work and give back to the community.

so thank you so much for this award. we are working to hold the first ever conference everapi -- conference for api students in california. thank you so much, and thank you to the supervisors. thank you. thank you. [applause]

[applause] supervisor chiu: our next commendation will be offered by our colleague from district 7, supervisor sean elsbernd. supervisor elsbernd: my awardee today is someone i think we all know very well. mary, if you could come forward. i can see you hiding over there. a little brief bios, some things were even a little new to me. i did not realize the great extent of her contribution to the city and county of sanford cisco as a public servant. currently, she is working for pdt, but prior to that, she was commissioned secretary at the puc, prior to that work at mocd, prior to that worked at moh. that is as far as i got, but i bet you could tell she probably did a little more work.

win over work with the democratic california central committee, her work with the democratic party, and beyond that is all the work she does in the community. in a color, one of the organizations in which she is working and which she is a line is the pacific asian american bay area coalition. i think the title of that organization speaks for itself. it is a wonderful organization that really empowers asian- american women, networks, folks, and really help them grow to their potential. but today we will quick stories -- very quick stories i want to share about mary, why i think it is so perfect that she is the district 7 nominee today or awardee. first, when i called her yesterday, i said that tomorrow at the board meeting, each member of the board was going to honor someone for asian american history, and before i could get out the final question, she

threw out the name of someone she thought i should honor. in typical fashion, passing off any honor for herself and wanted to highlight someone else. i think it is indicative of her personality, as someone who shies sometimes from the limelight, but every now and then, you need to bring those folks forward and give them the award. second, for you, when i went around to get signatures on your certificate that i'm about to give you, there were a lot of members of this board who said, "i wish she lived in my district. i would have given her the award." i think that is even further indication of the contributions you have made to the city. on behalf of all of us here and certainly the residents of district 7, thank you for all that you do for us. [applause]

>> thank you. my normal m.o. in situations like this -- first of all, i did not realize i would have to do this. i would be the first person to get up here, speak, get it over with, and then sit back, but again, i am really glad i of the seventh person speaking. i have heard these really inspirational awardees, and i am just amazed. i have read about steven's story and followed closely in the paper. the fact that he is here today, i am so glad that you honored him. he worked with the blood donation, the community groups, absolutely amazing. i considered an honor to even be considered. anyway, thank you. i really do appreciate that. the first thing i thought of, i

wondered which ones wished i did not live in the district. seen such a political world. but it's such an honor to work with all of you. we have such good policy discussions. everyone does such good work, and we all do it for the greater good of not just san franciscans, but people of the world. san francisco really is a guiding light to many people throughout the country. when i was at the california democratic convention in sacramento this weekend, i remember a time when sanford cisco brought forth -- we were the leaders in the resolutions that brought california forward and brought the rest of the nation forward. so i am really honored to be part of that democratic tradition. i guess the other thing i want to say is i grew up in cleveland, ohio, where i did not

really think of myself as a person of color. the only people counted in the sense is as far as i know where african-americans and quarter ricans quarterpuer -- puerto ricans. i was 23 before realized i was not. i thought it was just amazing to be part of this community. to be here, to be honored for the first award from the board of supervisors during this month, during a year when we have our first asian american mayor in san francisco, it is just an amazing thing, so i thank you for everything, and thank you for everything you do. i know how hard you guys work, and i know we do it with the best interest of everybody, so thank you. [applause]

supervisor chiu: our next lottery will be recognized by our colleague from district 8, supervisors got wiener -- supervisor scott wiener. supervisor wiener: thank you. before i get to my honor, i would like to second supervisor elsbernd's nomination. no one works harder and expects less credit, so, mary, congratulations. today, it is my pleasure to honor gordon chen, the executive director of the chinatown community development center, one of district 8's most distinguished residents. slightly more distinguished than

another distinguished district 8 president, ccdc's deputy director. gordon, as you know, is the founding executive director of ccdc. founded almost 35 years ago. it brings together community organizing, affordable housing, development, property management, and neighborhood planning, all under one roof. during gordon's tenure, which will -- i do not want to say come to an end, but will transition to a different days later this year, ccdc has built or rehabilitated over 2300 units of affordable housing. this is one of the most important and successful community organizations in that city. many of us know gordon's amazing work, but his roots go much deeper. born in san francisco, board and attended oakland public schools

, junior college in the area, received a master's in social welfare from san francisco state. he entered with the late congressman phil burton in the 1970's. he has been very active in san francisco civic affairs, serving on many boards from the chinese chamber of commerce to bridge housing, saving as a public utilities commission and a rec and park commissioner. san francisco is truly a better place because of gordon. gordon, it is my honor to present you with this commendation today. [applause]

>> thank you, scott. supervisors, first of all, i want to thank supervisors wiener for the nomination. i want to thank all of you for the hard work that you do. i could not do what you do. you have a very tough job. in here to accept the honor today with a great deal of humility and maybe a little bit of pride. i am truly humbled to be associated with an outstanding leaders, the courage of steven lee. i am also humble because, you know, we get more credit than we deserve, and we sometimes get more blame, but i cannot do any of the stock i'd do without a great staff and board of the chinatown cdc, exemplified by the gang here today. i am also very proud today

because i had been a resident of district 8 for 30 years. i am really proud of that fact. i want to apologize to supervisor wiener right now. he tried to visit me a lot last year unsuccessfully. i promise you, before november 2013, i will get my doorbell fixed. i am proud to be a native san franciscan. i have lived in six different districts, i think, in my 63 years. i want to get around to the other five, perhaps in the next few years. i am proud to be a san francisco giants fan. so thank you for your good work. thank you for your leadership on behalf of this championship city that we call san francisco. thank you. [applause] supervisor chiu:

congratulations, gordon. our next honoree will be recognized by our colleague from district 9. supervisor campos: thank you very much. what an impressive group of people being recognized today, and i want to add to that impressive list by calling upon surely c -- shirley who has done a great deal of work that only for district 9 but for the -- neighborhood. we are recognizing her for her leadership and leadership. -- and her work in the steering committee. let me tell you about the job she has done. she continues to work for the steering committee. she is responsible for implementing an economic development plan.

her work has been guided by an action plan that has been trying to provide a comprehensive blueprint for a community-based effort to revitalize the -- she hasn't howard residents in ways that no one thought was possible. if you go to that neighborhood and you ask people about her, they can tell you that things get done because of her. it is interesting to see what one individual can do. on top of the work that she does, she also works with the san francisco food bank. she also works with a diverse community including many in the

chinese american community. keit is my honor to recognize yu for your outstanding work. i hear that your mom and daughter are in the audience. for your leadership and ambition, we are committing to see beat neighborhood thrive by building community leaders and improving public spaces and increasing public safety and for your work at the san francisco food bank. [applause] >> thank you.

whenever i call, your aides respond. they are probably tired of all my calls. it is great to work with such a supporting office. i first really want to thank my mom and my brother because they have been so supportive of the work. i need to be here at this time, can you give me a ride. they are like, what do you have to do now? they have always been so supportive. this is my second home. i grew up helping out my mom there. i have always wanted to support the community. even though i don't live there, i was always there.

honestly, i would not be doing this work if it was not for the incredible community members that i work with. every day, if i would stress or anything, i have to remember all of the countless volunteer hours. they're not getting paid for this work, they'd do it because they care about the neighborhood. i feel honored to be with my fellow honorees because i hope in years to come that i have a long list to really share. it is not so much an ego thing but it is to encourage other people. hearing their list is encouraging to me and wanting to do more work and to be like them. hopefully, i can set an example for community members out there who are not sure if they can make a difference and know that they can. i would really like to thank them. thank you for this great honor.

[applause] [applause] >> thank you, mr. president. i appreciate you giving me the opportunity to add to a list of wonderful word -- awardees this afternoon. i would like to introduce you to --

he lives in visitation valley which is the southernmost part of district 10. he is an outstanding human being. i made a facebook poster that i would be acknowledging him today. i want to share some of the overwhelming comments that were posted. "your service and humility are a shining example of -- culture in action." i use the words of members of the samoan community to uplift this brother. it is a pleasure to stand up in this chamber and honor you for this commitment to not only san francisco but specifically to the samoan community. putting the pacific islander in

asian pacific islander. welcome to the board of supervisors' chambers. i am so humble to bestow this simple expression of love and gratitude. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome -- [applause] >> i think i can fate now. -- faint now. i am humbled for this honor. who would think? my mother came from samoa as a single woman and raised two kids. we never left these housing projects for five or six years. when we moved, we always seemed to move around district 10, never leading district 10.

54 years old and i'm still in district 10. that says a lot for my community service. i worked 23 years in the hotel industry and it was a job. this was because of the disability. i became disabled and i did volunteer work. that has been the most in powering work i have ever done. -- empowering work i have ever done. to give back to my culture, to learn about different cultures. my family is, do you ever want to come home? you can never believe the flexibility of all of these different communities. they ask me, aren't you kind of young?

i am honored with all these other people that have given so much service. the important thing is that now live down all of the surface, i have started to go in different communities. there is a life outside. we are trying to bridge that gap of different cultures to come and meet each other. not to fear each other when we are in the hallways or walking or in the social classes that will pass. we need to talk to each other regardless of what our cultures are. it is and honored -- it is an honor to be honored. i am so humble and grateful. thank you very much. [applause]

[applause] >> our final presentation will be given by our colleague from district 11, supervisor avalos. >> i would like to call up miss florence -- welcome to the podium. it is my honor to rise and give accommodation to the current president of the san francisco chinese club and the first woman to serve on the asian american contractors association. she currently serves on the

preservation advisory committee and receives the outstanding businesswoman of the year award. she received her college education from hong kong polytechnic university. prior to immigrating to the u.s., she was contacting enter city of caen -- hongkong. she established -- ironworks in a field dominated by men wear few women had ventured. she has been working in the construction industry since the early 90's. she guided the ironworks as the chief executive officer and this has grown into a company that employs over 100 employees. they have employed many projects throughout the san francisco bay area. during the economic downturn,

about 30% of the employees have had to be laid off. we know that florence is dedicated to to make sure -- can get back to work. she is the mother of four. she knows firsthand the devastating effect on families. she is a hard worker. what was really great about your participation in that effort is that you understood the connection between all of our different communities. you are a part of the coalition that we had that included the asian community, the african- american community, and the latino community, also working with businesses and labor to halt the past. i would like to thank you for your work on that. you also run a radio station. if you have a radio show every saturday morning and you talk

about topics that are important to san francisco and you also work very hard to make sure that the chinese community can be civic elite involved. thank you for that effort. -- the chinese community can be civically involved. like many san francisco residents, you want san francisco to be a leader in the government where everyone can thrive. congratulations. [applause] >> thank you very much. i am very honored to receive this recognition during our asian american heritage celebration. i feel honored and fortunate to be able to participate in the government. i will continue to work better with our community.

i'm proud to have a city hall that has groups that are so proud of the heritage. i would like to thank you supervisor avalos 4 heading out the local hire legislation and gave me the opportunity to help support the legislation. thank you, supervisor avalos, and thank you to all supervisors. [applause] >> thank you, supervisor avalos.