On Thursday, May 21, Jewish Family & Career Services’ MOSAIC Awards will mark 10 years of honoring refugees, immigrants and first-generation Americans whose remarkable contributions have enriched our community locally, in Kentucky, in the U.S. and, in some cases, even around the world.
This year’s event, to be held at the Louisville Downtown Marriot, will honor Dr. George Digenis, Luis David Fuentes, John Rosenberg, Lalit Sarin and Van Tran.
The evening starts at 5 p.m. with a cocktail reception and a showcase of new micro-businesses established by individuals who received training and financial assistance from the JFCS Navigate Enterprise Center. The dinner and awards probram will begin at 6:30.
Originally from Greece, Dr. Digenis is the retired chair/director of Medicinal Chemistry & Pharmaceutics at UK. He is internationally known for tracking the efficacy of drugs as they are synthesized by our bodies.
Fuentes, from Cuba, has been an air quality engineer at the Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection since 2009. He is also the owner and editor of the very successful publication, El Kentubano, for the Latin community of Louisville and Kentucky.
In his native Germany, Rosenberg experienced Nazi persecution and internment before coming to America. He started his career in this country working under Attorney General Robert Kennedy as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. He was part of the team that successfully prosecuted the Klansmen responsible for the disappearance and death of three civil rights activists, which ultimately led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
An immigrant from India, Lalit was part of the early teams at General Electric that implemented process controls not seen before at GE’s Appliance Park. He risked everything to acquire Shelby Industries to prevent its closure and the loss jobs for the Shelby County community. Since then the business has sustained profitability for more than 30 years.
As one of the surviving boat people who escaped Vietnam, Tran eventually came to Louisville and established the Van Tran Insurance Agency. She also became a realtor with S.G. Priest Realty. Tran has dedicated her life to volunteering in and improving the Vietnamese community in Louisville and to supporting Vietnam War vets.
More detailed profiles of these honorees are available at https://jewishlouisville.org/jfcs-2015-mosaic-awards-honorees.
The MOSAIC Awards is a fundraising event that benefits JFCS. It honors international Americans who have made a significant contribution in their profession and in our local/global community. JFCS was founded to assist newcomers to Louisville, and this event honors its original mission.
The Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence is the title sponsor, and WLKY 32 is the media sponsor with Rick Van Hoose acting as the master of ceremonies. Papercone Corporation, PharMerica and Kindred Healthcare are also major sponsors.
Dr. Diane Tobin and previous honoree, Claudia Peralta-Mudd, are the event chairs. “We are happy to have Jerry and Madeline Abramson as our honorary chairs this year. We hope that their participation during this anniversary celebration will generate a whole new level of interest for the event,” says Dr. Tobin.
Tickets to the event are $125/person, and table sponsorships begin at $1,500. For reservations, contact Beverly Bromley, JFCS director of development, at 502-452-6341, ext. 223 or bbromley@jfcslouisville.org.