HAAC Celebrates Community At Nuestro Pueblo Awards at Hard Rock
BY CLYDE HUGHES | AC JosepH Media
ATLANTIC CITY – The Big Cypress Rooftop Terrace with the legendary Steel Pier shining as a backdrop at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino made for the ideal venue for the Hispanic Association of Atlantic County Nuestro Pueblo Awards on Thursday night, July 18.
The annual Nuestro Pueblo Awards (our community in Spanish) is annually organized by HAAC to pay tribute to those who have provided outstanding service to the local Latino community. For the past two years, the dinner has been an “en blanco” or all white affair where attendees dressed in white.
Bert Lopez, longtime president of HAAC said nearly 300 people attended the ceremony. Live music was one of the highlights of the evening as guests danced before and after the presentation of the awards.
The honorees include:
- Arts and Entertainment – Jorge Restrepo, Society Page in Español
*Jorge Restrepo Photo courtesy of Stockton University.
- Community Service – Christian Solorzano, Hermandad Del Señor de los Milagros
- Education – Aurora Boyette, Absegami High School, Heather Medina, Stockton University
- Entrepreneurship – Ausdberto Flores, La Villita Food Market
- HAAC Board Member of the Year — Rafael Arango, City of Atlantic City
- Healthcare – Dr. Kirsy Japa, AtlantiCare Health Network
- Nuestro Amigo/a (Our Friend) – Donna DeCaprio, UNITE HERE Local 54
*Rafael Arango HAAC First Vice President Jessica Grullon
- Organizational Amigo/a (Friend) – Atlantic City Electric, Organization of Latinos at Exelon (OLE)
- Public Service – Capt. Alex Cadavid, Atlantic City Fire Department
- STEM – Evangelist “Eva” Rojas, Atlantic City Electric
Jessica Grullon said that more than $40,000 was raised by the event. Funds raised at the event will go to the HAAC scholarship fund.
Gold sponsors for the event was Unite Here Local 53 and Front Runner New Jersey/LaPrensa. Other sponsors included Stockton University, Atlantic City Electric, AtlantiCare Health Network, Chelsea Economic Development Corporation; CARING, Atlantic Cape Community College and La Casa Dominicana NJ.
Follow Us Today On:
Note from AC JosepH Media: If you like this story and others posted on Front Runner New Jersey.com, lend us a hand so we can keep producing articles like these for New Jersey and the world to see. Click on SUPPORT FRNJ and make a contribution that will go directly in making more stories like this available. Thank you for reading.
About Author
