The Asian Hall of Fame is the premier initiative of the Robert
The Asian Hall of Fame is the premier initiative of the Robert Chinn Foundation. Since its founding in 2004, the mission of the Asian Hall of Fame is to honor achievement, inspire the next generation, and build the national community of Asian Pacific Americans.
The Robert Chinn Foundation is pleased to announce the honorees for the 2014 Asian Hall of Fame: Nathan Adrian, Norman Y. Mineta, Grace Park, and Manu Tuiasosopo!
Read what the honorees themselves have to say about being honored in the 2014 Asian Hall of Fame!
“My heritage is something that I have always been aware of, however, some would say that there is a disproportionately low number of Asians as professional athletes. I take pride in trying my best to be a role model to show young Asian American boys and girls that they are only limited by the size of their dreams.” – Nathan Adrian
“My heritage and the experience of those of Japanese ancestry has driven me in many of the actions of my career in public service. As I reflected and acted on these needs of the Japanese American community, I came to realize that the totality of the Asian American Pacific Islander community was not much different. Therefore, I have in the last 10-15 years been more devoted to the idea of Pan Asian community needs. That is what I feel the Asian Hall of Fame and the efforts of the Robert Chinn Foundation are aimed at and are attempting to address.” – Norman Y. Mineta
“It is hard to know how my Korean heritage has impacted my life and achievements without thinking about my parents. To be honest I don’t know where the heritage ends and my parents begin. To me my parents represent Korea. A Korea trapped in the 1970’s, but Korea nonetheless. The tireless work ethic, community mindedness, striving ambition, restrained expression, and societal hierarchy and pressures, are not unique just to the Korean heritage. They did however, shape me.” – Grace Park
Our family was one of a few Samoan families living in the Long Beach, California Area in the 1960’s. There maybe were a dozen churches, with about 50-60 members stretched between San Diego to San Francisco California during this time period. Those churches and membership numbers have exploded today with the growth and influx of Samoans and Pacific Islanders into Southern California. The Samoan churches not only served as a place for worship, but also served as centers of community. A place for Samoan families to gather and socialize.” – Manu Tuiasosopo
Induction happens in Seattle in May 2014!