By Larry Caballero
Long-time Cerritos resident and community activist Dr. Austina (Tina) Cho, M.D. was one of 48 honorees who received the 2015 Los Angeles County Democratic Party’s Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt Democrat of the Year Award Nov. 8 at the Long Beach Hyatt Regency Hotel where more than 700 Democratic activists attended an awards dinner to honor Cho and community leaders from throughout Los Angeles County.
“When told that I was an honoree of such a prestigious award, I was thrilled and humbled,” said Cho.
Three-time Cerritos Mayor Diana Needham said she has known Cho for many years, “and Tina deserves this recognition for her dedication to her community in so many ways by serving in several roles including as a member in Soroptimist International Artesia-Cerritos and Presidents of Su Casa-Ending Domestic Violence and our local Democratic club.”
Cho began her interest in Democratic politics early in life working with Amnesty International at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, where she helped promote one of the first Earth Day celebrations.
She considered one of her most successful accomplishments was being elected to the Cerritos Community College Board of Trustees. At the time, she was often outnumbered and sometimes the sole voice for labor and Democratic values.
Currently she serves as the President of the Hubert Humphrey Democratic Club of Cerritos and received the Women in Power Award from the Center for Asian Americans United for Self-Empowerment (CAUSE).
Senate President Pro-tem DeLeon acknowledged all of the honorees and said, “Thank you all for your commitment to ensuring that our Democratic values are felt in every corner of Los Angeles County.”
In closing remarks Los Angeles County Democratic Party Chair Eric Baumen said, “I am grateful to have the opportunity to share this night with all of the honorees who have already proven themselves key to our efforts to further educate, motivate and turn out the nearly 2.5 million Democrats in Los Angeles County. And I know we will count on their leadership and efforts in the days ahead.”
Dignitaries at the event included Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Attorney General Kamala Harris, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, Senate President Pro-tem Kevin DeLeon, Assembly Speaker Designate Anthony Rendon, Speaker Emeritus John A. Perez, and more than two dozen members of Congress, the Assembly and State Senate.
Many local elected officials and labor leaders also attended, and all three Democratic candidates for President spoke in taped messages including Connecticut Senator Bernie Sanders who quoted President Roosevelt who said, “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have little.” Former Secretary of State and Senator Hillary Clinton and former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley gave similar statements as they congratulated the Democratic honorees from each of the 24 Assembly Districts in Los Angeles County.
