Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame Adds Four Extraordinary CT Residents

The Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame (IHHF) will be adding four iconic contributors to the fabric of life in Connecticut and America, representing vast accomplishment and varied backgrounds and religious traditions. The Induction Ceremony & Gala, by the National Immigrant Heritage Center, will take place on Thursday, October 12, 2023.

The new class of IHHF inductees will include distinguished individuals who have been leaders, activists and scholars in pediatric medicine, nonprofit leadership, civil engineering, entrepreneurship, economics, and interreligious understanding. They are:

• Dr. Leon Chameides; pediatric cardiologist, author, and Holocaust survivor and educator
• Rohan Freeman; civil engineer, entrepreneur, adventurer-mountaineer and nonprofit advocate
• Dr. Shyamala Raman; economist, educator and activist for interreligious understanding
• Dr. Galo Rodriguez; CEO, Village for Children and Families; nonprofit executive

The mission of the National Immigrant Heritage Center is to “celebrate, preserve, publicize, and promote immigrant heritage and cultural diversity as defining characteristics of the American Nation, and the contributions of Immigrants and Immigration to American economy, culture, and civil society.”

In addition to honoring each inductee, the 2023 event will include a keynote address by Connecticut Attorney General William Tong and an artistic program featuring performances reflecting the cultural backgrounds and heritage of the inductees. The October 12 induction ceremony program will be held at AquaTurf in Plantsville, CT. Tickets are now on sale at www.immigrantheritage.org.

“We are very pleased to recognize this inspiring group of individuals who embody the kind of perseverance, commitment to excellence and notable achievement that have made our world a better place,” said Demetrios Giannaros, president of the National Immigrant Heritage Center.

Sponsors for the induction ceremony include Eversource; Hartford Healthcare; JCJ Architecture; Robinson & Cole; PKF O'Connor Davies; Polish American Foundation of CT; MyValueTree; Drubner, Hartley, Mengacci & Hellman; The Village for Families & Children; Child Health & Development Institute; CBIA; The Simon Konover Company; Hartford International University; Shipman & Goodwin; 617 Media Group and DEJE Group, LLC. Additional sponsorships are available; for more information, go to www.immigrantheritage.org.

Media Partner for the Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be NBC & Telemundo Connecticut; the emcee for the program will be Amber Diaz, a reporter/anchor with NBC Connecticut.

Cultural elements in the evening’s induction program will be provided by outstanding talent from across Connecticut, including Caribbean Steel Drum, Donald Thompson; Layavinyasa traditional Indian Dance group: La Raza traditional Colombian Dance group, and Walter Zev Marnick and his Klezmer Ensemble, the celebratory music of the Eastern European Jews and Yiddish culture.

Keynote speaker Connecticut Attorney General William Tong is a national leader in many of the most consequential lawsuits and investigations in our country today.

Taking office in 2019, he became the first Asian American elected to a statewide office in Connecticut history and the first Chinese American to be elected Attorney General in the United States. Attorney General Tong currently serves as Eastern Region Chair and Finance Chair of the National Association of Attorneys General.

The Immigrant Heritage Hall of Fame was initially a project of the Polish American Foundation of Connecticut, Inc., a 501(c)3 charitable organization, which launched and operated the Hall of Fame from inception. It was succeeded by the establishment during 2021 of the National Immigrant Heritage Center (NIHC), an independent 501(c)3 organization established as a multi-ethnic Center, inclusive in its mission, structure and governance.

For up-to-date event, ticket, and sponsorship information, visit immigrantheritage.org or call (860) 817-0368.