LAOTION COMMUNITY LEADER WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD FROM INTERNATIONAL CHANNEL NETWORKS

6 October 2003For Immediate ReleaseContact: Corin Ramos (714) 926-9681Photo available upon requestLAOTION COMMUNITY LEADER WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD FROM INTERNATIONAL CHANNEL NETWORKSSANTA ANA, CA October 7 2003--During America's long-ago secret war, Chongge Vang would parachute behind enemy lines alongside CIA agents, helping them find their way through the unfamiliar terrain. It was a dangerous vocation, but one that Vang felt was his only choice to combat the communists attacking his village in Laos.Decades later, Vang is still assisting strangers to new lands. This time, the newcomers are not soldiers, but fellow Laotian and Hmong immigrants, who like himself when he first came to America in 1976, quickly discover that navigating through cultural and language barriers could also be a matter of survival.Vang, a Santa Ana resident and community activist, is the President of the United Lao Movement for Democracy. Under Vang's leadership, the group is credited with helping hundreds of Laotian and Hmong immigrants become United States citizens, receive health care and other social service support.Vang has literally been an unsung hero from those outside his community, a role preferred by the quiet, soft-spoken 62-year-old father of 13.Until now.For his unwavering dedication to his community, The International Channel Network has named Vang the recipient of this year's Vision in America (VIA) award presented by the International Channel as part of their We the People public affairs campaign celebrating the extraordinary experience of becoming a United States citizen.VIA awards are presented to ethnic community leaders across the country who provide support to their immigrant communities. Vang, along with Frank Sun of the Asian American Senior Citizens Service Center, will be honored at a special ceremony at the Bowers Museum on October 14, 2003.Chongge Vang's contributions to helping immigrants in his community adjust to life in America and become U.S. citizens exemplify what the Vision in America Award is all about, and International Channel is honored to present this award to him, said Jim Honiotes, Vice President of Marketing and Communications for International Channel Networks.Vang's modest reaction to the announcement was true to form. I only do what I can do to serve my community. I am not expecting to get any reward for what I do, he said. Vang, an interpreter and community outreach coordinator for the Orange County Health Care Agency, is the first Laotian to win the prestigious Vision In America award. Vang was nominated for the VIA award by Corin Ramos of Access Media, a cross-cultural public relations and event marketing agency specializing in outreach to the Asian and Pacific Islander population.MORE ABOUT CHONGGE VANGChongge Vang was born in Laos, one of six children of a Hmong family. He was a soldier from 1958 to 1975, assisting secret American CIA missions, which included protecting American personnel. On one of Vang's missions, he rescued American pilots shot down by the North Vietnamese communists. He also disrupted the flow of communist military personnel, supplies, trucks, and tanks traveling along the Ho Chi Minh Trail on their way to fight American soldiers in South Vietnam.In 1976, Vang migrated to California as a refugee. Later he earned degrees in sociology and health care management at Kensington University in Los Angeles.As president of the United Lao Movement for Democracy, Vang organized Orange County's annual Hmong New Year Celebration. He is a member of the Santa Ana Cable Advisory Board; and co-founder of the Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Council of Orange County.Vang lives in Santa Ana with his wife, My.