IRWINDALE – Celebrating the diversity in business and community partnerships, the Southern California Edison (SCE) got together with company executives and managers, community organizations, and business leaders on Friday, May 3, to celebrate SCE’s eighth Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month Celebration.
Held at the SCE Energy Education Center in Irwindale, the AAPI Heritage Month Celebration not only lauded diversity of cultures in SCE, but also the the strong business and community partnerships of the company. Guests were treated to a Continental breakfast in the morning, and to a festive luncheon at noon, featuring a wide array of Asian cuisines.
Aside from community organizations and business leaders, some local and state politicians also joined Friday’s celebration. In attendance were California Assemblymember Edwin Chau of District 49, Young Kim from the Office of Congressman Ed Royce, San Marino City Councilmember Eugene Sun, Monterey Park City Councilmember Anthony Wong, Pasadena City Councilmember Gene Masuda, and La Palma City Councilmember Peter L. Kim, among others.
“Mabuhay!” greeted Lisa Cagnolatti said in her opening remarks. Cagnolatti is SCE’s vice president for the Business Customer Division. Cagnolatti welcomed both the newcomers and returning guests to their annual celebration of cultural diversity.
“In a time when so many of our business customers are struggling in a difficult economy, our role as a trusted advisor takes on a special meaning,” Cagnolatti said. She emphasized the importance of strengthening relationships with both small and large commercial, industrial, and government customers, as well as business development stimulation across the company’s service territory.
“Thank you for allowing us to serve you , as we continue to strive towards excellence as we continue to improve the lives of our customers,” she added.
Companies cited for notable achievements
SCE also awarded citations to four organizations for their achievements in energy efficiency, service business service, and community partnership.
IMPEX Inc. and Park Avenue Chinese Cuisine were given the Energy Efficiency Participation Awards for their efforts to conserve energy. Apex Computer Systems, Inc., a Chinese-owned company that provides complete technology services to companies of all sizes, was awarded with the Diverse Business Enterprise Award for being part of SCE’s Supplier Diversity and Development Program.
The Samoan National Nurses Association (SNNA) was given the Community Partnership Award. The SNNA is currently working on a project with SCE to create policies to provide a safer environment for the elderly.
‘Don’t judge me for the color of my skin’
Keynote speaker and Edison International Board of Directors member Jagjeet S. Bindra captured the attention of the congregation as he delivered his remarks, and shared how to cultivate one’s professional dreams and make them in to reality.
Bindra, who was “delighted” to join the Heritage Month celebrations, said that he is “really proud to be an Asian American” and that celebrating this heritage “should be an ongoing event in our lives.”
Bindra has been a member of the Edison International board of directors since 2010, and has previously served as president of Chevron Global Manufacturing, responsible for Chevron Corporation’s worldwide refining operations, from 2004 until his retirement in 2009. In his remarks, Bindra recollected his professional struggles as an Asian American, which spanned for over three decades.
“To get where I am today took a lot of hard work and perseverance,” said Bindra.
Bindra told the audience of how he faced adversity in applying for an upper management position 30 years ago just because he belonged to a minority group. He recounted how an executive pulled him aside and told him that because he looked and dressed differently, and spoke with an accent, Bindra would be lucky to reach middle management before he retired.
Bindra nevertheless persevered and worked systematically to remove all obstacles in the path of his career growth, even revealing that he even took intensive accent reduction classes.
“I worked harder, thinking and muttering to myself ‘don’t judge me by the color of my skin, or my accent, or the kind of food I eat, or whether my name is Bindra, or Wong, or Gonzales for that matter,’” Bindra said.
Bindra pointed out that the important thing thing that should always be considered is one’s performance and what he or she brings to the table, instead of such discriminatory qualifications.
Learning from this experience, Bindra concluded that success follows respect; that success follows when people come first. He also trumpeted core virtues that should be present in any company: ethics and integrity, honesty and transparency, and credibility.
Speaking as an Asian American man, Bindra pointed out that it is necessary for people of different ethnic backgrounds to integrate into the mainstream population “to educate others about our cultures.”
Filipino-American Marissa Castro-Salvati, SCE region manager for Local Public Affairs, said that it is important to celebrate the Heritage Month because it exhibits the contributions that the Asian Pacific Islanders have made not just for the company, but also for the community. These contributions are something that other communities should also know about, Salvati said.
“The AAPI community has contributed so much in the betterment of the communities that we have here in Southern California,” she added.
Being a Filipina, Salvati was also delighted with the wordplay of Kababayan Today host Jannelle So on the acronym “TGIF” which stands for “Thank God It’s Friday.” So, who served as program host for Friday’s heritage event, enthusiastically offered the Filipino version of TGIF: “Thank God I’m Filipino.”
“I think it was a great acronym because as a Filipina, I’m just extremely proud to be Filipina. I’m always Filipino first, American second,” Salvati said.