[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 32 (Tuesday, March 19, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E387-E388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           HONORING TADELE WORKU FOR SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 19, 2002

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, I rise today to honor Tadele 
Worku, recipient of

[[Page E388]]

the 2001 Yoshiyama Award for Exemplary Service to the Community, 
presented to him by The Hitachi Foundation at an awards ceremony on 
Monday, March 18, 2002 in Washington, DC. The Foundation named ten high 
school seniors nationwide as recipients of this prestigious award--ten 
young people who exemplify the best in creativity, accomplishment, and 
service to their communities.
  Tadele is a 2001 graduate of Hoover High School in my home town of 
San Diego, California. He is receiving this award to recognize his 
contribution to the Ethiopian community in San Diego. Upon his arrival 
as a refugee from Ethiopia four years ago, he became aware that 
Ethiopian children in his neighborhood did not know how to read and 
write their native language. Tadele set to work to develop a tutoring 
program for these children. While their parents attended church, he 
worked with their children, teaching the Ethiopian alphabet and 
language and exposing them to the Ethiopian literature, tradition, and 
culture.
  In addition, Tadele provided tutoring in math and science to the 
children who needed assistance. He also worked with young adults in the 
computer center of the local library and volunteered in a San Diego 
homeless shelter. By becoming so involved in service to others, Tadele 
has truly become a part of his new community, a bond which has helped 
him overcome a difficult exile from Africa where his mother and 
grandfather were killed and his father incarcerated for their political 
beliefs.
  The Yoshiyama Award, which Tadele has received, was established in 
1988 with a gift from Hirokichi Yoshiyama, former president and 
chairman of Hitachi, Ltd., the company that established The Hitachi 
Foundation in 1985. The goal of this non-profit, philanthropic 
Foundation is to promote social responsibility through effective 
participation in global society. The Hitachi Foundation is proud to 
highlight the achievements of the young people of our country, the 
leaders of their generation.
  I am pleased to take this opportunity to congratulate Tadele Worku on 
this prestigious award and to thank him for his compassionate 
commitment to his community.

                          ____________________