[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 155 (Friday, October 23, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2623-E2624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING DR. HO LUONG TRAN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL M. HONDA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 23, 2009

  Mr. HONDA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Ho Luong Tran, 
President and CEO of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum 
(APIAHF) on the occasion of her retirement from the Forum to pursue new 
advocacy opportunities.
  Dr. Tran has spent 7 years working with sincere, focused dedication 
to build APIAHF into a leading policy. Dr. Tran has been leading 
innovative legislative, policy, and community initiatives with an 
outstanding ability to establish coalitions among the public, private 
and community sectors for more than 20 years.
  Under Dr. Tran's leadership, APIAHF has partnered with the W.K. 
Kellogg Foundation on a groundbreaking initiative, Health Through 
Action, to provide local communities with funding, training, and 
technical assistance to address health issues and strengthen a national 
network of advocates to create a broader health movement. During her 
tenure as the President and CEO of APIAHF, Dr. Tran has helped create 
the Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Alliance and the National 
Council of API Physicians.
  Furthermore, she led the development of a national policy blueprint 
for Asian American, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islander health and 
enhanced the organization's national presence and reach in Washington 
D.C.
  She has worked in health care since earning her degree at the 
University of Saigon in 1972. Her family fled Vietnam as refugees in 
1978, an experience which has shaped and deepened her commitment to the 
health of her community. I have worked with Dr. Tran and the APIAHF 
since I was elected to Congress. Her leadership and the excellent work 
of the Health Forum have enabled the Congressional Asian Pacific 
American Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Congressional 
Black Caucus to help significantly positively impact health policy and 
the conversation around health disparities.

[[Page E2624]]

  Her leadership has been critical in the fight for greater 
understanding of the challenges facing the Asian American and Pacific 
Islander communities. I know the APIAHF will carry on her legacy of 
excellence and thank her for her unfailing commitment to improving the 
health of all Americans.

                          ____________________