Noted media personality Samuel Easo (Sunil Tristar) has been honored with the Community Service Award for Media Excellence by Bergen County in New Jersey as part of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month celebrations.

Tracy Silna Zur, chairwoman of the Board of Chosen Freeholders, presented the award, May 15, at a colorful event at the county hall in Hackensack, New Jersey.

May is celebrated as Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage month in the United States.

Mona H Wang received the Education Contribution Award, while the Rev Gaudencio Soriano was honored with the Leadership Award. The Law Enforcement Service Award went to the New Jersey Asian American Law Enforcement Officers Association.

Chairwoman Zur noted the growth of the Asian community in the county and its many contributions. She cited the achievement of Gurbir Grewal, who was sworn in as the Bergen county prosecutor in January 2017, as an example of the importance gained by the community.

She congratulated the winners of the awards for their exemplary services. Zur read the proclamation of County Executive James J. Tedesco declaring May as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. It noted the journey of the Asians â€˜unified by a common hope for civil rights, equal treatment and a better tomorrowâ€¦ and their histories recall bitter hardships and proud accomplishments-from laborers who connected our coasts one and a half centuries ago, to the patriots who fought overseas.â€™

It also noted that the county is home to 130,000 Asians and Pacific Islanders, and their number is growing steadily.

Freeholder Germain M Ortiz, liaison to the Asian American Advisory Committee, said that Asians are the second largest minority community in the county after the Latinos.

The event began with the â€˜Presentation of Colorsâ€™ by the County Sheriffâ€™s Department Honor Guard. Assistant Prosecutor Jacqueline Choi recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Cultural programs from various Asian cultures stole the heart of the audience.

Samuel Easo is noted for his work in the media, especially the visual media, spanning two decades. He played a pivotal role with the launch of Asianet channels in the US, making it the most watched Malayalam television in the country. He also started the Pravasi Channel, the first Malayalam channel from North America and he is the Managing Director.

He also leads the popular Malayalam news portal www.emalayalee.com, and the English magazine \'IndiaLife and Times\' and online Indian News Portal www.ilatimes.com also he owns Media Logistics US, a media production company.

The US Congress established the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week in 1978, and expanded it to the entire month in 1992. May was chosen because the first Japanese immigrants arrived in the United States in May 1843 and the First Transcontinental Railroad was finished in May 1869. Track for the railway, which linked eastern and western railroad systems, was laid largely by Chinese immigrant laborers.

Sunil Tristar honored with Asian American Award for Media Excellence