Dr Khalid Ahmed among Visionaries Honored at Annual Fundraising Gala
Orange County , CA : What do a doctor, a lawyer, a hotelier, a CFO, and a sustainable design firm have in common with Time Warner Cable? They were all honored as Visionaries at the annual Visionary of the Year Awards ceremony that took place on Saturday, May 21, at the Westin South Coast Plaza.
The Visionary of the Year Awards — hosted by the Coastline Foundation — honor those in the community who are making a difference through their work. Their contributions to the community can be in the form of time, money or talent, and the six honorees this year have demonstrated a commitment to Orange County through their projects or personal involvement.
“Typically, we choose five Visionary honorees each year, but this year there were six standouts who were so worthy of acknowledgement,” said Mariam Khosravani, Executive Director of the Coastline Foundation, which uses the money raised at the event to fund student scholarships and enhance college programs.
Among the six 2011 Visionary of the Year Award honorees was a distinguished Pakistani-American, Dr. Khalid Ahmed, an orthopedic surgeon with practices throughout Southern California. Dr. Ahmed is involved in many charitable and philanthropic causes and has contributed generously to education, particularly for women in Pakistan, and to the various philanthropies in America.
The Visionary of the Year Awards ceremony opened with a silent auction followed by a dinner and awards program honoring the Visionaries. The event also featured sights, sounds, and SAMBA — reflecting this year’s theme of “Brazilian Carnaval.”
The other 2011 visionary of the year award honorees were: Larry Broughton, President & CEO of Broughton Hospitality, who is an award-winning entrepreneur, best-selling author, keynote speaker and former Green Beret; LPA, Inc, sustainable design firm who were responsible for the green Newport Beach Environmental Nature Center, the first LEED-Certified Platinum project in Orange County; Mary-Christine “M.C.” Sungaila, a partner with the law firm of Snell & Wilmer in Orange County whose pro bono work in the areas of human rights and women’s rights includes a win in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights called “one of the most important legal victories for international women’s rights in decades”; Mr. Khanh T. Tran, CFO & CIO of Pacific Life Insurance Company, a role model for Orange County’s young Vietnamese community; and Time Warner Cable, a communications company dedicated to giving back to the community.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
