Los Angeles, CA – On Friday, October 5th, CAUSE held the second Leadership Network training session on “Elevating Your Community: The Appointments Process” at the Azucar Room at LA Live, featuring Appointments Secretary Mona Pasquil.
CAUSE Executive Director, Kim Yamasaki, started off the program by welcoming everyone and introducing Secretary Pasquil. She shared that “not many people walk the walk when it comes to empowering APAs”, and that we need more leaders like Secretary Pasquil who utilize their influence to elevate leaders in the APA community.
Appointments Secretary Mona Pasquil of the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. invited members of the Leadership Network to ask her any questions they had about the appointments process and delivered candid thoughts on her experiences. She emphasized how crucial it was for the community to strategize effectively to get more APA’s in leadership positions, asking “Who do we put up among us and really get behind? And when we do that, are we being real and honest with ourselves that that person is the best for us?” She implored members of the Leadership Network to utilize their strengths and work together to empower each other, stating, “If we want to be part of the bigger picture, we have to play the game too.”
Afterwards, the CAUSE Leadership Council & Network joined APIs Mobilize for a reception honoring Secretary Mona Pasquil in the neighboring Conga Room.
As the Master of Ceremonies, Lisa Thong, Boardmember of APIs Mobilize and member of the CAUSE Leadership Council, welcomed attending guests and shared that APIs Mobilize was founded with the intention of building an inclusive community. She shared her personal story of how the support of other APA leaders in the community helped her appointment to the California Board of Barbering & Cosmetology, and how important it was to continue to foster a network of appointed officials. Lisa then introduced the recently launched CA-Appointed Officials Network (AON), a nonpartisan program of APIs Mobilize created by a Governor’s appointee, which seeks to provide a growing need of support for appointed officials.
Annie Lam, Principal of Lam Consulting Group, highlighted the importance of the day’s event and how it came from a need to uplift qualified members of our community to represent our community.
Adam Ma, Community Relations Manager at SoCalGas and member of the CAUSE Leadership Council, introduced the CAUSE Leadership Council & Network’s origins and thanked APIs Mobilize for working together with the CAUSE Leadership Network in empowering fellow APA’s.
Next, Fiona Ma, Vice Chair of the Board of Equalization, shared the story of her career path and how far the APA community has come. She remarked, “As we are moving up in the political realm, we need to remember all the people who came before us…they [broke] the bamboo ceiling”.
Lastly, Secretary Mona Pasquil was presented with the APIs Mobilize 2018 Vanguard Award by Annie Lam and Vice Chair Fiona Ma. Secretary Pasquil then spoke on the gratitude she felt towards her job as it comes to an end, and the crucial need for the community to keep pushing. She stated, “We have a long way to go. We need to help each other get there, push each other forward…Even though we don’t always agree, we support our people in moving up at every level.”
As the program came to a close, Lisa Thong announced Secretary Mona Pasquil as the Chair of the CA-Appointed Officials Network. Guests had the opportunity to network with each other and attending elected officials for the remainder of the evening.