Monday, October 29, 2012

PRBA Honors Past Presidents of the Puerto Rican Bar Association

Platanos and Filet Mignon at PRBA event
The Puerto Rican Bar Association event: Honoring our Ex-Officios As We Lead and Look to the Future was held at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres, & Friedman last week.

Past Presidents of the PRBA were honored.  Judge Eduardo Padro spoke about the history of the legal community and its affects on Puerto Ricans.  He visualized it as a Broadway show with ACTS 1, 2 and 3. Act 1 recalled the past and the dearth of Puerto Ricans in the the practice of law.  Act 2 was about more modern times, culminating with the appointment of Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a former member of the PRBA, to the Supreme Court of the United States.  Act 3, Judge Pardo, said is yet to be written, but offered an aspiring realm of possibilities as to how far we can go!

Judge John Carro as well gave an inspiring speech as he recalled his mother, a "jibarita", who came to New York with a grammar school education.  Calling her his "hero" because she came to this country with so little.  He recalled when the PRBA was only about 30 members and now its close to 3000 members.  He shared that he initially wanted to be a police officer, but there was a height requirement of 5 feet 8 1/2 inches tall, which he did not reach.  Subsequently after becoming a lawyer he went on to sue the police department for the discriminatory practice and ultimately won. Hence, police officers now come in all shapes and sizes.

The evening then ended with presenting the past presidents, "ex-officios", with a small gift.

The evening was also quite appetizing with empanadillas, papas rellenas, and my favorite- platanos with filet mignon.


EX-OFFICIOS/PAST PRESIDENTS INCLUDE: Rosevelie Márquez Morales, Esq. Catherine Torres, Esq. Hon. Roberto Ramírez Maria Matos, Esq. Edgardo A. Flores, Esq. David Hernández, Esq. Janet Alvarez, Esq. Edgar de León, Esq. Dolly Caraballo, Esq. James Castro-Blanco, Esq. Ellie Jurado-Nieves, Esq. Damaris E. Torrent, Esq. Roberto G. Lebrón, Esq. Carmen Rita Torrent, Esq. Hon. Nelson S. Román Telesforo del Valle, Esq. Ramon Cintron, Esq. Sandra Otero, Esq. Hon. Mary-Ann Brigantti-Hughes Roberto Laracuente, Esq. Franklyn Pérez, Esq. Hon. Anthony Suárez Hon. Gloria Sosa-Litner Hon. Peter Rivera Hon. Nicholas Figueroa Demonstenes Santiago-Rogue, Esq. Roberto Lebron, Sr., Esq. Austin Torres, Esq. Hon. John Carro

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