A Real Bell Ringer
Hanmi Bank on Tuesday rang the bell – literally – in celebration of its 40th anniversary. Bonnie Lee, the president and chief executive of Hanmi Bank and its parent holding company, Hanmi Financial Corp., rang the Nasdaq closing bell in New York. “We are proud of our history as the first Korean American bank and remain committed to serving the underserved and unbanked populations of all backgrounds and ethnicities,” Lee said in a statement.
• • •
The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce announced last week it has been awarded a five-star accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the highest level. Of the nearly 7,000 chambers in the country, only 201 nationwide and seven in California have that distinction.
“We strive to be bold, transformative, inclusive and responsible in our work to grow an economy that works for all.” said Maria S. Salinas, president and CEO of the chamber.
The chamber joins three Valley chambers that earlier won the five-star designation: Greater Conejo Valley, Palmdale and Simi Valley.
• • •
Patrol Torpedo boats, as fast as they were lethal, remain among the most celebrated crafts in U.S. military history. PT-109, commanded by then-Lieutenant John F. Kennedy, was famously cut in half in 1943 by a Japanese destroyer. Sadly, after World War II, PT boats were sold off and transformed to civilian duty.
One of them, PT-350, became a tour boat before being acquired by the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. It underwent a 10-year restoration, but there was a problem: the electronics could not be restored. That’s where Moore Industries of North Hills stepped in. A maker of industrial control systems, Moore donated the parts and expertise needed to get the boat cutting through the water again. In the next few months, PT-350 will go on display at the museum – the only opera