2023 Class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame
The 2023 Class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame was selected from 84 worthy nominations. The list of nominees was sent to previous inductees of the CIHF for their input. With so many deserving candidates it was not an easy task but the 2023 Class consists of:
- Pierre Bejjani (Lebanese heritage)
- Pat Dowd (Irish)
- Joyce Mariani (Italian)
- Councilman Mike Polensek (Slovenian)
- Sudarshan Sathe (Indian)
- Mayor Georgine Welo (Serbian)
Click on their name (above) for a photo and bio.
The Induction Dinner ceremony will be held on Tuesday April 18, 2023 at Windows on the River. TV3 News Anchor Russ Mitchell will be the MC and Cleveland Bishop Edward Malesic will give the invocation. There will be special guests as well.
Save the date and contact us now for sponsorship and table opportunities.
Purchase individual Tickets for the dinner event via credit card (below).
2022
Cleveland International Hall of Fame
What a Night!
Since 2010, the Cleveland International Hall of Fame (CIHF) has inducted people who have made significant and lasting contributions to our multicultural society. Cleveland is home to people representing about 120 different ethnic groups. The CIHF exists not only to honor those special people but also to inspire a new generation of leaders to follow in their footsteps.
Over 150 worthy candidates were nominated for both the 2020 and 2022 Classes of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. The selection committee was advised by previously inducted members of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame.
Covid-19 forced the always sold out induction ceremonies to be cancelled in 2020 and 2021. We tried to induct the 2020 class virtually but it was not the same. So once we were able to gather together again, we included the 2020 class in the induction ceremony along with the 2022 class on June 7, 2022. The event at Windows on the River was a sell out and the 2020 class finally got their moment in the spotlight.
Seated (l-r) Anda Cook, Taras Szmagala
Standing – Victor Ruiz, Carl Robson MD
The 2022 honorees are:
• Anda Cook, (Latvian)
• Carl Robson, (Ethiopian community)
• Victor Ruiz, (Puerto Rican)
• Taras Szmagala, (Ukrainian)
In addition, we recognized the 2020 inductees who missed out on their ceremony due to Covid.
Seated (l-r) Margaret Lynch, May Chen, Valarie McCall
Standing Berj Shakarian, Joe Valencic, Ramesh Shah
• May Chen (Chinese)
• Margaret Lynch (Irish)
• Valarie McCall (African-American)
• Ramesh Shah (Indian)
• Berj Shakarian (Armenian)
• Joe Valencic (Slovenian)
Click on the name of the person above to view their photo, bio and see their induction into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame.
See photos and videos from the Induction Ceremony
See photos of some of the attendees – who do you recognize?
in Estonian and Vietnamese grab
Save the Date – April 18, 2023 for the next induction ceremony!
Celebrating Cleveland’s Diversity
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