WASHINGTON, DC – On the evening of Monday, October 19, the Society of Spain (SoS) will host its first annual Pedro Menendez Awards Gala and Dinner. During the event, which will be held at La Taberna del Albardero, three awards will be presented to members of the Washington, DC community to honor them for the tremendous work they have done to further Spain-DC relations here in the DC area. This year, the Pioneer Award will be presented to Alberto Avendaño, Associate Publisher and Editor in Chief of El Tiempo Latino.

The Menendez Pioneer Award recognizes Spaniards who are pioneers in their respective fields, and have over the years made a positive contribution to the Washington, DC area’s culture, commerce, and/or education.

Before immigrating to the United States in 1991, Alberto Avendaño was already an award winning author as well as a renowned theatrical director, translator, and journalist in Spain. Upon moving to this country, he first worked as a freelance writer for various European publications and taught Spanish language and literature at Johns Hopkins University before going on to become the Associate Publisher and Editor in Chief of the weekly paper El Tiempo Latino in 2000. There he played an instrumental role in increasing El Tiempo Latino’s circulation and influence, and forging the paper’s current partnership with The Washington Post. Under his leadership, El Tiempo Latino has grown to be the DC area’s award-winning leading Spanish-Language newspaper that it is today.

Of his selection as the 2009 Menendez Pioneer Award Winner, Mr. Avendaño says, “I am honored to receive this award from The Society of Spain. Over the years it has been a great privilege of mine to work to spread more awareness about Spain and its culture here in the capital of The United States.”

Michael Ramos, founder of Ramos LLC, says, “Alberto Avendaño has become Washington’s leading journalist-intellectual for ibero-hemispheric affairs. Alberto’s trans-political, humanistic perspective of our community offers the US political and economic leadership with high-impact ideas and analyses crucial to the design and implementation of appropriate solutions to current foreign and domestic policy issues.”

WASHINGTON, DC – On the evening of Monday, October 19, the Society of Spain (SoS) will host its first annual Pedro Menendez Awards Gala and Dinner. During the event, which will be held at La Taberna del Albardero, three awards will be presented to members of the Washington, DC community to honor them for the tremendous work they have done to further Spain-DC relations here in the DC area.

The Pioneer Award will be presented to Alberto Avendaño, Associate Publisher and Editor in Chief of El Tiempo Latino. The Menendez Pioneer Award recognizes Spaniards who are pioneers in their respective fields, and have over the years made a positive contribution to the Washington, DC area’s culture, commerce, and/or education.

The Friend of Spain Award will be presented to Don Harris, founder and owner of La Tienda. The Menendez Friend of Spain Award honors individuals who live and work in the Washington, DC area and have demonstrated through their work a special commitment to promoting Spain and Spanish culture here in the United States. José Andrés, chef/owner of THINKfoodGROUP, the creative team behind DC restaurants such as Café Atlantico, Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel, will present this award.

The Amigo de España Award will be presented to Ana Margarita Chávez, Consul General of El Salvador. The Menendez Amigo de España Award honors individuals from the Latin American community who live and work in the Washington, DC area and have demonstrated through their work a special commitment to and appreciation of Spain and its culture. This award will be presented by Alvaro de Salas Gimenez de Azcarate, Consul General of Spain.

Patrick Gannon, Founder and President of the Society of Spain, said of the honorees, “We are honored to be able to recognize these outstanding individuals for all they’ve done over the years to promote Spain and its culture here in the nation’s capital. This dinner will be a great expression of that appreciation and a fitting way to celebrate, in wonderful Spanish style, all of their hard work. We look forward to working with them to continue to build on their success and help increase the presence of Spain in the Washington DC area.”

The three Menendez awards are named in honor of the sixteenth century Spanish naval officer and explorer, Admiral Pedro Menendez de Aviles, the first European known to have sailed any distance up the Potomac River—the place where Washington D.C.’s history itself begins. After his exploration along the Potomac, Admiral Menendez later went on to found St. Augustine, Florida—the first permanent European settlement and oldest port city in the continental United States.

WASHINGTON, DC – On the evening of Monday, October 19, the Society of Spain (SoS) will host its first annual Pedro Menendez Awards Gala and Dinner. During the event, which will be held at La Taberna del Albardero, three awards will be presented to members of the Washington, DC community to honor them for the tremendous work they have done to further Spain-DC relations here in the DC area. This year, the Friend of Spain Award will be presented to Don Harris, founder and owner of La Tienda.

The Menendez Friend of Spain Award honors individuals who live and work in the Washington, DC area and have demonstrated through their work a special commitment to promoting Spain and Spanish culture here in the United States.

After serving in Spain during his career as a U.S. Navy Chaplain, Mr. Harris could not forget the impression Spanish food and culture had made on him and his family. This deep connection he felt led him to create La Tienda in 1996. La Tienda is an online store offering the broadest selection of Spanish food and products on the web, including many artisanal and traditional items not previously available outside of Spain. Today, La Tienda has warehouses in Williamsburg, VA and Alicante, Spain, and ships thousands of orders around the US and Canada each month.

Of his selection as the 2009 Menendez Friend of Spain Award Winner, Mr. Harris says, “I truly appreciate The Society of Spain for granting me this award in the name of Admiral Menendez, a naval officer and Spanish explorer. It was as a young naval officer forty years ago that I first discovered Spain and her traditional family-based culture. My admiration for Spain and its culture has only increased as time has passed, and my family and I have been returning ever since. ”

José Andrés, chef/owner of THINKfoodGROUP, the creative team behind DC restaurants such as Café Atlantico, Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel, will present this award. He says of Mr. Harris, “Don is a true pioneer when it comes to bringing Spanish food to the United States. Early on he helped lay the groundwork for others like myself to come to this country and share the food and culture that we all love so much.”

PARA PUBLICACION INMEDIATA
2 de Octubre de 2009

WASHINGTON, DC – The Society of Spain (SoS) se complace en anunciar el comienzo hoy, día 2 de octubre, del primer festival anual “SPAINDC”. Durante todo el mes de octubre, SoS acompañada de diferentes organizaciones locales ofrecerá un amplio abanico de eventos culturales españoles dentro del Distrito y en sus cercanías. Desde arte y música pasando por gastronomía y vinos, SPAINDC tiene algo que ofrecer a hispanófilos de todas las edades.

ARTES VISUALES
SPAINDC ofrecerá varios eventos centrados en las bellas artes, incluyendo una cena-conferencia en el Cosmos Club titulada “Dalí: de la locura al genio”; visitas guiadas a las obras de arte españolas expuestas en la National Gallery of Art y en la Library of Congress y a la obra del fotógrafo washingtoniano Mark Parascandola “Fantasmas españoles: La Arquitectura española abandonada” en el Biagio Fine Chocolate.

MUSICA Y DANZA
Música y Danza, incluirá “Íntimo” un evento flamenco especial y benéfico en el Teatro Gala encabezado por Omayra Amaya y Edwin Aparicio; Música flamenca en vivo en la Vinoteca Wine Bar los domingos por la noche durante todo el mes, y la presentación del ballet Don Quijote por el Washington Ballet.

LENGUAJE
SoS ha lanzado “Cuentos en Español/Stories in Spanish”, un programa de lectura para niños de dos a siete años en el cual cuentos tradicionales españoles serán leídos por figuras reconocidas de la comunidad hispano parlante perteneciente al área de DC.

GASTRONOMIA Y VINO
Gastronomía y Vino forma una parte importante de la herencia cultural española y tendrá una presencia relevante en el festival SPAINDC. Biagio ofrecerá una cata y degustación de vinos y chocolates españoles premiados. La Tasca, Martha’s Table y SoS presentarán “Tapas con Corazón” en beneficio de niños “at-risk”, jóvenes y familias del área de DC. SoS y la Taberna del Alabardero ofrecerán la Cena y Gala de entrega de premios “Almirante Pedro Menéndez” y en el The Curious Grape en Arlington, especialistas en vino, ofrecerán a los invitados una degustación de pequeños platos y vinos de las regiones vinícolas más famosas del país.

Para más información sobre estos y otros eventos de SPAINDC, incluyendo fechas, horas e información sobre tickets/RSVP visiten http://spaindc.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2, 2009

WASHINGTON, DC – The Society of Spain (SoS) is pleased to announce that the first annual SPAINDC festival begins today. Throughout the month of October, SoS will be partnering with various local organizations to offer a wide array of Spanish cultural events in and near the District. From art to music to food and wine, SPAINDC has something to offer hispanophiles of all ages.

VISUAL ARTS
SPAINDC will feature several events centered around the fine arts, including a dinner lecture at the Cosmos Club entitled “Dali: From Madness to Genius,” guided tours of Spanish works of art at the National Gallery of Art and the Library of Congress, and also DC photographer Mark Parascandola’s exhibit “Spanish Ghosts: Spain’s Abandoned Architecture” at Biagio Fine Chocolate.

MUSIC & DANCE
Music and dance offerings will include “Íntimo,” a special flamenco benefit event at the Gala Theatre headlined by Omayra Amaya and Edwin Aparicio; Vinoteca Wine Bar’s live flamenco music on Sunday evenings throughout the month; and the Washington Ballet’s presentation of “Don Quixote.”

LANGUAGE
SoS is launching “Cuentos en Español/Stories in Spanish,” a reading program for children ages two to seven during which traditional Spanish stories will be read aloud by recognized figures from the DC area Spanish-speaking community.

FOOD & WINE
Food and wine form an important part of Spanish cultural heritage, and will have quite a presence in the SPAINDC festival as well. Biagio will offer a tasting of award-winning Spanish wines and chocolates; La Tasca, Martha’s Table, & SoS will host “Tapas con Corazón” to benefit at-risk children, youth, and families in the DC area; SoS and La Taberna del Alabardero will host the Admiral Pedro Menendez Awards Dinner and Gala; and at The Curious Grape in Arlington, certified wine specialists will guide guests through a small plates dinner featuring wines from the country’s famous winemaking regions.

For more information on these and many other SPAINDC events, including dates, times, and ticket/RSVP details, please visit http://spaindc.org.

For press inquiries, please contact:

Holly Cowan (English)
holly.cowan@societyofspain.org
(201)320-2135

Diana Molineaux (Español)
diana.molineaux@societyofspain.org
(202)305-4297