Final Lineup for the Latino Trendsetter Awards Announced!

Landmark awards ceremony will be held on November 16, 2009 at the United Nations in Manhattan

NEW YORK, Nov. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Actress and motivational speaker April Lee Hernandez-Castillo has been confirmed to co-host the 8th Annual Latino Trendsetter Awards with Veronica Contreras of Telemundo 47.

Hernandez-Castillo is best known for her work on the TV shows E.R., 30 Rock, Law & Order, and Rescue Me, as well as her role in the feature film Freedom Writers (starring Hillary Swank). Contreras is the weekday sports anchor for Telemundo's "Noticiero 47 at 6 and 11 p.m," and files a series of special reports for the station's various newscasts. The duo will honor Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Latin music legend Willie Colon, and author/activist Laura Posada -- wife of New York Yankees' Jorge Posada -- at this historic event on November 16, 2009, at the Delegates' Dining Room of the United Nations Headquarters-between 45th Street & 1st Ave in NYC.

Other prominent Latinos who will be honored on this historic night include Jose Pinero, Director of Communications for TV, Video, and Business at Microsoft; NY1 Noticias's Maritza Puello; Lourdes Lopez, Director of Marketing at AXA Equitable; Professor Jenny Rivera of CUNY Law College; Richard Gonzalez, the New York District Manager of Capital One Bank; Lutzi Vieluf, owner of Cibao Meat Products; Randall Berman, Director of Hispanic Brands at The Coca-Cola Company; Elizabeth Chalas Berman, President of Continental Food and Beverage, Inc. (the makers of Inca Kola); attorney Miguel Pozo of Lowenstein Sandler; Jose Luis Rodriguez, the founder and CEO of HITN-TV; and Dr. Angela Diaz, professor of pediatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. A full list of Trendsetters, past and present, can be found at www.latinotrendsetter.com.

This year, a portion of the proceeds will be given to the scholarship fund for deserving CUNY students, with the following recipients: Melinda Gonzales and Stephanie Torres of CUNY Lehman College; Rachel Soto of CUNY Queens College; and Victoria Rodriguez of the City College of New York. These young Latina trendsetters are part of the 100 Hispanic Women leadership program.

Latino Trendsetter Awards are given by DTM (Defining Trends Magazine) to leaders and innovators in the Hispanic community who maintain high levels of standards through their actions and deeds, and is sponsored by State Farm Insurance, Pfizer, Miller Coors, and Health Plus.

SOURCE Defining Trends Magazine