NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release: January 21, 2022
2022 Cupertino Bridge Award Recipients Announced
CUPERTINO, CA – Silicon Valley is vital and diverse as a global economic center. Successful collaboration and understanding among businesses and people from around the world have become essential for communities and businesses to thrive. Each year, the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce Bridge Award recognizes those individuals and organizations that have helped build trust, respect, and dialogue within Cupertino's multi-ethnic and multi-cultural business community.
Polly Bove, 2022 Bridge Award Recipient for Individual Service
 Polly Bove has served as Superintendent of the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) since 2006. She has been an educator and administrator for over four decades and has been involved in almost every aspect of public education. From 1972 to 1989, Ms. Bove worked at San Ramon Valley Unified School District as a mathematics, physics, computer science teacher, guidance counselor, and administrator. Her over 30-year career at FUHSD began at Homestead High School, where she served as an Assistant Principal. She then held a wide variety of roles, including District Coordinator of Student Services, Executive Director of Educational Services, and Deputy Superintendent.
Among her many notable achievements, Ms. Bove created many of the District's wide variety of alternative education programs that serve students with special needs, developed an open and collaborative approach to negotiations with collective bargaining units, and spearheaded the District's recovery from the financial downturns of 2002-2003 and 2008-2013. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Schools for Sound Finance, a member of Cupertino Rotary and Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce, and is active in community and educational events and organizations throughout the District and Santa Clara County. Ms. Bove holds a Masters' Degree in Mathematics, Psychology/Counseling, and Educational Administration. She holds bachelor's degrees in mathematics and Rhetoric from the University of Illinois.
Polly helped build trust, respect, and dialogue within our multi-ethnic and multi-cultural community by her extraordinary example.
Pineapple Thai Restaurant, 2022 Bridge Award for
Outstanding Business of the Year
 Thalia and Raffy Swangchaeng restaurateurs were always fascinated with Silicon Valley and wanted to bring authentic Thai cuisine to Cupertino. They searched long and hard before settling on their third location in Main Street Cupertino. And it was here that Pineapple Thai was born.
Since opening at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, Pineapple Thai (and Must be Thai, and Coup de Thai) actively participated in programs to give back to the community. Beginning in 2020, Pineapple Thai partnered with the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce to support food for Covid-19 food-insecure members of our community, most notably seniors.
Pineapple Thai is operated by the team that owns and operates the successful Coup de Thai and Must be Thai restaurants. The team's core members are Thai natives, who bring the flavors of their hometown and childhoods to the restaurant. These are dishes they have sought out locally but discovered that no local establishments offer them. As a result, Pineapple Thai has quickly established a reputation as a distinctive, authentic, and popular Thai restaurant.
Since opening in Cupertino, Pineapple Thai and its staff have actively served the Cupertino community with frequency and profound generosity.
The 2022 Bridge Awards will be presented at the 2022 Lunar New Year Luncheon Celebrating the Year of the Tiger. Due to the ongoing pandemic, this event will be held virtually on Thursday, February 10, from 5 - 6:30 pm. For event information and to register, visit: https://bit.ly/LunarNewYear2022
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The Cupertino Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit business and community advocacy organization with members that employ more than 45,000 people. The Chamber works with government, education, and private industry to advocate for a vibrant, sustainable, healthy economy and community. For more information, visit www.cupertino-chamber.org.
Contact:
Rick Kitson • Director of Communications
O. 408-252-7054 x12
rick@cupertino-chamber.org
www.cupertino-chamber.org
#cupchamber
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