Ka`u News Briefs Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Mauna Loa snowman photo taken years ago along the road to the weather station, with Mauna Kea in the background. Several feet of snow could fall on the summits this evening and tomorrow morning. Photo from NOAA

FORMER HAWAI`I COUNTY PLANNING DIRECTOR CHRIS YUEN is a nominee for the state Board of Land & Natural Resources. According to the background statement released this morning by Gov. David Ige, Yuen is a resident of Ninole and serves on the Board on an interim basis. He held BLNR’s Hawai`i County seat from 1990 to 1998. He serves the advisory councils for the Laupahoehoe and Puuwaawaa Experimental Tropical Forest. Since 1995, Yuen has owned and managed The Family Farm, Inc., a 20-acre certified organic farm supplying local markets with bananas, lychees and rambutans. From 2000 to 2008, he was Hawai`i County’s planning director. He has also served as the County’s deputy corporation counsel and practiced law as a private attorney.

Chris Yuen

      “With significant work experience as a planner, attorney and farmer, Chris brings a balanced and insightful point of view to the Board table,” said Ige. “Hawai`i will greatly benefit from his commitment and passion to our communities and his willingness to serve.”
      Yuen received a bachelor’s degree in human biology from Stanford University, a master’s degree in environmental science from State University of New York’s College of Environmental Science and Forestry, and a juris doctorate from UH William S. Richardson School of Law.
     “It’s a pleasure and a privilege to continue serving on the board,” said Yuen. “I look forward to the deliberations of the Board and making decisions today that will shape the future of our state.”
      Ige announced two other nominations to BLNR today – all of them subject to state Senate approval.
      Born and raised in Honolulu, Keith “Keone” Downing is an expert waterman and respected big wave rider. Downing is the son of big-wave pioneer George Downing, one of Hawai`i’s major figures in modern surfing. Keone, along with his sister Kaiulu, run the family-owned business which is also Hawai`i’s oldest surf shop, Downing Hawai`i. He continues in the lasting legacy of the Downing family through his commitment to and advocacy on behalf of ocean conservation, a statement from the governor says, pointing to his long-term involvement with the nonprofit group Surfing Education Association, which “shows his dedication to the preservation of Hawai`i’s oceans coral reefs, waves and beaches. Keone’s unparalleled knowledge of local waters will be an asset to the Board of Land and Natural Resources,” said Ige. “I know he will be a voice for the community.”

      Downing graduated from Kamehameha Schools in 1975 and earned a degree in commercial art from California College of the Arts. He went on to design logos for surf industry giants Quiksilver and O’Neill.
      “I’m humbled to be nominated for this position,” said Downing. “It is an honor to be asked to preserve our natural and cultural resources for future generations.”

Keith "Keone" Downing

      Ulalia Woodside, who has been serving on the Board on an interim basis since last year, lives in Waimanalo and is currently the regional asset manager for natural and cultural resources at Kamehameha Schools’ Land Assets Division. Prior to this, Woodside worked at Wilson Okamoto Corporation, The Hallstrom Group and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Ulalia Woodside

      She serves as a steering committee member for Hawai`i Green Growth and is the indigenous representative for the Landscape Conservation Cooperative National Council. She is a former commissioner for the Natural Area Reserves System Commission and a former executive council chair for the Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative.
      “Ulalia has extensive experience managing Hawai`i’s natural and cultural resources, and she provides a valuable perspective on the Board,” said Ige. “I am pleased that she has agreed to continue to serve on the Board.”
      Woodside received bachelor’s degrees in political science and Hawaiian studies, along with a certificate in Hawaiian language, from UH Manoa. She is also a kumu hula, having completed the `uniki rites of her family’s genealogical hula traditions.
      “I am honored to be asked to continue to serve on the board and am committed to preserving Hawai`i’s natural resources,” said Woodside.
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RESPONDING TO HAWAI`I COUNTY COUNCIL’S use of two percent funds without approval from the Public Access, Open Space & Natural Resources Preservation Commission, the commission yesterday changed rules on which properties can be placed on the priority list for purchase. Nancy Cook Lauer, of West Hawai`i Today, reported that properties now must have no less than 50 percent of criteria points to be placed on the list.
      County Council has twice passed resolutions to purchase lands and then asked the commission to prioritize them.
      Ka`u’s former Council member Brenda Ford was one of several who suggested the county use litigation or executive accounts funds instead of those in PONC. “We have an act of misfeasance by the county that we’re trying to cover up by a misuse of PONC funds,” Ford said at the time, as reported by Cook Lauer.
      According to the story, Deputy Corporation Counsel Bill Brilhante told the Council that, because the commission is only advisory, the Council has authority to spend the money.
      See westhawaiitoday.com.

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Thresher sharks are being studied for possible inclusion in the Endangered
Species List. Photo from Friends of Animals

THRESHER SHARKS, COMMON TO HAWAIIAN WATERS, may be listed as either endangered or threatened following a study by National Marine Fisheries Service. The service announced the 90-day finding for a petition to list the common thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus) as either endangered or threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act either worldwide or as one or more distinct population segments identified by the petitioners, Friends of Animals. 

      “We find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted for the species worldwide,” NMFS said. “We find that the petition fails to present substantial scientific or commercial information to support the identification of DPSs of the common thresher suggested by the petitioners, and, as such, we find that the petitioned action of listing one or more of these DPSs is not warranted.” NMFS will initiate a review of the status of the common thresher shark and is soliciting scientific and commercial information regarding this species.

      According to the petition, the species is subject to overutilization due to commercial, recreational, scientific and educational purposes.

The public is invited Ka`u Scenic Byway Committee's
meeting Thursday. Photo by Carrie Berry

      Historically, common thresher sharks were primarily caught in the drift gillnet fishery established off the West Coast of the United States, which targeted the species in the late 1970s. The fishery had shifted its focus to a swordfish fishery by the mid-1980s due to economic drivers but also to protect pupping female thresher sharks. Since that time, common thresher sharks have only been targeted secondarily or caught incidentally in the drift gillnet fishery there. The petition also states that in addition to broad commercial harvest of the species, direct catch related to the shark fin trade has resulted in population decline. Indirect catch is another category of overutilization identified by the petition, which states that post-release mortality may be high in the species. The petition identified recreational fishing as another category of overutilization.
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KA`U SCENIC BYWAY COMMITTEE meets Thursday at 5 p.m. at Na`alehu Methodist Church. Public is invited. For more information, email richmorrow@alohabroadband.net.

STAFF MEMBERS FROM HAWAI`I PACIFIC Parks Association share their knowledge and love of ulana niu, coconut weaving, tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center lanai in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Free; park entrance fees apply. 

TOMORROW IS THE DEADLINE to register for Spring Break Program to be held Monday through Friday, March 16 to 20 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Pahala Community Center. Grades one through six register with Nona at 928-3102. Fee is $20.

KA`U FARM BUREAU MEETS MONDAY, March 30 at 6 p.m. at Pahala Community Center. Email Ralph Gaston ralph@rustyshawaiian.com for more information.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_March2015.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf and
kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf.

Ka`u News Briefs Monday, March 9, 2015

Aloha Bluegrass Band, with Keoki Kahumoku and friends, will raise money for children's education workshops with a concert at Na`alehu Methodist Church on Sunday, March 22. Photo by Julia Neal

BRAD HIRATA IS LEAVING KA`U HOSPITAL to become Food Services Manager at Kealakehe High School. “He is very private and doesn’t want any fanfare at the hospital,” said hospital Administrator Merilyn Harris, “but we want to say how sad we are that he is leaving.”

      “In the 11 plus years that he has been here, he has made such a difference,” Harris said. “He has made outstanding meals for our patients/residents and staff, but more than that, he has been a constant force for good – always wiling to go out of his way to help. He truly demonstrates the aloha spirit, and we’re all going to miss him.”

Brad Hirata Photo from Merilyn Harris

      The hospital is looking for his replacement as Food Services Manager II. Required experience includes participation in menu planning, food and supply purchasing, quantity cooking, fiscal record keeping and supervision of kitchen assistants, including cooks. Experience in food service management may be gained in commercial ventures such as restaurants, hotels, airline food services, as well as schools, hospitals and correctional institutions.
      Substitutions of training for experience are allowed. See hilomedicalcenter.org for more information.
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THE STATE SENATE ON WEDNESDAY at 10 a.m. takes up Gov. David Ige’s controversial nomination of Carleton Ching as head of the Department of Land & Natural Resources. In advance of the public hearing on Wednesday, the Senate asked Ching to answer questions and submit a resume to provide residents with information on his background.
      Ching’s resume states that he is Vice President of Community and Government Relations for developer Castle & Cooke Hawai`i. Returning in 2003, he also was previously employed by Castle and Cooke in the real estate development section. He represents the company in various community, public and governmental strategic planning, policy and outreach covering issues related to areas of residential, commercial, agricultural, resort and renewable energy operations and developments on O`ahu, Lana`i and the Big Island.
      Ige’s announcement of Ching’s appointment stated, “Stewardship of Hawai`i’s unique resources is one of the most critical tasks of the state government, and Carleton Ching has the heart, knowledge and skills to lead the Department of Land & Natural Resources. No one understands better the complex issues this department handles and how to balance the need of our environment and our residents.”

      The Senate asked Ching to describe his experiences prior to his nomination where he dealt with any of the issues DLNR handles and how he balanced the needs of the environment and residents in each of those experiences.
      “Heading the community and government relations for Castle & Cooke has provided me exposure to and familiarity with a range of land management and stewardship responsibilities and issues,” Ching responded. “Castle & Cooke and its sister Company Dole Foods Hawai`i are not just developers, since only a relatively small portion of their landholdings are held for development. Castle & Cooke and Dole landholdings (until recently) have included over 88,000 acres of land on Lana`i, most of which is conservation and agricultural land, and large agricultural and conservation acreage on O`ahu.” 

      Ching listed many land management programs he has been involved in, including critical habitat areas established on Lana`i, water resource and game management, conservation easements, watersheds, wind and solar farms, leasing of ag lands and designating acreage as Important Agriculture Lands.
      “These experiences provide a baseline of land stewardship practices, issues, public policy, community engagement, understanding, legislative process and management,” Ching said. “This perspective will assist me in the much bigger scope and responsibilities of DLNR’s mission.”
      Ching’s resume and answers to more questions are available at capitol.hawaii.gov.
      The public can also provide testimony on GM 514 before 10 a.m. tomorrow to be included in Wednesday’s hearing.
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Jodi Leong

GOV. DAVID IGE HAS ANNOUNCED members of his communications team. Ige tapped former television anchor/reporter Jodi Leong to be his Press Secretary and Deputy Director of Communications.

Yasmin 

      Leong has served as Director of Communications at University of Hawai`i since 2012. Prior to that, she spent 21 years in local television news starting at KITV in 1991 as a producer, reporter and weekend co-anchor. In 2000, Leong moved to KHNL where she was weeknight co-anchor. She returned to KITV in 2006 as a reporter and later helped launch the inaugural weekend morning newscast. 

      Leong graduated from Castle High School before attending the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Amherst College and the University of Hawai`i, where she earned a B.A. degree in broadcast journalism and a minor in political science.

      Yasmin Dar joins the communications team as the governor’s Digital Media Specialist. Yasmin spent the last six years in television news as an anchor, reporter and producer. She recently moved back from Eugene, Oregon where she anchored the evening news. Prior to that, Dar was KITV Morning Show’s traffic anchor and Social Media Reporter. Dar will design, develop and deploy a two-way environment online to connect the governor with his constituents.
      Dar is a graduate of Aiea High School and University of Hawai`i at Manoa. She graduated with a B.A. in biology and an M.A. in Communications.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Sen. Brian Schatz is calling for the FCC to maintain an open Internet.
Image from Office of Sen. Schatz

SEN. BRIAN SCHATZ CALLS FOR AN OPEN INTERNET in an article published by Huffington Post on why net neutrality is critical for innovation, economic and intellectual freedom and a thriving Internet. This month the Federal Communications Commission is poised to adopt rules to ensure that an open and robust Internet continues. Schatz believes these rules must contain three essential elements: no blocking, no throttling, and no paid prioritization. 

      “Why has the Internet worked so well? Because it’s a level playing field,” Schatz said. “Everyone has an equal opportunity to compete, to succeed or to fail, to put one’s best ideas or products forward and let the chips fall where they may.
      “Through a free and open Internet, an excellent idea or an individual can beat a powerful established institution. A scrappy student can challenge the status quo and come up with an innovation to change the world. Almost any citizen with an Internet connection can be heard across the globe and drive millions toward change.

      “But we need rules to make sure that in the battle of content – of music, of ideas, of games, of apps, whatever – it is a fair fight, and that winners and losers are determined by the quality of the content and nothing else… .

      “But without clear net-neutrality protections, companies could alter their incentives and business practices. In order to maximize their bottom line, providers may give preference to Internet traffic from companies willing to pay more for faster delivery. Internet Service Providers would be able to charge Internet companies for better, faster access and impede others.”
      See schatz.senate.gov.
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THE NEW KA`U ALOHA FORUM IS HOSTING its second event this year in less than two weeks. Featuring Keoki Kahumoku and the Aloha Bluegrass Band, it will be held at Na`alehu Methodist Church Sunday, March 22, with pupus at 5 p.m. Program is from 6:15 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
      All proceeds are being donated to the Center for Hawaiian Music Studies. Suggested donation for tickets is $20, and seating is limited. One lucky ticket will win a brand new `ukulele.
      Tickets are available at Ka`u Realty in Na`alehu and Pahala Plantation Cottages Office in Pahala. Make checks payable to Center for Hawaiian Music Studies and mail to Woodley White at PO Box 44, Na`alehu, 96772 or RSVP to Woodley@easystreet.net or 854-9483.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

Ka`u News Briefs Sunday, March 8, 2015

Sen. Mazie Hirono and Rep. Mark Takai shared lei greetings with others commemorating the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama. Photos from Office of Sen. Mazie Hirono

THIS WEEKEND MARKS 50 YEARS since marchers attempting to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., were brutally beaten as they demonstrated for voting rights. Called Bloody Sunday, the event occurred on March 7, 1965, when state troopers and county posse attacked 600 unarmed marchers with billy clubs and tear gas. Marchers were on a 50-mile trek to Montgomery to protest discriminatory requirements and practices that disenfranchised most of the millions of African Americans across the South since the turn of the century.

A contingent from Hawai`i joined marchers in Selma
50 years ago.

      Yesterday, Sen. Mazie Hirono, joined by Rep. Mark Takai, commemorated the event by presenting lei to those gathered at the bridge. A contingent from Hawai`i did the same 50 years ago, carrying a sign that read, “Hawai`i knows integration works.”
      Sen. Brian Schatz said, “Today is about remembering those brave marchers who on Bloody Sunday 50 years ago faced deep prejudice and perilous danger for the sake of a cornerstone of freedom – the right to vote – without which there is no democracy. Beyond remembering, we recognize that the trail they blazed in principle and fortitude is yet incomplete and calls to us for its completion. Let us honor their memory by rededicating ourselves to equal voting rights for all, defeating voter suppression wherever it festers and ensuring that freedom’s ring reaches everyone in America.”

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Audrey Hidano

AUDREY HIDANO IS GOV. DAVID IGE’S choice to serve as Deputy Director of the Department of Accounting and General Services. 

       Hidano has experience in government leadership positions and in the private sector. She has twice served as Deputy Director of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, and most recently as Deputy Director at the Department of Transportation.
      Hidano co-founded Hidano Construction, Inc., a general contracting company that specializes in residential and light commercial construction, and is co-owner of Rim-Pac, Inc. a construction company that specializes in solid surface work. She began her career as a public affairs analyst for Verizon.
      Hidano is active in a number of business and community organizations including Nuuanu-Punchbowl Neighborhood Board, Nuuanu YMCA, the Hawai`i Employer-Union Benefits Trust Fund and the Building Industry Association. She is a graduate of Honolulu Business College and McKinley High School.
      “Audrey Hidano is an experienced government leader who also understands what it takes to make a small business successful and a community thrive,” Ige said. “She is a team player, and I know she’ll make a positive difference.”
      “It’s an honor to be able to continue to serve the people of Hawai`i,” said Hidano. “I look forward to working with the dedicated employees in the department on behalf of the public.”
      Hidano’s nomination is subject to Senate confirmation.
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GOV. DAVID IGE HAS MADE APPOINTMENTS to the Department of Health. Lynn Fallin is Director of Behavior Health. Fallin has over 25 years of extensive experience in executive level policy and administration in health, education and human services. She has served under four governors in cabinet positions in two states – Hawai`i and Oregon. From 2011 to the present, she has served as Deputy Director of the Behavioral Health Administration at DOH. From 2003 to 2010, she served as Executive Director of Ho`okako`o Corporation, an education-focused nonprofit. She served as a Policy Advisor in the Office of the Governor from 1999 to 2002, Executive Director of the Oregon Commission on Children and Families from 1995 to 1998, Deputy Director of the Department of Human Services from 1991 to 1994 and Director of the Governor’s Office on Children and Youth from 1986 to 1991.

Lynn Fallin, state Director of Behavior Health

      Fallin serves on a number of national and local boards and commissions and has been recognized nationally and locally for her leadership by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, National Governors Association Zero to Three, Hawai`i Community Foundation Pono Program and National Association for the Education of Young Children Hawai`i Chapter.
      Danette Wong Tomiyasu is Deputy Director for Health Resources. She most recently served as Chief of Family Health Services Division at DOH, overseeing statewide public health surveillance, systems, programs and policy development for Maternal and Child Health, Children with Special Health Care Needs, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, Primary Care and Rural Health and Oral Health. Wong Tomiyasu previously served as Chief of the Chronic Disease Management and Control Branch from October 2001 to August 2011. She also served with the Seattle-King County Department of Public Health for 10 years overseeing critical school health and nursing services for the Seattle Public Schools.
      Wong Tomiyasu received a Masters of Business Administration in Health Care Management from the University of Phoenix and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Puget Sound in Washington.
      Terry Byers has been appointed Director, Executive Office on Aging. Byers brings more than two decades of experience in public health, most recently in DOH as Chief of the Maternal and Child Health Branch. She has also been Chief of the Office of Health Care Assurance and has served in various capacities in the state Office of Rural Health, Office of Planning, Policy and Program Development, Office of the Director and Healthy Hawai`i Initiative.
      Prior to joining DOH, Byers was vice president of the Healthcare Association of Hawai`i, a nonprofit representing Hawai`i’s healthcare providers including acute care hospitals, long-term care facilities, home care agencies and hospices, as well as community based providers.
      Byers, an alumna of University of Hawai`i at Manoa, began her career in public service as a staff member for Sen. Spark Matsunaga in Washington, D.C. She then served as Sen. Daniel Akaka’s health policy advisor for 12 years before returning home in 2002.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Ka`u High's Shavon Mello-Waiwaiole took fourth in the state wrestling
tournament yesterday. Photo from KHPES

KA`U HIGH SENIOR WRESTLER Shavon Mello-Waiwaiole took fourth in the state tournament yesterday. 

      In her first match at the tournament, Mello-Waiwaiole pinned her opponent in 17 seconds to move on. Down 8-3 in the second period of the next match, she did a reverse to pin her opponent for the win. Although she dropped her semi-final match, she wrestled Big Island Interscholastic Federation champ Ebony Ayers in consolation bracket and pinned her for fourth place. 

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`IMI PONO NO KA `AINA, the free environmental education and outreach program for Three Mountain Alliance, is now accepting applications for its 2015 Summer Student Enrichment Program.
      This fun and rewarding program focuses environmental stewardship, natural and cultural history of Hawai`i Island and emphasizes learning through scientific and cultural practices. Students must be in grades six through 12 when applying.

      Each session is two weeks long, with two three-day camp trips. Session One is from June 8 through June 19; Session Two, June 29 through July 3. 

      “This is a great summer program for kids,” said Megan Lamson, of Hawai`i Wildlife Fund. “HWF has worked with this group for years now, and it an outstanding mentorship program for our youth.”
      There will be local pickups available in Ka`u.
      Interested parents can contact Lahela at 333-8241 or imipononokaaina@gmail.com for more information.
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SENIOR ID CARDS, for residents ages 60 and over, are available tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Pahala Community Center and 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Na`alehu Community Center. Call 928-3100 for more information.

KA`U ARTISTS CAN CHOOSE BETWEEN two workshops at Volcano Art Center next weekend. Patti Pease Johnson shares knowledge of color, composition and correcting problems during her Soft Pastel Still Life workshop, Saturday, March 14 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
      A two-day Stained Glass workshop is on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, March 15, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Claudia McCall teaches basic techniques, including glass cutting, foiling, soldering and completing with patina and polishing compound.
      See volcanoartcenter.org or call 967-8222 for more information and to sign up.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_March2015.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf and
kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf.