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President's Message
By Jon Arizumi, President
 As the chamber's 62nd year commences, it is an honor and privilege to serve as your President of The Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Hawaii, a great organization on the Big Island and in the State of Hawaii.
In this fiscal year, I pledge to do my best in working collaboratively with our slate of officers, board of directors and committee chairs to stay focused on the chamber's goals and objectives while promoting the well-being of our community, businesses and personal relationships through our values of
"Kahiau" and "Okage Sama De."
During the past month, my term has been extremely exciting. I have been honored to have had the opportunity to host Chairman Kishida-san and the delegates from Higashi Hiroshima Chamber of Commerce and am grateful for their attendance at the installation event.
The chamber, along with other participating organizations:
Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce (HICC), Hawaii Island Contractor's Association (HICA), Kanoelehua Industrial Area Association (KIAA), and Hawaii Island Board of Realtors (HIBR) co-sponsored the 2012 Hawaii County Mayor's Forum held at the beautiful Sangha Hall, Honpa Hongwanji, Hilo Betsuin. The candidates were The Honorable Mayor Billy Kenoi, former Mayor Harry Kim, and Council Chair Dominic Yagong. The event provided our members an opportunity to hear the candidates' platform on their priorities on Hawaii County government issues.
At the 162nd Annual Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii Installation luncheon, I had the great honor to witness Mr. Barry Taniguchi - KTA Superstore President being sworn in as the Board Chair for the chamber.
Congratulations Barry, and we look forward to working with you this year.
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Jon Arizumi, Barry Taniguchi, Vaughn Cook |
I look forward to a year where there will be many opportunities to be involved with the chamber; participate in standing committees; take part in chamber sponsored events (General meetings, Goji Kara, Taste of Hilo or Golf Classic Tournament, etc.) and responding to member surveys.
We will continue to provide a variety of programs and services intended to increase the value of your chamber membership and provide our members a platform to build solid, long-lasting relationships for many years to come. Help us to serve you better by playing an active role in your chamber.
In closing, I am extremely thankful to have a very supportive family, as well as friends and colleagues who are there when needed. Also, I am appreciative to work for a company that supports and understands the importance of participating with our chamber.
I look forward to being of service to you this year.
Domo Arigato Gozaimasu!
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A Taste of Hilo
TICKET SALE !
14th ANNUAL
A TASTE OF HILO
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Sangha Hall, 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Tickets on sale for $40, $60 at the door
Purchase your tickets at the Chamber Office. Call Lei Fujiyama at 934-0177.
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Aloha & Welcome Message from Membership Chair By Josie Kiyan  Aloha & Welcome to an exciting & refreshing year! As the new Membership Chairperson, I am committed to building relationships within our membership and developing new associations within our community.
The Membership Committee's mission - to increase and maintain membership by bringing people together to accomplish common goals through networking and fellowship, as we support, and work alongside the various committees, to strengthen and preserve the cultural heritage of our Chamber.
We encourage you to bring in a new member during our Membership Drive from August 1 to September 30, 2012. Can you do it? Of course! Contact Lei at the Chamber office at 934-0177, to acquire some applications or click here to access our website to download the application: www.jccih.org
Stay tuned for more electrifying announcements!
A hui hou...
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Thirty Meter Telescope Update
By Sandra Dawson, Community Affairs Manager, TMT
 Aloha! As we continue to await the completion of our Conservation District Use Permit (CDUP) process, our project team is thankful to all the Chamber members for their support and continued interest in the Thirty Meter Telescope project as we move forward through this long and complex process.
Last week I was very happy to attend the Hawaii Community Foundation luncheon for their newest scholarship recipients. This was my first year as a HCF Scholarship Ambassador, one of the more difficult but rewarding tasks I have done;
helping to choose scholarship recipients among the many needy and deserving Hawaii Island students.
You may have noticed a theme running through my columns recently - they tend to involve high school and college student internships and programs. This is a part of my job that I really love! Our Hawaii Island summer college interns are well underway with their work at TMT's Pasadena headquarters. I thought that I would take a moment to introduce Chloe Frizelle and Anthony Sylvester to our Chamber members.
Chloe Frizelle is a Kea'au High School graduate attending Northwestern University and studying to be a mechanical engineer. Born and raised in Hawaii, Chloe graduated as her class valedictorian. As she was growing up on the Big Island, she was intrigued by the Mauna Kea observatories and she finds the opportunity to work with TMT incredibly exciting! Chloe sees her internship as an opportunity to work along-side the TMT science and engineering team, gathering valuable experience in the design and technology of this next generation telescope.
Anthony Sylvester grew up in Hilo and is a Waiakea High School graduate. He is attending University of Hawaii Manoa and will graduate with a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering this December. Both Anthony's father and grandfather have experience working with telescopes. His grandfather was previously employed at an observatory on Mauna Kea, and Anthony's father has been working on the mountain for nearly 20 years. Anthony was also an intern with the Akamai Internship Program, and last summer he worked at the Canada-France Hawaii Telescope in Waimea. Anthony's desire to work on the next generation telescope led him to the Thirty Meter Telescope. Anthony is "eager to contribute to a project that will benefit the future of the Big Island."TMT is proud to be working with these highly motivated college interns and looks forward to developing future educational and internship avenues for our Hawaii Island students.
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Nihongo
Tanabata
By Ramsey Lundock, Subaru Telescope
 Tanabata is an important Japanese festival with its origins in astronomy. Orihime, the Weaving Princess (the star Vega) married Kengyuu-Boshi, the Cow-Herder Star (the star Altair). The newlyweds were deeply in love and very happy; so much so that they neglected their duties. This angered the Heavenly Emperor (the North Star). He placed the newlyweds on opposite sides of the River of the Heavens (the Milky Way), so that they would return to their work. He allowed the happy couple to be together only on the 7th night of the 7th month. This seven-seven night is called Tanabata.
Most places celebrate Tanabata on July 7th. But by the old calendar, the 7th day of the 7th month falls in early August. This is when city of Sendai, celebrates Tanabata with fireworks. This year the fireworks were on August 5th. But really the festivities start weeks earlier when the city is decorated with giant paper streamers modeled on the fireworks. These decorations have come to be a symbol of Sendai as much as they are a symbol of Tanabata.
Given the continuing hardship in the Sendai area resulting from the earthquake and tsunami, sometimes I question the soundness of spending so much time and effort on a festival. Then I realize the people in Sendai go to all the effort, not in spite of their own hardships, but because those hardships make it more important than ever to have something to celebrate.
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Marjan & Mohannad Akhlaghi, Ramsey Lundock with Tanabata decorations at Fukushima Race Course |
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HawCC Update
By Chancellor Noreen Yamane
Hawai'i Community College's Summer Youth Program and the High School Career Explorations Program were designed to provide K-12 students with a quality precollege learning experience. If you were on the Hawaii Community College campus during the months of June and July, kindergarten to high school students were learning in our classrooms and making new friends from other schools.
The Summer Youth Program for K-8th graders had students experimenting with plants, building paddle boats, preparing food based on favorite books, creating slideshows or photobooks highlighting favorite memories, learning to read music, engaging in cooperative fitness-related activities plus much more. Over 25 classes were taught by local teachers and professionals to immerse students in educational age-appropriate projects and activities ranging from art and music to science and engineering.
For the past 11 years, Hawai'i Community College has been offering a platform for students to experience our different programs while exposing them to various career options and receiving a high school credit. For the first time this summer, we teamed with Akamai Workforce Initiative, Institute for Astronomy and Thirty-Meter Telescope (TMT) to provide an "Akamai Observatory Career Explorations" course. This course allowed students to see types of job opportunities available at the various observatories and allowed them to compute feedback systems through the use of scientific or technical concepts to solve observatory-based problems.
2012 Akamai Observatory Career Explorations Program (Photos courtesy of TMT)
The Office of Continuing Education and Training coordinates these valuable programs and will soon be working on plans for next summer's schedule. Future programs will match students with local businesses for internship opportunities and will include programs in West Hawai'i.
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Ice of Mauna Kea Management
By Stephanie Nagata, Director
When the Office of Mauna Kea Management (OMKM) was established in late 2000, we were surprised by the lack of reliable data that was available on which sound management decisions could be made. In the years since, we've invested a great deal of effort studying Mauna Kea's diverse natural and cultural resources.
Recently, OMKM sponsored a four-day International Symposium entitled, "Vulnerable Islands in the Sky: Science and Management of Tropical Island Alpine & Sub-Alpine Ecosystems," which brought together some 40 scientists from Australia, the Canary Islands, England, Germany, Japan, Scotland, Reunion Island (Indian Ocean), and the United States (including Hawaii) on August 4-7 at the Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea.
Little is known about the dynamics of Mauna Kea's summit ecosystem, which is an alpine ecosystem located on an island in the tropics. Symposium participants are renowned for their knowledge of island alpine ecosystems, including such mountains as the Jade Mountain in Taiwan, Pico Tiede and Pico la Palma in the Canary Iislands, Kinabulu in the Borneo, Pico Duarte in the Dominican Republic, Pico Basilein Equatorial Guinea, Piton des Neiges Volcano on Reunion Island, Andes, Haleakala and Mauna Kea.
The symposium helped to establish a network with these scientists. We learned from their respective studies and discussed what further studies are needed. Most importantly, we all learned how to better manage and protect these unique island alpine ecosystems.
Two days of presentations included one day devoted to studies on Mauna Kea. We also took scientists on a field trip to Lake Waiau and the adze quarry on Mauna Kea, as well as the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's observatory on Mauna Loa, where they have been recording data and monitoring global and atmospheric changes since the 1950s. The last day concluded with a panel discussion with key stakeholder representatives to discuss their perspectives on the issues affecting Mauna Kea. The afternoon session included breakout sessions on topics such as mountain science and management interface, public use issues, and long-term environmental monitoring.
OMKM is proud to have sponsored such a prestigious international event with partial funding assistance from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. We believe it is part of our broader effort to implement the Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP). We are discussing the possibility of publishing the papers presented at the symposium in a special issue of a scientific journal and establishing a cooperative network or center for tropical alpine sudies - hopefully at UH Hilo.
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Words of Wisdom
By Tommy Goya
"For real change to occur, leaders should be nurturing and treasuring the input of their bright young oddballs."
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What's Happening August 24, 2012
GAC Committee Meeting
Chamber Conference Room, 11:30 am August 27, 2012
Education Committee Meeting
Chamber Conference Room, 5:00pm
August 29, 2012
Aloha & Farewell Luncheon
For Consul General of Japan Yoshihiko Kamo
Hilo Yacht Club
11:30 - 1:00pm September 3, 2012 Labor Day Holiday September 5, 2012 Golf Committee Meeting Restaurant Encore, 5:00pm
September 5, 2012 Social & Cultural Committee Meeting Nihon Restaurant, 5:00pm
September 6, 2012 A Taste of Hilo Committee Meeting Hawaii Community College, Bldg 385, Room A, 1:00pm
September 7, 2012 Pau Hana Hilo Bus Tour Event begins at Encore then hop on the bus to continu to Kim's Karaoke Lounge, Coqui's Hideway and Startbucks 5:00pm - 10:45pm September 10, 2012 Board of Directors Meeting Restaurant Encore, 11:30am
September 24, 2012 Education Committee Meeting Chamber Conference Room, 5:00pm
October 4, 2012 A Taste of Hilo Committee Meeting Hawaii Community College, Bldg 385, Room A, 2:00pm
October 8, 2012 Board of Directors Meeting Restaurant Encore, 11:30am
October 11, 2012 A Taste of Hilo Committee Meeting Hawaii Community College, Bldg 385, Room A, 12:00pm
October 21, 2012 14th Annual A Taste of Hilo Hilo Honpa Hongwanji, Sangha Hall 1:00 - 3:00pm
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2012-2013
Officers & Directors | |
Executive Officers
Jon Arizumi, President
Carol VanCamp, 1st Vice President
David Honma, 2nd Vice President
Darren Nishioka, 3rd Vice President
Naomi Menor, Japanese Secretary
Donn Mende, Treasurer
Ivan Nakano, Auditor
Michael Kaleikini, Immediate-Past President
Directors - term expiring 6/30/13
Barry Mizuno
Kimo Lee
Howard Ainsley
Chad Ogata
Ka'iu Kimura
Seth Murashige
Eugene Nishimura
Dwayne Mukai
Directors - term expiring 6/30/14
Phoebe Lambeth
Marvin Min
Tommy Goya
Russ Oda
Arthur Taniguchi
Directors - term expiring 6/30/15
Janice Bueltmann
Barbara Hastings
Randy Kurohara
Tracey Miura
Michael Miyahira
Allan Onishi
Toby Taniguchi
Oshirase Newsletter
Nico Leilani Verissimo, Editor
Lei Momi Fujiyama, Executive Assistant |
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Welcome New Members! | |
Adams Agtarap
First Hawaiian Bank
969-2022
aagtarap@fhb.com
U'i Canda
101 Financial
557-5864
uicanda101@gmail.com
Karol Lundkvist
K.P. Lundkvist Palm Garden
965-0083
mahongany41@earthlink.net
Victoria Torcolini
St. Joseph School
935-4936
vtorcolini@sjshilo.org
Howard Meguro
(Returning Member)
Naniloa Volcanoes Resort/Nani Mau
969-333
hmeguro@hottours.us
Kaloa Robinson
(Returning Member)
North Hawaii Community Hospital
640-1116
Kaloa.Robinson@NHCH.COM
Ronald Taniguchi
(Returning Member)
808-372-1629
ronaldt@hawaii.edu
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