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EVENTS COMING SOON | PERKS & DISCOUNTS | GIVE A MEMBER A SHAKA | March 14, 2024

Allison Ford, fire communications officer II and a Unit 3 member on the Big Island, received a surprise visit this week from the woman whose life she helped to save. With calm and clear instructions she guided distressed callers in performing CPR on their elderly mother.

“We don’t always get to hear the outcomes of our calls — much less if they are positive or not,” Ford told Hawaii News Now. Mayor Mitch Roth presented Ford with a certificate of commendation for her outstanding service.

The 27th Biennial HGEA General Assembly will take place Sept. 12-14 at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort on Oahu. As the highest governing body of the union, the general assembly considers amendments to the HGEA charter of incorporation and bylaws, along with other non-charter/bylaws resolutions. The Committee on Charter, Bylaws and Resolutions is responsible for reviewing all proposed resolutions and making a recommendation to the general assembly.

Members may use the form linked below to submit a resolution for consideration. One form is for proposed amendments to the charter and/or the bylaws; the other form is for general resolutions. Guidelines on how to prepare a resolution are provided for your reference.

Charter/Bylaws Resolutions are due 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 15.

Non-Charter/Bylaws Resolutions are due 4:30 p.m., Thursday, June 14.

Fifteen state Department of Education principals – one from each complex area – were honored as the latest nominees for the 18th annual Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award.

The 2024 principal nominees, who each received a $1,000 prize, are: Lynne Ajifu, Mililani ‘Ike Elementary; Tommy Cox, Kapaʻa High School; Allyson Doherty, Kailua Elementary; Eliza Loha Kanahele Kaka, Lā‘ie Elementary; Gary Kanamori, Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary; James Kau, ‘Aiea Intermediate; Marc Kawahara, Kalihi Kai Elementary; Hannah Loyola, Kohala Elementary; Ty Ogasawara, Pukalani Elementary; Sheldon Oshio, Waikele Elementary; Joseph Passantino, Keʻelikōlani Middle; Tiffany Pratt, Kaʻūmana Elementary; Wilma Roddy, Nāʻālehu Elementary; Kim Sanders, Ewa Makai Middle; and John Wataoka, Wai‘anae Intermediate.

Hoomaikai to all the honorees! A top winner will be named in April and will receive $25,000 – a $10,000 personal cash award and $15,000 toward a school project of the principal’s choice. Two semi-finalists will each receive a $2,000 cash award.

Unit 15’s Chantelle Brown, Hawaii’s first female ocean safety captain and the first female rescue watercraft operator in the nation, was honored on International Women’s Day as a “remarkable woman.”

In addition to the award from Maui-based nonprofit What Makes You Feel Beautiful, the organization produced a documentary about Brown’s barrier-breaking career in a field dominated by men.

“There are so many women from the islands who feel like they don’t have opportunity. Or they feel less educated and not knowing within themselves that they can reach whatever goal that they want,” Brown told Hawaii News Now. “What makes me feel beautiful is the way I can have other little girls look up to me.”

Unit 13’s Mary Akimo-Luʻuwai, case management coordinator at the Maui Community Mental Health Center, is a winner of AFSCME’s Never Quit Service Award, which recognizes public service workers who go above and beyond the call of duty to make their communities better.

“I’ve never been one to say, ‘I can’t do that,’ or, ‘This can’t be done,’” Akimo-Luʻuwai said. “I won’t settle for that. If I can’t get to it right away, I’ll say, ‘Give me some time and I’ll see what I can do.’”

Nurse Supervisor Patricia Codorniz said Akimo-Luʻuwai went above and beyond after the wildfires ravaged Maui. “She created plans for her teams to be one of the first responders to provide more than the much-needed mental health care,” Codorniz said. “Today, she continues to take the lead and work many long hours leading her team and providing outreach to those affected by these devastating events.”

Maui Police Officer Kameryn Pupunu, the husband of Maui Union Agent Charity Sadang, was First Lady Jill Biden’s guest of honor at the U.S. Capitol for the president’s State of the Union address.

Pupunu was selected to represent all of Maui Police Department in honor of their bravery and heroism during the Maui wildfires.

He said he was honored to represent his colleagues at President Joe Biden’s speech. “There are many other good officers out there and other employees that work here, and not just during the fire but day to day, who respond to cases and help other people,” Pupunu told Hawaii News Now.

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