Students’ prize
posters spotlight
need for leis

Star-Bulletin staff

The city Sew a Lei for Memorial Day Poster contest has for more than 40 years encouraged people to make leis for the Memorial Day service at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Punchbowl.

But it's getting harder to get enough leis to decorate all the graves at Punchbowl and other veterans cemeteries. Each year, 60,000 leis are needed to decorate graves of veterans statewide.

American Savings Bank has donated prizes that will go to the school producing the most leis and the school with the most leis per capita.

"This year is Punchbowl's 50th anniversary and we want to ensure that we have enough leis to honor the memories of our veterans," said Mike Amii, deputy director, city Department of Parks and Recreation. "The turnout for the poster contest was phenomenal this year, with 650 students participating. I am very pleased to see the youth of Hawaii taking an interest in their country's heritage."

Winning students in the poster contest received round trip tickets for two to any neighbor island, courtesy of Aloha Airlines, a contest sponsor. Winners are:

Nancy Shon, Stevenson Middle School, grade 6.
Tatiana Brub, Kalihi-Uka Elementary, grade 1.
Tiffany Au, Stevenson Middle School, grade 6.
Lai Xu, Stevenson Middle School, grade 8.
Sean Rivera, Waianae High School, grade 11.
Kalani Anguay, Waianae High School, grade 11.

Those receiving honorable mention are Hieu La, Melanie Li and Tracy Nguyen (Stevenson Middle School); Randall Asuega and Pa Khalek (Kaimuki High School); Malia Mendoza (Holualoa Elementary School); Chazz Moroya (Lihikai Elementary School) and Caitlyn Watanabe (Kalihi-Uka Elementary School).

Winning posters will be displayed on the first floor of Honolulu Hale at Lane Gallery May 17-31. Anyone interested in providing leis for the Mayor's Memorial Day Celebration should call Ellen Katoda at 547-7395.