CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Officer Clayton Kau was honored yesterday as HPD's Police Officer of the Year with a plaque, plane tickets and $1,000.
‘Humble guy’ is HPD’s
Officer of the YearClayton Kau's peers say
the award is a well-deserved one
Jay Ann Kau wasn't aware that her husband was selected as the Honolulu Police Department's 2003 Police Officer of the Year until moments before the awards ceremony started.
Lt. Clayton Kau told her the good news after he had parked their car at the Waialae Country Club yesterday morning.
"I was surprised," said Jay Ann. "It is well deserved."
Kau, commanding officer of the HPD's Informational Resources Section, was honored with a plaque, two tickets from Aloha Airlines and $1,000 during the ceremony.
"I was really humbled and honored," he said.
"Clay is just one of those guys who works tirelessly," said Kau's supervisor, Assistant Police Chief Robert Prasser.
On Friday, Kau hosted the 80th Junior Police Officer Anniversary Picnic at Sea Life Park. Then he drove to Hauula to coordinate a thank-you party for the community that supported police during their search for three prison escapees. After the party, Kau drove back to police headquarters for the Citizen Police Academy graduation.
"That's not an unusual day for Clay," Prasser said. He described Kau as a "humble guy" who would've hidden his nomination under a stack of papers if he had known about it.
Kau, a 1973 alumnus of Farrington High School, joined the department in December 1980. He started as a patrol officer in Pearl City and later spent 12 years with the Criminal Investigation Division's Auto Theft Detail.
Since 1999, Kau has headed the Informational Resources Section and coordinated a number of the department's projects and events. He hosted New York families who were affected by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and has volunteered to take underprivileged children Christmas shopping.
"He's certainly an asset to the police department," said Police Chief Lee Donohue.
"He's done so much for us."
The following people were also honored at the awards ceremony:
>> Silverio "Frank" Nacino Jr. was selected as the Reserve Officer of the Year. Nacino, a reserve officer since 1981 is also a security officer for Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc., Reserve officers are required to volunteer 20 hours a month or 240 a year. Last year, Nacino worked 352 hours.>> Detective Guy Yamashita was selected as the Police Parent of the Year. Yamashita joined the Police Department in 1982 and has been assigned to the Burglary Theft Detail in District 5 since July. He has two children and has spent the last 14 years coaching for the American Youth Soccer Organization in Hawaii.
>> Ben Kusano was selected as Civilian Employee of the Year. Kusano joined the Police Department in May 1977 and currently works as the print shop supervisor. He has helped bring new printing technology to the department and has made the print shop more efficient, officials said.
