XEROX SHOOTINGS
Xerox opens new fund,
By Lori Tighe
schedules a memorial
Star-BulletinA Xerox manager tugged a letter out of a protective plastic bag left among the neatly draped leis at the Xerox building and added it to his stack.
The notes filled both his hands and an assistant's by sunset yesterday.
A week after the shooting, the public continues to pour forth personal messages, floral arrangements, teddy bears, leis and other mementos for the seven victims.
The public sentiment evoked by the slain men prompted Xerox to open another fund yesterday, this one not tax-deductible, to help the victims' families.
The company also decided to have a special memorial for the employees and customers at 6 p.m. Nov. 22 at Central Union Church.
The response has been "overwhelming,' said Glenn Sexton, vice president and general manager of Xerox Hawaii. "We're not surprised by it ... these guys were very ... special."
To donate to the Xerox Hawaii Victims Fund, a non-tax-deductible fund to benefit the survivors of the seven shooting victims, send checks c/o Bank of Hawaii; 111 S. King St.; Honolulu, HI, 96813. WHERE TO GIVE
To donate to Victims of Violent Crime, a tax-deductible fund meant for the general public affected by violence, send checks to the Hawaii Community Foundation or any branch of First Hawaiian Bank or Bank of Hawaii.
In addition to the faxes, letters and notes that just keep coming, some friends and customers have offered to design and print funeral programs, local airlines have provided tickets for family members from outside of Oahu, hotels have offered free rooms for family, and some customers have offered to open IRAs for the victims' children, Sexton said.
"It's been a real outpouring of condolences. It has to do with the Xerox ohana," said Laurie LaGrange, with Ontai-LaGrange and Associates, a public relations firm helping Xerox in the wake of the tragedy. Xerox believes in developing strong relationships with customers, and focuses on long-term employee retention, LaGrange said.
"Half of them (the victims) started straight out of high school. There's got to be a reason these employees stay so long," she said. "For the customers, this has been devastating. The business turned to personal."
Customers who got to know the technicians as family members have delivered food to Xerox employees, left phone messages, sent letters and contributed to the fund. Killed were Melvin Lee, 58; Ron Kawamae, 54; Ron Kataoka, 50; Peter Mark, 46; Ford Kanehira, 41; John Sakamoto, 36, and Jason Balatico, 33.
With many people wanting to donate directly to the families, Xerox asked the Bank of Hawaii on Friday to open a fund just for the victims' survivors, said Gilbert Tam, senior vice president of corporate community at Bank of Hawaii. The fund, opened yesterday, is mainly for donations from Xerox employees around the world and customers here in Hawaii. But the public can contribute as well, LaGrange said.
The bank briefed its staff on avoiding public confusion with the original fund, called Victims of Violent Crime, which is meant for the general public affected by violence.
Donations are being tallied this week for that account, opened the day after the shooting with $50,000 from Xerox, said Colleen Sotomura, director of marketing for the Hawaii Community Foundation, administrator of the fund.
The company doesn't know what it will do with the personal effects the public continues to leave for the victims at the shooting site on Nimitz Highway. But they are collecting them for now. "We're thinking about sharing the letters at the employees' and customers' memorial service, " LaGrange said. "It's important to hold onto them and keep them from being damaged."
