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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Yes, POW-greeting
general and his wife
are HawaiianQuestion: Do you have any information about U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Joseph Peterson, 1st Cavalry Division commander, who officially greeted the two former POWs back to Fort Hood, Texas, on April 19? My husband and I were watching the ceremony live on CNN and were intrigued by the fact that the general looked Hawaiian, as did his wife, who was sitting with the families of the POWs. I later found a mention of him in a Star-Bulletin article as being a 1968 St. Louis School alum, but nothing else.
Answer: "I'm a local boy," acknowledged Peterson, when we talked to him by telephone last week.
He's proud of his Hawaii roots, saying "a lot of who I am today is tied to my upbringing in the islands" -- to the spirit of "imua" (go forward) and to "the aloha spirit. My roots are entrenched in Hawaii."
Peterson, who was promoted to major general in 1998, became commander of the nearly 17,000 soldiers in the 1st Cavalry Division in 2001. He will be leaving the command in the next four or five months for another, as-yet unannounced, assignment, but says he expects to be in the Army for at least another five or more years.
The ceremony welcoming back the two POWs, who were from the division's 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, was "electric," Peterson said.
He recalls having to break the news to the wife of Chief Warrant Officer David Williams that her husband was a prisoner. "So the opportunity to deliver her her husband was a very emotional event."
Peterson also says the return of the POWs "was significant for me primarily because we were on deployment orders to go to Iraq."
Those orders were rescinded recently, "So the fact that my POWs were returned was a great relief to me because I wanted to go over there and bring them home myself."
Peterson, 52, was born in Hawaii, attended St. Patrick's School, Star of the Sea Schools and St. Louis School. At St. Louis, he was an all-star football player (offensive tackle and defensive middle guard) and teammate of attorney Jim Nicholson, who went on to play for Michigan State and in the NFL.
Peterson's family lived in Palolo Valley until he was 9, moved to Ainakoa, where they lived until he was 13, then moved over to the "next valley, behind Wilson School, where the old Jolly Roger (Drive-In) was."
He lived there until he graduated from St. Louis, then left to attend the University of Santa Clara on an ROTC scholarship. He graduated with a bachelor of science degree in economics and entered the Army as a second lieutenant and armor officer.
"I've been in the Army for 31 years," he said. "I never planned to stay in the military, but I've enjoyed the service. It's been good for me."
He's been away from the islands for most of the past three decades, although he did return for 18 months, when the Army paid for him to attend graduate school at Chaminade University. He earned a masters degree in business administration from Chaminade in 1980.
In the past nine years, he's been able to get back to Hawaii only three times, two of those times unfortunately tied to the illness and eventual death of his brother, Chris. Although his sisters, Frances and Patrice, live on the mainland, his parents, George and Marilyn Peterson, still live in Waipio Gentry and he counts a "huge extended family" of cousins, aunties and uncles here.
Peterson married his grade-school sweetheart, Ann Moix, who graduated from Star of the Sea (and attended the University of Hawaii and San Jose State), describing her as "a local girl" of Hawaiian, Chinese, Swiss, German and Irish descent.
Peterson himself is of Hawaiian, Chinese and Japanese ancestry.
The Petersons have one son, Kevin, 23, a college student.
"The Army has kept me moving -- a lot," including seven years total overseas. "I'd like to come back home," Peterson said, noting that he owns a townhouse on Oahu.
But he's undecided on where he will retire, now that his sisters and most of his wife's family live on the mainland.
But his heart is still in Hawaii.
"I miss the water, the climate and the food the most," he said. "It's hard to get lomi salmon, kalua pig and poi up here."
H&R Block settlement
If you think you qualify for a refund from H&R Block, the deadline to apply for one is Aug. 22, 2003.The state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) has announced a settlement between H&R Block and 41 states, including Hawaii, and the District of Columbia regarding the tax preparation company's "Peace of Mind" guarantee.
Under the guarantee, H&R Block said it would pay up to $5,000 of any additional income tax owed due to an error made by one of its tax preparers. DCCA says the company will provide restitution to those customers who do not believe they were adequately informed of their choice not to take the guarantee.
H&R Block will set up a $1 million fund to reimburse all customers who paid the $22 fee without their "affirmative acceptance." However, the company denies violating any consumer protection laws and maintains it did not deprive customers of the choice.
To be eligible for a refund, you must have had a tax return prepared by H&R Block between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31, 2001, been charged for the guarantee, never utilized the guarantee and never been informed that the guarantee was added for a fee to the tax preparation service.
To apply, call toll-free 866-522-7083; check the H&R Block Web site at www.hrblock.com/customer_support/pom.jsp; or call the state Office of Consumer Protection at 586-2653.
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Useful phone numbers
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Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line,
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