Newswatch
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin Staff
[ TAKING NOTICE ]
>> Michael Tom has been named 2002 Rehabilitant of the Year for Maui. Tom obtained degrees in social work after he was paralyzed in a 1990 surfing accident. He helped establish a year-round youth program at Maui Community College. He is the school-based behavioral health counselor of King Kekaulike High School.>> Gov. Linda Lingle, former Miss America Angela Perez Baraquio, and Delorese Gregoire, founding director of the teen program Winner's Camp, have been honored by Soroptimist International of Waikiki's "Making a Difference for Women" program. Lingle received the Women of Distinction Award; Baraquio, Women Helping Women; and Gregoire, Advancing the Status of Women.
>> Iolani School math teacher Larry Teske has received the 2002 Edyth May Sliffe Award for Distinguished Junior High School Mathematics Teaching. The award recognizes teachers who have contributed to the success of the highest scoring teams at the annual American Mathematics Competitions, Region 8. Teske has taught at Iolani since 1980 and is one of five winners.
>> Hawaii Pacific University has named 10 recipients of the Jessie Cheng Scholarship, which awards $1,000 tuition waivers to students of Chinese ancestry. The recipients are Tony Chung, Ivy Lin and ChitWing So of Hong Kong; Lei Ding, Koko Liang, Riu Xu, LeQi Zhang, Yibin Zheng and JingJing Zhou of the People's Republic of China; and Carol Wang of Taiwan.
>> Wainani Dombrowski, of Waianae, was recognized as the most outstanding freshman by the Department of Equestrian Studies at Averett University in Danville, Va. She was given the Alpha Chi Scholarship for the highest grade-point average.
>> Seven public school seniors who have accepted appointments to military academies were honored recently with certificates from the United States Pacific Command. They are Brian Ehrenheim, of Roosevelt High School, U.S. Military Academy at West Point; David Carter, of Kalaheo High, Naval Academy at Annapolis; Jacqueline Kelly, of Leilehua High, West Point; Joseph Coronado, of Radford High, Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs; Michael Prather, of King Kekaulike High, West Point; Stephanie Rice, of Konawaena High, Air Force Academy; and Christopher Vongvithayamathakul, of Lahainaluna High, Naval Academy.
Taking Notice runs on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Listings also appear online at www.starbulletin.com. Please send items to City Desk, Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813.
Abercrombie visits Iraq this weekend
U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie will visit Iraq this weekend as part of a bipartisan delegation to travel to the country over the Memorial Day weekend.While the agenda for the visit has not yet been finalized, the group will meet with Ambassador L. Paul Brewer III, the senior U.S. official in Iraq, as well as U.S. military personnel.
Abercrombie, the senior Democrat in the delegation, said American troops have demonstrated remarkable courage and professionalism in the U.S.-led war in Iraq. The question asked now, he said, is, 'Where do we go from here?'"
"We hope to get some guidance from our trip to Iraq on how we should approach the challenges of reconstruction, how long and how many of our forces should remain, and what the implications are for our national security policy," Abercrombie said.
He said the group wants to get a firsthand look at the situation to get a sense of what U.S. policy should be.
The group will be led by U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. Others in the delegation are U.S. Congressmen Terry Everett, R-Ala.; John McHugh, R- New York; Steven Lynch, D-Mass., Ed Royce, R-Calif.; and Vito Fossella, R-New York.
Coast Guard airlifts injured ship passenger
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter and C-130 aircraft from Oahu were used in the medical evacuation of a passenger on board the cruise ship Vision of the Seas.The captain of the ship had reported Robert Vieira, 58, had suffered a fractured neck, Coast Guard spokesman Petty Officer David B. Mosley said.
The helicopter rendezvoused with the cruise ship early yesterday morning 130 miles southwest of Maui and then flew to Kahului, Mosley said.
Vieira was transferred to the waiting C-130 for a flight to Honolulu Airport, where he was taken by ambulance to the Queen's Medical Center, Mosley said.
Harris will be speaker at Natatorium service
Mayor Jeremy Harris will be the keynote speaker at the Friends of the Natatorium's annual Memorial Day service at the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium at 10 a.m. tomorrow.The hourlong program will take place near the plaque at the War Memorial Park. Other speakers include Adjutant Gen. Robert G.F. Lee, State Department of Defense; Brigadier Gen. Irwin Crockett of the Veteran's Services; and Linuce Pang, president of the Friends of the Natatorium.
The Royal Hawaiian Band, Prince Kuhio Civic Club chorus and singer Nalani Olds will perform.
HECO asks grads to hang onto mylar balloons
Hawaiian Electric Co. is urging graduates to "hang on to their memories," in their annual campaign to prevent power outages during graduation season because of mylar balloons."If they get away, the balloons can cause a problem in power lines because the mylar balloons have properties that can conduct electricity," said HECO spokesman Fred Kobashikawa. "If the balloons get into the power lines, they could short out the power lines."
HECO is urging family members and friends giving out mylar balloons to graduates to be sure a small weight is attached to the end of the ribbon or string that holds the balloon, or consider an alternative gift such as a lei, flowers, stuffed animals, gift certificates or non-helium inflated toys.
Company officials have been passing out weights at graduations to attach to the balloons and have been visiting schools, including the University of Hawaii, to educate people about the balloons.
Also as part of the campaign, HECO has arranged for discounts at Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park on Kamehameha Day, June 11, for people who turn in a mylar balloon.
People who bring a mylar balloon to the water park on Kamehameha Day will earn a $10 discount off the general admission or a $5 discount off the admission price for children ages 4 to 11.
Group joins move to halt political ads in the sky
The nonprofit Outdoor Circle is seeking to intervene in a lawsuit filed last month by an anti-abortion group challenging the city's ordinance that bans aerial advertising.Outdoor Circle has actively opposed aerial billboards and airplane banner-towing since the 1960s and has prevailed in five previous challenges.
"This is a core issue for the Outdoor Circle," said President Lester Inouye. "We believe banner-towing threatens our island's beauty as well as our entire visitor industry."
The Center for Bioethical Reform, based in California, wants to use aircraft towing large banners depicting first-term aborted fetuses above Honolulu, as it has in other cities.
In Hawaii, the group has used trucks with the images of aborted fetuses on its sides and participated in anti-abortion demonstrations to promote its message.
The group and its executive director, Gregg Cunningham, filed suit last month in federal court, saying the city's ordinance is unconstitutional.
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>> Tickets to "The Vagina Monologues" start at $20. A review on Page D3 yesterday said incorrectly that prices start at $25. Corrections and clarifications
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at fbridgewater@starbulletin.com.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHonolulu Police Department Crimestoppers WINDWARD OAHU
4 people arrested after Punaluu robbery
Honolulu police are investigating whether a suspect in an armed robbery at Punaluu yesterday was also involved in another robbery in Wahiawa on Wednesday.Police said yesterday morning that two tourists from Texas who had parked near Sacred Falls Park were approached by a man who identified himself as a park caretaker.
Police said the suspect led the victims to a secluded area, produced a buck knife and threatened to kill them if they did not hand over their belongings. The victims complied, and the suspect got into a tan Nissan, which was driven by another man, and left the area.
Police said the victims drove in their rental car and followed the suspects to Hauula Elementary School, where the suspects abandoned the car they were driving and got into a red Camaro, driven by two females. The victims then called police and an all-points bulletin was placed on the Camaro.
At 11 a.m., Wahiawa police located the Camaro near Sunset Beach Elementary School and arrested all four suspects.
Detectives also determined that the Nissan used in the robbery was the same vehicle which had been stolen Wednesday by a male suspect who had robbed another tourist couple at the Birthing Stones site in Wahiawa and then took their rental car.
