Kusuma Cooray, Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka, was inducted as 2012 Dean of the Consular Corps by Hawaii Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald. Other Consular Corps officers inducted were Vice Dean, Consul General of Australia, Scott Dewar; Secretary, Honorary Consul of Norway, Nina Fasi; Treasurer, Honorary Consular Agent of Tonga, Annie Kaneshiro; Auditor, Honorary Consul of Morocco, M. Jan Rumi; Historian, Dean Emeritus and retired Honorary Consul of Switzerland, Dr. Nicklaus R. Schweizer. Leoncio R. Cardenas, Consul General of the Philippines, will serve as Immediate Past Dean.

The Consular Corps of Hawaii also honored two individuals with its Distinguished Service Award – General Gary North, Commander, Pacific Air Forces, and John Henry Felix, Dean Emeritus. The award is presented to an organization or individual who is not a member of the Corps who has made significant contributions toward improving relations between nations, as well as to an active member of the Corps who has distinguished him- or herself through exemplary service to the Corps, to his or her nation and to the community at large for an extended period of time.

General North is responsible for overseeing Air Force activities spread over half the globe in a command that supports 45,000 Air Force members serving principally in Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Korea and Japan.

John Henry Felix, the most senior active member of the Consular Corps, served as Dean of the Corps in 2006. He is the only person representing two sovereign countries, serving as Honorary Consul of Portugal and Honorary Vice Consul of Spain. Felix has received decorations from Portugal including Knight Commander in the Order of Infante Dom Henrique and Knight Commander in the Order of De Benemerencia, as well as a decoration from Spain – Knight Commander in the Order of Isabel La Catolica. He was twice appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the diplomatic post of United States representative to the 23-nation South Pacific Commission.

Former recipients of the Distinguished Service Award include Brenda Lei Foster; The East-West Center; U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye; Lt. Gen. Henry Stackpole; Laurence Vogel, Honorary Consul of Denmark; Honorary Consul Dato’ of Malaysia; Gen. Herbert E. Wolff (ret); William E. Paupe, Honorary Consul of Kiribati; and Niklaus R. Schweizer, Ph.D., retired Honorary Consul of Switzerland.

J. Hans Strasser, Honorary Consul General of Austria, was presented with the Consular Corps’ Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his service to his country and the Corps.  Strasser, who served as Dean of the Consular Corps in 1988, is chairman and executive officer of Hotelmark Corporation, a Hawaii-headquartered company that performs marketing for luxury and first-class hotels.

The Consular Corps of Hawaii consists of seven career Consuls General and 28 Honorary Consuls representing nations on every continent (except Antarctica) and Oceania. Among the most important tasks of the Corps are promotion of trade; the maintenance of close relations with the State and County governments and the military; advising and assisting the nationals of the countries they represent in Hawaii; and supporting culture and the arts. For more information on the Consular Corps of Hawaii visit www.consularcorpshawaii.org.

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For more information, please contact John Henry Felix at 808-226-0430.

“Chris started out in insurance operations before transitioning to a career in IT,” said FICOH president and CEO Allen Uyeda. “He’s able to look at a challenge from both a business operations and IT perspective. It’s exactly this balance of experience that attracted us to Chris to lead our short- and long-term technology efforts.”

Talbert got his start in the insurance industry in the Hawaii branch of AIG in personal lines from 1973 to 1988, where he eventually became vice president of operations, overseeing underwriting, customer service, policy processing, billing and claims first loss reporting. From 1989 to 1994, he served as senior vice president of Decision Research Corporation, a Hawaii software development company, where he project managed the custom software design and development of the application for AIG’s national personal lines operations in Delaware. After the successful completion of the AIG project, he founded a start-up insurance specialty software development company that was sold in 2000; provided project management consulting services to the insurance industry; served as a senior IT manager responsible for supporting a national direct writer personal lines operation; and most recently served as head of Home Loans Technology at INGDirect, an internet bank operation.

Talbert and his family have been living in Pennsylvania for the past 22 years. “I am thrilled to be back home to enjoy the diverse cultures, beauty of the ‘āina, people and food of the Islands,” he said. “I hope my mainland experience of dealing with challenging software projects and exposure to many innovative technologies will enhance FICOH’s ability to serve its customers more effectively.”

Founded on August 11, 1911, First Insurance Company of Hawaii, Ltd. is the oldest and largest property and casualty insurer domiciled in Hawaii, with assets of $616.8 million, liabilities of $375.8 million and policyholders’ surplus of $241.0 million at December 31, 2011. First Insurance, a member of the Japan-based Tokio Marine Group, enjoys an “A” (Excellent) rating from A.M. Best Co., whose ratings are widely recognized as a benchmark of an insurer’s financial strength. For three years running, First Insurance has also been named to the Ward’s 50 list, which recognizes the nation’s top 50 property and casualty insurance companies. Proud of its broadly experienced, service-oriented staff, First Insurance employs more than 300 insurance professionals and distributes its products through 29 independent general agencies. It has claims personnel on Oahu, Kauai, Maui and the Big Island.

Follow First Insurance on Twitter (@FirstInsHI) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FirstInsHI).

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Chris Talbert, Chief Information Officer, First Insurance Company of Hawaii, Ltd.

The specially packed grocery bags provided customers with an easy way to make a donation while ensuring that food bank recipients received the items they needed most. The bags, priced at $10 each, contained Safeway and Kraft products.

“Safeway is dedicated to helping our local food banks and Hawaii’s communities eradicate hunger,” said George Glukfeld, Safeway Hawaii district manager. “The support and cooperation of our customers and employees make a real difference in helping us provide quality food to those in need.”

The donations from Safeway benefited food banks on each island – Hawaii Foodbank on Oahu and Kauai, Maui Food Bank and The Food Basket on the Big Island. Every donation received helped feed the one in seven people in Hawaii – more than 14 percent of the state’s population – who must turn to a food bank for assistance.

Nationally, Safeway and Kraft Foods donated a total of 3 million meals and nearly 362,000 bags of groceries to food banks and other hunger relief centers across the country. Kraft Foods also donated $420,000 to local food banks in Safeway’s U.S. operating divisions. The Safeway Foundation contributes $175 million in food donations each year to food banks across the United States and partners with local organizations in the summer and fall by placing food-collection barrels in stores.

About Safeway
Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America based on sales. The company operates 1,694 stores in the United States and Canada and had annual sales of $41 billion in 2010. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.

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From left to right: Dick Grimm, President, and Polly Kauahi, Director of Development, Hawaii Foodbank, with Carl Fukushima, Safeway

This year’s conference theme celebrates Lei Day in Hawai‘i, with workshop mele (song) and hula representing flowers or lei, chosen by each kumu hula (hula teacher). Over 40 respected kumu will lead the workshops. For visiting hula students and performers, the conference almost certainly provides the largest possible gathering of Hawai‘i-based kumu hula, many of whom do not travel outside Hawai‘i to teach. Attendees will have the opportunity to choose from 80 workshops and seminars that cover all aspects of hula – from making an authentic pā‘ū la‘ī (ti-leaf skirt) or an ‘ulī ‘ulī (feather rattling implement) with one of Hawai‘i’s master implement crafters, to learning hula or an oli (chant) from award-winning teachers who have participated in the Merrie Monarch Festival.

“The International Waikiki Hula Conference brings together the hula community from around the world for a weekend of appreciation and respect for the art of hula,” said Marnie Weeks, International Waikiki Hula Conference producer. “We look forward to welcoming visitors and locals alike as they come together to share and learn from some of the world’s most renowned Hawaiian cultural practitioners.”

In addition to participating in the workshops, conference registrants will have the opportunity to perform a mele they learned from their workshop kumu at various hō‘ike (shows) throughout Waikīkī. Attendees will also participate in the opening ceremonies and closing “Kanikapila” performance, have a chance to take home a piece of Hawai‘i from the Hawaiian Vendor Mall, and receive a certificate of completion at the end of the conference.

This year’s conference will also feature an international-juried Hawaiian quilt competition, the first of its kind in Hawai‘i, drawing from submissions from around the world and focusing on Hawaiian floral design in honor of Lei Day.

Registration is $385 ($250 for kama‘āina – Hawai‘i residents) for the full three days. Group rates are offered for groups of 10 or more. For more information or to register for the conference, please visit http://www.waikikihulaconference.com.

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About the International Waikiki Hula Conference
The International Waikiki Hula Conference offers individuals the rare opportunity to come to Hawai‘i to learn, share and experience hula in the land of its birth, with a variety of respected hula masters. It is the chance to enrich one’s hula experience from many sources in one place, and to meet fellow dancers and kumu hula from around the world. The International Waikiki Hula Conference is a non-profit project of the Waikiki Improvement Association.

“We have been in Kailua for 10 years and we’re looking forward to a long future on the Windward side,” said Paul Brown’s managing director Angela Howard. “Kailua Town Center 3 is a great fit for us. We like the location and plan to tailor our salon to fit the new space.”

Howard said the new store will continue to highlight its salon services and will also offer some spa services. She said Kailua regulars can expect to see some new faces working in the store, adding that Paul Brown’s artistic director Catherine Acena is always training employees and bringing new talent to the staff.

Kimo Steinwascher, vice president of leasing and development of Kaneohe Ranch, said Paul Brown’s commitment to Kailua is a welcome sign that business is doing well. “We are pleased that longtime local stores are expanding in Kailua and helping us keep it a unique shopping and dining town with Hawaii operators,” he said. “Kaneohe Ranch does its best to provide support for all our merchants – whether through advertising or hosting community events – and we are happy to see tenants who have enjoyed long-term growth.”

Paul Brown currently has three other locations on Oahu: Ward Centre, Spa Olakino (in the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa) and in Waikele. “It’s important for us to have a presence and serve our clients on the Windward side,” Howard said, adding that while many of the Kailua store’s customers are Windward residents, many others travel to that location just to visit their favorite stylist.

No grand opening event is yet planned.

There is one final, 500-square-foot space available for lease in KTC-3.

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Kaneohe Ranch manages the real estate owned by the family business entities of Harold K.L. Castle and Alice H. Castle and their nonprofit charitable foundation, the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation. The portfolio consists of major landholdings in Kailua as well as other properties on Oahu and the U.S. mainland. The Kailua properties include commercial, retail, office, industrial and residential leasehold parcels.

Dang most recently worked as a commercial real estate asset manager at Kamehameha Schools, where she formulated annual strategic plans and managed full profit and loss for the Keauhou Shopping Center and Hilo commercial portfolio. She negotiated and executed agreements for a 363-kWh photovoltaic system and was directly responsible for property-specific, sub-portfolio operational needs. Previously, Dang worked as a land planner for Wilson Okamoto Corporation, completing environmental impact reports and land use entitlements, and researching land issues. She also served as an intern in the governor’s policy office.

“Tricia has built a remarkable reputation for success and will greatly contribute to our team. We’re excited to have her join us,” said Veronica Kaneko, president and managing director of McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii.

A lifelong learner, Dang is a graduate of Emory University, where she received her bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and sociology, and the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where she received her master’s degree in urban and regional planning and business administration, executive program. A LEED-accredited professional, she is an active member of the Next Generation Committee of the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Urban Land Institute’s Young Leader Committee, the American Planning Association and the Polynesian Voyaging Society. She resides in Kakaako.

About McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii
McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii has 85 restaurants and more than 5,200 employees in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan. In Hawaii alone, the company has 75 restaurants and more than 4,600 employees. McDonald’s total economic impact on the state, directly and indirectly, is about $285 million in spending and nearly 12,000 jobs in the community. McDonald’s prides itself on offering career opportunities to employees, with most managers staying with the company for more than 18 years.

About McDonald’s
McDonald’s USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to more than 26 million customers every day. Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local business men and women. Customers can now log online for free at any of the 11,500 participating Wi-Fi-enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants. For more information, visit www.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter (@McDonalds) and Facebook (Facebook.com/McDonalds) for updates on our business, promotions and products.

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The building will provide a centralized facility for the university’s system-wide Information Technology Services (ITS) division. It will include a data center featuring an 8,000-square-foot machine room for enterprise servers, storage and communications, an emergency situation room to support UH disaster response, a Help Desk, media development capacity, meeting and training rooms with teleconferencing capability, and a modern workspace for ITS staff.

“Information technology is critical to any organization, and dck pacific is delighted to have been selected to create a center that will help the University of Hawaii make the most of this vital resource,” said Eric Tessem, dck pacific’s senior vice president and general manager.

LEED Silver certification will be sought for this concrete structure, which will be clad with an aluminum-and-glass wall on its exposed facades and painted concrete where it faces an existing five-story concrete building to the west. An exterior sun-shading system and catwalk will help to control direct sunlight and solar heat gain. Outdoor lanais and landscaped roofs will be installed at the intermediate floors, and a steel-and-glass canopy will shelter the building entrance and pedestrian arcade.

As general contractor, dck pacific’s work also includes site demolition, clearing and earthwork, as well as all asphalt and concrete pavements, site utilities and landscaping. The project is expected to take 15 months. The architect for the project is Ferraro Choi and Associates, Ltd., and the construction manager is Bowers + Kubota Consulting.

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dck pacific construction, a dck worldwide company, is one of Hawaii’s largest full-service general contractors, serving the Islands since 1939. The company’s award-winning portfolio features many of the most prominent retail, hospitality, health care and military projects in the Pacific Rim. Landmark Hawaii projects include The Grand Waikikian at Hilton Hawaiian Village, Pacific Command Headquarters at Camp Smith and First Hawaiian Center in Downtown Honolulu.

dck pacific construction’s parent company is dck worldwide, LLC, a global construction company specializing in developing, managing and building highly complex projects. As construction leaders for the last 88 years, dck worldwide provides design-build, program management, construction management and general construction services to corporations, developers and government entities. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, dck worldwide operates in North America, Guam, the Pacific Rim, the Caribbean and the Middle East.

For more information about dck, please visit www.dckww.com.

Here is a rendering of the University of Hawaii Information Technology Center that dck pacific construction will build. Photo courtesy of Ferraro Choi and Associates.

UnitedHealthcare serves about 21,000 aged, blind and disabled Medicaid members in Hawaii’s QExA (QUEST Expanded Access) program and also serves 19,000 Medicare members in Hawaii. The new QUEST contract will enable UnitedHealthcare Community Plan to offer a health plan option to the more than 225,000 individuals enrolled in the QUEST program.

According to the Department of Human Services, the new QUEST contract “will improve access statewide, support new models to manage care for people with chronic diseases, and provide incentives for leveraging information technology to improve the health and well-being of Hawaii’s residents.” One of the essential changes in the new contract is “patient-centered care,” in which physicians and other health care providers work with clients, especially people with complex health problems and chronic diseases, to better manage and coordinate their care.

“UnitedHealthcare’s QUEST contract award with the state of Hawaii will enable us to strengthen our partnership with the state, care providers and the community to offer access statewide to high-quality health care services and resources,” said Bill Guptail, president of UnitedHealthcare of Hawaii. “We look forward to bringing the benefit of our personalized care model and innovative approaches to addressing diabetes, obesity and prenatal care for low-income families.”

UnitedHealthcare also provides health care benefits and services to 5,000 people enrolled in employer-sponsored plans. People enrolled in UnitedHealthcare plans have access to a care provider network of 25 hospitals and more than 2,700 physicians and other care professionals statewide. Currently the company employs more than 150 people on Oahu, Kauai, Maui and the Big Island.

About UnitedHealthcare
UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people nationwide live healthier lives by simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care providers.  The company offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. UnitedHealthcare serves more than 38 million people and is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company.

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Cool Kailua Nights founder Danielle Scherman said this is “Kailua’s first-ever earth-friendly evening under the stars” and hopes to draw attention to the green theme by setting up a bike valet station and encouraging Kailua residents to bicycle to the event. She is also looking into having a solar installation company help power the event.

“Kaneohe Ranch is proud to be a sponsor of this event, celebrating the best of Kailua’s food, fun and community spirit,” said Mitch D’Olier, president and CEO of Kaneohe Ranch. “The Whole Foods location in the heart of Kailua Town is the ideal setting to bring people together and demonstrate what makes our community so special. We encourage other businesses to join us as sponsors and help make this a street festival to remember.”

Other festivities include healthy cooking demonstrations, a wellness center, eco-products, live entertainment, carnival rides, wine and beer sampling, and giveaways. Scherman is also encouraging people to come with their dogs, a nod to Kailua’s canine-friendly spirit. Plans are in the works to put on a doggie fashion show.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Boys & Girls Club’s Windward Clubhouse, which provides guidance-oriented character-development programs six days a week for children 7 to 17 years old. The event will also benefit Castle’s Oncology Unit, which provides outpatient services for patients battling cancer. Scherman’s mother is a breast cancer survivor and Scherman started Cool Kailua Nights to help those battling cancer and make them aware of the resources available to them.

Interested vendors or sponsors can connect with Scherman at www.coolkailuanights.com or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cool-Kailua-Nights/175692495809225 for more information. Or you can also email her at danielle@coolkailuanights.com.

Kaneohe Ranch manages the real estate owned by the family business entities of Harold K.L. Castle and Alice H. Castle and their nonprofit charitable foundation, the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation. The portfolio consists of major landholdings in Kailua as well as other properties on Oahu and the U.S. mainland. The Kailua properties include commercial, retail, office, industrial and residential leasehold parcels.

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The new Happy Meal includes Apple Slices (¼ cup or ½ serving) as a side to the choice of a Hamburger, Cheeseburger or Chicken McNuggets®, and choice of beverage, including fat-free chocolate milk and 1% low fat white milk. In addition to Apple Slices, the meal will automatically come with new smaller size French Fries (1.1 oz). Customers can also choose to request two portions of apples in lieu of fries.

“By introducing the new Happy Meal, we hope to support parents in encouraging their kids to eat a balanced meal that is both enjoyable and good for them,” said Veronica Kaneko, president and managing director of McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii. “McDonald’s is committed to providing many nutritional choices to its customers and we are excited to do so in this kid-appropriate meal.”

The new Happy Meal is the latest example of McDonald’s ongoing menu evolution. More Happy Meal fruit and vegetable choices are under development and expected to roll out over the next few years.

McDonald’s has also supported the Council of Better Business Bureau’s Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative since 2006 involving a voluntary Food Pledge to only advertise products to kids that represent healthier dietary choices. As part of its national sodium reduction efforts, McDonald’s reduced it’s Chicken McNuggets sodium content by more than 20 percent since 2003, and recently reduced the sodium in the most of its chicken menu items by10 percent.

For more information on McDonald’s “Commitments to Offer Improved Nutrition Choices,” visithttp://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/newsroom/electronic_press_kits/mcdonalds_usa_commitments_to_offer_improved_nutrition_choices.html.

About McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii
McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii has 85 restaurants and more than 5,200 employees in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan. In Hawaii alone, the company has 75 restaurants and more than 4,600 employees. McDonald’s total economic impact on the state, directly and indirectly, is about $285 million in spending and nearly 12,000 jobs in the community. McDonald’s prides itself on offering career opportunities to employees, with most managers staying with the company for more than 18 years.

About McDonald’s
McDonald’s USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to more than 26 million customers every day. Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local business men and women. Customers can now log online for free at any of the 11,500 participating Wi-Fi-enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants. For more information, visitwww.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter (@McDonalds) and Facebook (Facebook.com/McDonalds) for updates on our business, promotions and products.

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