Kona Stories annouces July book clubs
Kona Stories annouces July book clubs
Kona Stories in Keauhou Shopping Center will host several book clubs in July.
A fiction reading group will meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to discuss “The Left Hand of Darkness” by Ursula K. Le Guin, winner of the Hugo and Nebula awards for Best Science Fiction Novel of the Year.
The travel book club will meet at 6:30 p.m. July 21 to discuss “The Lost City of Z,” bestseller by David Grann.
The nonfiction group will gather at 6 p.m. July 28. The reading selection is “Marco Polo – the Journey that Changed the World” by John Man.
Groups are free if books are purchased at Kona Stories or a $5 donation is appreciated. Attendees should bring a pupu or beverage to share and come prepared to discuss the book. For more information, call Brenda or Joy at 324-0350 or visit konastories.com
Chamber announces Pualu Award winners
The Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerc established the Pualu Awards in 1979 to honor outstanding individuals, businesses and nonprofit organizations in West Hawaii for their dedication and hard work in the community. The awards celebrate those who “work together.”
This year’s winners have demonstrated the spirit of pualu by working to ensure West Hawaii continues to be a community people are proud to call home. Winners were chosen by the chamber’s awards committee from nominations received by chamber members and the public. There are nine winners in seven categories and they were recognized at the chamber’s recent annual installation banquet and membership luncheon at Four Seasons Resort Hualalai.
The Community Education award honors an individual or organization that promotes and supports education and enrichment programs that develop personal skills and lifelong learning. This year’s award goes to Susan Maddox. As an educator and advocate for life-long learning, Maddox has shown her dedication and aloha to the community with her constant involvement and contributions to many organizations.
The Environmental Awareness award recognizes an individual or organization that exhibits sensitivity and concern for the environment through innovative environmental practices. This year there are two recipients: Keller Laros, who was recognized for his contributions for the well-being of manta rays and their marine environment, and Friends of the NELHA.
The second Environmental Awareness Pualu Award is given to a nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing the possibilities in environmental preservation, plus energy and food development. The goal of Friends of NELHA is to educate the public about sustainable technologies in renewable energy, energy efficiency, food security, water and health, with a focus on Hawaii and the technologies demonstrated at NELHA.
The Business Innovation award recognizes a business or organization that is committed to improving or enhancing employee’s lives, or exhibits creative product development, marketing or customer service. This year’s recipient is Dickinson General Contracting, which brings a great deal of positive exposure to the Big Island with its “Building Hawaii” television show on HGTV.
The Lifetime Service award taps an individual who has made a lifelong commitment to the community exemplified by personal and business achievements and this year honors Marni Herkes. Herkes has been a member of the chamber since 1983 and led the organization as executive director from 1990-2001. She served as past president of the Kona Outdoor Circle, held various offices for the Hawaii Democratic Party, headed up the Mainstreet Program for Historic Hawaii, served as board member of the League of Women Voters and the Kohala Center, worked with the Big Island Business Council and many other initiatives and organizations.
The Visitor Industry Marketing Award is presented each year to a person or group that diligently works to promote the visitor industry in West Hawaii. This year’s accolade goes to the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. From the very beginning, the Mauna Kea has been a community hotel, treating not only its guests as family, but also its staff, and providing for them as such. Focused on being a community hotel, there are 21 employees still on staff who have been with the hotel since 1974 or before. Its support of numerous nonprofit fundraisers over the years, and most recent “50 Acts of Aloha” giving campaign, are additional examples of the hotel’s community support framework.
The Culture &Heritage award is presented to an individual or organization that has exhibited, through its actions, practices that promote island traditions and preserves our multi-cultural heritage. This year’s recipients are Earl Regidor and Ke Ola magazine. Regidor is driven by his Hawaiian values and he shares those values every day as the manager at the Kaupulehu Cultural Center at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai. The second recipient for this category, Ke Ola, honors a publication that beautifully reflects life on Hawaii Island, along with its diversity, culture, artwork and the stories of the people.
This year’s Chamber Member of the Year is Rick Vidgen. As a member of the chamber’s Government Affairs Committee, Vidgen stepped up and took control of writing position statements on critical legislative issues that without oversight, could drastically change the ability to run businesses.