Kiyoshi “Kiyo” Hamakawa, Russell Okata, Dr. Jennifer Doudna and the late Frank Arakawa were named recipients of Hilo High School Foundation Distinguished Service Awards to be presented at the foundation’s sixth annual Recognition Dinner Feb. 12, 2016, at Sangha Hall.
Foundation president Barry Taniguchi and vice president Allan Ikawa will present the awards.
Hamakawa, a 1947 graduate, was a basketball star at Hilo High and Springfield College. He started his teaching career in 1954 at Konawaena High and retired in 1984 as vice principal at Hilo High, where started teaching in 1965. Hamakawa is known for his love of sports and students, and was instrumental in organizing Korean War veterans of the Big Island.
Okata, a 1962 Hilo High graduate from Pepeekeo, grew up to lead the largest union in Hawaii and serve as Hawaii Government Employee Association’s executive director for 26 years.
During Okata’s tenure, HGEA became a “full-service” union, offering members an array of benefits, including support for HGEA members and their dependents to continue their education through the Charles R. Kendall Scholarship and Education Fund. To carry on his effort, HGEA now offers the Russell K. Okata Scholarship.
Doudna graduated from Hilo High in 1981 and Pomona College in 1985, then earned her Ph.D. in biochemistry from Harvard University. She has conducted research and teaching at the University of Colorado and Yale before beginning the Doudna laboratory in 2002 at the University of California, Berkeley, where she still teaches.
Her lab now focuses on obtaining a mechanistic understanding of biological processes involving RNA. In 2012, Doudna and her colleagues generated a new discovery that would reduce the time and work needed to edit genomic DNA.
The late Arakawa was a member of the first HHS graduating class. He attended Stanford, became a well-renowned architect in Hilo and designed many notable buildings in Hilo — such as the HHS Auditorium and Hilo Hongwanji.
Tickets for the dinner are $50 and include a special menu by caterer Don’s Grill. Ticket buyers are encouraged to organize a mini-reunion with their class. Special tables for group sponsors are available: platinum ($1,500), Blue ($1,000), Gold ($750) and Viking ($500).
Proceeds from the dinner support the nonprofit Hilo High Foundation.
For sponsors and purchasing tables, contact Art Taniguchi at 854-2020; for individual or small group ticket information, contact foundation secretary Newton Chu at 961-0406.
