Patricia Saiki, Patricia Bergin, the late state Sen. Gil Kahele and the late state Rep. Clifton Tsuji were named recipients of the Hilo High Foundation’s Distinguished Service Awards.
Foundation president Barry Taniguchi and vice president Allan Ikawa will present the awards during the foundation’s sixth annual recognition dinner starting at 5 p.m. Feb. 24 at Sangha Hall in Hilo.
Saiki, born in Hilo, graduated from Hilo High School in 1948. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 1952, and was a teacher, business executive and member of the state House of Representatives from 1968-74. She was a member of the state Senate from 1974-82 and was elected to the U.S. Congress, serving from 1987-91. From 1990-94, she served as the administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration under President George H.W. Bush.
Bergin was raised in Keaukaha Hawaiian Homesteads and is a 1960 graduate of Hilo High. She served as a teacher, vice principal, principal and district superintendent of several Hawaii Island schools. For the past 10 years, she has served as the coordinator for leadership teams of Ka Huli Mua, a consortium of preschool programs on three islands, and serves on a charter school foundation. She also serves as an adjunct professor at Chaminade University, board member of North Hawaii Community Hospital and board member of the state Board of Education. Bergin has been a member of Hawaii’s education community for more than 40 years.
Kahele was born in Kalihi, just south of Milolii in South Kona. Kahele attended Hilo High, played football and graduated in 1960. He served in the Marine Corps for four years and later attended and graduated from Laney College in California. Kahele moved back to Hawaii where he began a civil service career that would span 33 years. In 1976, he worked at the Pohakuloa Training Area, where he would eventually retire in 2000. Gov. Neil Abercrombie selected Kahele to represent Senate District 2 on Hawaii Island in 2012. Kahele died Jan. 26, 2016.
Tsuji was born and raised in Papaikou. Tsuji was a 1959 graduate of Hilo High and graduated with a communications degree from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and studied banking and economics at the University of Washington. Tsuji was vice president of Hilo Candy Co. from 2003-04, and for 34 years he worked as a banker at Central Pacific Bank. He served in the U.S. Army Reserve, 442nd Infantry, Company B, Hilo, from 1959-65. He served as the representative for House District 2 from 2004 until his untimely passing Nov. 15, 2016.
Tickets for the awards event are $50 and include a special dinner catered by 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.
The nonprofit Hilo High Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the educational opportunities for students at Hilo High. For sponsors and purchasing tables, contact Art Taniguchi at 854-2020. For individual or small group ticket information, contact foundation secretary Newton Chu 961-0406.
