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President MessageBy Russell M. Arikawa, President

Ogenki desu ka?Ikaga desu ka?

How are you? Howare you doing?

Aloha Kakou! Sincebeing installed asthe Chamber's 66th president on June8, I have been busier than a busy bee.We were very fortunate that membersfrom our sister chamber, Higashi-Hiroshima Chamber of Commerceand Industry, made the long trek toparticipate in this installation. Thisyear they had 12 in their group. Vice-Chairperson Matsuki Okumoto, hiswife, Midori, and long-time member,Executive Councilor KatsuhikoMuneto took in a round of golf atMauna Lani North course with JCCIHsandbagger-artists-Past PresidentsEugene Nishimura, Jon Arizumi,Tommy Goya, and JapaneseSecretary Naomi Menor. While Ialso participated, my score reflectedthat this golfer needs serious help andis not a sandbagger!

The second tour group was led byImmediate Past President DarrenNishioka and Second VP StephenUeda. They took seven of the HHCCIgroup to the Volcano area andAkatsuka Orchid Gardens. Our thirdtour group, headed by First VPAudrey Takamine, visited fabulous

August 2016

In This Issue

President's Message

18th Annual Taste of Hilo

3rd Annual Tanabata "Star" Festival

Hawaii Community College Updates

More water discovered on summit plateau - OMKM

TMT Observatory Update

Current Benefits for Members

2016-2017 JCCIH Leadership

Welcome New Members!

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downtown Hilo then lunched at'Imiloa.

Special thanks to Audrey, whochaired the installation committee,Gina Tanouye, chair of the alwaysbusy Social and Cultural committee,a n d Lei Momi Fujiyama Pillers,Executive Assistant. Their hardworking group made this a verysuccessful installation. The guestspeaker, Sandra Dawson, manager-Hawaii community affairs for theThirty Meter Telescope project,provided very useful informationregarding the future of TMT on thisisland. Arigato to everyone!

I also had the pleasure of attendingthe installation banquets for theHawaii Island Chamber of Commerce(HICC) and the Hawaii IslandContractors Association (HICA). OurPast President Michael Kaleikiniwas installed as the HICC presidenta n d Craig Takamine as the HICApresident. Congratulations to both andwishing both organizations a greatyear!

On July 14, the JCCIH was one of themany organizations that sponsoredthe Mayoral Forum held at SanghaHall. Over 200 people attended andheard four of the 13 candidates answerquestions that were posed by SherryBracken. Thank you to all of ourvolunteers that helped with the setupand cleanup.

In early August we will have visitorsfrom the County of Hawai'i's sistercity, Yurihama, Japan and we arehonored to have been asked to provideassistance and show them ourbeautiful island.

Coming up this October is theChamber's 18th annual Taste of Hilo.Tickets can be reserved at our office at934-0177 or by contacting any of thecommittee members. This year thechairperson's are Ryan Kajikawaand Craig Shiroma. I urge every oneof you to attend this event and ourfuture events.

What's Happening

Monday, September 5, 2016Labor Day Holiday - JCCIH office closed

Monday, September 12, 2016JCCIH Board Meeting

Hilo Yacht Club11:30 am - 1:00 pm

Sunday, October 16, 2016

18th Annual - A Taste of Hilo EventHonpa Hongwanji Hilo Betsuin, Sangha Hall

1:00 pm - 3:00 pmTickets available at the chamber office. Call 934-0177.

Monday, October 17, 2016JCCIH Board Meeting

Hilo Yacht Club11:30 am - 1:00 pm

Friday, November 11, 2016Veterans Day Holiday - JCCIH office closed

Monday, November 14, 2016JCCIH Board Meeting

Hilo Yacht Club11:30 am - 1:00 pm

2016-2017Officers & Directors

Executive Officers

Russell Arikawa, PresidentAudrey Takamine, 1st Vice President

Stephen Ueda, 2nd Vice PresidentDonn Mende, 3rd Vice President

Naomi Menor, Japanese SecretaryJoseph Skruch, Treasurer

Ivan Nakano, AuditorDarren Nishioka, Immediate-Past President

Directors - term expiring 6/30/17Jon Arizumi

Tommy GoyaJosie Kiyan

Peter KubotaPhoebe LambethDwayne Mukai

Russell OdaNina Tanabe

Arthur Taniguchi

Arigato gozaimasu!

18th Annual - A Taste ofHiloRyan Kajikawa and Craig Shiroma,TOH Co-Chairpersons Sunday, October 16, 2016Honpa Hongwanji Hilo Betsuin,Sangha Hall1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Tickets are available for purchase ONLINE;

MAIL IN ORDER FORM with payment or

simply call the Chamber office at 934-0177.

Purchase TicketOnline

Mail in orderform

Pre-sale: $50.00Door: 65.00

(subject to availability)Ages 2 and under: Free

Annual Tanabata 'Star'Festival: Growing Hopeand LoveBy Charlene Iboshi

Three years ago, JCCIHand Subaru joined toprovide a culturalexperience that hadthree purposes:

Build lasting friendships

Gina TanouyeJere Usui

Carol VanCamp

Directors - term expiring 6/30/18Dean Fuke

Barbara HastingsRyan Kadota

Randy KuroharaAmanda LeeJoy MadriagaTracey Miura

Mike MiyahiraChad OgataAllan Onishi

Francis RickardRosie Sakane-Elarco

Debbie ShigeharaToby Taniguchi

Directors - term expiring 6/30/19

Ross BirchLaurie Correa

Charlene IboshiMichael Kaleikini

Ka'iu KimuraMitchell Dodo

Donald StraneyCraig Shiroma

Oshirase Newsletter

Barbara Hastings, Editor Lei Momi Fujiyama Pillers, Executive Assistant

Welcome New Members!

Tracy Yamaguchi

Title Guaranty460 Kilauea Ave., Hilo, HI 96720

Ph: (808) 933-3526 Alt. Ph: (808) 936-3829Email: tyamaguchi@tghawaii.com

between the Subaru staff, JCCIHmembership and thecommunity;Create a "sampler" of food,activities, and history of thistraditional Japanese "Star"Festival;Build community interest toembrace traditional Tanabataactivities, while highlighting theimportance of the study of thestars.

We are accomplishing these objectives,while having fun. July 7th was abeautiful day for JCCIH's 3rdTanabata 'Star' Festival. This festivalis recognized throughout the world,particularly in Japan. The festivaltraces its origins to a legend that thecowherder Hikoboshi (Altair Star) andw ea v er Orihime (Vega Star) werelovers separated by the Milky Way.These lovers were forbidden to meetby Orihime's father, the king. But later,her father realizing that they werecommitted to true love, allowed themto meet once a year, on the seventhday of the seventh month. Everyonelikes a good love story.

Traditional Tanabata activities andfood include writing Tanazaku Wishes,which are displayed on bamboo stalksfor all to read and sharing NagashiSomen, which means "flowing somen."

The Hilo Hongwanji Betsuin broughttheir Nagashi Somen crew, led byToshi and Takako Miura, Alan andSandy Shigeta, Jean Tung, SandyTaniguchi, Bob Nishimoto, JaneMiyashiro, and master garnish andsauce preparer Yoshiko Kono. Theyprepared, set-up, and orchestrated the

"cold somen" running in mizu downthe bamboo flume. They explainedhow to catch the slippery somen. Didyou know that left handers and righthanders should stand on differentsides of the bamboo flume?

JCCIH members, Thundering Sushiand AJ and Sons, provided a well-paired lunch of assorted sushi andlocal favorites, including miso salmona n d kimpira. KTA Super Storesgenerously donated a beautifullydecorated Tanabata-themed cake.Oiishii deshita.

Large arches of bamboo cut by ChadOgata and Dean Fuke adorned theSubaru Telescope administrationbuilding. Beautiful origami ornamentswere made by many hands, led byIrene Nagao and Carol Gristock.Miyuki Lee guided her St. JosephSchool's foreign students who mademany ornaments, including a longorigami ornament symbolizing theMilky Way.

Everyone was happy to know thatmany of these ornaments, which taketime to make, would be used again atthe Hawaii Japanese Center's andProject Dana's Tanabata Festivals.This re-using of useful items is aJapanese concept of mottainai (wastenot).

An "ice-breaker" led by MikeMiyahira helped Subaru staff andJCCIH members work together as ateam, in just a few minutes. Manywere familiar with each other from theTanabata Festivals from the past twoyears.

The program was rich with cultural andscientific explanation of the TanabataStar Festival. Dr. Nobuo Arimotoblended science, folklore, poetry andwith a visual experience that helped usto understand the importance ofastronomy, culture and bitter-sweetlove. Sometimes, a parent stops a loveaffair, but then later allows true loveand passion to prevail.

Em ce e Dwayne Mukai recognizedthat the Subaru staff provided a"cultured" entertainment program withviola played by Shintaro Koshida,piano by Christophe Clergeon andKanako Okita, and vocal by KeikoFormanek, a former professionalsinger with Takarazuka Revue.Mrs. Miyako Arimoto, Subaru'skaraoke expert and JCCIH's HiroshiSuga performed a duet about "aboutpeace and ever lasting love." The 3rdTanabata Festival has built lastingfriendships, while providing a greatentertainment event.

JCCIH PresidentRussell Arikawathanked Dr.Arimoto, Director ofSubaru Telescope, forthe beautiful SubaruTelescope Facility's useand the help of hishardworking and incredibly talentedstaff to work with JCCIH's Education

and Social and CultureCommittees to plan andassist with the festival.Everyone concludedwith the Tejime, aconcluding tradition of

rhythmic clapping with an enthusiasticexclamation "iyo`o." The group is nowfastened together in common purpose.

The Education and Social and CulturalCommittees thank everyone whohelped to make the Tanabata Festivalsuccessful, including the Subaru staffcoordinated by Dr. Arimoto, KeikoFormanek, and Yuko Kakazu;Subaru entertainers and staff thathelped set-up and clean-up; JCCIH'sDean Fuke and Debbie Shigeharawho coordinated the food, Carol

Gristock, Miyuki Lee's St. JosephSchool students, Irene Nagao'shelpers (Portia Hara and PhyllisShinno), Carol VanCamp and Ron,Russell Arikawa, Mike Miyahira,Dwayne Mukai, Jon Arizumi,Tommy Goya, Lynnette Uyesato,Hiroshi Sugai, Missy Miyashiro,Gina Tanouye with her masterfullyprepared bamboo holders and ChadOgata who braved the fire-ants to getthe bamboo, Lei Momi Pillers, KTASuper Stores, and the Hilo HongwanjiBetsuin, led by Toshi and TakakoMiura, Jane Miyashiro andYoshiko Kono. A special thank youto Education Co-chair, Yu YokPearring, who coordinated thefestival for the JCCIH.

Domo arigato gozaimasu.

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Hawaii CommunityCollege Update - New

Chancellor EmphasizesSustainabilityBy Rachel Solemsaas, Chancellor

As a new memberof this wonderfulcommunity, I havebeen drawnimmediately to thelocal commitmentto sustainability.The latter is notsimply a buzzword;it is an all-hands-on-deck undertaking,with shoppers carrying their own bagsand patronizing local productproducers. Indeed, all sectors of our'ohana - from government toeducation to business - are determinedto achieve an environmentally sound,socially responsible and economicallyviable community.

Economic sustainability is a key partof the broader sustainability effort,and as the new Chancellor of Hawai'iCommunity College, I look forward tohelping reach this goal.

I want to ensure the college is doingeverything it can to provide allmembers of our community with theopportunity to create a comfortableand rewarding life for themselves andtheir families.

Hawai'i Community College's role in asustainable local economy is toprovide students with the skills andknowledge that allow them to becomevalued employees or innovativeemployers and entrepreneurs who arefulfilled as individuals and engaged inthe future of our community and theworld.

By doing so, Hawai'i CommunityCollege can help make it possible tobuild upon the fervor for "buying local"with a continued, collective effort to"hiring local" and fostering more"homegrown" products and services.This is essential if we are to sustainour local economy.

With our open-door admissions

policy, lower tuition rates, uniqueprograms, high-quality instruction andservices, Hawai'i Community Collegeis well positioned to contribute to thiseffort, and has been doing so formany years.

The college has made tremendousstrides in attracting and educatingstudents from populations that havetraditionally been underserved byhigher education, such as NativeHawaiians, Filipinos, PacificIslanders, and students who areeligible for need-based Pell grants.

With our Early College program wehave helped hundreds of high schoolstudents start college early, increasingthe chances they will attend collegeand succeed there.

By opening the new Hawai'iCommunity College-Pālamanuicampus last fall in West Hawai'i, weare now better positioned to serve thatregion of the island, which has neverbefore had permanent facilities forhigher education.

The college offers many high-qualityacademic programs and learningresources that are available nowhereelse on the island.

But there is more for us to do toincrease the number of post-secondarygraduates and help the communityreach its potential, including makingsure we are delivering programs thatare appropriate for the rapidlychanging economic environment inwhich we live. Being responsive to theskills demand and employment needsrequires our vigilance in reaching outand tapping into the collectiveknowledge about the Hawai'i Islandworkforce.

With your wise counsel and guidance,together we can address the skills gapsand design appropriate programs forour students. Together, we can keepour post-secondary education currentand relevant and make sure ittranslates to livable-wage jobs andfulfilling career pathways for all.

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Hawai'i Community College embracesthe concept of kauhale, whichtraditionally means the Hawaiianv illa ge. Kauhale is an 'ohana ofadministrators, faculty, staff,students, their families, and theHawaiʻi Island community thatcontributes to the success of thecollege's mission and outcomes.

I am thrilled to be joining this kauhaleand look forward to learning moreabout the needs of the community andworking together to create a thriving,sustainable Hawai'i Island economy.

More water discovered onsummit plateauBy Stephanie Nagata, DirectorOffice of Mauna Kea Management

Lake Waiau isindeed an enigmaticplace. Contrary to what iswidely accepted, it isnot the highest bodyof standing water onthe Hawaiian Islands. A nearby cindercone, Pu'upōhaku, has not only anephemeral pond, but also a persistentbody of ground water about eight feetdeep, at an elevation that exceeds thatof Lake Waiau.

Since basaltic lava is generally porousand cannot hold water to form suchlakes or ponds, scientists at theUniversity of Hawaii and theUniversity of Western Australiacollaborated to investigate severalsites on Maunakea that were likelycandidates for retaining water. Inaddition to the water body atPu'upōhaku, they found that

groundwater in Pu'uwaiau extendsbeyond the immediate lake bottom,and in some areas water-saturatedsediments can be found uphill fromthe lake.

These are among the results of ascientific study recently published inthe Journal of Geophysical Research[http://tinyurl.com/2016JF003853].Electrical resistivity tomography, anon-intrusive geophysical technique,revealed a layer of water atPu'upōhaku; and the unpublished fieldnotebooks from 1966 to 1977 offormer University of Hawaii scientistAlfred H. Woodcock (1905-2005)routinely mention water persisting in apit at the center of the crater. Butperhaps the most surprising discoveryis a buried layer of high electricalconductivity immediately east of LakeWaiau. This is likely a layer of water-soaked fine-grained material, whichexplains meteorologists' observationthat the lake level responds toprolonged drought only with a lagtime.

The drainage area for Pu'uwaiau ismore than 10 times larger than atPu'upōhaku, and thus while these pu'uare unique sites even on Maunakea inthat they have sediments that retainwater, it is not surprising that LakeWaiau is better known as Hawaiiˋshighest lake. Previous research onMaunakea identified that precipitationfrom winter storms is the primarysource of water into Lake Waiau. Thesource of groundwater at Pu'upōhaku isalso from the occasional precipitationthat falls on the pu'u given that it is thehighest point in the immediatesurrounding terrain.

The researchers also identified thatneither Pu'uwaiau nor Pu'upōhaku areunderlain by permafrost, which is, in away, good news. Even with climatewarming, the substrate these twowater bodies are perched on willremain impermeable and continue toserve as indicators of wet periods anddroughts. By integrating the historicalwork of University of Hawaii scientistswith more recent research and state-

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of-the-art tools such as electricalresistivity tomography, a morecomplete picture of the interactionsbetween geology, climate, andhydrology on Maunakea is emerging.

The shallow crater of Pu'upohaku in theMauna Kea Ice Age Natural Area Reserve

holds an occasional pond, and 8 ft. deepgroundwater. (Source: OMKM ranger photo

from April 30, 2015)

This work was conducted under theauspices of research permits issued forwork in the Natural Area Reserve andthe Mauna Kea Science Reserve, incollaboration with the Natural AreaReserve System and supported by theOffice of Maunakea Management.

TMT Observatory UpdateBy Sandra Dawson

As many of you areaware, the ThirtyMeter Telescopelaunched THINK(The Hawaii IslandNew Knowledge)Fund in 2014 tobetter prepareHawaii Islandstudents to master STEM (Science,

Technology, Engineering and Math)and to become the workforce forhigher-paying science and technologyjobs in the 21st century economy.

TMT's THINK Fund initiative benefitsHawaii Island students pursuingSTEM endeavors through an annualcontribution of $1 million. TMTselected two Hawaii foundations,Hawaii Community Foundation andPauahi Foundation, to administerTHINK Fund distribution inscholarship and grant makingplatforms. TMT's annual $1 millioncontribution allocates $750,000 toTHINK Fund at the HawaiiCommunity Foundation and$250,000 to THINK Fund at thePauahi Foundation. TMT has so faradded $2 million to the THINKinitiative.

I'm happy to report that 11outstanding students from HawaiiIsland have been awardedscholarships totaling $194,000 by theTHINK Fund at Pauahi Foundation.

These 11 students join last year's 10recipients in receiving scholarshipsthat will provide support throughouttheir academic careers. The multi-yearcommitment to the students wasdesigned to reassure students andtheir families of continued support andreduce the barrier of family financeslimiting college attendance and long-term career success.

The scholarship students are allpursuing STEM-related degrees. Theyare a diverse group, planning careersin medicine, biology (including marinebiology and microbiology), mechanicaland civil engineering, aviation science,and ecopsychology. They come frompublic, charter and private high schoolsacross the island and the colleges theyhave chosen mirror their wide-rangingchoices of careers: University ofHawaii-Hilo, Hawaii CommunityCollege, University of Nevada LasVegas, Linfield College, Grand CanyonUniversity, University of Miami,Central Washington University,Stanford, and Cal State Sacramento.

One of this year's scholarshiprecipients wrote in his onlineapplication, "I've always loved science.From the age of 7 till now, I havealways loved to learn of the unknown.Test out the waters of places in whichwe have yet to traverse. And to makesense to the mysteries of the world.Over the course of time I have alwaysfelt a connection to science. It wasthrough these connections that I wasactually able to form my goals."

While scholarships are the major focusof THINK Fund at the PauahiFoundation some initial STEM grantswent to programming including thehighly successful Science Camps ofAmerica, a 10-day Hawaii Islandsummer session at Imiloa featuringLand & Sea and Air & Space focuses.

There's a lot more exciting THINKFund news and I'll be reporting in then ext Oshirase about STEM LearningGrants and additional scholarshipsfrom the THINK Fund at HawaiiCommunity Foundation.

Mahalo to the entire JapaneseChamber of Commerce & Industry ofHawaii membership for its supportand kokua!

Current Benefits forMembers

Please check out the current benefitsand discounts that you can takeadvantage of as a JCCIH member!

Gina Tanouye, Allstate - Speegle

Insurance Agency is dedicated toproviding outstanding service withAloha for your auto, home, renters, lifeinsurance and financial serviceneeds. For every referral the officereceives, the member will receive a$10 gift card for allowing them toprovide an insurance quote. ContactGina Tanouye at 969-7767 ortgina@allstate.com

BOB'S JEWELERS, INC.Amelia Hayashi, Bob's Jewelers isoffering members 30% off watches;30% off gold jewelry (Po Son Honcollection excluded); and 30% offsterling silver jewelry. ContactAmelia Hayashi at 935-8434.

AL KONISHIOffering up to 25% off legal servicesdepending on case. C on ta ct AlKonishi 960-4072.

Diann Horita - With an office inHilo, Eyewear Hilo has been servingKeaau, Papaikou, Kurtistown andWaimea for more than 4 years. Priorto Dec. 2008, the staff was employedby Eyewear Hawaii, Inc. and thatsame respected service is found atEyewear Hilo. When you desiresuperior cutting edge lens technology.Members will receive a 20% discount.Contact Diann Horita at 935-1119.

Joy Madriaga, Hawaii Petroleum,Inc., HPI offers dependable bulk fueland lubricant delivery services to alldistricts of the island. HPI'sproprietary gas card program - HawaiiFueling Network - provides aconvenient, cost saving for businessesand consumers to fuel. Sign up formembership with Hawaii FuelingNetwork (HFN) and receive a discount

per gallon on your gas purchases atany of our 13 locations. Fuel Up DoGood when you buy Fuel at any of oureight Islandwide Ohana Fuels retaillocations a portion of your purchasegoes to a Non-profit that serves ourcommunity. Contact Joy Madriagaat 969-1405 for further questions.Applications are available at theJapanese Chamber of Commerce &Industry of Hawaii.

Jieyu Sheparo, Kitchen & Beyond,LLC., offering 5% discount on items instore. Contact Jieyu Sheparo at935-2167.

LIKO LEHUA CAFEDawn Kanealii, Liko Lehua Cafe,offering 15% off entire bill. ContactDawn Kanealii at 936-9823.

OFFICEMAX RETAIL CONNECTPROGRAMSave up to 60% off a core list of morethan 650 commonly purchased items.Additional deep savings on over3,000+ items in OfficeMax's "WorkEssentials" catalog. Most other itemswill receive a 5% discount both onlineand in the store (excluding furnitureand technology). Contact Chamberoffice at 934-0177.

Sandy Wilson, Wilson's Trophies,provides awards for sports andacademics; signs and banners;corporate awards and recognition,gifts & recognition; custom andpersonalized products (made to order);wood and acrylic crafting (laserengraving and designs); specialoccasions (Valentine's, Christmas,etc.); jewelry items (earrings,pendants, hair picks and more), also

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advertising promotional items.Members will receive awardsdiscounts. Contact Sandy Wilson at969-7077.

© 2011 Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Hawai'i 714 Kanoelehua Avenue, Hilo, Hawai'i 96720-4565

Phone: 808-934-0177 Fax: 808-934-0178 Email: jccih@jccih.org Website:: www.jccih.org