2008 UHH Distinguished Alumni & Service Award Banquet

Photo By James Rubio

Above Photo, Back Row, L-R: Representative Jerry Chang, Tom Murphy, Robert Dircks, Dr. Leon Hallacher, Dr. Don Hemmes, Dr. Walter Dudley, Hansen Tsang, Gay Porter. Front Row, L-R: Chancellor Tseng, Stanley I. Hara, Dr. Marcia Sakai, Kay De Mello, Loretta Matsumoto, John Farias

UH Hilo’s Alumni and Friends Association held its 2008 Distinguished Alumni and Service Awards banquet on Friday, February 29th at UH Hilo’s Dining Hall to honor selected individuals for their outstanding achievements and contributions. To view photos of the evening's events, click here.

Each year, the Association grants one or more Distinguished Alumni Awards to individuals based on the nominee’s professional accomplishments, service to the community, and service to the university. Nominees for the Distinguished Alumni Award must have completed at least 50% of his/her educational program at UH Hilo, or at least one year at UH Hilo for those who attended the institution prior to 1973 when UH Hilo was a 2-year college.

The Distinguished Service Award is given to those whose contributions to UH Hilo (financial or service) has benefited the University in numerous and significant ways. Nominees of the Distinguished Service Award must have demonstrated consistent contributions to the University over a reasonable period of time, and whose contributions have had positive impact on the students and/or the University.

Included in the evening’s program was a silent auction to raise scholarship funds for students attending UH Hilo. This year, the silent auction raised a little over $8,000. Applicants of the alumni scholarship must be or have an immediate family member who is an alumnus of UH Hilo. To date, the Association is proud to have awarded a total of 10 scholarships.

This year’s Distinguished Alumni Awards recipients are: Mr. Robert Dircks, Mrs. Gay Porter and Mr. Hansen Tsang.

Distinguished Service recipients are: Dr. Don Hemmes, Mr. John Farias, Mr. George Martin, the late Eddie De Mello and Mr. Stanley Hara .

Robert Dircks (BA, Liberal Studies 1989) graduated from Saint Louis High School in 1971 and joined the US Navy where he served in the Vietnam war before assuming various positions at the Department of Defense. He went on to pursue his educational goals and earned several diplomas, including a Masters of Education from UH Manoa. Dircks put his education to good use by teaching at Kohala Elementary and Kohala Intermediate Schools and was Assistant Principal at Kohala High, Kealakehe Intermediate and Hilo Intermediate Schools before becoming the Principal of Mountain View Elementary School. Dircks assumed the role of Hilo High School’s Principal in 2005 and leads a hectic life leading a school population about 1,500 students. In spite of the demands on his time, Dircks tries hard to spend time with his wife of 30 years, Julie-Beth Ah Sam. Together, they have 3 children and 2 grandchildren.

Gay Porter (BA, Sociology 1977) was not only an astute student while at UH Hilo (graduated with highest honors and listed in the “Who’s Who in American Universities and Colleges”), she was also a great athlete, having lettered in 3 varsity sports – volleyball, softball and basketball. Since her graduation she went on to establish her professional career in the insurance field. Currently the Hilo Branch Manager of Business Insurance Services, Inc. (one of the largest locally owned independent insurance agencies in the State of Hawaii), Porter also serves as President of the General Insurance Association of Hilo and President of the Rotary Club of Hilo. She and her husband, Chuck Porter, are also active in various aspects of the community.

Hansen Tsang (BA, Economics 1982) whose origins are from Hong Kong worked at a number of companies in the community after graduation. In 1991 he joined Mauna Kea Electric, Inc. and purchased the business in 2000. A fun-loving, resourceful and hardworking person, Tsang has been a pioneer in developing renewable energy technology for the Hawaiian Islands. His company installed the Pakini Nui Wind Farm at South Point, which provides power for 10,000 homes, and installed the wind farm at Kaheawea in the West Maui Mountains, which meets 9% of Maui’s electrical energy needs. Besides being a businessman, Tsang has also been an ardent supporter of various organizations in the community, such as the HIV/AIDS Foundation and the Hawaii Transportation Association. A golfer who loves to have fun, Tsang enjoys traveling with wife, Neva, and daughter, Chanel.

Don Hemmes, always with a cheerful disposition and a greeting smile, is a household name to those who like mushrooms, gardens and biology. Known as one of the world’s leading experts in the field of mushrooms, Hemmes is also an outstanding faculty, as evidenced by the Regents Excellence in Teaching Award and by being a recipient of the Biology Professor of the Year (awarded by Counsel for the Advancement and Support of Education – CASE). In addition to his many professional accomplishments, Hemmes has also contributed greatly to the community by mentoring many high school students on their science fair projects and presenting talks at schools, civic clubs and community organizations on the Big Island and Oahu. In August 2007, Hemmes was bestowed a prestigious role as the 76th President of the Mycological Society of America. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling with wife, Helen, to visit their children and grandchildren.

This year marks the 60th year of UH Hilo’s birth and the Association takes pride in honoring John Farias, George Martin, and the late Eddie De Mello for their passion and instrumental boldness in helping transform UH Hilo from a 2-year campus, then known as the University of Hawaii Hilo Campus (UHHC), to a 4-year university. Farias was the Big Island representative on the University of Hawaii’s Board of Regents. Martin was the Hawaii Division Director and International Vice President of the International Longshoreman’s and Warehouseman’s Union (ILWU). De Mello was a member of ILWU, a labor organizer and respected lobbyist. Together, these three championed an aggressive and heroic effort to garner community support for the successful expansion of the Hilo campus into a 4-year university.

Former state senator and chair of the Education Committee, Stanley Hara, through his leadership, vision and political efforts, played a vital role in the site selection of this newly approved four-year university. Highlights of this eventful history will be made at the upcoming banquet.