Dennis Fujimoto the garden island PO‘IPU — Volunteerism was the shared link between Janice Bond and Dr. Arnulfo Diaz who were named the 2009 Kaua‘i Outstanding Older Americans, Monday at the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i Resort and Spa. A lone sparrow
Dennis Fujimoto
the garden island
PO‘IPU — Volunteerism was the shared link between Janice Bond and Dr. Arnulfo Diaz who were named the 2009 Kaua‘i Outstanding Older Americans, Monday at the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i Resort and Spa.
A lone sparrow flitted between the overhead light banks and the carpeting as the announcement was made by Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. and Noemi Pendleton, director of the Executive Office on Aging, at the 43rd annual Older American Awards Recognition Ceremony.
“We would have a room full of white pigeons flying around, but with the budget cutbacks, all we could afford was a single sparrow,” said Joe Neil, one of the judges as well as the chair of the AEA Advisory Committee, who served as the event emcee.
That remark extracted spontaneous laughter from the ballroom filled with family and friends of the 10 nominees for this year’s Outstanding Older American honor.
Bond’s roster of volunteerism spans the American Cancer Society where she spent Saturday night at the Relay for Life, noting how the Kapa‘a Missionary Church had a prominent banner on display, honoring its cancer survivors and paying homage to church members who lost the battle against cancer.
Bond, nominated by Diane Mikami, also volunteers with the Arthritis Association, the Retired and Senior Volunteer program, Visitor Aloha Society, and a host of literary programs including the First Lady’s Read for 2002, United We Read, and Read to Me — Lynne Waihee, the former first lady and president of Read to Me International, made a trip to Po‘ipu to congratulate her Kaua‘i representative to the Read to Me Roundtable.
“I couldn’t see Kaua‘i without a story festival,” Bond said, choking back her emotions. “We started the first story festival eight years ago and this year the festival returns to the Kukui Grove shopping center in October.”
Diaz — nominated by Kathy Clark of Wilcox Memorial Hospital, and Dr. Geri Young and Lynne Joseph, both with the Kaua‘i Medical Clinic — lists volunteering with the American Heart Association, the Immaculate Conception Filipino Catholic Club, the Kaua‘i Filipino Chamber of Commerce, the Kaua‘i Filipino Community Council, the Kaua‘i Pangasinan Association and the Wilcox Memorial Hospital Board of Directors.
“One thing about volunteering is that you don’t have too much time to spend at home,” Diaz said. “It keeps you busy.”
Bond said there are many others in the field of 10 that have more experience and points than her, but was humbled to be selected as one of Kaua‘i’s Outstanding Older Americans.
Other nominees included Federico Acoba Jr., Sheila Drews, Sandy Gage, Stephanie Hughes, Sally Jo Manea, Emily Minei, Mildred Olores and Roy Tamashiro.
Helping with the presentations were last year’s honorees Soupbone Kashiwabara and Naoko Ho.
Diaz and Bond will be honored at a statewide recognition ceremony May 21 at Washington Place on O‘ahu.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com
