Lea Hong ('91) and Moses Haia, III ('94) were recognized by the Honolulu Star Bulletin as among "Ten Who Made a Difference in 2007."  Lea was recognized for her work as the Hawaiian Islands Program Director for the Trust for Public Land, and Moses for his tireless work on behalf of Native Hawaiians as an attorney with the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation.

Tannaz ("Tania") Simyar ('04), who is practicing in New York City, was recently interviewed in the New York Times and featured on a New York NBC home buying show called OpenHouse NYC. 

Lea Hong ('91) and Blake McElheny ('99) were named by Governor Linda Lingle to serve on a 17-member Turtle Bay Advisory Working Group to develop ideas and recommendations for possible purchase and preservation of the Turtle Bay property. 

Jody Kaulukukui ('98) will serve on the City & County of Honolulu's Clean Water and Natural Lands Commission.  Jody is the Hawaii Director of the Nature Conservancy.

Sheryl L. Nicholson ('81) was recently named President of the ACLU of Hawaii for 2008.  Sheryl is a partner with Paul Johnson Park & Niles.

Scott Suzuki ('04) recently opened his own law office at the Varsity Building near the University of Hawaii at Manoa.  Scott has been a gerontologist for over 10 years, has volunteered with the Law School's Elder Law Program, and has provided training in Legal Aid attorneys in guardianship and elder law.  His practice is concentrated in areas of estate planning, long-term care planning, special needs planning, and elder law.

Thomas R. Grande ('85) recently left Davis Levin Livingston Grande after over 20 years with the firm to start his own law firm, the Grande Law Offices.  He plans to continue representing consumers and whistleblowers in qui tam and class actions and health care fraud litigation.

Gaylord G. Tam ('78) was recently inaugurated as dean of the Consular Corps of Hawaii at its annual Inaugural Ball at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel.

Patricia Y. Lee, Ph.D. ('79) recently agreed to serve on the Ethics Commission of the City & County of Honolulu.  Dr. Lee is a partner with Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel.

Katherine G. Leonard ('91) was recently appointed by the Governor, and confirmed by the State Senate, to serve on the State's Intermediate Court of Appeals. 

Normand ("Chip") Lezy ('94) was appointed by the Governor, and confirmed by the State Senate, as a member of the State Land Use Commission.  Chip is a partner at the law firm of Leong Kunihiro Leong & Lezy.

Ernie Martin ('95) has been named Senior Advisor in the City & County of Honolulu's Department of Community Services.  He had previously been the director of the Department's Office of Special Projects. 

Kari Wilhelm ('83) passed away on December 19, 2007.  Kari was the Associate General Counsel of the Univeristy of Hawaii in charge of risk management.  She is survived by her daughter, Sarah; mother, Edith; brother, Karl; and sister, Lori. 

Brian Nakamura ('81) passed away on December 27, 2007.  Brian had a varied career in government, serving on the staffs of the Hawaii State Senate, the Campaign Spending Commission, Hawaii's Lieutenant Governor, and U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye.  Most recently, he served as the Chair of the Hawaii Labor Relations Board.  Brian is survived by his wife, Zi Hong Nakamura; daughters, Brianne Nakamura and Iris Shiroma; son, Bradford Shiroma; mother, Helen; brothers, Carl and Mark; and sister, Debra Oda.

Kengi Aoki ('05) passed away in early December 2007.  Kengi worked as an accountant with the Herman Tanaka CPA firm.  He is survived by his mother, Paulette A. Hamilton; brother Naomasa; stepfather, Paul Hamilton; and grandfather, Charles Tanaka.

Our sincere condolences and prayers go out to all of their families and friends.