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Thomasine Deitch
Thomasine “Tomy”
Susana Deitch, 70, of
Pahoa died Aug. 3, 2015,
at home. Born Feb. 14,
1945, in Wahiawa, Oahu,
she was a retired kitchen
worker for Naniloa
Hotel and a former van
driver for Hawaii County
Economic Opportunity
Council and a reverend
for Three Days Three
Nights The Resurrection
of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Friends may call at
9 a.m. Aug. 10 at Dodo
Mortuary chapel, Hilo, for
a 10 a.m. service. Burial
follows at Homelani
Memorial Park, Ilima
Section. Family requests
casual attire be worn.
She is survived by sons,
Edward (Betty Rodrigues)
Cuba Jr., Christopher Cuba,
both of Hilo, Anthony (Mei
Ling) Cuba of Mililani,
Oahu; daughters, Regina
(Bradley) Raposas of Hilo,
Desiree Pasco of Pahoa;
brothers, James (Rachel)
Ray of Waipahu, Oahu,
George (Christy) Santiago
of Colorado, Ernest
(Mary Beth) Santiago of
Arizona; sisters, Lorena
Santiago of Pahoa, Linda
Llaguno of California; 13
grandchildren; 10 great-
grandchildren; numerous
aunts, uncles, nieces,
nephews and cousins.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Barry Beyer
Barry Anthony Beyer,
82, of Pahala died July 28,
2015, at Yukio Okutsu State
Veterans
Home. Born
June 24, 1933,
in Reno, Nev.,
he was the retired owner
for Black Sand Video in
Pahala and a Navy veteran.
Private services will be
held. Family requests no
monetary gifts or flowers.
He is survived by
companion, Dorothy
Stewart of Pahala; son, Frni
(Cynthia Louie) Beyer of
San Francisco; daughters,
Marina (Lee Thompson)
Beyer of Sebring, Fla., Yuri
Beyer of Pahala; seven
grandchildren; two great-
grandchildren; numerous
nieces and nephews.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Lydia McCoy
Lydia Susan McCoy of
Waimea died June 2, 2015.
Born in Santa Monica,
Calif., she worked at The
Downtown Copy Service,
Honolulu Academy of Arts
and Reyn’s Men’s Wear
and was a member and
volunteer at the St. James
Thrift Shop in Waimea.
Private service were held.
She is survived by
husband, David McCoy
of Waimea; son, David
McCoy Jr. of Waimea;
daughter, MacKenzie
McCoy of San Francisco.
Arrangements by
Cremation Services
of West Hawaii.
Lorraine Ayabe
Lorraine Chisato Ayabe,
91, of Hilo died July 22,
2015, at Hospice of Hilo
Pohai Malama Facility.
Born April 14, 1924, in
Ka‘u, she was a retired
Christian missionary.
Private services were
held. Family requests no
flowers or offerings gifts.
She is survived by
daughter, Jan Ayabe of
Oregon; son, Benson Ayabe
of Illinois; brother, Tsukasa
Mukai of Hilo; numerous
grandchildren, nephews,
nieces and cousins.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Hisae Campbell
Hisae Campbell, 96, of
Pahoa died July 20, 2015,
at her residence. Born Nov.
27, 1918, in Hookena, she
was a farmer and member
of Puna Hongwanji
Buddhist Temple.
Private services were
held. Family requests no
flowers or monetary gifts.
She is survived by
husband, James Campbell
of Pahoa; sons, Kenneth
Hayashi of Wahiawa, Oahu,
Norman Hayashi of Hilo,
Calvin (Cary) Hayashi of
Pahoa; daughters, Hazel
(Owen) Nakano of Hilo,
Joy (Rodney) Akiyama
of Kaneohe, Oahu; sister,
Yoshino Nishimura of
Honolulu; 10 grandchildren;
10 great-grandchildren;
numerous nephews,
nieces and cousins.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Mitsuko Muranaka
Mitsuko Muranaka,
82, of Hilo died July 9,
2015, at a care home in
Hilo. Born April 4, 1933,
in Hilo, she was a retired
seamstress for Hilo Hattie
and member of Hilo
Higashi Hongwanji Mission,
Hilo Hooganji Mission
and Waiakea Homesite
Community Association.
Private services
were held.
She is survived by son,
Brian (Francine) Muranaka
of Hilo; sisters, Shizue
Nakano of Japan, Tomoyo
Kondo of Hilo; numerous
nieces and nephews.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Stanley Oda
Stanley Tetsuo Oda,
83, of Hilo died July 22,
2015, in Hilo. Born in
Hilo, he was a retired
construction worker.
Private services
were held.
He is survived by
daughters, Deborah
(Alfredo) Nacis, Vernell
(Kevin) Abate, Dayle
(Frank) Santos, all of
Hilo, Karen (Charles)
Paulino of Las Vegas,
Dayna (David) Kell of
Corvallis, Ore.; brothers,
Kenneth Oda of Honolulu,
Donald (Filomena) Oda of
Vacaville, Calif., Raymond
(Kathleen) Oda of Hilo,
Ronald (Elaine) Oda of
Keaau, Derek (Violet) Oda
of Mountain View; sisters,
Lillian (Bill) Cunnigham,
Miriam Kogasaka, Vivian
(Daniel) Ayala, all of
Hilo, Miriam (Zecaris)
Somalinog of Keaau, Lynn
(John) Wilson of Amboy,
Wash.; 11 grandchildren, 12
great-grandchildren, one
great-great-granddaughter,
nieces and nephews.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Francesco Nanci
Francesco Nanci, 78, of
Kailua-Kona died July 27,
2015, at his residence. Born
Aug. 18, 1936, in Pianopoli,
Italy, he was the owner
of Tony’s Delicatessen in
Montebello, Calif., and
attended Mokuaikaua
Congregational Church.
Private services will
be held at a later date.
He is survived by
wife, Charlene Nanci of
Kailua-Kona; daughters,
Tiziana of Murrieta, Calif.,
Loredana of Brea, Calif.;
11 brothers and sisters;
three grandchildren; two
great-grandchildren;
numerous nieces,
nephews and cousins.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Saburo Fukunaga
Saburo “Sabu”
Fukunaga, 90, of Pahala
died July 11, 2015, at Life
Care Center
of Hilo. Born
May 8, 1925,
in Pahala,
he was a retired welder
for the former Ka’u Sugar
Co., a World War II Army
veteran, member of
Pahala Hongwanji Mission
and Hi-Lo Golf Club.
Private services
were held.
He is survived by
sister, Yoneko Sakai of
Mililani, Oahu; numerous
nieces and nephews.
Arrangements by
Dodo Mortuary.
Robin Pedrazzini
Robin “Bob” Julius
Pedrazzini, 68, of Kailua-
Kona died July 31, 2015, at
his home. Born March 24,
1947, in Richmond, Calif.,
he was a property manager
and investor in property.
Private services
will be held.
He is survived by
daughter, Bridgitte
(James) Willard of
Arizona; hanai brother,
Ev (Linda) Fritz of Kailua-
Kona; one grandchild;
numerous hanai nieces
and nephews.
Arrangements by
Ballard Family Mortuary.
OBITUARIES
9A
WEST HAWAII TODAY | FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015
UH researchers to look for life
outside our galaxy
Does life exist on other
planets?
It’s a question anyone
who has looked up at
the night sky has asked
themselves and a team of
University of Hawaii at
Manoa scientists is pro-
posing a way to answer
it.
Their
technique
involves studying light
reflected from planets
in other solar systems.
If plant life exists there,
then certain colors would
be almost completely
absorbed. By measuring
reflected light at differ-
ent colors, researchers
say the signature of leaf
biopigments would be
revealed, according to a
UH-Manoa press release.
Additionally,
light
that is reflected off
plants with vibrant col-
ors oscillates in certain
directions.
“Thanks to this pecu-
liarity, this reflected light
can be detected remotely
by using polarizing fil-
ters (similar to Polaroid
sunglasses or 3D movie
goggles) when viewed at
specific angles even if the
star is millions of times
brighter than the plan-
et,” the release said. “The
team found that each
biopigment has its own
colored footprint in such
polarized light.”
That could be differen-
tiated from light reflect-
ed off minerals, ocean
water and atmosphere,
researchers say.
With this technique,
scientists could search
for life in Alpha Centauri,
the closest solar system
to our sun, with existing
telescopes.
Visiting
scientist
Svetlana Berdyugina,
who is leading the team,
said in an email that
the search for life there
could begin next year.
She didn’t say which tele-
scopes might be used.
“It may take some
months until we get
enough data, if the
instruments will per-
form as we expect,”
Berdyugina said, adding
this research is at the
limit of the instruments’
sensitivity.
Alpha Centauri is
home to three stars.
Alpha Centauri B, 4.37
light years from Earth,
would be the best place
to start, UH-Manoa said.
Berdyugina said cur-
rent statistics suggest
that almost every star,
if not all, should have
Earth-like planets.
Larger
telescopes
would be needed to use
this technique on more
distant solar systems,
she said.
Scientists announced
the discovery of an exo-
planet in the system out-
side the habitable zone
in 2012, though some
researchers remain skep-
tical about its presence.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@
hawaiitribune-herald.com.
BY TOM CALLIS
HAWAII TRIBUNE-HERALD
Figure 1: A green leaf absorbs almost all red,
green and blue light (RGB), but it reflects and
transmits infrared light (shown in grey). The
reflected infrared light is only weakly polarized
due to the reflection of a healthy leaf, but
the reflected RGB light is strongly polarized
because of biopigments. Measuring the amount
of polarized light at different colors reveals the
signature of the leaf biopigments. Green sand
reflects and polarizes sunlight almost equally
in all wavelengths, which distinguishes it from
a leaf that is a similar color. Similarly, yellow
plants are different from yellow sand, etc.
COURTESY S. BERDYUGINA
Big Island extended furlough inmate fails to check in
State Sheriffs and Hawaii Police
are searching for extended fur-
lough inmate Race Bolner who
failed to report for his sched-
uled check-in in Kona Thursday
morning.
Inmates in the extended fur-
lough program live and work
outside of the facil-
ity but must check
in at various times
throughout
the
month.
The 23-year-old
Bolner is classified
as community cus-
tody which is the lowest custody
level. He is 5 feet 8 inches tall and
weighs 140 pounds. He shaves his
head bald and has brown eyes.
Bolner is serving time for theft,
forgery and fraudulent use of a
credit card. Escape 2 is expected
to be added to his charges. His
next parole hearing was scheduled
for December.
Anyone who sees Bolner is
urged to call 911.
WEST HAWAII TODAY
Bolner
