Maunakea members still unnamed
MAYOR’S VISION TEAM TO GO PUBLIC NEXT WEEK; NEW MANAGEMENT BILL ADVANCES
AN AWARD LONG DESERVED
KAILUA-KONA — A smile
stretched across Edward
“Eki” Robert Yandall’s face
as friends and family stood
and clapped for him while
he descended steps into
the pavilion at Kona Vista
Recreation Center Sunday
afternoon.
Yandall, dressed in his
army uniform, thought
he was there to speak to a
community group for veterans
about his 20 years in
the military service. He soon
learned the gathering was a
ceremony to award him the
Purple Heart, 50 years after
an injury he suffered while
serving in Vietnam.
“He’s a war hero,” said
REDUCED
OCEANFRONT SEA VILLAGE
Susan Yandall, Eki’s daughter
in-law. “The criteria of
the Purple Heart, he did it
all.”
On Feb. 4, 1968, Eki ran
from his tent to the center of
the army camp where a large
gong hung and beat it as
long and loud as he could to
alert the troops of incoming
enemy attack. While running
to his foxhole under fire, he
fell over a spike and landed
on his head.
Eki was later diagnosed
with a neck fracture, an injury
he would suffer from for
the rest of his life.
On Sunday, 92-year-old
Eki was presented a congressional
award from the office
of Congresswoman Tulsi
HILO — Mayor Harry Kim says his
Maunakea committee, tasked with proposing
a new management model for
the mountain, met for the first time
Friday.
He said the meeting with the
nine-member group lasted more than
three hours, and the committee will next
draft a charter to state its duties.
“They want a charter to define what
their mission and responsibilities are,”
said Kim, who drafted his own vision
statement.
But he declined to identify the members
because he said they don’t want
to be named until the statement is finished,
which could take a couple of
weeks.
“Once that is done and they agree to it,”
Kim said, referring to the charter, “then
they are willing to put their names on it.”
He said each member is from Hawaii
Island and has a “history of involvement,
scholarly, professionally or personally, in
regards to the Hawaiian culture.”
Regarding being identified now, he
said the concern is that the focus will be
on the Thirty Meter Telescope project,
which some Native Hawaiians oppose.
“They all agree that the vision is not of
just science,” Kim said. “This is a vision
of Maunakea.”
As for his vision, Kim has said the
mountain should be a monument of
international importance, reflecting its
scientific, cultural and environmental
heritage.
The mountain, managed by the
University of Hawaii because of its scientific
significance, mostly is comprised
of state land. Kim said the group will
present a proposal for a new management
structure to policymakers, who
might be responsible for deciding its
future.
UH has a master lease for the
Maunakea Science Reserve through
2033, and is in the process of seeking
a new lease.
Meetings on the proposal will take
place from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Monday at
the Department of Hawaiian Home
Lands office in Waimea and Tuesday at
the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center in Hilo.
The Legislature also is mulling management
issues.
On Thursday, the state House of
Representatives passed on first reading
a bill creating a new Maunakea management
authority. The bill, which has
received hundreds of pages of opposing
testimony, passed the
Senate on Tuesday.
It will be heard next
by the House Finance
Committee.
Committee
Chairwoman Rep. Sylvia
Luke and Sen. Kai
Kahele, one of the bill’s
main sponsors, couldn’t
be reached for comment.
While a handful of people submitted
testimony in favor of the bill, the
measure has received a mountain of
criticism from astronomers, state agencies
and Hawaiian cultural practitioners
alike.
Under the measure, a paid seven
member board appointed by the
governor, which would include cultural
experts, an astronomer and environmental
expert, would run the authority.
Four members would have to be from
Hawaii Island. It also limits the number
of telescopes.
Logan
Yap
IT’S TOURNAMENT TIME
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HI 75 LO 68 WEATHER, PAGE 7A
VOL. 50, NO. 71 20 PAGES
BY TOM CALLIS
HAWAII TRIBUNE-HERALD
March is here, which means the madness
is as well.
The NCAA Division I men’s basketball
tournament field is set, with the best 68
college basketball teams in the country
facing off for the right to be named
national champions.
The single-elimination tournament
tips off with the First Four on March
13-14, leading into the first and second
rounds before heading into the regionals
and then the legendary Final Four stage.
It all wraps up with the national championship,
which is slated for April 2 in
San Antonio.
Inside today’s edition of West Hawaii
Today — and every Monday until the end
of the tournament — you will find the
official NCAA bracket.
Feel free to scribble down your picks
and fill out your bracket whatever way
you please. Pick all the upsets, or stick
strictly with the top seeds. Embrace the
Cinderellas, or pick one of the perennial
powers to go all the way.
But most of all, embrace the madness
of March and enjoy the show.
Kim
World of care
under one roof
SOUTH KONA COMMUNITY
HEALTH FAIR SATURDAY
BY CAMERON MICULKA
WEST HAWAII TODAY
cmiculka@westhawaiitoday.com
KAILUA-KONA — For some residents
in the communities of South
Kona, access to quality health care providers
and services can literally be out
of reach.
Lack of reliable transportation can
be a fact of life for some
who live in the largely
rural, agricultural
area. And missed rides
to clinics and services
in Kailua-Kona mean
missed appointments for
essential care.
“People from that
district want to come
out and get services,”
said Rebecca Logan, who sits on the
board of directors of the West Hawaii
Community Health Center. “It’s just a
lack of transportation.”
But an upcoming community health
fair organized by the
Lions Club of Kona and
West Hawaii Community
Health Center aims to
change that by bringing
those services into the
neighborhood. Its goal is
to help bridge the gap
between professionals
SEE HEALTH PAGE 7A
SEE MAUNAKEA PAGE 7A
Sen. Michael Gabbard and T. Ilihia Gionson, Hawaii Island representative for Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard,
present commendations to Edward “Eki” Robert Yandall as he received the Purple Heart Sunday. TIFFANY
DEMASTERS/WEST HAWAII TODAY
50 YEARS LATER, VETERAN RECEIVES PURPLE HEART
BY TIFFANY DEMASTERS
WEST HAWAII TODAY
tdemasters@westhawaiitoday.com
SEE HEART PAGE 8A
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