Community Service and ThinkTech Awards
2023Community Service Awards and ThinkTech Family Awards
Community Service Awards
ThinkTech Community Service Awards were presented to Vicky Cayetano, Seymour Kazimirski, and the Hawaii Restaurant Association.
ThinkTech Family Awards
ThinkTech Family Awards were presented to “Hawaii Together” hosted by Keli`i Akina and Joe Kent as Show of the Year, to Kathleen Lee, Host of the Year for her show “Connecting Hawaii Business,” to Tom Yamachika, as Cohost of the Year for his show “Talking Tax.”
Underwriter of the Year – Bob Toyofuku and Pacific Law Institute.
2022 Community Service Awards and ThinkTech Family Awards
Community Service Awards
CompuGirls Hawaii, headquartered in Hilo, Hawaii, Executive Director Whitney Aragaki.
Project Expedite Justice, headquartered in Kona, Hawaii, Executive Director Cynthia Tai.
Mark E. Recktenwald, Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court.
ThinkTech Family Awards
Show of the Year – “A Nation of Immigrants,” hosted by Chang Wang.
Hosts of the Year – Christine Lynders, host of “Physical Therapy for a Better Life,” and Chuck Crumpton, host of “The Rule of Law in the New Abnormal” and “It’s Time for Responsible Change.”
Underwriter of the Year – Mike Sklarz.
2021 Community Service Awards and ThinkTech Family Awards
Community Service Awards
Hawaii Agricultural Foundation, for its efforts in making better, stronger connections among farmers, the agricultural sector and the community in general.
The Pacific Asian Management Institute at the Shidler College of Business, for its work on Asia Pacific and international business programs, including a well-known annual lecture series on US – Asia relations.
Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii, for contributing free civil legal services in bankruptcy, landlord-tenant, small claims, will preparation, divorce, adoption, advice to veterans, and much more to Hawaii people who can’t otherwise afford to hire an attorney.
ThinkTech Family Awards
Show of the Year – Looking to the East has guests from all over the world, covering topics that reach far and wide. His approachable style and thought-provoking discussions help us understand larger issues affecting Japan, Asia, the US and the world. Looking to the East is hosted by Steve Zurcher, management professor and dean of the Asian Studies Program at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan.
Host of the Year – Katharine Nohr is the host of The Wide World of Esports, a show about esports news, creators and content. Katharine is a business attorney, author and frequent speaker on sports law. Her show brings notable guests from every background and venue in the Esports world of multiplayer video game competition and introduces us to this very exciting high-level high-tech form of competition.
Host of the Year – Mark Shklov is the host of Law Across the Sea, a show about business law with overseas correspondents. Mark retired from the law in Honolulu in 2019 but continues to provide pro bono services to non-profits. Over the years, he has helped found many organizations focused on international law, particularly involving China and Japan. “Law Across the Sea” introduces us to international law, lawyers and legal matters in general. Mark shares his many contacts with us to promote Hawaii’s outreach and in so doing covers a wide range of related topics.
Underwriter of the Year – Galen Ho of Immersive Worlds LLC has been an unflagging underwriter and supporter of ThinkTech for many, many years. As a non-profit, ThinkTech relies on underwriter contributions (and well as the smaller donations we get), to maintain our platform and provide our content to the public. Contributions from underwriters like Galen Ho cover the largest part of our budget, and we would not be here celebrating our 20th anniversary without his longstanding and continuing kindness, generosity and encouragement. His goodwill and faithful, continuing support is central to our effort.
2020 Community Service Awards and ThinkTech Family Awards
Community Service Awards
Project Vision Hawaii, for its creative and admirable innovations to improve access to health and healthcare for the people of Hawaii during the time of covid.
NAMI Hawaii, the Hawaii Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, for its admirable and continuing efforts to help people and families whose lives have been affected by mental illness in our community.
The Medical Intensive Care Unit, MICU, at the Queens’ Medical Center, for their dedication to treating, caring for and saving the lives of the COVID-19 patients and doing so with courage and unfailing professionalism.
ThinkTech Family Awards
Show of the Year – Human(e) Architecture has remarkable, thorough and thoughtful coverage of architecture in the islands and around the world by giving light to distinctive planning, design and individuals. This weekly program is hosted by architect professor Martin Despang broadcasting from Germany and Bishop Museum historian Desoto Brown from Hawaii. Their devoted viewers value the significant contribution they have made to public understanding of architecture, environment, sense of place and culture.
Host of the Year – Tim Apicella is the host of Rediscovering America, formerly known before the election as Trump Week, an examination of the difficulties we have had in the Trump Administration and how we can come together again. He courageously covers controversial issues and events through a time of governmental chaos, covid and confusion, when such a discussion has now been all the more important to our country and our democracy.
Host of the Year – Wendy Loh is the host of Taking Your Health Back, an uplifting and inspiring show about saving your health. She covers a variety of topics dealing with physical and emotional health, food, family, aging, community and lifestyle, among others, which are of significant interest and value to our viewership in Hawaii and elsewhere, and particularly relevant and helpful in the time of covid.
Underwriter of the Year – Sidney Stern Memorial Trust has made generous and continuing contributions to a myriad of nonprofit community organizations in Hawaii, including ThinkTech Hawaii, in funding and in its concern and caring, for its active participation in the activities of those organizations, and for their regular introductions of and appearances with those organizations in our ThinkTech talk shows. They show abiding commitment to the Hawaii community and the disadvantaged members of that community.
2019 Community Service Awards and ThinkTech Family Awards
Community Service Awards
Dr. Charles “Chip” Fletcher is the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Earth Sciences at the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. He is also Vice-Chair of the Honolulu Climate Change Commission. His research focuses on Climate Change and impacts to island communities. Climate Change: What the Science Tells Us, 2nd Edition is a textbook he has published with J. Wiley (Hoboken) that provides a readable, lay-person description of the latest science on climate change.
Robert Pennybacker is a graduate of Punahou School and USC School of Cinematic Arts. He has worked in Hawaiʻiʻs television industry as a writer-producer-director since 1981 and has written approximately thirty documentaries for television. He is currently the Director of Learning Initiatives at PBS Hawaiʻi and oversees the awardwinning HIKI NŌ (Can Do) student news network. The HIKI NŌ program mentors elementary, middle and high school students from 90 public, charter and private schools on all islands in the production of PBS-quality news stories. The stories are compiled into a weekly half-hour show that airs on PBS Hawaiʻi.
Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on September 14, 2010. He joined the Supreme Court as an Associate Justice on May 11, 2009, and previously served as Chief Judge of the Intermediate Court of Appeals beginning in April 2007. Prior to his appointment to the Intermediate Court of Appeals, CJ Recktenwald served as the director of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, and as an attorney in private practice. He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University and his law degree from the University of Chicago.
Host of the Year – Yukari Kunisue is the host of Konnichiwa Hawaii, a bilingual program reaching the Japanese speaking community everywhere. Her multi-cultural shows are popular, and regularly among our most watched programs. In addition to her Ph.D, in Psychology and degrees from Aoyama Gakuin University, Univ. of Maryland, Univ. of Hawaii, Manoa and Columbia University, Dr. Kunisue is also a life coach and counselor, writer and journalist, hypnotherapist and yoga therapist and instructor.
ThinkTech Family Awards
Show of the Year – Condo Insider raises public awareness about the management and operation of condominium projects in our state, for the benefit of owners, residents, managers, directors, officers, contractors, professionals and regulators who comprise the condominium community. Condo Insider was founded by attorney Jane Sugimura and real estate professional Richard Emery, who host the program along with Cheryl Franklin. It is supported by the Hawaii Council of Associations of Apartment Owner and has become an authoritative and extremely useful to the members of that community and to the state in general.
Underwriter of the Year – Hawaiian Electric Company and its subsidiaries provide electricity and services to 95 percent of the state’s 1.4 million residents. The company is also one of the state’s leading employers and a major contributor and supporter of community and educational programs. The demand for electricity that has fueled the growth of the Hawaiian Islands has been met by Hawaiian Electric for 128 years. And as the next millennium unfolds, the company is committed to providing quality service and seeking clean local energy sources to power generations of Hawaii families and businesses to come.
2018 Community Service and ThinkTech Family Awards
At our Holiday gathering at the Laniakea on December 8, 2018, the following awards were presented:
Community Service Awards
Doug Chin, former Attorney General and Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii
The Center for Microbial Oceanography Research and Education at UH Manoa
Planned Parenthood of the Great NorthWest and the Hawaiian Islands
ThinkTech Family Awards
Andrew Lanning, host of Security Matters Hawaii, Show of the Year
Rusty Komori, host of Beyond the Lines, Host of the Year
The Hawaii Energy Policy Forum, Underwriter of the Year
2017 Community Service Awards
At our Holiday gathering at the Laniakea on December 8, 2017, the following awards recognized champions of disaster response, immigration law, medical aid in dying legislation, energy research and entrepreneurship and journalism:
- American Red Cross – Pacific Islands Region, For outstanding service to the community in responding to the disasters that threaten us; and in providing critical services to the victims of those disasters.
- Clare Hanusz, Immigration Lawyer – For outstanding service to the community for her courage and determination in assisting disadvantaged refugees, detainees and other immigrants in Hawaii.
- Hawaii Death with Dignity Society – For outstanding service to the community in its efforts to educate the community on Medical Aid in Dying legislation; and in offering advice to those who are confronted with the pain and turmoil of terminal illness.
- National Energy Laboratories of Hawaii Authority (NELHA) – For outstanding service to the community in its efforts to support the development of our state’s economy; in providing facilities for energy and ocean-related research and entrepreneurship in an environmentally sound and culturally sensitive way.
- Brett Oppegaard, Journalist – For outstanding services to the community in practicing and teaching the art and skill of journalism; and in expressing and protecting our democracy in a time when our president is at “war” with the press and treats it as the “enemy of the people.”
2016 Community Service Awards
At our Holiday gathering at the Laniakea on December 8, 2016, the following organizations received Awards for contributing to the ongoing welfare of our community:
- Hawaii Opera Theatre, for bringing the art of world-class opera to our audiences and schools, raising Hawaii’s quality of performing arts, life and public engagement
- Institute for Human Services, for its service to developing innovative solutions and programs aimed to end and prevent homelessness in Hawaii
- Make ‘Em Smile, for integrating the joy of music into the healing process of patients in local hospitals
- OC 16, for broadcasting quality cable TV programming of community interest to more than 300,000 households in Hawaii and stimulating critical thinking about how to uplift and engage our community
- Pacific Forum CSIS, for educating the public on foreign policy issues and events in the Asia Pacific Region and raising Hawaii’s level of global awareness
2015 Certificates of Achievement
At our Holiday gathering at the Laniakea on December 3, 2015, the following individuals received Certificates of Achievement for those Talk Shows that best expressed the ThinkTech mission of raising public awareness about tech, energy, diversification and globalization in 2015:
- Cindy Adams for Aloha United we Stand
- Rhett Butler for Research in Manoa
- Justine Espiritu and Matt Johnson for Hawaii Food and Farmer Series
- Sen. Josh Green for Healthcare in Hawaii
- Sharon Moriwaki, Ray Starling and Mike Hamnett for Hawaii, the State of Clean Energy
- Bill Sharp for Asia in Review
Congratulations to all!
