Awards

Advertiser Staff

Transportation workers lauded

The State Department of Transportation has announced its top employees:

• Employee of the Year, Joe Y.C. Cheng of the Harbors Division-O'ahu Maintenance Section. He created a computer program to generate purchase orders, developing a timesheet for Harbors Maintenance Section and making sure the Harbors Division offices were Y2K compliant.

• Manager of the Year, Julia Tsumoto of the Statewide Transportation Planning Office. She was honored for more than 30 years of service and for reorganizing the Statewide Planning Office. She also provides guidance on transportation planning policies and programs.

• Team of the Year, the Highways Division Hawai'i District Bridge Crew "A." They were honored for repair work on the Nienie Bridge in Honoka'a, which was damaged by storm runoff. They did an exceptional job in repairing the bridge and saved the state tens of thousands of dollars.

• Sustained Superior Performance winners were: Gary Choy, Denise Dunn, Teodorico Ferrer Jr., Stephanie McKinley and Roy Yasui of Highways Division; Richard Seto of Hawai'i District Highways; Nancy Fujio and Donna Akie Segawa of Airports Division; Stephanie Iaca and Deane Kadokawa of O'ahu District Airport; Gordon Hong of Safe Communities Office and Lillian Katahara of the Visitors Information Program.

• Certificate of Recognition recipients were: Frank Abreu, Emilio Barroga Jr., Llewellyn Honda, Curtis Matsuda, Michele Naseimento, Dean Takiguchi and John Williams of Highways Division; Dale Suzuki, Joyce Toy, Dean Yamagisawa and Dean Yogi of O'ahu District Highways; Leo Garcia Jr., Chris Harris, Theodore Miller and William Puou III of Hawai'i District Highways; Ana Marie Aiu of Hawai'i District Harbors; Marshall Ando, June Au, Herbert Y.C. Ching Carter, W.S. Luke and Jennifer Moses of Harbors Division; Maximino Del Rosario, Dean Ibana, Clayton Niibu and Kathy Miyahara of Harbors O'ahu District; Gaylene Chun, Martinez Jacobs and Julita Laygui of the Airports Division; Robert Peru of Oahu District Airport; Susan Takamura of Kaua'i District Airport; Bert Nishimura and Steve Takahashi of O'ahu Business Management Office and Visitors Information Program-Hilo Section and the Honolulu International Airport Maintenance Unit.

2001 grad enlists in Army

Lusi Mataipule, the son of Laufatu and Patiola Mataipule of Honolulu, has enlisted in the U.S. Army as an Avenger crewmember.

He recently left for basic training at Fort Sill, Okla.

He is a 2001 graduate of Nu'u'uli Technical High School in Pago Pago, American Samoa.