wahanui_1

Waha Nui

A video by Kahuku High School senior Maila Tafua earned first runner-up and a $250 prize in the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America’s 2011 Teens Video Competition. Maila shared her thoughts and love for her grandfather, ending with: “Even if this illness took his memory away from him, it didn’t take the memory of him away from me” …

Josiah David Hester of Kailua made the fall semester dean’s list at Clemson University in South Carolina, where he’s studying computer science. And at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., Kailua’s Micah Mumper made the fall semester dean’s list. There’s more.

Amber Aduja

Image 1 of 2

Amber Aduja

Kaneohe’s Sophia Agustin did the same at Warner Pacific College in Portland … Kaneohe’s Amber Aduja, 12, won the 2012 Junior Teen Hawaii crown with top scores in interview, casual wear and evening gown phases of the March 11 competition at the Hawaii Convention Center. She will compete in the Jr. Teen United States pageant in June in Houston …

Kaneohe’s Jimmy Finley of Kaneohe has graduated from Air Force basic training at Lackland AFB, Texas, and Braden Park (Castle 2010) did the same at Air National Guard basic training at Lackland AFB, Texas …

UH professor Meda Chesney-Lind of Kaaawa is the first to be awarded the Meda Chesney-Lind Award (yep – even the award is named in her honor) for her scholarly achievement and activism in feminist criminology from the Western Society of Criminology. Meda has written 10 books with titles like Beyond Bad Girls: Gender, Violence and Hype (with Katherine Irwin) and Fighting for Girls. She shares her insight with Hawaii’s Family Court, First Circuit, the Juvenile Detention alternatives Initiative and many more projects in her career to correct injustices …

Congratulations to Laie’s Semisi Mosese Uluave, who has earned his Eagle rank in Scouting. Semisi stands 6-foot-6, plays football and basketball and has played lead roles in school musicals … Jack Johnson sings about the joys of being plastic free on YouTube for the Kokua Hawaii Foundation – and it all rhymes!