Rail Rangers

Rail Rangers — The Battle at UH Manoa from HiMedia Rail on Vimeo.

A mermaid named Sue

It was a moonlit night
In a small beach town,
A small group of friends
Boogied on down.

A couple of boys
And a few girls too,
Partied like animals
It was kind of a zoo.

Fred and Ted noticed
While hitting a jay,
The surf was fiiiiiiiiring
Out in the bay.

They grabbed their boards
Without hesitation,
To go shred the gnar
Was their inclination.

But the surf was too big
Over the falls went Fred,
Straight to the bottom
Right on his head.

When Fred finally came to
A fish floated by,
Fred asked himself
Am I still high?

But it was a fish
There were other sea creatures too,
A crab and an eel
And a mermaid named Sue.

Sue saved his life
Fred was forever in debt,
So he lived underwater
With this mermaid he’d met.

They swam with the dolphins
Went jellyfish fishing,
Played seahorse polo
Until something went missing.

Sue had been kidnapped
By a sea monster named Dave,
Fred knew what to do
He had to be brave.

So he swam to the lair
Where the sea monster dwelled,
“Prepare to die Dave,”
Fred courageously yelled.

The monster came out
An epic battle begun,
With a jab and a stab
The skirmish was won.

The monster lay dead
“You did it!” Sue cried,
But something was wrong
Blood dripped from Fred’s side.

The sea monster’s tooth
Was wedged deep inside Fred,
Just like the monster
Fred soon would be dead.

With his last bit of strength
Fred said his goodbyes,
As he grabbed his love tight
Gave her a kiss and shut his eyes.

Then Fred awoke
Still locked in a kiss,
But he was no longer
In the deep blue abyss

He lay on the beach
With a crowd gathered round,
Ted emerged from the pack
“Brah, you coulda drown!

Our new neighbor saved you,
I thought you had died!”
“I’m sure he would have done the same for me,”
The new girl replied.

Fred looked up at his savior
But something was peculiar,
“Have I met you before?
You look so familiar.”

Just as Fred thanked her
Before he could think
She said, “My names Sue”
And gave Fred a wink

Wind farm controversy

North Shore residents have conflicting views on a recent wind farm development. The Kawailoa wind farm is currently under construction in the Kamehameha Schools Kawailoa Plantation lands. The new wind farm is already the largest in the state, and upon its completion in November will contain 30 wind turbine generators. The turbine generators stretch across the hills of the North Shore and can be seen from parts of Haleiwa, Wailua, and Waimea Valley.

First Wind, a Boston-based company, will be heading the development. According to their web page, the wind farm will power approximately 14,500 O’ahu homes, and could supply as much as 5-10% of the islands electrical load.  This would save the burning of 300,000 barrels of oil annually.

“This groundbreaking for Kawailoa Wind is an historic occasion for Hawaii because, as the largest wind project ever in the state, it will harness enough clean, sustainable energy to provide power for thousands of families on O’ahu,” said Senator Akaka.  “Renewable electricity production makes our islands more energy self-sufficient, environmentally sustainable, and secure,” he said, “which is critically important now and for future generations.”

Imposing on sacred lands

But for community member and Kamehameha Schools alumnus, Kahokule‘a Haiku, the development is seen as a slap in the face. Haiku believes the 30 turbines are not only an eyesore to North shore residents and visitors, but also a threat to sacred lands.

“I’m not opposed to renewable energy, in fact I definitely support it. For me, first and foremost being a native Hawaiian my biggest issue is the location,” said Haiku.

Several turbines from the Kawailoa wind farm linger around the sacred Waimea Valley.  Waimea, “Valley of the Priests,” has been a sacred place for over 700 years in Native Hawaiian History. The valley is a cultural treasure and was the site for many significant events.

Wind turbines overlooking Waimea Valley

Waimea Valley

Waimea Valley hosted two of the most prevalent heiaus, or temples, on O’ahu: Puu o Mahuka, O’ahu’s largest heiau, located on a ridge overlooking the valley; and Kupopolo, positioned near the beach on the southwest side of the river.

Numerous cultural features can be found throughout the valley as well.  Fishing shrines line the coastal edge of the valleys entrance and many burial caves are embedded within the valley walls.

“Waimea Valley is a cultural resource of the highest possible order… There is no place quite like Waimea Valley on the island of Oahu, and very few places in the entire archipelago can equal it in terms of its religious associations, its preservation, or its potential for answering any questions about traditional Hawaii. It is deserving of the utmost care and protection, and this can be achieved only through recognition and careful planning,” said Joseph Kennedy, Principle Investigator of Archeological Consultants of the Pacific.

Community Input

First Wind claims to be well aware of the historical and cultural significance of Waimea Valley. In an attempt to reach out and gather community input, First Wind conducted a cultural impact assessment to identify potential impacts on culturally significant locations and held advertised public meetings.

Hawaiian organizations, agencies and community members were consulted in the assessment; including the State Historic Preservation Division, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawai’i  Nei, the Waialua Hawaiian Civic Club, and the community members of Kawailoa and Kamananui Ahupua ’a. However, many community members continue to protest the development.

“Either a place is sacred or it’s not,” says Haiku. “ The sacredness, the value of it, places like Yosemite or Mt. Fuji, companies would not even suggest putting them (wind turbines) in those areas, and the major reason is because these places are considered national treasures, and Waimea Valley should be no different.”

While some residents remain skeptical about the new wind farm, Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle remains optimistic.

“Clean energy projects are a priority for the City and County of Honolulu because they are a priority for our future,” Said Carlisle. “Projects like this will benefit and position our city for the future.”

Kamehameha Schools’ North Shore Plan

The Kawailoa wind farm is only one component of a much larger project in the Kamehameha Schools’ North Shore Plan. The plan includes the establishment of alternative energy uses, enhanced agriculture and food production, improvements to the 100-year-old agricultural water system, and much more.

The recent drive for wind farms and other forms of sustainable energy have stemmed from a Hawaiian Law mandating that by the year 2030, 70% of the state’s energy needs come from renewable energy, with 40% produced locally.

US military and the Hawaiian islands

Military presence can be seen, heard and felt throughout the state of Hawai‘i. The environment, economy, people and culture of these islands have been influenced by the United State’s Military for almost a century.

The US military first arrived to the Hawaiian Islands with a single warship in 1814. The first US military occupying force came to the islands in 1898, quickly following the overthrow of Queen Lili’uokalani in 1893 and the annexation of Hawai‘i in 1898.

At the time, Ocean-going ships were the only practical form of global transportation. The United Sates Military used Hawai‘i as an important coaling station and a crucial launching point for other colonial endeavors in the Pacific. William McKinley, the US president from 1897 to 1901, stated, “We need Hawai‘i just as much and a great deal more than we did California. It is Manifest Destiny”. Hawai‘i was the key to the Pacific for the US military.

Since the annexation of Hawai‘i, local authorities have worked closely with military leaders to insure that land and water can be made available to the military. The long history of military expansion in Hawai‘i reflects the changing needs of military personnel and warfare technology.

In the first decade of the twentieth century, the establishment of Forts DeRussey, Ruger, Shafter, and Armstrong reflected the military’s growth and need for coastal defense and infantry units. By the 1930’s, the development of airfields at Bellows, Hickam, and Kaneohe demonstrated the advancement of war fighting technologies. During the Cold War, Barking Sands missile facility in Kauai revealed the expanding missile development.

The most recent expansion was the transformation of the second brigade Combat Team into a Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT). The conversion brought about the largest growth in military holdings within Hawai‘i since World War II. The SBCT brought 291 Stryker urban assault vehicles to the islands, required 25,663 additional acres of land on the islands Oahu and Hawai‘i, and brought thousands of soldiers and there families to the islands. According to the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), military land holdings across the state increased by 13 percent.

The US military is now the second biggest industry in Hawai‘i and has had a growing presence over the last half century. According to the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), the federal government invested over $14 billion in Hawai‘i in 2007. This remarkable federal investment is primarily due to the enormous political influence of Senator Daniel Inouye. Now the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Inouye, has played a key role in Hawai‘i’s military funding.

According to The New York Times on May 30, 2009, the nonpartisan citizen’s group Taxpayers for Common Sense named Senator Inouye “the last of the old bulls,” referring to the band of aging senators who have protected the military form budget cuts. Senator Inouye was first elected to the US Senate in 1962.  Due to his lengthy incumbency, incredible political skills, and iconic status as a war hero, the senator has had a tremendous amount of political pull. With such profound influence in the US senate, Daniel Inouye is able to bring home astonishing levels of federal funding.

Senator Inouye acquires over a billion dollars in earmarks to Hawai‘i annually. The DBEDT estimates that the federal government spends $10,957 per resident a year, making Hawai‘i the fifth highest recipient of federal government spending.

Not only does the US military bring in a steady cash flow to the states economy, it creates more than 18,000 jobs locally. Hawai‘i receives over $6 billion in Department of Defense (DOD) expenditures, ranking Hawai‘i twenty-fifth among the states. Half of this money is paid in wages to military personnel and civilian workers, while the rest is put into local business and institutions in the form of procurement contracts and research grants. Lawrence Boyd, a labor economist at UH west Oahu, estimates that the military accounts for 23 percent of the economy on Oahu.

The high rate of federal spending in Hawai‘i has undeniably boosted the islands economy. But what other effects has the military had on the islands?

According to the U.S. Department of Defense, the combined military branches in 2004 have 161 military installations in Hawai‘i. Together, they control 236,303 acres of land on the islands, 5.7 percent of the total land area. On Oahu alone, the military controls 85,718 acres, over 22 percent of the entire island.

Seizing such vast amounts of land undoubtedly have created dire consequences for the ecosystem, people, and culture of these islands.

The most evident effect has to be the environmental cost. Beginning with the construction of a naval base at Pearl Harbor in 1900, the US military destroyed thirty-six traditional Hawaiian fishponds and transformed what was once a rich food source for Oahu into an overwhelming naval station.

Today, the U.S. military is arguably the largest industrial polluter in the state of Hawai‘i. According to the 2004 Defense Environmental Restoration Program’s report to Congress, it listed 798 military contamination sites at 108 installations in Hawai‘i, ninety-six of which were contaminated with unexploded ordnance. The Navy stated that the Pearl Harbor Naval Complex contains approximately 749 of these contaminated sites.

According to the DMZ.hawaii.org website, military instillations make up five of the top ten polluters in Hawai‘i accountable for releasing persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals. PBT chemical include lead, dioxins mercury, and polycyclic aromatic compounds.

A variety of these military hazards include unexploded ordnance, explosives and propellants such as RDX, TNT, HMX and Perchlorate, chemical weapons, and radioactive waste from nuclear powered ships.

Recently, the military disclosed that between 1964 and 1978, 4,843,000 gallons of low-level radioactive waste were released into Pearl Harbor. Less than fifty-five miles from the island of Oahu, 2,189 steel drums containing radioactive waste were dumped in an ocean disposal site. From 1941 to 1972, the US military dumped more than 8,000 tons of chemical munitions, including blistering agents such as mustard gas and lewisite, into the ocean off the island of Oahu. Local fishermen have even reported being burned after accidentally bringing in this toxic catch.

The islands ecosystem cannot sustain such pollution. Due to the islands distinct geographical isolation, unique species and ecosystems evolved in Hawai‘i are unlike anywhere else in the world. Now Hawai‘i is considered the “endangered species capital of the world.” The islands have over hundreds of plants and animal species listed as endangered or threatened and there are more endangered species per square mile on these islands than any other place on the planet.

A wide array of military activity on the islands threaten this native ecosystems including; the building of roads, transporting of troops and equipment, washing and repairing of vehicles, disposing of waste, live firing exercises, the washing of silt into water supplies and onto reefs, the alteration of habitats, and the introduction of alien species.

For example, the military has hosted live fire training exercises in Makua Valley for more than seventy years, even though this valley is home to over forty endangered species. In the last ten years alone, the military has conducted over 270 military fires and have destroyed most of Makua’s dry land forests.

While the military’s affects on the Hawaiian ecosystem may have been more then prevalent, the people and culture of this land have been touched as well. The displacement of Kanaka Maoli, the indigenous people of Hawai‘i, from their ancestral lands has resulted in a loss of subsistence and cultural resources. The military’s seizure of land goes much deeper than a simple matter of property rights, it disrupts the Kanaka Maoli’s ability to practice and pass on their culture to future generations.

The military continues to have profound impacts on the cultural survival of Kanaka Maoli. Forced cultural assimilation on the islands have been a major contributor to cultural collapse. In the first half of the twentieth century, migration to the Hawaiian Islands from the mainland totaled 293,379. The current military-connected population of 217,030, nearly 17 percent of the total population, has nearly surpassed the Kanaka Maoli population of 239,655, only 19 percent of the total population. The 2000 U.S. Census found that Hawai‘i has the largest percentage of its population in the military among the states.

This increasingly large number of military and military-dependent residents is taking a toll on the state. Military personnel in Hawai‘i do not pay state income taxes, therefore the costs of public services are subsidized by local residents. Educating the children of military families puts enormous pressure on our public schools. This is a costly expense to our state and the federal impact aide is extremely inadequate.  Woefully, the federal impact aid is approximately 11 percent of the actual cost it takes to educate students of military families.

The US military’s impact on the Hawaiian Islands has fostered all kinds of controversy. Ilia Reyes, native Hawaiian and UH undergrad from Molokai commented, “I think the military in Hawai‘i has been beneficial to the islands. It stimulates the economy through an increase in civilian jobs, security, and just living a modern lifestyle. Yes, there are the negatives towards the Hawaiian culture such as land, water rights, etc., but the pros outweigh the cons. I mean come on, if America wasn’t running the show, someone else would.”

Through the good, the bad and the ugly, the US military has made its presence known on the islands of Hawai‘i.

Spot Check: Pleasure Point

Pleasure Point. Santa Cruz, California.

When life gets overwhelming you need a place to escape reality and leave your troubles behind. People need a place where they can forget the hustle and bustle of everyday life and enjoy themselves. I head over to Pleasure Point when I want to get away. This is a surf spot that is more familiar then my own neighborhood, but is worlds away from home. Pleasure Point’s interesting background, rich history, and unique characteristics combine to make it my special place.

In the early 1900’s Pleasure Point was home to a saloon/ brothel called the Road House. There were a few neighboring houses and summer cottages along the cliff side. The point was secluded and only fisherman and hunters visited the Red House. However, after prohibition in 1920, the Road House became one of the biggest speakeasies in Santa Cruz. On the way up to San Francisco, bootleggers made Pleasure Point a major drop off area due to its discreet location. During the roaring 20’s the speakeasy/ brothel hosted people from all over the coast, thus the name Pleasure Point was born.

Pleasure Point is in Santa Cruz, California and faces Monterey Bay. Santa Cruz is the reputed site of the first surfing in California in 1885, when three Hawaiian princes, Prince Edward, Prince David and Prince Jonah Kalaniana’ole, surfed on locally milled redwood boards. Now, numerous pro-surfers have emerged from Santa Cruz, including the famous Wingnut from “Endless Summer.” The city is also known as Surf City, USA and is notorious for its radical localism.

My next-door neighbor, Ernie Alamillo, took me surfing at Pleasure Point for my first time. When we got there we pulled into a little parking lot about two hundred yards away from the cliff’s edge. You couldn’t see the break, but surfers were everywhere. Kids in wetsuits were riding skateboards and bikes, holding their surfboards as they cruised the sidewalks. People were sitting on benches overlooking the surf.  Hippies sat on blankets selling hemp bracelets and old surfboards.

Down the street was the famous Jack O’Neill house. Jack O’Neill invented the first ever wetsuit and started the famous O’Neill surf brand. He had moved to Pleasure Point to expand his company and start the O’Neill surf team. It was Mr. O’Neill who made it possible to surf Santa Cruz all year long. Now O’Neill sponsors many surf competitions, including the Cold Water Classic in Santa Cruz.

In front of us was a black wooden sign titled, “PLEASURE POINT ETTIQUETTE.” The list of surf etiquette stated “FIRST ON WAVE HAS RIGHT-OF-WAY, PADDLE AROUND WAVE NOT THRU IT, DO NOT SURF BEYOND YOUR ABBILITY, HANG ON TO YOUR BOARD, HELP OTHER SURFERS.”  Local surfers had put up the sign so foreign surfers new the rules.

Beyond the sign you could see the silhouette of land across the Monterey Bay. Down below were a few different breaks rolling off the point and down the coastline. It was a high performance and solid South West swell. The waves had shape and form, and seemed to be dishing out some long rights.

Pleasure Point was littered with surfers. With every break came a different group of people. It seemed the most experienced surfers were close to the point, later I found out this break was called Sewer Peak. They were shredding hard and looked intimidating.  The next break looked close to the first, but there were a few long boarders in the line up. I soon found out this break is called First Peak. Long boarders and some beginners took up the breaks further from the point.

Before you can paddle out, you have to scale down the cliff. With a board in one hand, and a rope tied on to the cliff side in the other hand, you tip toe down the cliff.  Once you make it down the first ledge, you must switch your board to your other hand and zigzag down a little path. Finally you can hop of the narrow path onto the rocks below.

Once you get out in the line up you really get a chance to admire your surroundings. You can see the different layers of rock within the eroding cliff sides and the outline of Monterey across the vast bay. The colorful sun reflects off the Pacific Ocean before it ducks below the horizon. You can hear the crunch of a crab as an otter floats on his back beside you, munching down his lunch. A seagull will swoop down, hoping to snatch the otter’s feast right out of his paws.

After my first wave I had all ready determined my new favorite surf spot. The distinctive culture and history is unlike any other in the world. Epic surfers and monumental surf events seem to flow from Pleasure Point’s roots. As I surfed the spot more I came to realize the combination of great waves, breathtaking views, and enthralling atmosphere is unparalleled. As Kieran Horn states in Surfing Magazine, “Pleasure Point: enough to satisfy even the most hedonistic surfer”.

What pono means to me

“Cheeeeee-Pono!” Johnnyʻs Grandfather screams with excitement as Johny threads the tube of a massive Hawaiian wave. While watching “Johnny Tsunami,” the Disney Channel Original Movie, I heard the word “Pono” for the first time. I was 10 years old and from the mainland, “Pono” could not have sounded any more foreign to my ears.

Eight years later I heard the word “Pono” once again. This time it was screeched from one of the locals in the line up at Kaiser’s. The waves were firing that day. As I watched an uncle get a wave of his life, a local beside me bellowed “Cheeeeeeee-Pono!”

When I left Kaiserʻs that day, I would not have been able to recite the definition of “Pono”, but I could tell you there was certainly no shortage of it in the line up. Whatever “Pono” was, I wanted more of it.

While biking back to the dorms “Pono” kept buzzzing through my head. What does Pono mean? Is it a Hawaiian word? P-O-N-O, it roles off the tongue so smoothly. When I arrived home, I eagerly asked my Hawaiian room mate what it meant. “Complete and utter righteousness!” he replied.

In the “Dictionary of Hawaiian Language” by Lorrin Andrews, Pono is defined as goodness, uprightness, morality, moral qualities, correct or proper procedure, excellence, well-being, prosperity, welfare, benefit, behalf, equity, proper, righteous, right, upright, just, virtuous, fair, beneficial, successful…and more. With such a plethora of definitions, it was hard for me to fully grasp what “Pono” really means.

The Kanaka Maoli—or “native Hawaiian”—flag.

“Pono” is an ancient Hawaiian word. There is no historical record of when the word first entered the language. The first documented case of the word was in the early 1800ʻs after the Europeans had arrived on the Hawaiian Islands. The ancient word found its way into Hawaiiʻs motto over 160 years. Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono, meaning The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness. It is generally claimed that it became the motto of the Kingdom of Hawaii when King Kamehameha III spoke the words on July 31, 1843. This was the same day that sovereignty was restored to Hawaii by proclamation of Queen Victoria following a five-month-long rogue British occupation. The motto is said to reflect the spirit and character of the Hawaiian people.

The more I researched “Pono” the harder the term was to define. For a word with so few letters, it carried a large legacy of history and culture on its shoulders. Lilette Subedi, staff member at the UH College of education says: “(Pono) is intangible in many ways. It’s very difficult to express it or articulate it in words. That’s why it’s much easier to see pono in action.”

A volunteer helping clothe and nourish the homeless, a teacher inspiring a child to make a difference, a group of students organizing beach clean up, a good deed done selflessly, or a smile to brighten someone’s day. “Pono” can be found all over our community.

“I think we have to look beneath our feet and around us,” said Subedi. Pono is more of a foundation. So it comes from beneath us, it comes into us, it permeates us. It comes from above and around us. It’s all over. Pono is the term specific to our Native Hawaiian ancestors.”

UH swim coach Chuck Riggs profile

You would never guess by looking at him, but assistant University of Hawaii Swimming Coach, Chuck Riggs, has had a career unlike any other.

Born on May 1, 1947 and raised in Wichita, Kansas. Chuck grew up in a small suburb by the Arkansas River. As a child you could find him out on the levy building forts, or down the street playing football with the neighborhood kids. Constantly on the run from one game to the next, chuck was a lively and energetic child. Only sitting down to rest for family dinners with his mother, father, sister and brother.

Summers would be spent with his grandmother in Baxter Springs, Kansas. “She was a big influence in my life… A super lady with a heart of gold,” Chuck reflected.

With nicknames like “pistol” and “the whip,” she was one tough woman who astonished all that knew her.  Kind but disciplined, she taught Chuck many life lessons that he still holds with him today.

When Chuck wasn’t with his grandmother, he would be out riding horses or hunting with his uncle. An unbelievable athlete and a respectable community leader, Chuck aspired to be just like his Uncle Randy.

At the age of 11, life threw Chuck a curve ball. He was diagnosed with Legg-Perthes Disease, a rare hip disease that affects one in twelve hundred children. The disease limited Chuck to crutches and forced him to wear a confining leg brace. On the other leg, he wore a three-inch platform under his foot so the braced leg would never touch the ground.

“The hip brace and crutches made me tough and shaped who I am today,” said Chuck.

The disease would leave chuck physically disabled for the next three years of his life. A child who lived for physical activity was condemned to a brace and crutches.

“I Still tried to do everything,” stated chuck. “It slowed me down, but it couldn’t stop me.”

As if the physical limitations were not enough, kids would make fun of him constantly. The disease made him a relentless target for teasing and bullying, but Chuck would not back down.

“It remolded me to be tough and more competitive. I learned to deal with what ever life throws at me,” said Chuck. “It is what it is.”

While the disease made chuck the person he is today, it also introduced him to the sport he has dedicated his life to for over 40 years. The doctor recommended swimming as a means of physical therapy. While the pool did wonders for Chuck’s hip, it also took a little piece of his heart.

After the brace came off , Chuck did not miss a beat. He wanted to do everything he could. He played basketball, baseball, football, wrestling, swimming and diving.

By sophomore year in high school he dedicated himself to diving. Chuck’s senior year, his father got a new job and the family moved to California.

“It was tough to move senior year, but California turned out to be alright,” Chuck remarked.

California proved to be more then just “alright” for Chuck. Chuck’s athleticism and coaching abilities would begin to make a mark on Southern California. He continued diving after high school at the local community college, and then transferred to Cal State Los Angeles where he became an All-American and an NCAA finalist.

Then on April 1, 1968, during Chuck’s rein at Cal state Los Angles, he began a part time job that would turn into a flourishing career. Chuck was a swim coach at Altadora Town and Country Club, a tennis club with a swimming pool.

Coach Chuck after a long day at Riverside Aquatics

After college, Chuck moved to Riverside and began coaching and teaching at Rubidoux High School. Over summer, he was an assistant coach at Riverside Aquatics. It would be at Riverside that Chuck’s coaching career would move faster than any other swim coaches in history.

At the 1972 Olympic Trials, the head coach slipped a note under Chuck’s door informing him he had resigned due to some family issues. He would be reinstating Chuck as the new head coach.

In a few short years Chuck would see more then a lifetime of accomplishments. While at Riverside, Chuck would go on to Coach Sippy Woodhead to her first world record at the age of 14. Sippy would go on to hold 16 different world records and become the top ranked female freestyler in the word. By 1980, the little club team would go on to take a top 10 finish at nationals and dominate junior nationals.

“I had a lot of positive influence from some great coaches,” said Chuck. “I looked up to coaches like Ron Ballatore, a United States Olympic Team coach, and Peter Daylnd, the father of swimming.”

Chuck has coached countless high school and college All-Americans and USS National Finalists. He placed two swimmers on the USA Pan Am teams, coached a world and American record holder, coached a NCAA D-I champion, was an international coach for USA Teams in 1975, 1981 and 2000 and also was a member of the Southern California Swimming Board of Directors for 25 years. He also received the Phillips award from Southern California Swimming in 2001.

In 2008, Riggs was named Southern California Kevin Perry Coach of the Year after his men’s team took Junior National Champions. In 2009, he joined the University of Hawaii Warriors and Wahine as the assistant swim coach.

With more success than any swim coach could ever dream of he still continues to grow and flourish.

“I learn something everyday. When you stop learning, you stop living,” said Chuck.

Hee wins District 23

Clayton Hee has done it once again. Sen. Hee will represent District 23 in Hawaii’s State Senate for an eighth term after beating out Colleen Meyer in the 2012 state elections.  Dem. Hee captured 51 percent of the voters from Kaena Point to Kaneohoe.

2012 election results for District 23.

To check out a complete summary of Hawaii’s 2012 general elections click here.

A day at the polls

North Shore residents visited polling places from Wailua to Kaneohe to fill out their ballets on election day.

Residents on the North Shore head to Sunset Beach Elementary to vote on election day.

North Shore residents pass dozens of signs lining Kamehameha Highway on their way to vote. This sign for Clayton Hee is just down the road from the Sunset Beach Elementary polling place.

North Shore resident Rohan O’Rourke registers to vote at the Kahuku High and Intermediate polling place.

Kahuku High and Intermediate School saw voters up until the polls closed.

Images and story by Sean Reilly.

Sen. Hee profile

Legislatures of Hawai’i. Image provided by Sen. Hee’s photostream.

Sen. Hee is no stranger to the Hawai’i State Legislature. Check out his capitol profile here.