The Rising Phoenix Jaycees along with many other community individuals were able to assist the the UCPA Rubber Duckie Race in the morning prior to the race.  With our bright red t-shirts and our fish nets, we set out for a few hours out on the side of the streets requesting for donations.  Some of us even braved the streets.  So many generous donations were collected resulting in many happy hearts and smiling faces.  ”Donation? Sure, I’ll be glad to…” were words from someone making a donation that morning.

Around noon it was time to prep for the race. Although Mother Nature decided to rain, the Rising Phoenix Jaycees did not let this rain on their parade. With supplies in tote and smiles on their face the Jaycees , HPU nursing students and Marines from the Kaneohe Marine Corps Base gathered at the Kalakua Bridge to start the race. At exactly 1:16 p.m. several large crates, filled with thousands of yellow rubber duckies, were lifted over the bridge and poured into the Ala Wai Canal.

For the first time in Rubber Duckie Race history the finish line was moved forward in order for the race to be complete. After the 50 winning ducks were collected, the Jaycees and the volunteers from the Marine Corps Base lead by President Nathan Martin, who was knee deep in the Ala Wai canal, started gathering the rubber duckies. Using laundry baskets, muscles and manpower the duckies were out of the canal in a record 30 minutes.

The Rising Pheonix Jaycees would like to thank the Hawaii Kai Jaycees, the HPU nursing students and the Marines from the Kaneohe Marine Corps Base for helping accomplish another wonderful Rubber Duckie Race. We could not have accomplished this without you all.

- Submitted by Community Development Vice President Jarvis Graham

At the Kaimuki Easter Egg Hunt, kids were able to play the matching game, where they matched the baby animals with their mommy animals — a game that was created last year by two of our members, Dawn Martin & Sara King.  Special appearances were made by Shaggy and Fluffball, two beautiful Angora rabbits that the kids and families adored.

The RPJ Board of Directors would like to thank Erica Lee for chairing the Koko Head Easter Egg Hunt and Jarvis Graham and Karen Nakagawa for taking the lead on the Kaimuki Hunt.  Kids were able to enjoy a fun game of indoor bowling with our members.  The smiles and laughter that came with each bowl could not have made the day any better.

Thank you to all our volunteers for helping out and spending your time with us.  We hope you can join us again next year! Check out some photos from the event:

Year-End Convention Awards

• Presidential Merit Award: Anna Wong
• Presidential Merit Award: Jenny Migita

Member Awards

• New Member of the Year Award: Sara King
• Veteran Member of the Year Award: Nathan Martin
• Family of the Year Award: Jason & Sara King

Merit Awards

• Recognition for participation in Special Olympics, Spikes for Tykes, TOYP, Year-End Convention: Anna & Ryan Lee
• Recognition for participation in Spikes for Tykes: Chase Simmons
• Recognition for participation in Special Olympics, JCI Hitachinaka Meet & Greet, Spikes for Tykes, Meals on Wheels, Year-End Convention: Jenny Migita
• Recognition for participation in the Kokohead Volleyball League: Patrick Oyadomari
• Recognition for participation in Special Olympics and Meals on Wheels: Lila Johiro
• The Joe Yasutake Award: Donna Fouts, of the United Cerebral Palsy Association

Door prizes including gift certificates, a coffeemaker, volleyballs, and other goodies were donated by the RPJ Board. Thank you to all those who attended, congratulations to the new board, a heartfelt thank you to last year’s board, and here’s to hoping we continue to rise! Help the RPJ continue its great work this year! Check out the photos from the event:

We would like to thank past Hawaii Jaycees President, Tammy Tengan for helping coordinate the event and we would also like to recognize Nguyen Ngo, our chairperson for this project.  Awesome job!

The second part to this project is the Model Legislature in May.  We will be putting the bill process into action!  We will be presenting bills to the committee and if it passes we will debate it at the House and Senate Floor. If it passes both houses, it will be up to the Governor to sign or veto.

The Rising Phoenix Jaycees will be putting together a committee for this project.  If you’re interested in being a part of the planning committee, please email: info@rpjhawaii.com.  Stay tuned for details!

In the meantime, here are some photos from the event:

The convention was a success with a Friday night social, Saturday training workshops, competitions, awards luncheon, and the Three Outstanding Young Persons and Year-End Convention Banquet.

All of this kicked off at Mai Tai’s on Friday, February 8 at Ala Moana Center with a great turnout of members from the various Hawaii Jaycees chapters, and other distinguished and out-of-town guests.

Hawaii Jaycees members socialize at the Friday night event of the Year-End Convention.

Speaker and Trainer Matt Booth and State President Jay Raymundo.

Eve Epitome (Hawaii Junior Chamber, 2012 President), Katherine Cheng-Arif (JCI National VP), and Karen Nakagawa (RPJ Management VP) on Friday night.

The Saturday training took place at the Ala Moana Hotel. Training workshops were held in the Ilima Room, and the individual competitions and memorial award interviews were conducted in the Gardenia Room. A special thank you to members Anna Wong Lee, Ryan Lee, Jenny Migita, and Adina Wakayama for assisting with registration. The first competition held during the convention was Write-Up. The competitors who participated all advanced out of district competitions held last month at Moiliili Community Center and in Hilo.

Competitions for Speak-Up and the first training workshop with Jaycees speaker and trainer Matt Booth on the Value of Your Attitude followed.

RPJ Board members Karen Nakagawa, Jarvis Graham, and Nate Martin before a Saturday training session.

There are two rounds to Speak-Up: a prepared speech and an impromptu round. Three competitors move on to the impromptu round, which was held after the awards luncheon. The John H. Armbruster Memorial and C. William Brownfield Memorial award interviews were conducted, too. The Armbruster goes to the outstanding veteran member of the year, and the Brownfield goes to the outstanding new member of the year. Other awards include the Edward Nakano given to the most outstanding chapter officers, and the R. Allen Watkins Award, which goes to the chapter presidents of the year.

The Awards Luncheon was held at the Plantation Café at Ala Moana Hotel. During the luncheon, year-end project winners in the various programs were awarded. The keynote speaker was U.S. Junior Chamber National VP Katherine Cheng-Arif, a former Texas Junior Chamber state president and Junior Chamber International VP. Jaycee Jeopardy, a trivia contest that tests members on their knowledge of the junior chamber, followed the formal program of the luncheon. Speak-Up finalists were announced at the luncheon, too: Hawaii Jaycees members Nate Martin, Adalberto Rios, and Joshua Javier.

Photos from the luncheon:

Following the luncheon was the Speak-Off, the impromptu round of the Speak-Up competition. The Master’s Speak-Up competition followed that with two competitors: Jed Kay (Hilo Jaycees 2012 President) and Elvin Berzabal (RPJ Chairman). Both competitions were held in the Ilima Room before a full house of members and judges.

Katherine Cheng-Arif’s workshop followed the competitions. Her workshop was a condensed presentation of JCI Impact, the introductory primer for all junior chamber members. The Jaycee movement was founded in the United States, and its impact is worldwide now with over 200,000 members in over 100 countries. The basic message of JCI Impact and the junior chamber movement is that in order to create lasting positive change, we must seek to improve ourselves and the world around us. We seek targeted solutions to the unique problems in each of our communities to build a better world, creating global impact. The third workshop was led by Yvette Lee, 2011 Hawaii Junior Chamber state president, who went over the benefits of the Linx2Funds program.

The 42nd Presentation of the Three Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) Award and Year-End Convention Banquet were held in the Hibiscus Ballroom II on Saturday evening. RPJ members Adina Wakayama and Dawn Martin were the registration leads for the banquet portion – thanks Adina and Dawn! The six TOYP finalists were:

1. Devin Nakasone, musician and founder of Prayers on Wings
2. Brent Limos, admissions director, Damien Memorial School
3. Nicole Velasco, community advocate
4. Julius Soria, PhD, cultural consultant, instructor at University of Hawaii at Manoa
5. Jodi Nozoe Chang, VP of Investments, UBS, community advocate
6. Jay Dee “B.J.” Penn, Mix Martial Arts fighter, entrepreneur, philanthropist

TOYP Finalists.

The profiles of all six finalists were read, and each was honored on stage with certificates of achievement from the Hawaii Junior Chamber. The JCI Senate donated a video of Senator Daniel Inouye’s keynote speech from the Hawaii Jaycees’ 50th Anniversary Banquet in 1993, and the video was shown prior to the announcement of the top three honorees. Inouye spoke about his roots, and the impact of the Jaycees during World War II and leading up to statehood. He spoke about the Jaycees events and projects that became local institutions: the Blood Bank of Hawaii, Aloha Week, and the 50th State Fair. He called for the Jaycees to remember the impact of their predecessors and to reach for new heights.

The top three honorees of the TOYP Banquet were Devin Nakasone, Julius Soria and B.J. Penn. Each honoree received a clear acrylic award and a $500 donation to a children’s charity of their choice. The money for the donation came from our Spikes for Tykes Tournament, which is why the charity had to be for children. Devin’s charity was the Make-A-Wish Foundation; Dr. Soria’s was Big Brothers Big Sisters; B.J. donated to his Penn Hawaii Youth Foundation.

B.J. Penn accepts his TOYP award.

Devin Nakasone accepts his TOYP award.

Julius Soria accepts his TOYP award.

For some background, last year’s Spikes for Tykes fielded 32 teams total and generated the most sponsorship and player income in its five-year history, allowing RPJ to donate $4,000 to six different schools and organizations:

1. Kalakaua Middle School ($1,000)
2. Moanalua High School ($1,000)
3. Ka Ulu Koa Volleyball Institute ($500)
4. Make-A-Wish Foundation ($500)
5. Big Brothers Big Sisters ($500)
6. Penn Hawaii Youth Foundation ($500)

The rest of the banquet announced the winners of the various individual and memorial award competitions held during the day:

• Joshua Javier (Filipino Junior Chamber) won the Speak-Up competition.
• Jed Kay (Hilo Jaycees) won Master’s Speak-Up.
• Blaise DeLima (Hilo Jaycees) won Write-Up.
• Nate Martin (RPJ) won Jaycee Jeopardy and the Armbruster Award.
• Kristine Duong (Honolulu Chinese Jaycees) captured the Brownfield Award.
• Krystal Wu (Honolulu Chinese Jaycees) and Elvin Berzabal (RPJ) earned R. Allen Watkins awards.
• Patrick Taw and Brandon Sugiura (Honolulu Chinese Jaycees) took home Edward Nakano awards.
• Honolulu Chinese Jaycees won first place in the Parade of Chapters, and was the top chapter of 2012.

Kristine Duong (Honolulu Chinese Jaycees) captured the Brownfield Award.

Write-Up winners (left) and Speak-Up winners (right).

Kevin Nitta of the Hawaii Kai Jaycees was awarded a JCI Senatorship, the top award from Junior Chamber International. Eve Epitome gave several presentations, including presidential merit awards. Merit awards were given to Nate Martin, Anna Wong Lee, and Jenny Migita. Eve along with JCI National VP Katherine Cheng-Arif officially swore in the Asian-American Junior Chamber chapter. There was also the ceremonial passing of the leadership chain from Eve Epitome (2012 President) to 2013 President Jay Raymundo. The chain has the names of past Hawaii Jaycees presidents engraved on it, symbolizing that the president stands on the shoulders of the great men and women who came before.

The convention ended with a Sunday Board of Directors meeting at Moiliili Community Center.

That’s a wrap folks! Thank you to all who contributed and participated in this year’s convention and banquet! Congratulations to all award winners! We are already looking forward to next year’s convention!

Can’t make it to the entire convention but want to volunteer? The RPJ Board is offering a $10 discount off membership renewal or volleyball league fee for those who volunteer! For more information contact elvin@rpjhawaii.com. More information on this opportunity will land in your inbox soon! Thank you!

- Karen Nakagawa, RPJ Management Vice President and Community Forum Organizer

Members from many chapters as well as community guests joined in on the RPJ Community & Membership Forum on January 23 at Moiliili Community Center. We will keep you posted on how things progress! Thank you for sharing your ideas.

Thank you to those who attended the first General Membership Meeting of 2013 on Tuesday. The meeting was held at Nocturna Lounge with more than 25 members and guests in attendance. We hope you had fun and hope to see you at events throughout the year! Photos from the GMM will be included in our next post.

To keep up our momentum as a chapter, we would like to further inform RPJ members of our first RPJ General Membership Meeting of 2013! The meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 15 at Nocturna Lounge at 500 Ala Moana Boulevard from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Parking is available on the street and at Waterfront Plaza. We will discuss upcoming events including chapter and statewide projects including our upcoming Membership and Community Forum later this month.

Here are some details on the Membership and Community Forum:
Date: Wednesday, January 23
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Moiliili Community Center (Room 105)
Light refreshments will be provided.

“Each one of us can make a difference. Together we make change.” — Barbara Mikulski, Senior United States Senator (Maryland).

For 28 years, the Rising Phoenix Jaycees (RPJ) has served the community through a variety of service projects. Each of them have one thing in common: it began with an idea. Community development is a core mission of the local Junior Chamber (a.k.a. Jaycees) and we begin annually by collecting input from our community and members. This helps us to best plan and implement projects designed to create positive change.  The new year is beginning, and the Rising Phoenix Junior Chamber of Commerce is developing our plan of action. As a member of our chapter and/or community, we want your input!
RPJ will host a forum to discuss ways that the chapter can make an impact in the community. Topics for discussion will include:

• What are the pressing community needs?

• What areas are important to our members?

• What should be our priorities in 2013?

• Is there a specific cause you would like us to address?

• How can we help?
  

Take this survey to get started in helping us to answer these questions! Through this process, we have helped and established relationships with many community organizations. With this forum, we hope to expand our networks and reach out to more groups and individuals seeking help. For our members, this is an opportunity to expand their knowledge on the growing concerns and needs of our community and get involved. The Jaycees concept is to develop leaders and teamwork through community service. Our members lead projects and benefit by being able to practice their project management and leadership skills learned at our various leadership and individual development workshops.

Hope to see you all at the meeting and the Membership and Community Forum. If you can’t make it this month, take a few minutes to fill out our survey.

The morning crew at the Thanksgiving Meals on Wheels distribution site in Aiea.

Busy November and December Leads the Chapter into the New Year

The holiday season is always a busy one for RPJ, and this year was no different for the chapter. November saw the chapter delivering sweets for the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Hawaii’s Dessert Fantasy, and the election of the chapter’s new board of directors led by 2013 president Nathan Martin. The traditional Meals on Wheels deliveries for Thanksgiving and Christmas along with the Special Olympics Winter Classic at Joint Base Hickam-Pearl Harbor also presented RPJ members and friends numerous service opportunities for the holidays. The chapter also donated canned goods and other food items to Palolo Gym’s Thanksgiving Food Drive and the Hawaii FoodBank. Mahalo nui loa to all of the members and friends who have risen to help the chapter and the community this holiday season!

Winston Chow geared up for another Special Olympics Winter Classic.

The final general membership meeting of the year at the Bikini Cantina. New member and 2013 corresponding secretary Lynn Shizumura was also sworn-in at the meeting.

(From left) Dawn Martin, Sara King and Jason King before the start of the Special Olympics Winter Classic.

Kim Chikazawa and Pat Tomiyasu with one of the many sweets for the UCPA’s Dessert Fantasy.

Eve Epitome and Jay Yamamoto heading out to pick up more desserts for the UCPA’s Dessert Fantasy.

Elvin and Earl with RPJ’s donation for Palolo’s Thanksgiving Food Drive. Mahalo to RPJ Sports Director MIke Young for working with Palolo staff and delivering the canned goods and food items.

Jason King (in sunglasses) and Chase Simmons (blue cap) signing in with Jenny Migita for their Meals on Wheels Christmas deliveries.

(From left) Sara King and Dawn Martin loading up for their Meals on Wheels run.

Adina Wakayama signing in with Nate Martin for the Christmas Meals on Wheels. Adina has also signed on to be the chapter’s treasurer for 2013. Hooray!

(From left) Big-backed Mike Young with Dawn Martin and Sara King at the Special Olympics Winter Classic.