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Keith Vierra named
Salesperson of the Year
 Sales and Marketing Executives of
Honolulu (SME) has
selected Keith Vieira, Senior Vice
President and Director of Operations for Starwood Hotels &
Resorts, Hawai‘i and French Polynesia, as the 2003 Sales Person of
the Year (SPOY). Vieira
will be honored at a special luncheon on Wednesday, March 10, 2004
in the Hawaii Ballroom of the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel.
Vieira is a local success story. Born and raised in
Hilo
, he graduated from the
University of
Hawaii
, and has moved on to head Starwood
Hawaii ,
with 14 hotels on six islands, Starwood French Polynesia, with three
hotels in Tahiti , and the
Palace Hotel in San
Francisco .
Much of this expansion was done during Vieira’s
leadership. During his
reign, Starwood Hawaii has expanded the region to include a new hotel in
Bora Bora
, a new property on Molokai , two
vacation ownership properties - on Maui and
Kauai , and now a new resort on the
Big Island - the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort
& Spa.
As an active member of the travel industry in
Hawaii ,
Vieira is currently serving his second term as a member of the
Hawaii Tourism Authority.
He is also a valued member of the community serving on the
boards of the Hawaii Blood Bank, Honolulu Festival Foundation, the
University of Hawaii Alumni Association, YMCA of Hawaii, Catholic
Charities Hawaii, is the chair of the Ho’okako’o Corporation, and is
the 2003 fundraising campaign chairman for the Juvenile Diabetes
Research Foundation.
SME is a professional organization of over 125 members
involved in sales and marketing at the managerial level. In 1957, SME began an annual
tradition of recognizing a person who enhanced the image of
Hawaii and the quality of life in our community.
Past recipients have included Duke Kahanamoku, Chinn Ho, Neal
S. Blaisdell, Jack Lord, Henry J. Kaiser, Daniel K. Inouye, Walter
Dods and Richard Kelley.
Proceeds for the luncheon event benefit SME's wide spread
youth programs. To
reserve a seat for this prestigious event or for additional
information, contact Roberta Cullen at 537-1158 or go online to
http://www.smehonolulu.com
Charity Walk Funds Provide Early
Holiday
Celebration
WAIKIKI
, December 19 -– Christmas came early for 56 of
Oahu ’s charities, thanks to the Hawai‘i Hotel & Lodging
Association (HHLA) and its annual Visitor Industry Charity Walk.
Checks were presented to needy Oahu organizations,
including Angel Network Charities, Inc.; Honolulu Habitat for
Humanity; and Friends of Foster
Kids.
The 2003 Visitor Industry Charity Walk raised a total of
$810,000 statewide. Oahu participants
raised $278,108.
“Throughout the year, Hawaii ’s
hotels and visitor industry individually support the local community
in a variety of ways,” said Murray Towill, HHLA president.
“The Charity Walk is the collective effort of the hospitality
industry giving back to the community and its many deserving
causes.”
The Visitor Industry Charity Walk is
Hawaii ’s
largest single-day fundraiser and takes place simultaneously on
Oahu , Maui ,
Kauai and the Big Island . Monies raised on each island are presented to
charities on that island. Over $14 million has been raised for
local charities since the walk’s inception 25 years
ago.
For more information on the Hawai‘i Hotel and Lodging
Association, call 923-0407. For information on the Visitor
Industry Charity Walk, visit www.charitywalk.org.
Leeward benefit at
Hilton
Six Hawai‘i
luminaries will be honored and 18 of our best chefs will present
special dishes at the fifth annual Taste of the Stars to benefit for
the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Leeward Community College.
The Taste will also
feature a chef's market, silent auction and live entertainment.
The April 30, 2004 event will held off-campus for the first
time at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Coral Ballroom. Tickets are $100 in
advance. Proceeds will
go towards new student cooking stations as part of the ongoing
renovations of Leeward
Community
College 's kitchen facilities.
The event will induct Helen Chock, Francis and Charles Higa
of Zippies, Hari Kojima, Adi Kohler, and Myrtle Lee from the
restaurant and hospitality industries to the Culinary Hall of Fame
for their contributions to advancing their respective industries.
The chefs are Alan Wong, Alan Wong's; Roy Yamaguchi, Roy's
Restaurants; Chai Chaowasaree, Chai's Island Bistro; Colin Nishida,
Side Street Inn; D.K. Kodama, Sansei Seafood Restaurant and Sushi
Bar; Goran Streng, Prince Court at Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki;
Hiroshi Fukui, L'Uraku Restaurant; Roberto Los Banos, Bali
Restaurant at Hilton Hawaiian Village.
And Randal Ishizu, Azul Restaurant at J.W. Marriott Ihilani
Resort; Eric Leterc, Pacific Club; Don Maruyama, Waikiki Parc Hotel;
Cyrus Goo, Café Laufer; Richard Wagner, Oahu Country Club; Ian
Riseley, The Pearl at Leeward Community College; Dean Okimoto, Nalo
Farms; Russell Siu, 3660 on the Rise; Darryl Fujita, Halekulani; and
Douglas Lum, Mariposa Restaurant.
For information, call 455-0392
Outrigger Announces Opening
Of Its First New
Zealand Property
QUEENSTOWN, NEW
ZEALAND , December 18 --
Hawaii
's
largest hotel and resort operator, Outrigger Hotels & Resorts,
has announced the opening of stage one of the boutique-style
Outrigger Queenstown at the Beacon. The opening marks the company's
first foray into the New
Zealand market and places it in one of
the Southern hemisphere's most popular locations for year-round
sports adventure.
Located on a spectacular hillside setting fronting
Lake
Wakatipu
,
the resort provides luxuriously appointed condominium style
apartments each boasting panoramic views of the lake and
New Zealand
's Southern
Alps .
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