Filipino Chamber of Commerce to Honor Five Maui Leaders

The Gintong Pamana (Golden Heritage) Leadership Award will be presented to five outstanding individuals on Wednesday, June 14, at the Maui Beach Hotel.

The prestigious Gintong Pamana (Golden Heritage) Leadership Award will be presented to five outstanding individuals on Wednesday, June 14 at the Maui Beach Hotel. Photo Courtesy

“We are proud to continue this tradition of honoring outstanding individuals who have demonstrated excellence in their career or have given back to the community,” Zalsos said. “We hope you can join us at our annual dinner to help celebrate their accomplishments.”

The awardees are:

Khara Jabola- Carolus

Carolus is a community organizer, policy analyst and a lawyer. As a proud child of immigrants who rose from poverty in the Philippines, she has dedicated her career to helping Filipinos and other ethnic and immigrant groups overcome political and socio-economic barriers, have access to civil rights, and thereby thrive in the United States. Last year, Khara co-founded AF3IRM Hawai‘i, a community group that seeks to empower immigrant and Native women in Hawaii as she started as the Public Affairs Director of the Hawaii Office of Strategies 360, the largest political strategies firm in the western United States.

Hayde Sim

In addition to her position as Early Season Nursery Manager at Monsanto, Sim works tirelessly to champion safety awareness both at the workplace and in the Maui community in general. She is chair of Monsanto’s Off the Job Safety committee, and provides equipment and safety talks to community outreach participants. She organizes presentations on various topics, such as the dangers of drowsy driving and seatbelt awareness, to students and staff of local schools.

Venus Rosete Medeiros

For over 30 years, Medeiros has served the children, youth and families of Maui through leadership roles in nonprofit organizations and in the private and public school systems. She is an advocate and founder of numerous community projects and programs over the years, including the Neighborhood Place of Wailuku and the very first Valley Isle Keiki Fest, now an annual event. In 2016, she was appointed the Kamehameha Schools Regional director for Maui, Molokai and Lanai.

Corrine Reyes Arquero

Arquero has built her career in commercial property management for over 38 years. She is presently the General Manager of the Whalers Village retail complex in Kā‘anapali, a position she has held since 2006. A valued hands-on leader and recognized Culture Champion of General Growth Properties, among the recent highlights of her leadership was the transformation of the Whalers Village Museum into a state of the art educational and preservation facility, The Whale Center of Hawaii.

James “Kimo” Simpliciano

Simplicianao is a grandson of a sakada, and has come full circle from being a fine-dining chef at a top resort to a full-time farmer. He is dedicated and passionate about bringing the freshest locally grown fruits and vegetables directly to restaurant tables through his Simplifresh Produce LLC West Maui cooperative venture. While working his farm with the help of adult and keiki volunteers, he also takes the initiative to mentor students who aspire to be future famers, chefs and environmental engineers.

The public is welcome to attend the award banquet, tickets are $50 and can be purchased here or by calling Jeana Gamboa at 419-4090.