WHEREAS, the Hawaii Business Hall of Fame was established in 1990 by Junior Achievement of Hawaii and several other Hawaii business organizations to honor the State's business leaders who, through their entrepreneurial and civic activities, have made enduring contributions to the community and are figures of inspiration for Hawaii's youth; and

WHEREAS, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI, Chairman of the Maui Arts and Cultural Center and President of Valley Isle Realty, Inc., and Ka'anapali Kai, Inc., is a well-known real estate developer, art patron, and community leader whose vision and advocacy role has helped put Maui and the State of Hawaii on the international map of must-visit places; and

WHEREAS, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI, born in Wailuku, Maui, and a graduate of Baldwin High School, entered military service at Schofield Barracks after the end of World War II, and received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the University of Hawaii in recognition for his passion for art and art education; and

WHEREAS, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI served as Chairman of the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts for twenty years, and through his vision and leadership, successfully lobbied for the establishment of the "Arts in Public Places," making Hawaii the first state in the nation to provide dedicated funding for arts in public buildings; and

WHEREAS, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI is a well-known real estate developer, whose real estate acumen has earned him a string of shopping centers and buildings, including the Lahaina Square Shopping Center, Dickenson Square Shopping Center, Old Koloa Town Shopping Mall on Kauai, American Savings Building on Oahu, the Manoa Shopping Center, Kamaole Beach Club, Surfside Condominiums, Premier Place Office Building, and Maui High Performance Computing Center; and

WHEREAS, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI's lifetime achievement in business and patronage for the arts has earned him numerous awards, including the Governor's Award for Distinguished Achievement in Culture, the Arts and Humanities, the T.S. Shinn Award from the Maui Chamber of Commerce, the Ka Lima O'Maui Service Award, and the 2004 Colin Cameron Award from the Maui Economic Development Board; and

WHEREAS, in addition, MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI has also served as Director of the Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honorary Board Member of the Hawaii Alliance for Arts Education, Past Director of Japan Economic Council, Maui Economic Development Board, and the Hawaii Theatre; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2005, that this body hereby commends and congratulates MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI, a 2005 Hawaii Business Hall of Fame Laureate, and extends to him its warmest aloha and best wishes for continued success in all future endeavors.

Report Title:

Commending and congratulating MASARU "PUNDY" YOKOUCHI, a 2005 Hawaii Business Hall of Fame Laureate.