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�J�t•( OF N,�1 <br />COUNTY OF HAWAII -' STATE OF HAWAII <br />NT �.0i <br />t,T! OF <br />BILL NO. 252 <br />ORDINANCE NO. <br />AN ORDINANCE NAMING THE KA`U GYMNASIUM AND SHELTER AND <br />AMENDING CHAPTER 15, ARTICLE 8, SECTION 15-68.1 OF THE HAWAII <br />COUNTY CODE 1983 (2005 EDITION, AS AMENDED), RELATING TO THE PARKS <br />AND RECREATION FACILITY SCHEDULE. <br />BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII: <br />SECTION 1. Purpose. The purpose of this ordinance is to amend the Parks and <br />Recreation Facility Schedule and name the new Ka`u Gymnasium and Shelter in honor of the <br />late Representative Robert N. Herkes. <br />Known by everyone as "Bob" Herkes, Robert Neil Herkes was a third generation <br />Hawaii Island resident, born on January 24, 1931 in Iloilo, Philippines. Mr. Herkes resided in <br />Volcano Village for thirty years until passing away on August 21, 2014, at the age of 83. His <br />last known address was 99-1725 Pukeawe Circle, Volcano. He attended Riverside Elementary <br />School in Hilo, Hilo High School, and graduated from Punahou High School on Oahu. Bob <br />graduated with honors from Cornell Hotel School and later served in the United States Army. <br />Bob Herkes began his extensive political career in 1988 serving in the Hawaii State <br />Senate, the Hawaii County Council, and in the State House of Representatives for an impressive <br />18 years, where he spent his time advocating for the people of Puna, Ka`u, and North and South <br />Kona. <br />Bob Herkes was a staunch advocate for natural disaster preparedness and the importance <br />of updating the Hawaii State Emergency Plan. He brought statewide awareness of the health <br />effects of vog and created the Interagency Task Force on. Bob Herkes actively participated in <br />fundraising for the 2011 tsunami relief in Hawaii County and in securing a mobile medical van <br />which brought much needed medical services to rural South Kona and Ka`u. <br />