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Once again, on behalf of the County Council, I welcome you to this particular effort. Please
<br />know how important it is to us, as your representatives, to see this job done well, and done
<br />professionally. Thank you very much.
<br />MAYOR KENOI: Thank you, Councilman Hoffmann, for sharing those very kind and insightful
<br />remarks on behalf of the Hawai‘i County Council. On behalf of the Administration, and the
<br />County of Hawai‘i, I would like, with deepest appreciation, thank each and every one of you for
<br />agreeing to serve on this very important Commission. Like the Charter Commission, it is a
<br />Commission once in a decade, that will look at the landscape of people, of communities, the very
<br />unique and special areas on Hawai‘i island, that all of us are proud to call home. Whether from
<br />Kohala to Ka‘u; Hilo to Kona; Waimea to Puna; we all are privileged and honored to call this
<br />beautiful island, home. Each and every one of us have agreed to serve. I know, because of your
<br />commitment to families, that our children will grow up in a healthy and safe community, that our
<br />kupuna live a life of respect, compassion, and dignity; that our families can be healthy and
<br />celebrate this joyous gift called life that all of us enjoy in a special place.
<br />The Redistricting Commission; I look at every single one of you, and I stand here in public, and
<br />I’m proud that each and every one of you have agreed to serve and represent your respective
<br />districts. This is such a strong commission, such an important commission. And all I ask is, one;
<br />to say mahalo to your husbands, your wives, your children; because of the sacrifice that you
<br />make. I don’t even know if you get mileage or lunch or water or juice or soda. I know it’s free
<br />and from the heart, and that’s what makes this island special. When people serve, we serve with
<br />the heart. The Hawaiians call that kokua; to give, to aloha with absolutely no expectations of
<br />return. That’s why we do what we do, because we love and care not only about this island, but
<br />about the people who call it home.
<br />I have the honor and privilege of swearing you in. Do we do that now? I’ll have the privilege of
<br />swearing you in, but I wanted to thank your families for allowing you to serve. I know they said,
<br />“What? Redistricting? How much time is that going to take? Three months, six months, nine
<br />months; maybe one year? How many hours?” But, thank you for agreeing to serve. If there is
<br />anything we can do---I want to thank the Council staff; and Karen Eoff, who will be the
<br />Commission Administrative Assistant, and Mike Udovic who will be the Corporation Counsel
<br />assigned to the Redistricting Commission. As a trial attorney myself, I know Mike has many
<br />years experience. We are both professors at Hawai‘i Community College, Administrations of
<br />Justice Program; very smart, very competent legal counsel.
<br />We don’t want any challenges to the good work that all of you do. This is very simple advice.
<br />We are all in this together, and all I ask is the simple values the way I ask my administration to
<br />conduct themselves. You never hear us make any excuses publically, any blame, any finger
<br />pointing. It doesn’t accomplish anything. The better we work together, the better outcomes we
<br />have. The more we put in, the more we get out. If you guys need anything--if you are not sure,
<br />someone once told me, “When in doubt, check it out.” If you are not sure, just ask. Everybody
<br />is here to help all of you succeed, because when all of you succeed, our community benefits
<br />tremendously.
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