Saturday Briefing

By Dr. Chuck Kelley

At the First Quarter Corporate Safety Committee Meeting, Neal Nakashima introduced the new Excellence in Safety Awards Program. The purpose of this new program is to recognize and reward properties that have exceeded pre-established safety performance goals and have shown commitment to maintaining a safe and healthy work environment. Thanks to the dedicated effort of all our safety committees and the commitment of all our employees to work smart and work safe, we have experienced outstanding results this last year. Read the rest of this entry

By Peter Hopgood

There were smiles all round on Friday night, February 26, at the annual AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards with Outrigger on the Lagoon- Fiji winning two prestigious awards. Read the rest of this entry

By Nancy Daniels

A press conference announcing this year’s Honolulu Festival was held at Waikiki Beach Walk® this past week. Media representatives from our local newspapers and television stations were on hand to hear Keiichi Tsujino, President of the Honolulu Festival Foundation, announce this year’s dates and theme, and highlight some of the key aspects of this popular cultural festival. Read the rest of this entry

By Ruthann Yamanaka

People are the reason for the success of any business, and Outrigger is no exception. The Po‘okela Excellence in Leadership Awards are an opportunity to express heartfelt thanks and appreciation to employees whose accomplishments in a particular year were simply extraordinary. Read the rest of this entry

It is with deep sadness that we share with you the passing of longtime Personal Assistant to Dr. Richard Kelley and Saturday Briefing Editor Marie Casciato. Marie was a loyal and dedicated Outrigger employee for the last 22 years. This past Monday, Marie collapsed in the office and was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where she, unfortunately, passed on. We are doing everything we can to support Marie’s husband Mark during this difficult time. Please join us in keeping Marie and her family in your thoughts.

A celebration of Marie’s life is being planned. Details of this celebration will be shared via ‘OhanaGram once plans have been finalized.

The March 6 issue of the will feature a tribute to Marie.

By Karen Villarmia, Alan Naito, Ethan Chang, and Luana Maitland

Chinese New Year celebrations were held at various Outrigger and OHANA properties over the past couple of weeks. Read the rest of this entry

By Gavan Conway

To honour Outrigger’s value of ‘Ohana, staff members at Outrigger Twin Towns Resort have created an “Our Family Wall.” Read the rest of this entry

By Una Murray

The vuvale (family) of the Outrigger on the Lagoon-Fiji (FOR) gathered together on Friday, February 5, for their monthly recognition and awards ceremony, as well as to listen to a presentation on the Excom Community Project 2009.

Ilisoni Vibose began the program with a prayer, followed by General Manager Peter Hopgood, who welcomed and thanked everyone for their incredible dedication and hard work during January. He also announced that going forward, he would add two more awards to recognize the staff for always being eager to help and assist guests: the “Here to Help Award” and the “How May I Help Award.”

Next, Alipate Varea presented on the Excom Community Project, which is a yearly tradition at FOR. This past December, the Outrigger on the Lagoon-Fiji Excom Team divided into two groups and drove in different directions to extend the Outrigger Community Bula Spirit to the less fortunate. Team One, consisting of Darren Shaw, Gary Waugh, Leon Pink, and Alipate Varea, drove to Nausori Suva to visit the Dilkusha Orphanage. There were 29 children in total at the Dilkusha Home (27 girls and 2 boys, ranging from one year seven months to 21 years of age.) All of them received gifts of lollies and snacks from the FOR vuvale, and Deaconess Olivia, who has been looking after the home, was very happy and thanked everyone for their contributions.

Team Two, which consisted of Rajnesh Kumar, Shailesh Naidu, Eddie Liwaiono, Lucia Pau’u, and Una Murray, drove down to Nadi to the Treasure House Orphanage, which houses 20 children, ranging from one month to 16 years of age. All of them received their gifts with lots of hugs and kisses from team members. It was a wonderful presentation that truly showed that the Bula Spirit is alive and well at FOR.

Jyoti Ram then announced the results for the 2009 Fourth Quarter Grooming Award. The Activities department came in first with 300 points, followed very closely by the Finance department with 299 points.

Ivamere Matavesi, General Manager Peter Hopgood, Ravinesh Sharma, and Kinijoji Sarai.

Charlotte Steele then presented Employee of the Month winners. The Front of the House Employee for January 2010 is Ivamere Matavesi, who is a Team Leader at the fine dining restaurant Ivi. Ivamere has always been a stand-out employee and once again has shown her ability to put her superior service skills into practice. From guest comments to positive peer and manager feedback, she is an asset and an example for everyone to follow.

Ravinesh Sharma, FOR’s Cost Controller, won the Back of the House Employee for January 2010. He is very thorough in his work and is also instrumental in assisting our Chef and Sous Chef on costing out menus. He is known for his great work ethic and gets along very well with his fellow co-workers.

Kinijoji Sarai, the FOR Activities Manager, was chosen as the Manager of the Month for January 2010. Kinijoji is a wonderful team leader who leads by example and is always working hard to improve the overall guest experience. He is very focused on the safety and rescue procedures at the hotel to ensure our guests have a safe and memorable vacation.

The program concluded with afternoon tea and the excitement of the Bula Spirit Darts Competition. Thanks to everyone for making this a great day!

By Luana Maitland

This past Sunday was a meaningful day for 34 couples who gathered at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach for a special Valentine’s Day Vow Renewal Ceremony. Read the rest of this entry

By Kathy Oyadomari

On February 12, employees of the OHANA Waikiki Beachcomber gathered to bid aloha to Monica Padunan, who retired after 22 years of dedicated service. Read the rest of this entry