Shidler Hall of Honor Awards raises nearly $280K for the college, celebrates 5 alumni

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The University of Hawai'i at Mānoa's Shidler College of Business hosted its 32^nd Hall of Honor Awards at the Sheraton Waikiki, October 2. The event celebrated distinguished business professionals who exemplify excellence in their fields while raising critical funds to support the college.

The 2025 gala brought in more than 300 guests to celebrate the 2025 distinguished alumni cohort and raised nearly $280,000 thanks to the generosity of local businesses and the community.

The five newest inductees into the Hall of Honor:

• Darlene Blakeney, BBA '85, MBA '96-executive vice president and chief lending officer, First Hawaiian Bank; CEO, First Hawaiian Leasing, Inc.
• Yukio Morikubo, BBA '82, MBA '84-general counsel and chief compliance officer, Impinj, Inc.
• Danny Wong, BBA '90-managing director, KPMG Honolulu
• Tomoko Yagi, BS '03-managing director-Japan, South Korea and Indonesia; general manager-Aman Tokyo
• Paul Yokota, BBA '79-retired president, FCH Enterprises/Zippy's Restaurants

"We are proud to recognize five alumni whose leadership, service and commitment to the college make a lasting impact," Shidler College Dean Vance Roley said. "Each of these individuals excels in their profession, generously shares their time and talents and remains deeply connected to the Shidler 'ohana. The accomplishments of our honorees represent the strength of our alumni network and the enduring impact of a Shidler education. We extend our sincere appreciation to our sponsors, partners and all who contributed to the success of this event."

The Hall of Honor Awards serve as the premier fundraising event in collaboration with the Shidler College of Business Alumni Association. Proceeds from the evening benefit the college, extending to student programs, scholarship opportunities, faculty research, alumni engagement and special initiatives.

Shidler alumna and 2014 Hall of Honor recipient Gina Mangieri emceed the event. First Hawaiian Bank served as presenting sponsor, alongside contributing sponsors KPMG, Yukio & Karen Morikubo and Jay H. Shidler. Pacific Business News served as media sponsor.

To support Shidler College, contact Jennifer Lieu, director of development, at [email protected] or (808) 956-3597. For a full list of past honorees, visit the Hall of Honor Awards website.

About the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Founded in 1949, the Shidler College of Business was named in 2006 after alumnus Jay H. Shidler, founder and managing partner of The Shidler Group. Since his initial gift of $25 million in 2006, Shidler has given approximately $238 million to the college in cash, land leases and in-kind donations. His contributions represent the largest individual donation to the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and the second largest known gift to a U.S. public university business school.

In 2019, the School of Travel Industry Management rejoined the college. The college is renowned for its multicultural learning environment and its expertise in international business education and is consistently ranked among the nation's top 25 schools for international business by U.S. News & World Report. Long recognized for its Asia-Pacific focus, the college offers a wide variety of degree, certificate and executive programs. The college has the only graduate program in the state of Hawai'i and Vietnam accredited by AACSB International. For more information, visit shidler.hawaii.edu.