The 2008 recipient of the Adjutant General’s Award for Manager of the Year was Delores “Dee” M. Cook, a civil defense terrorism planner. The Distinguished State Service award was earned by Anson M. Kimura, an emergency preparedness and response planner for State Civil Defense.

– 2008 Annual Report pp. 31

State Civil Defense Employees Earn Manager and Employee of the Year Awards

Dolores M. Cook and Anson M. Kimura continue the record of State Civil Defense earning the Adjutant General employee and manager of the year awards. The State Team award was earned by the Hawaii Army National Guard Environmental Office, which was recognized in April 2008 with the Army’s top environmental award.

Cook, a Homeland Security and anti-terrorism programs and activities supervisor, and Kimura, a civil defense planner, both work out of the Special Plans Staff section of SCD.

Cook’s responsibilities include Homeland Security grants management, strategic planning and implementation, vulnerability assessments, critical infrastructure protection and assurance, terrorism and anti-terrorism response planning, logistics, and management of emergency cache supplies for disaster response.

Her most notable contribution to the Division, Department and State has been in the administration of federal Homeland Security grants. Under her leadership and dedicated efforts, Hawaii has received over $120 million in federal Homeland Security grants.

Cook’s practical and administrative achievements include the development of a framework for the new State plan and, more importantly, the publication of a draft State Emergency Support Function Annex. This was a significant achievement and milestone for SCD and the Department of Defense, as the draft Emergency Support Function Annex complements the National Response Framework, January 2008, and serves as the centerpiece of the new State plan, superseding the current version of the State Emergency Preparedness Plan for Federal-State Coordination.

Her other highlights feature her role as lead planner in coordinating a Fire Management Assistance Grant approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the Waialua Fire that consumed over 9,000 acres of State forests, federal reservation lands, and private property, including farms; participation in disaster response operations brought about by the passage of a severe weather system that affected the entire State; and the development of a contingency plan for the re-entry of the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office satellite NROL-21.

Kimura excelled in his primary responsibility of revising the State Plan for Emergency Preparedness and Response and conducting disaster assistance training for State departmental emergency response teams. The development of the plan required extensive research, communications, extraordinary staff effort, and interagency coordination. On his own time, at night or on weekends, he worked on the State Plan. His energy, dedication and skill as a planner contributed to the development of the plan.

His other highlights feature his role as Deputy Planning Section Chief for the State Emergency Operating Center Crisis Action Team during the State annual hurricane exercise; his role as lead planner in coordinating a Fire Management Assistance Grant approved by FEMA for the Waialua Fire; and his participation in disaster response operations during a severe weather system that affected the entire State. The 113-page draft Emergency Support Function Annex was well-written, providing clear implementing guidance on agency roles, responsibilities, and tasks when responding to emergencies and disasters.

The highlights of Cook’s and Kimura’s accomplishments and contributions listed only scratch the surface of what they bring to the success of the diverse civil defense mission.

– 2008 July – 2009 March Pūpūkahi pp. 8