HILO — Hawaii Island landowner and entrepreneur Edmund C. Olson was recognized by the Hawaii Small Business Administration on Monday with a special lifetime award for his work stimulating the state’s economy, protecting the environment and helping train a generation
HILO — Hawaii Island landowner and entrepreneur Edmund C. Olson was recognized by the Hawaii Small Business Administration on Monday with a special lifetime award for his work stimulating the state’s economy, protecting the environment and helping train a generation to follow in his footsteps.
Olson, 86, of the Edmund C. Olson Trust II, won the SBA’s Hawaii state Makana Hooko No Ke Ola award for his vision to preserve Hawaii’s agricultural, cultural and environmental heritage.
The special award goes to a successful business owner who has had an extraordinary impact and created a strong legacy of supporting economic vitality, small business growth, and exemplifies the best practices in business and community, according to the SBA.
Olson’s land holdings include more than 13,000 acres on the island and another 3,000 acres on Oahu. He and his trust also own Hamakua Macadamia Nut Co., Ka‘u Coffee Mill and OK Farms in Hilo.
“I can’t take the money with me,” Olson quipped at a Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce ceremony held at the Imiloa Astronomy Center. “I do kind of have it spread out all over the island.”
The other state award to a Big Island resident was the Small Business Advocate for Media and Journalism, awarded to Sherry Bracken with Mahalo Broadcasting and Hawaii Public Radio for her far-reaching impact and efforts to inform the public with relevant news reporting.
County award winners were:
• Brendan Roberts and Kela Cosgrave, founders of Big Island Booch Inc. in Hilo were named Small Business Person of the Year for Hawaii County. Started in 2013, Big Island Booch produces a variety of kombucha flavors that are sold in their small cafe and in more than 108 stores across the state.
•The Family-Owned Small Business Award for Hawaii County went to Shon Pahio, the second generation president of HMP Inc, dba Business Services Hawaii, a waste management firm started by the Pahio family in 1985.
• Dennis Boyd, director for the Hawaii Small Business Development Center Network’s West Hawaii Office was chosen as the Small Business Advocate for Financial Services for the County of Hawaii in recognition of his work to identify and secure financial resources for new and expanding businesses.
• Tia Yamanaka won the Young Entrepreneur Award for The Boutique Hilo on Kamehameha Avenue, an inspired shop for contemporary women’s fashion.
District Director Jane Sawyer of the U.S. Small Business Administration, flying in from Honolulu to hand out the awards, said she’s optimistic about Hawaii’s business climate, despite the gloom-and-doom she often hears from critics.
“Yeah, businesses struggle, but businesses struggle everywhere,” Sawyer said. “We get to highlight the innovations people are coming up with, and it’s not just a sad old story.”
