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Discovering Passion and Purpose in the Family Business

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Leading a company is a challenge at any age, but at just 27 years old, James Deleon Guerrero ’16 has taken on the role of Vice President at JM Holdings. He’s using what he learned at Chaminade and previous work experiences to grow the family business all while giving back to the local community.

A home away from home

For Saipan native Deleon Guerrero, Hawai‘i has been like a second home. While growing up, he accompanied his parents on their frequent business and leisure trips to O‘ahu each year including spending summers here. He became very comfortable being in Hawai‘i, with its culture and climate similar to Saipan’s, and pictured himself attending college in the Hawaiian Islands following graduation from high school.

He looked at the various college options on O‘ahu and was attracted to Chaminade University because of the great things he had heard about the private Marianist university from a college recruiter as well as from friends who had attended the school.

Testing the waters

In 2012, Deleon Guerrero arrived at Chaminade to pursue a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Like many Freshmen, he was away from home for the first time, on his own and also living off-campus. He readily admits his schoolwork suffered during his first semester and was humbled by his mistakes. Getting back on track, he joined a Marianist club and quickly found his ‘ohana, making new friends from all over including Guam.

Eager and ambitious, Deleon Guerrero pushed himself so that in his senior year, he only had two or three classes left to graduate. He is especially grateful for the close-knit environment at Chaminade that allowed him to easily make connections with his peers and professors. He credits his Chaminade professors for “preparing me for the real world.”

Graduating in 2016 with his business administration degree in hand, his first stint was as a bank teller. This was followed by a position in construction management as a project engineer/coordinator at Unlimited Construction. After two years, he moved into a project management role at Island Sun Solar, now known as Pacific Energy Partners, where he assisted with design, sales and training. James was working as assistant to the chief engineer at Howard Hughes Corporation where he oversaw building maintenance when he was called home to Saipan to help with the family business.

Family First

As the only child, he always knew he was destined to follow in his father’s footsteps by one day taking over the company. However, he also felt it was important to gain work experience on the outside first before joining the family business. “I felt I was on a successful career track in Honolulu and didn’t plan on returning to Saipan so soon,” he admits, “but my parents needed me now.”

At 27, Deleon Guerrero was recently named Vice President of JM Holdings LLC, a diverse, multi-faceted company, involved in real estate, land sales, long-term leases, agriculture and farming, building and ground maintenance, house rentals, travel, and more. J.M. are the first and middle initials of his father, Jesus Manuel.

Working closely with his father, who oversees operations, and his mother, accounting, he is dedicated to learning everything about the 30-year-old business as well as upholding its values and ethics. Overseeing 15 employees, he enjoys the flexibility and the variety of tasks that the role offers, including new business meetings and drafting bid proposals.

Forging his own path

For Deleon Guerrero, it’s been an adjustment joining the business at this time, and while there is pride, he also is aware of the big responsibility in carrying on the business’ legacy and sustainability.  He’s confident he “brings skills I’ve developed through my Chaminade education and previous work experience to the company.” Valuable skills such as public speaking and interviewing from professors and sales and reviewing blueprints and drawings from previous employers are all assets. Deleon Guerrero also is studying to a become a certified real estate appraiser and will become the first local on Saipan.

With deep respect for his father, Deleon Guerrero says he knows he has big shoes to fill. His father taught him business sense and gave him a firm foundation, and he’s looking forward to carrying on his father’s vision for business expansion both locally and in Hawai’i. As a young professional, one of the immediate additions James is making to enhance work processes is through the use of social media and a digital platform for clients to easily reach the company. Deleon Guerrero has also joined the Saipan Chamber of Commerce to network with other business leaders.

His dad, who founded the Marianas Visitors Authority, is casually nicknamed the “father of tourism” because of the partnerships that he created with airlines and new events that were launched such as Taste of the Marianas, which was inspired by Taste of Honolulu. Deleon Guerrero understands the importance of caring for the community and hopes to become a next generation leader by giving back to his local community.

His advice for Chaminade students, recent graduates and young professionals is to pursue your dreams and goals; if it doesn’t work out right away, don’t give up. “Do what you have to do until you’re happy with the end result,” James says.

The sky is truly the limit for this Chaminade alumnus.

Nursing Students Part of Hawaii’s COVID Vaccination Efforts

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One vaccine at a time, Hawaii is beating back COVID-19.

And Chaminade University is proud to be part of the effort.

Working with community healthcare partners, the University has deployed senior Nursing students to clinics on O‘ahu to administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Dr. Lynn Babington, Chaminade President, said the project underscores the University’s public service mission and its commitment to build a healthier Hawai‘i. “Being part of the community and being able to serve our community is part of our mission,” she said, adding that the vaccines are a “light at the end of a long tunnel” and offer hope that many of the activities we used to consider normal will soon be resumed. She said it’s heartening to see students play a key role in “helping to bring the pandemic under control.”

Dr. Lorin Ramocki, Chaminade University School of Nursing and Health Professions Assistant Professor and clinical/academic partnership coordinator, said the students giving vaccinations are seniors in their Public Health Nursing rotation. To prepare for the challenge, they participated in mock clinics on campus, studied CDC and facility training modules, and attended on-site orientations.

The students will be administering vaccines through the duration of vaccination efforts.  

Nursing senior, Serina Lipman, is among those serving as vaccinators. She said she feels incredibly fortunate to participate in a vaccination clinic and do her part to stop the spread of COVID-19. “It felt humbling knowing that we were out in the community making a difference,” she said.

Lipman added her training and preparation at Chaminade helped her feel up to the challenge.

“Through this experience, I have learned about how much effort and planning it takes to set up a massive vaccination clinic,” she said. “This experience was one of the best I have had throughout school and I hope that I get the opportunity to continue to vaccinate even after graduation.”

Dr. Rhoberta Haley, School of Nursing and Health Professions Dean, said the vaccination project highlights the importance of experiential learning and strong partnerships in the community. “For our nursing students to play a role in the State’s vaccination efforts not only strengthens our partnerships with healthcare organizations, it gives our students additional first-hand experience,” Haley said.

Ramocki said the vaccination clinics are powerful educational experiences, offering students a strong appreciation of the value of focusing on population health, and of the role of community education and disaster response during periods of disease outbreak. “By participating in these efforts, they will be able to make the connection between what they are learning in the classroom and the importance of these topics,” Ramocki said. “They get to be a part of these efforts during one of the greatest public health crises in our lifetime. This is what public health nursing is all about, responding to and meeting the needs of the community.”

Making Lemonade Out of Lemons

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Like many of us, Blaze Mancillas’ 2020 didn’t go quite as he had planned.

The pandemic meant that the actor and comedian, a 2009 graduate of Chaminade, wasn’t able to audition as much as he had hoped, couldn’t do many comedy shows or other events and had to spend more time than he ever has in his (somewhat cramped) New York apartment.

But lockdowns and COVID precautions didn’t keep Mancillas from staying busy.

In fact, his work as a host on app-based music trivia game show “SongPop Live” earned him a 2020 Webby Award, which honors the “best of the internet” in everything from websites to apps. He also launched a podcast, called “Let’s Get Lit” that combines two of his loves—comedy and literature. 

Mancillas’ Webby Award

Reached on recent day, Mancillas was hopeful about 2021 would bring.

As the number of COVID infections in New York declined, auditions have slowly resumed—and he’s looking forward to new opportunities. He said that after a very difficult year for everyone, he’s grateful for what he has and is charged up to seek out new ways to hone his acting chops and share his comedy.

Mancillas scored a hosting role on “SongPop Live” before the pandemic started. When the city shut down, he was sent home with a lot of technical equipment and instructions on what to do next. He and the other three hosts finished out their work for the game show from the comfort of their living rooms.

It was a transition for Mancillas, who said before the pandemic he rarely spent much time at all in his apartment. Instead, he would always be out in the city—enjoying all that it has to offer. But he made the most of it and in October launched his new must-listen podcast, in which he reads from a classic book (the first season features “War of the Worlds”) and invites comedians on to offer commentary.

The podcast is already getting some buzz, including in Paste Magazine and on the Comedy Cake website. Mancillas describes it as a chance to actually read those books you were supposed to read in high school, with some great comedians to join you to keep things light and keep you laughing.

In a recent interview, Mancillas remembered his time at Chaminade fondly.

It was there that Mancillas discovered his love of acting. He scored leading roles in Chaminade productions of “The Elephant Man,” “Amadeus,” “Pippin” and “The Pirates of Penzance,” to name a few. From Chaminade, he headed to New York to study acting at Columbia University. He graduated with a Master’s in Fine Arts from Columbia in 2012, and has been building his career ever since.

In addition to doing stand-up comedy and hosting for “SongPop Live,” Mancillas has appeared on TV episodes, commercials and done motion capture acting for video games. He’s interested in doing more on-screen acting work but also wants to continue to build his chops as a game show host, he said.

Mancillas with Bro. Gary Morris

At Chaminade, Mancillas was a communication major with a minor in performing arts. He credits three mentors—Music Professor Tim Carney, Father Robert Bouffier and Brother Gary Morris—with recognizing his talent, helping him muster the courage it takes to get out in front of an audience, and then challenging him to apply for graduate school on the mainland.

“They left a profound impact on me,” he said. “They were really wonderful.”

Mancillas is also thankful to Chaminade to giving him the space to find his passions—and not just in acting. At the university, Mancillas was also on the cross country and golf team, and was an announcer for basketball games. “I was running all over the place,” he said, adding that Chaminade helped him grow as a person and an artist. “There are lots of opportunities to try different things.”

To learn more about Mancillas’ work, including his new podcast, head to his website.

Design for the Community

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In a significant honor, the Interior Design Education Council has awarded Environmental + Interior Design Associate Professor Joan Riggs its Community Service Award in recognition of her many contributions to the field, to her students and to the broader community.

Joan Riggs

Riggs will be presented with the award at a virtual ceremony in February during IDEC’s annual conference.

In notifying Riggs that she had won, IDEC President Ellen Fisher praised the professor for incorporating interior design into a long list of community service projects. Over the years, Riggs has challenged students to incorporate their interior design skills in community-centered spaces, from youth correctional facilities to safehouses for human trafficking victims to training centers.

She has also helped students reimagine interior design in nursing homes and healthcare facilities.

“The essence of Joan’s character, as well as her approach as an educator, is to serve the greater public good through design,” wrote Professor Dr. Elizabeth Lockard, in nominating Riggs for the community service award. “Service-learning is at the core of her pedagogical philosophy.”

Lockard added that Riggs sees interior design as a profession with an obligation to serve the underserved, elevating everyone’s wellbeing and quality of life. She has a particular passion in “universal design,” which seeks to underscore the social value of designing for inclusivity.

Riggs, who joined the Environmental + Interior Design faculty in 2003 and has served as its program director for the last 12 years, said placing service learning and community service at the center of design education gives students an awareness of their impact—and a greater compassion for those they serve.

“In partnerships, they deepen their ability to adapt—their thinking, their perspective and their understanding—with respect to how diversity is a strength and problem solving is a gift to be shared,” she said. “As an educator, what greater reward than to see students emerge as skilled, compassionate and successful designers? I am truly blessed to be part of this process.”

Her award, she added, is icing “on a marvelous multi-layered cake.”

Bridging the Age Gap

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Relationships are one of the critical ingredients in our happiness and wellbeing—bonding not only with partners and peers, but also with those spanning different ages.

Nursing students participating in their service learning project with Purpose Pals

Thirty-two Chaminade nursing students did just that by connecting with kūpuna through Purpose Pals, a pilot program designed to foster friendships across generations through the click of a mouse.

“The biggest takeaway from our talks was that I don’t know everything there is to life,” says freshman Kaylen Fernandez. “My kūpuna gave valuable advice in balancing work-life, and the importance of enjoying what you do. If you don’t love it, then it’s time for a change.”

Engaging across generations, benefits kūpuna and helps students learn and grow as healthcare professionals.

“This experience provides the nursing students with a more positive attitude toward aging,” says Purpose Pal organizer Dr. Christy Nishita. “In their future careers, many of their patients will be from our oldest age groups. We hope this experience gives them awareness and empathy toward kūpuna that translates to better care.”

Connectedness is important now more than ever, especially since COVID has created social isolation. With an increase of loneliness and stress, Purpose Pals has played a critical role in helping kūpuna stay socially active.

Purpose Pals was made available through a service learning project in Dr. Edna Magpantay-Monroe’s NUR 200 Introduction to Nursing Concepts course. The project not only provided students with an experiential learning opportunity but also forged meaningful relationships with their kūpuna. Many have been inspired to stay in touch with their pals beyond the commitment of the project.

Students’ participation in the pilot program has provided a number of key insights for Purpose Pal’s development and capacity building. The goal is to continue to attract new volunteers each semester and continue Chaminade’s mission serving the community and being an active participant in it.

Islands of Opportunity: First-Ever Virtual DataCamp

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In November 2020, the Islands of Opportunity-Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (IOA-LSAMP) and Chaminade University Honolulu partnered to launch an online data analytics proficiency course for university STEM students from Hawai‘i and the Pacific. The DataCamp was run by Chaminade faculty and staff under the supervision of a molecular immunologist and biologist. The program offered a unique opportunity for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students to learn about the data analytics field through hands-on learning modules.

The University of Hawai‘i Hilo was also a participant in the DataCamp. Check out this article to learn more about the professors and students involved. We see bright futures ahead for Hawai‘i’s next generation of data scientists and can’t wait to see them use their newfound skills in our community! IOA-LSAMP includes 10 institutions across the Pacific region: Chaminade University of Honolulu, American Samoa Community College, College of the Marshall Islands, College of Micronesia—FSM, Guam Community College, Hawaiʻi Pacific University, Northern Marianas College, Palau Community College, University of Guam and University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.