Promotions and career moves by the people you know — and those you should
Sakazaki
Bank of Hawaii announced the promotion of Michael Sakazaki to senior vice president and senior market manager of Branch Banking’s West Pacific Market for Bank of Hawaii.
He previously was vice president and West Pacific Market manager in Guam and prior to that was vice president and banking center manager at the Waialae-Kahala Banking Center in Hawaii.
Sakazaki joined Bank of Hawaii in 2017 as a bank associate after completing audit and tax internships with Ernst & Young in Guam and KMH LLP in Honolulu. He held numerous leadership positions at the bank’s Iwilei, Ward, Ala Moana and Wai‘alae-Kāhala branches before returning to Guam in August 2023.
Sakazaki attended Chaminade University on a basketball scholarship and holds a 2017 bachelor’s of business administration degree in accounting and a 2018 master’s of business administration degree in accounting.
He serves on the USO Guam Advisory Council and as a director for Pacific Century Life Insurance Corporation and is an active member of the Guam Men’s National Basketball Team.
Brindejonc-Choi
Asia Pacific Financial Management Group has announced the promotion of Sophie Brindejonc-Choi to vice president and principal.
She is responsible for overall management of the firm’s 401(k) and Wealth Management divisions.
Brindejonc-Choi has been a financial advisor with Asia Pacific Financial since 2014.
She earned her Certified Financial Planner designation in 2020 and her Board and Accredited Investment Fiduciary designation in 2014.
Prior to joining Asia Pacific, she was a client adviser for Louis Vuitton in Guam, and formerly was a client advisor to LV in Paris.
Brindejonc-Choi holds a 2013 bachelor’s of science degree in international finance from the American University of Paris.
Brindejonc-Choi is a past president of the Rotoract Club of the Marianas and also previously served as treasurer.
McJohn
Charles “Chuck” McJohn II has been appointed mall department manager, for Guam’s Village of Donki.
He previously was commercial property manager for Prospector Retail Concepts which does business as Citadel Plaza and formerly commercial property manager for the Fujita Property Group which did business as the Guam ITC building. Prior to those appointments, McJohn was the assistant general manager at the Agana Shopping Center.
McJohn holds a 2004 bachelor’s in business management and economics from the University of Santa Clara, Santa Cruz. He is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers.
McJohn was recognized in Guam Business Magazine’s “40 under Forty” in 2016 and 2019.
Toves
Misaki Toves has been appointed marketing department manager at Guam’s Village of Donki.
She previously was marketing and business development manager at Personal Finance Center and formerly was marketing coordinator at Docomo Pacific.
Toves holds an associate’s of science from Guam Community College is design and visual communications. She was certified as a digital marketing professional by the Digital Marketing Institute in 2022.
Toves is the secretary of the board of Rotary Club of Tumon Bay. She is a member of Phi the Theta Kappa Honor Society International, the Guam Chamber of Commerce, and the Guam Women’s Chamber of Commerce.
Brown
Michael Brown has been appointed executive director of the Mayors Council of Guam.
He previously was a business development and policy analyst for the Guam Visitors Bureau and was formerly executive director of the Staywell Foundation Inc. Brown served for more than a decade as vice president of Micronesian Brokers Inc.
The University of Guam has announced the addition of two members of its board of regents.
Duenas
Christopher L.C. Duenas is the chief financial officer of Triple J Enterprises Inc., and prior to that was corporate controller at Triple J.
He holds a 2000 bachelor’s in finance and economics from the University of Guam and a 2004 master’s of business administration from Troy University in Troy, Ala.
Duenas is member of the board of directors of the Guam Chamber of Commerce and a past present and member of the Rotary Club of Tumon Bay.
Chun
Joanna Chun is the owner and principal advisor of Value-Based Coaching & Consulting. She holds a 2004 bachelor of arts in English and language studies from San Francisco State University and a 2015 master’s in business operational excellence from Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business.
Prior to that she was interim director of the Sutter Valley Medical Foundation in Sacramento, Calif. where she had also served as senior lean consultant. Chun returned to Guam in 2019.
Officers of the board of regents are Sandra McKeever, CEO and president of Asia Pacific Financial Management Group, chairperson; Lesley-Anne Leon Guerrero, senior vice president and chief experience officer, Bank of Guam, vice chairperson; Michael Naholowaa, vice president/credit officer, Bank of Guam, treasurer. Other members of the board are Agapito “Pete” Diaz, project manager, AECOM; Roland S. Certeza, president and CEO, GTA; Dr. Janice P. Malilay, owner, Family Dental Center; and Julie Laxamana, student regent.
Hettiarachchi
Hiroshan Hettiarachchi has been appointed dean of the School of Engineering at the University of Guam.
Hettiarachchi formerly lived in Michigan where he practiced as an independent sustainability consultant focusing on the circular economy, waste management, and geotechnical engineering issues.
Previously he was a professor/head of the Waste Management Unit at the United Nations University in Dresden, Germany prior to that was an associate professor at Lawrence Technical University in Southfield, Mich.
Hettiarachchi holds a bachelor’s of science in civil engineering from the University of Moratuwa in Sri Lanka, a master’s of science in soil engineering from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand and a doctorate in civil engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, a Master of Science in Soil Engineering from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand, and has more than 25 years of experience in academic/industry/research and new program development.
Hermosa
Charlie S. Hermosa has been appointed director of the University of Guam Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
He previously was the general manager for the Guam-Micronesia region for American President Lines, and formerly was the general manager at Phasha Hawaii before moving to Guam in 2016. In 2020, he co-founded Bella Wings Aviation LLC, and Hermosa Ventures LLC, which does business as Guam Gift Baskets in 2018.
Hermosa graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy with a 1999 bachelor’s of science in marine transportation. He attended Penn State University in 2003 through the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Program’s executive program, holds a 2004 master’s in transportation policy operations and logistics from George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. and completed the executive leadership program at Cornell University in 2013.
Hermosa is an adjunct professor for the University of Guam’s Capstone program, the treasurer for the Guam Cancer Society’s Pink Ball, a director of the Western Pacific Veterans Community Foundation and a member of the Rotary Club of Northern Guam.
Ochoco
Humanities Guahan announced the appointment of C.J. Ochoco as executive director.
Since 2017, Ochoco has served as a student success coach and coordinator for the Advanced Program and National Test Center at the University of Maryland Global Campus.
She holds a 2016 bachelor’s in fine arts in theatre from the University of Guam, a 2019 master’s of arts in leadership and cultural management from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo. and a 2023 graduate certificate and master’s in strategic communications from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
In the past six years, Ochoco co-founded and managed Breaking Wave Theatre Company, a nonprofit organization that aims to use theatre and the arts to nurture individuals and build communities.
