FOUNDATION'S CFO HONORED

Lynne Watanabe, Diep and nominee San Vuong, Consuelo Foundation Chairman Jeffrey Watanabe(l-r)

HONOLULU -- On March 20, Consuelo Foundation’s Chief Financial Officer and Director of Operations Jonathan “San” Vuong stood out as one of 19 finalists in the Pacific Business News (PBN) search for its 2009 CFO of the Year.  Selected for his outstanding performance in his role as a financial steward, San joined his fellow nominees at an awards ceremony on March 19.  This annual PBN event honors and celebrates “financial wizards” that the Hawai’i business newspaper has judged worthy of recognition “for their service to their companies and to their communities.”

(PBN named Dean Hirata, Vice Chairman and CFO of Central Pacific Bank, as its choice for 2009 CFO of the Year.)

San came to the Foundation in 1996 from Catholic Charities where he had served as financial director since 1988.  For Consuelo Foundation’s operations in the Philippines and Hawai’i, San oversees the Foundation fiscal, human resources and investment activities; acts as property manager and manages day-to-day operations. Today, he is Acting CEO as the Foundation goes through a leadership transition.

With eight employees in Hawai’i and 35 in the Philippines, and the 5,300-distance between the two offices, “San must accomplish those objectives in the context of a nonprofit operating in two different countries, staffed with citizens from both countries, different taxes and corporate laws and accounting rules,” says Consuelo Foundation Chairman Jeffrey N. Watanabe.

San’s personal background includes humble beginnings. In 1975, he fled Vietnam with his family and lived in temporary camps on Guam and Wake Island before moving to Hawai’i.   He put himself through accounting school, working as a busboy at Fisherman’s Wharf and as a bookkeeper at Catholic Charities.  “Those were the hectic days, working two jobs and going back to school full time,” said San, 58. “…I feel very blessed.”

San and his wife Diep have a son Daniel, who works in Tokyo.  Diep is a high school teacher in Waipahu.

San’s close associates describe him as a “gentle, kindred spirit” with a “strong sense of fairness” and “an unblemished record of integrity.”

(This article was rewritten from a March 20, 2009 Pacific Business News article about San, Exec Overseas One Foundation in Two Countries.)

San Vuong receives his PBN 2009 CFO nominee plaque from L t. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona.