Hawaii

It's before 10 a.m. in Hawaii when Lukas Nelson answers the phone for his interview. It's early for the 22-year-old who has been criss-crossing the United States as Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. But this stop in Hawaii isn't for business - it's for pleasure. “I'm here for my mom's birthday,” Nelson said in between yawns during a phone interview. Mom is Annie D'Angelo, the fourth wife to country music legend Willie Nelson. He'll be back on the mainland soon.

Monica Des Jarlais has been named the new president of St. Maria Goretti High School in Hagerstown. Born and raised on the sugar plantations of Hawaii, Des Jarlais was educated by the Maryknoll Sisters of New York. She completed her undergraduate studies in education and sociology at Chaminade College of Honolulu. She received a master's degree in private administration from the University of San Francisco, with 30 additional graduate hours in reading instruction. Her 30-year career has encompassed all aspects of Catholic education, from teaching all grades K-12, to serving as vice principal and president of schools in Hawaii, Georgia and California.

SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (AP) -- A magnitude 7.2 earthquake has struck 215 miles off the coast of Guam. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii says there is no widespread tsunami predicted. The temblor occurred south of the Mariana Islands at a depth of 12 miles.

Today - J.R. Head, formerly of Greencastle, Pa., who is in the Army stationed in Hawaii, turns 22. If you would like a birthday or anniversary to appear in The-Herald Mail, email it to tonym@herald-mail.com; mail it to Milestones, c/o The Herald-Mail, P.O. Box 439 Hagerstown, MD 21741; or fax it to 301-714-0245.

A Boonsboro High School graduate recently received a $2,000 scholarship from the Maryland Retired School Personnel Association. David Wayne Hoffman is attending Mount St. Mary’s University to become a special-education teacher. Hoffman formerly worked as an instructional assistant in Hawaii and is employed by Urbana Middle School in Ijamsville, Md., as a special-education instructional assistant. He is a single father of three teenagers. Hoffman received the scholarship May 10 at the association’s annual business meeting at Michael’s Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie.

"Aloha" was the word of the day on Friday, May 19, at St. Mary Catholic School. The fourth grade had an opportunity to celebrate Hawaiian culture by attending a luau. They enjoyed traditional Hawaiian foods, such as pulled pork and fresh pineapples, while listening to the beat of Polynesian music in the background. The students also learned a few native Hawaiian phrases, discussed important events in the state's history, and participated in some fun island games. The students were studying Hawaii as part of their Pacific west unit in social studies class.

Thursday, Feb. 17 8 p.m. on CBS "Survivor: Palau" A new edition, the 10th, is set on the Pacific island nation of Palau. That's way beyond Hawaii, in the vicinity of the Philippines, and the site of some important World War II fighting. 8 p.m. on Animal Planet "NASCAR: Animal Crew" It seems that many of those hard-bitten NASCAR drivers have a soft side when it comes to pets. This new special takes us into the homes of some of them and introduces the wide variety of animals that "provide comfort in a career of tough competition.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 jarred the southern Philippines on Saturday morning, the U.S. Geological Survey said. No damages or casualties were immediately reported. No tsunami alert was issued, said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in Hawaii. The quake hit the Moro Gulf off Mindanao Island at 7:15 a.m. the USGS said. It was centered some six miles under the Moro Gulf, the agency said, and was some 75 miles southwest of the city of Cotabato on Mindanao, and was about 566 miles southeast of Manila.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- The president and chief executive officer of the organization that runs City Hospital and Jefferson Memorial Hospital in Ranson, W.Va., announced his retirement Tuesday night, according to a press release. Roger Eitelman, head of West Virginia University Hospitals-East, will step down Dec. 31, the release said. Eitelman has headed-up West Virginia University Hospitals-East since 2005 and worked in hospital administration in the Norfolk and Newport News areas of Virginia and in Hawaii before coming to Berkeley County.