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Emme Tomimbang Burns, Hawaiian radio and television pioneer, successful multimedia businesswoman, and passionate supporter of the local Filipino community, undergoes emergency open-heart surgery at Queen’s Medical Center. He died on Monday while undergoing treatment. She was 73 years old.
Gov. Josh Green remembered Tomimban Burns as a “dear and caring storyteller and friend.”
“From her early days on the TV news anchor desk to her later production of TV specials, Emme told stories from her heart,” Green said in a written statement. “While she tackled some tough subjects as a broadcast journalist, she shared stories of fascinating islanders in the ‘Emme’s Island Moments’ special, and that’s how most people knew her. In her private life, as the wife of the late James Burns, former chief judge of the Intermediate Court of Appeals, she became an important member of the state judiciary.”
Lynn T. Waters, a veteran Hawaiian television newscaster, recalls that when she visited Hawaii in 1981 to anchor KITV News, the only person who welcomed her was Tominban Burns.
“Emme was literally the only person who was nice to me. Over the years, she became my best friend in Hawaii. I can’t imagine a world without her,” Waters said Tuesday. .
Born Emmeline Tominban in Honolulu on October 28, 1950, she grew up on Oahu, graduated from Farrington High School, earned a liberal arts degree from Leeward Community College, and completed her secondary education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. I received my bachelor’s degree.
By the time she completed her degree, she had already established a career in local media. In her teens, she hosted a radio show on KNDI, and then she joined the staff of KISA, the first Filipino-owned radio station in the United States.
From there, she moved to television, appearing first on KITV and then on KHON’s “Morning News.”
Ms. Tomimbang’s popularity has given her celebrity status even outside the Filipino community. During Waikiki’s disco heyday, she was part of a small group of prominent Filipinos in their 20s who called themselves The Grooby People (TGP) and were prominent at local discos.
In 1984, Tominban married James S. Burns, the son of the late Hawaii Governor John A. Burns. This was their second marriage and a lifelong love.
Seeking an opportunity to go beyond covering news and personalities on a single local television station, Tomimban Barnes founded and is president of his own namesake production company, Emme Tomimban Multimedia Enterprises (also known as EMME Inc.). He has been creating entertainment journalism for over 20 years as a senior executive. Producer and on-camera host of “Emme’s Island Moments.”
Jim Burns retired as Chief Justice of the Court of Appeals in 2007. In 2011 he was diagnosed with throat cancer and his wife became his primary caregiver. But in 2012, she suffered a brain aneurysm, and the devoted couple temporarily swapped caregiving roles.
In the May 28, 2013 Midweek installment, they discussed health challenges and caring for each other.
“From the beginning of treatment, Emme was our professional caregiver 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” Burns said. “She did everything she needed to do to learn what to do, how and when to do it, and she did it. It was hard work, and it led to her serious health issues. No doubt that was a contributing factor.”
Mr. Burns died of cancer in 2017.
In recent years, Tomimban Burns has contributed to the community by establishing and overseeing endowments and scholarships for underserved and disadvantaged groups.
Dr. Lee Buenconsejo-Lam, interim dean of the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii, called Tominban Burns a “huge supporter” of the school.
“Thanks in part to Jim, she was very active in everything, did a lot of behind-the-scenes work, and really helped the deans, especially the deans who weren’t originally from here, so they could They helped me understand the history, the community, the influences, the heritage, things like that,” Buenconsejo-Lam said.
“She always worked hard to give opportunities to children from underrepresented communities. So she supported the Nadine Kahanamoku Scholarship (for Native Hawaiians). She was from Kahanamoku, but she and Nadine were so close that she was one of the people who helped take care of the scholarship (after Kahanamoku passed away in 1997). And just recently, last year, she and Nadine Scholarships in Jim’s name were awarded to two young Filipino female students.”
Mr. Tomimban Burns also funded a program at Farrington High School that supports students who want to work as health professionals in rural areas, as well as a program that supports people who want to become journalists and other media professionals.
“She really wanted to give back to the next generation of young people that were coming up, because so many people helped her along her path,” Waters said. Ta. “I think that’s a beautiful thing.”
Congressman Ed Case said he saw Tomimban Burns co-chairing a war memorial service at Honganji Hawaii branch in Nuuanu on Sunday.
“Remember Day is the day that President Roosevelt signed the executive order internment of Japanese Americans (in 1942), and George Takei came to talk about that, and it was a social event. It was also a day to remember the injustices wherever they occur, whether they are racial injustices or racial injustices.”When I last met Emme, she had no thoughts on her mind. I was emceeing an event related to a cause near and dear to my heart. ”
Memorial services are pending.
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