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Fono News

MARIOTA HONORED BY THE LEGISLATURE

 

House of Representatives and Senators have honored Heisman Trophy Winner Marcus Ardel Taulauniu Mariota for being the first Samoan football player to receive the prestigious award, and for his many outstanding accomplishments on and off the field, in a House Concurrent Resolution (HCR).

 

It states that Mariota is of Samoan and German descent, who was born on October 30, 1993 in Honolulu, Hawai’i to Puputoa and Alana Deppe-Mariota of Honolulu and Lauli’i American Samoa.

 

The resolution notes Mariota’s football career, which included playing in youth leagues and for St Louis High School in Hawai’i — where he was a two-sport star in football and track and field. It was not until his senior year season that he began to excel in football, leading the Crusaders to an 11 and 1 record and state title.

 

At the University of Oregon, on a full football scholarship, he started his college football career in 2012, after redshirting the 2011 season.

 

In December 11, 2014 at the annual College Football Awards show in Florida, he won the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s best college quarterback. He also won the Walter Camp and Maxwell awards— both honors awarded to the nation’s best college football player.

 

The next day Mariota graduated from University of Oregon with a BA in Science with an emphasis in Human Physiology, accomplishing one of his goals after foregoing the NFL Draft in 2013. In 2014, he became the first Oregon Duck and Hawai’i born Samoan athlete to win the Heisman Award.

 

“He is a true son of Samoa and the people of American Samoa wish him all the best in his NFL career and his future endeavors.”

 

RESOLUTION FOR SEAWALL FOR AOA, ALAO, VATUA, TULA & ONENOA

 

Rep Fatulegae’e Palepoi Mauga, has called on Governor Lolo Matalasi Moliga to instruct the Director of the Department of Public Works to conduct a feasibility study for the design and immediate construction of seawalls for the protection and safety of the villages of  Vaifanua County from the dangers of tsunami, hurricanes and other natural disasters.

 

The resolution says the constant exposure to the ocean tides, harsh winds, heavy rains and hurricanes over the years have seriously distressed specific areas in the said villages. In the villages of Aoa, Alao, Vatia, Tula and Onenoa were individual red zones that need a seawall to prevent any further erosion and to protect residents and property of each respective village as well as the infrastructure.

 

In Alao, Vatia, Tula and Onenoa there were significant damages caused by the 2009 tsunami and there has been no relief efforts to save the eroding shoreline. The construction of seawalls for these villages is imperative for protection from further danger and for the safety of the residents and property in these areas says the resolution.