‘Far out’ 36th anniversary party for Mariana Resort

Mariana Resort & Spa turned back the hands of time with a “far out” 36th anniversary party celebration Saturday night at the Marpi landmark.
About 300 guests attended the 1970s retro-themed party that Mariana Resort general manager Gloria Cavanagh said reflected the hotel’s history, having been built in 1978.

Guest had their fill with over 20 different buffet food choices as well as all-you-can drink beer, wine, champagne, and soft drinks. Wait staff and Mariana Resort executives, including Cavanagh, also were dressed to the nines in Saturday Night Fever garb.

The Saipan Music and Dance Studio and 2013 CNMI Got Talent Governor’s Choice Award winner Bernice Shane Sabino provided the entertainment.

Sabino sang Whitney Houston’s I Will Always Love You, while Saipan Music and Dance Studio shimmied on stage with several disco hits from the 1970s.

Gov. Eloy S. Inos congratulated the hotel for 36 years of existence on the islands. He also said that Mariana Resort is “truly a pioneer for the CNMI” and is now the only hotel fully owned by Japanese investors in the CNMI.

“We need to support and welcome our Japanese friends, because through tough times, they haven’t left and up until now they are still here,” he said.

Cavanagh said the turnout was successful. “I couldn’t be happier and it’s in celebration of the Kitami family purchasing shares for Kan Pacific Saipan, Ltd. in 1978.”

Kan Pacific Saipan president Yoshihiro Kitami said his father and uncle started the business and that he will continue to further improve Mariana Resort.

“My family were the first investors that rose in the CNMI and we want to continue. We started since the beginning and never changed the ownership and the Kitami family belongs to Saipan,” Kitami said.

“Saipan has been our home for the last 36 years and we look forward to the next 36,” he added.

“The dedication and the loyalty of the Kitami family has always set Mariana Resort apart from other hotels on Saipan. In fact, we’re the only Japanese company that has never left. We’ve been here during good times, bad times, and the worse times and they never at any point in time thought about selling the place. This is their home,” Cavanagh added.

“We’ve been here for 36 years and we know how it was when JAL [Japan Airlines] pulled out and when the government factories closed. We did not leave and the Kitami family stayed up till now,” she said.

The 36th anniversary celebration gave away raffle prizes to guests and also those who competed in a golf tournament that day. The latter saw more than a hundred golfers play the 18-hole golf course of Mariana Resort. (Jayson Camacho)