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28-531: The Ritidian Unit is at the far northern point of Guam and is the only unit open to the public. It was established in 1993, in response to the 1984 listing of six species as endangered, and was designated critical habitat in 2004 for three of these species: the Mariana fruit bat, the Guam Micronesian Kingfisher, and the Mariana crow. The Navy used the area as a high-security communications station throughout

56-742: A demographic category in federal programs. Underwood declared his candidacy for the 2002 gubernatorial election and was a candidate in the November 2002 General election. His running mate for Lt. Governor was Senator Thomas "Tom" Ada. Underwood was defeated by Felix Perez Camacho in the general election on November 3, 2002. Underwood ran again as a Democrat for Governor of Guam in 2006, with running mate Frank Aguon for Lieutenant Governor. The Underwood-Aguon team faced former governor Carl Gutierrez and Senator Benjamin Cruz . He defeated his main Democratic rival, for

84-726: A member of the Hispanic and Asian Pacific American Caucuses, he spoke out for the protection of immigrant rights, educational opportunities and sensitivity to language issues. As chairman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus in the 106th Congress, he led the effort to include Asian Pacific Americans in scholarship programs, was instrumental in the development of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, spoke out against racial profiling and for including Pacific Islanders as

112-563: A nature path for visitors. The Ritidian Unit offices and beaches close to the public at 4 PM every day. They are also closed any time the Guam Homeland Security Office of Civil Defense issues a tropical cyclone condition of readiness 3, 2, or 1. Additionally, the beaches are closed to the public during tropical storm warnings issued by the National Weather Service. Ritidian Point contains the archaeological site of

140-460: A pre- Magellan Chamorro village, a former barrier reef that is now a 500-foot limestone cliff and beaches where threatened green sea turtles nest. This area is the only designated critical habitat in Guam because it was home to some of the last confirmed populations of the Mariana fruit bat, Guam kingfisher , Mariana common moorhen and Mariana crow . The accidental introduction of the brown tree snake

168-512: A three-way race against Underwood and Republican territorial senator Wil Castro, but did not win an outright majority. In the November 17 runoff, San Nicolas defeated Underwood earning more than 59% of the vote. Dededo, Guam Dededo ( Chamorro : Dedidu ; formerly in Spanish : [deðeðo] ) is the most populated village in the United States territory of Guam . According to

196-642: Is an American politician and educator who served as the delegate from Guam to the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2003 as a member of the Democratic Party . He subsequently served as the president of the University of Guam from 2008 to 2018 and is currently a co-chair of the United States Institute of Peace China- Freely Associated States Senior Study Group. Underwood

224-594: Is considered the primary cause for the decline of native Guam bird species. There are two additional units, one on Andersen Air Force Base and a grouping of non-contiguous lands on Navy properties collectively called the Navy Overlay Unit. In total, the military owns 95% of the Refuge, 22,456 acres (90.88 km), and does not allow tourism. The purposes of the Refuge’s Navy and Air Force Overlay Units are separate from

252-401: Is dedo. It can be theorized that someone measured out the original village this way. Another possibility is that the word "dededo" is a version of the word "dedeggo," which means "heel of the foot," or that it comes from the word "deggo" which means to "walk on tiptoes." Before World War II , Dededo Village was at the bottom of Macheche Hill. Dededo grew into a major village after the war when

280-800: Is located at the north central part of the island roughly at the center of population. It encompasses an area of about 30 square miles (78 km ) of Guam's 209 square miles (540 km ). The headquarters for the Guam National Wildlife Refuge are in Dededo. Tourist sites in Dededo include the Ritidian Unit of the Guam National Wildlife Refuge , the Micronesia Mall , Two Lovers Point , as well as parks, trails, and beaches. Beaches include Tanguisson Beach, Shark Cove Beach, Haputo Beach , and Urono Beach . Haputo and Urono Beaches are listed on

308-402: Is the largest shopping mall in Guam and serves as a cultural and recreational venue as well, with movie theaters and an amusement park. There is also a popular weekend flea market in town which attracts large crowds of vendors. There are many small commercial businesses near the village center. Dededo is situated on a relatively flat limestone plateau in the northern part of the island. It

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336-650: The Serianthes nelsonii tree. The critically endangered plant is endemic to the southern Marianas Islands and only one mature tree is known in Guam. Efforts to plant new seedlings have been coordinated through the University of Guam . Much of the refuge has been recognized as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of Mariana swiftlets , Guam rails , Mariana crows and Micronesian starlings , as well as containing habitat for Guam kingfishers . Robert A. Underwood Robert Anacletus Underwood (born July 13, 1948)

364-486: The Northern Community Health Center opened. In addition to traditional health services provided by the village clinics, this center offered communicable disease control services and dental health as well as chronic disease care and crippled children services. In October 1988, the island's first large-scale and fully enclosed shopping mall, the Micronesia Mall , opened. U.S. military installations in

392-760: The Superior Court of Guam . His wife is a former senator in Guam Legislature . Underwood is a regular opinion contributor in the Pacific Daily News . Underwood served as the Guam Delegate to the US Congress in the 103rd through 107th Congresses from January 3, 1993 to January 3, 2003 during which he sponsored major legislation for Guam, played an active role in US Department of Defense authorization bills and

420-632: The U.S. National Register of Historic Places . The South Finegayan Latte Stone Park is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Federal government of the United States owns portions of the land in Dededo; the Government of Guam stated that it was one of several villages that are "characterized primarily by the large proportion of land owned by the federal government". Dededo has several public and private schools to accommodate

448-413: The U.S. Navy constructed housing for displaced Guamanians and for laborers coming from off-island to help in Guam's development. Following Typhoon Karen in 1962, Kaiser Subdivision in Dededo was constructed for islanders displaced by the storm. Further housing subdivisions were constructed increasing the village's population. The first McDonald's in Guam was opened here on June 10, 1971. In 1984,

476-583: The University of Southern California . He became a high school teacher on the American mainland, and he then served as an instructor at the University of Guam from 1976 to 1983. Underwood was director of bilingual education assistance for Micronesia until 1988 and Academic Vice President of the University of Guam until 1992. In 2009, he married former Guam Department of Education superintendent Dr. Nerissa Bretania Underwood during an intimate morning ceremony at

504-604: The Cold War and donated the 1,203 acres (4.87 km) of land to the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1993. Guam's Delegate to Congress at that time, Robert A. Underwood , objected to the transfer as a violation of indigenous Chamorro land rights for not returning the property to the pre-military owners. Sailors from the USS Frank Cable continued the Navy connection by volunteering and creating

532-563: The Gutierrez-Cruz team in the primary election on September 2, 2006. But on November 7, 2006 he was defeated during the general elections when incumbent Republican Governor Felix Perez Camacho, along with his new running mate Lt. Governor-elect Dr. Michael Cruz , was reelected with 50% to 48%. In 2008, Underwood was selected to begin a 5-year term as the tenth president of the University of Guam and has continued to hold this position as of 2016. In June 2018, Underwood retired as President of

560-796: The Telecommunications Act of 1996 that brought domestic telephone rates to Pacific territories, the State Children's Health Insurance Program and the bill that established the Department of Homeland Security . He brought recognition to Guam's unique people by lifting the ban on betel nut (pugua) importation into the US Customs Zone, inclusion in the National World War II Memorial , the creation of Chamorro Standard Time (CST) and participation in national commemorative events. As

588-496: The U.S. Census Bureau, Dededo's population was just under 45,000 in 2020. The village is located on the coral plateau of Northern Guam. The greater Dededo-Machanao-Apotgan Urban Cluster had a population of 139,825 as of the 2010 census, making up 87.7% of Guam's population and 29.8% of its area. The origin of the village name Dededo, Dedidu in Chamorro, may come from the practice of measuring using fingers. The Spanish word for finger

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616-475: The University of Guam and was succeeded by Thomas W. Krise. On June 30, 2020, Underwood announced he was running for Guam Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives against incumbent Michael San Nicolas . In 2020, San Nicolas was re-elected. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , Guam cancelled party primaries and all qualified candidates appeared on the November 3 general election ballot. San Nicolas came in first in

644-418: The federal government, brought recognition to Guam's World War II generation and their case for war claims and enhanced local autonomy. Additionally, he built a successful record of bringing in federal funds for military construction, assistance to the government of Guam due to in-migration from surrounding islands and for several education programs. Underwood ensured Guam's inclusion in major legislation such as

672-406: The growing number of residents of the island's most populous village including Guam Department of Education institutions. The village is served by six elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school. In regards to the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), Dededo is in the school transportation zone for Andersen Elementary and Andersen Middle School, while Guam High School

700-591: The purposes of the Ritidian Unit and are specified in Cooperative Agreements with the US Fish & Wildlife Service. The areas are considered an overlay because military needs take precedence but the Fish & Wildlife Service has consulting rights. The areas may face additional stress because of the movement of troops from Okinawa . These units are largely forested and the main preservation initiative involves

728-443: The village include Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz , Naval Computer and Telecommunications Station Guam , and portions of Andersen Air Force Base , including Northwest Field . The U.S. Census Bureau has the municipality in multiple census-designated places : Dededo, Astumbo, Finegayan Station, Liguan, Machanao, Machananao East, Machananao West, Macheche, Mogfog, Ukudu, Wusstig, Y Papao, and Y Sengsong. Micronesia Mall

756-682: Was an advocate for political development for insular areas and the extension of educational and social opportunities for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders . During his tenure in congress, he became a senior member of both the House Armed Services and Resources committees. He emphasized the importance of Guam and the Asian Pacific region in national strategic policy and worked to enhance the benefits of military personnel, especially those in guard and reserve units. He passed major legislation for Guam that resolved long standing land disputes with

784-571: Was born in Tamuning , Guam. He is the son of John Joseph Underwood (1911–1986) and Esther Flores Taitano (1913–2005). His paternal grandparents were James Holland Underwood and Ana Pangelinan Martinez, from Tamuning, Guam, and his maternal grandparents were Juan San Nicolas Taitano and Rosario Sablan Flores, who resided in Dededo, Guam . Underwood graduated from Guam's John F. Kennedy High School in 1965, and attended California State University, Los Angeles and

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