KPOA LOVE'S JAKE SHIMABUKURO

Mahalo nui loa e Alaka'i you Morning Goddess you,

I had a wonderful wonderful time at the Jake Shimabukuro show. First
time I see him in person, live on stage... I gave my two free tickets
to my grand-son and hanai son. I bought my ticket and chose to sit
upstairs on the MEZZ row B-24. of course never had room down there,
was all full up... OMG he was sososo good, especially his piano guy,
the drummer I fell in love with and the bass guy. What a team, even
the lighting guy who displayed the whole stage with such brilliant
colors according to the tunes of all those guys...ho even the sound
systems guy, What a show! ! I will always cherish.

I am so grateful with the couple who sat next to me. They clued me in
about Jake because they saw his shows before but first time they saw
his new team (piano, drummer, and bass)
They were awesome.

mahalo piha, I love you all KPOA Ohana!!!
kupuna from Halau Na Kupuna o Lokelani

Alaka'i,

I just had to say Mahalo Nui Loa for the free tickets to see Jake. It
was an amazing concert. He is awesome, awesome, awesome! And his
rendition of George Harrison's , While My Guitar Gently
Weeps........OMG! Jake is so humble, sweet, cute. I am looking
forward to purchasing his live cd available in April.

Again Mahalo Nui Loa!

WASHINGTON D.C.-Leokane Pryor of Hana, Maui seranade Barack Obama and family "Hawaiian Style"

Monday January 19, 2008

Traveling from Hana, Maui, one of the most remote towns of the United States, Leokane Pryor joined Washington DC's Aloha Boys Sunday night at a private event hosted by AOL founder Steve Case and his wife Jean in the exclusive Dupont Circle area of Washington DC where the President Elect's sister Maya Soetoro-Ng, her husband Conrad and schoolmates of Barack Obama were serenaded with traditional Hawaiian music by Leokane Pryor and The Aloha Boys of Washington, DC (Isaac Ho'opi'i, Irv Queja & Glen Hirabayashi).

The evening embodied the Aloha spirit of the Islands, providing a touchstone to where the President Elect spent his youth. The event, was attended by 200 guests and included many longtime friends and former classmates of the President Elect. It was a celebration of his tremendous victory, Hawaiian style. Leokane, also a graduate of Punahou, was three years behind The President Elect in school, but remembers "Barry" (as he was known then) as being "a nice guy that everyone liked, with a great smile".

Headlining the entertainment, Leokane and the Aloha boys provided traditional Hawaiian Music along with Hula dancing by Kikilia Fordham Schaefer and Rebecca Ramos (former schoolmates of the President-Elect) and fresh flower Lei shipped in from the islands. Leokane is one of the Mountain Apple Company's newest and brightest musicians. His recently released CD, Home Malanai, has been on Billboard Magazines World Chart and named one of the top five CDs of the year by the Honolulu Advertiser and Hawaii Magazine. Leokane was honored to be invited to perform at the event; "A couple days ago I was sitting on the beach in Hana and wondering if I would really be playing in Washington D.C., and now, here I am in the freezing cold and it really happened! it was a great honor to travel the 52 hairpin turns on the road from Hana, fly 6,000 miles to be a part of this historic event."

Leokane is hopeful that by sharing Hawaiian music during this momentous time in our nation's history, a new interest in Hawaii, its music and its beauty will spread through the country (and world). Michelle Obama is quoted as saying "to understand Barack, you need to understand Hawaii". Like Barack Obama, Leokane's childhood was influenced by the many ethnicities of Hawaii. This unique upbringing allows Leokane to be an ambassador not only for the State of Hawaii and its unique music, but also it's rich cultural values. He is a strong proponent of the environment, working toward preservation of Native Hawaiian plants and animals. Perhaps some of these are the values that Michelle Obama refers to.

Leokane will also be performing with the Aloha Boys at the Hawaii State Society Inaugural Ball this Tuesday, January 20th.

 

January 1, 2009

Have you ever seen pictures of yourself as a child? Surrounded by your cousins? I have and it's usually my cousin Maile, second from the right and still claims I was the most beautiful baby she had ever seen..... or my cousin Linda holding me. I don't remember anybody pinching me and I remember them fondly. My other cousin, Linda Bernice Hoohieikananionapua Salvador Kahuhu passed many a little over 10 years ago. It's her birthday today, so some of the Paleka girls, and my son. the photographer got in the car and went to visit her and sing Happy Birthday. She was 11 years and 11 days older than me and being the second oldest cousin of 33 children took the concept of sharing very seriously. She would take the package of cookies or whatever we needed to share and carefully count out, one for you, one for you, and if there were any leftovers, she took a survey and divide, as best she could the rest evenly. While we were there we also paid tribute to the 13 other graves at the Makawao Veteran's Cemetary. Then we decided to go visit our baby time stomping grounds, Hookipa Park, Baldwin Park and Paia Town. Of course we had to stop by Kuau Mart and snack. They got the best hot dogs in town. If you have the time today or soon, remember those who aren't with us anymore. Say a silent thank you for the good times and lessons learned. Try to pass their goodness on to others.