Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 6, Number 12, 1 December 1989 — Mahalo from the Chairman [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Mahalo from the Chairman

By Thomas K. Kaulukukui, Sr. T rustee-at-large Chairman, Board of Trustees

To those of you, who, although you expressed an opposite viewpoint from the views in the Blueprint, liked the fact that something is finally being done to right a longstanding wrong; To a departed friend and one of the archi-

tects in the formation of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs — Hartwell Blake, whose visionfor hisfellowHawaiians is reflected in his statement during the constitutional convention, "The trust will embrace all;" To the young lady in Los Angeles who reminded us that she moved with her husband and children for eeonomie reasons but that her heart is still in Hawai'i; To the many others whose remarks were brief but to the point, "Don't forget us, we are Hawaiians too;" T o the staff who sat through the testimonies, did all of the preliminary preparations to make the hearings successful;

To my fellow trustees, many thanks for your dedication during the many trying moments and tasks, and for letting me occupy the chairman's seat; To my wife and family who support me in all my attempts to succeed in what they say sometimes is an "impossible mission;" And finally, but most importantly, to the good Lord, for letting me get up eaeh morning and see the sun rise and know that I will live another day. For all these, and others too numerous to mention, I gave thanks on Thanksgiving Day. And now a very brief wish in the last issue for the year: as Chairman of the Board of Trustees, my sincere mahalo and best wishes to the staff of the OHA family, Aloha! During the past month, I had the pleasure of meeting many of you and hearing your mana'o on the Blueprint and other Hawaiian issues. By the time you read this article, Thanksgiving will have eome and gone, but nevertheless, I want to give thanks to all of you. As the old saying goes: "Better late than never." To the many people who gave their testimonies during the recent hearings, especially the many young people in Hawai'i and on the mainland who made it known that they must be considered in all of our plans;

To all the members of the 1989 Aha 'Opio, the Hawaiian Youth Legislature, who will be carrying the torch into the future for Hawaiians, and whom we hope will respond to the challenge made by Gladys Brandt in her speech to the Hawaiian Civic Clubs in Las Vegas, Nev., in 1987; To the young man who brought his ukulele to the hearing in Washington, D.C. and after the opening pule was given by Mr. Bailey, led the group in singing "E kolu Mea Nui." To the Ainahau O Kaleponi Hawaiian Civic Club of Los Angeles for taking under their wing Lunalilo Home and whose members recently pledged to buy a VCR for the home and, in addition, bring clothes and other items when members of the club attend the annual Civic Club Convention in Hawai'i. To the Hawaii Women's Guild of CaHfornia, whieh has, for the last 20 years, put on a fund-rais-ing luau to give scholarships to Hawaiian students attending a mainland college. My mahalo to them for inviting me and my family to the luau during our recent trip to Los Angeles. One of the recipients gave testimony at the hearing in Los Angeles, indicating her desire to return to Hawai'i to teach. To my fellow trustees, and all of our beneficiaries — Mele KaHkimēika. Hauoli Makahiki Hou!