Letter From the President.
Aloha Members,
There are a lot of exciting news pieces in this issue! There continues to be a lot of moving parts and projects that the board and other volunteers are working on.
First and foremost, we are delighted to announce details for the upcoming Hawaiian Guitar Steel Association
Festival in the Bay Area in late September. This year, we’re celebrating the 100th birthday of the late Barney Isaacs and featuring one of his premier students, Ed Punua.
This year, we have moved the festival back to the Bay Area. We will be gathering in Emeryville, CA, at the Hilton. Thursday and Friday will again feature many talented club member showcases. And Saturday will have another super Saturday block in the afternoon featuring various Bay Area guests.
Our luau will be at the legendary tiki bar Trader Vic’s and will feature the wonderful Bay Area band, the Alcatraz Islanders, for a happy hour, in addition to special guest Ed Punua’s luau performance and floor show.
In this issue, you will find an invitation to submit a video for our next virtual festival in July, a nice article Roberto wrote detailing his lunch with Bobby Black, some financial information, and information about upcoming dues increases.
Another important part of the issue is board elections. In this issue, you’ll find brief bios of the candidates and
voting instructions.
The club continues to grow and move forward with our goals of perpetuating the Hawaiian steel guitar. Thank you all so much for being a part of the club and for your generous donations!
Mahalo,
Christo Ruppenthal
HSGA President