Saturday Briefing

By Kathy Hansberry

The 4th Annual Hawaii Book & Music Festival, held this past weekend, was a huge success for Outrigger Enterprises Group and the entire community. This annual two-day festival drew thousands of people to Honolulu Hale Civic Grounds and brought in both local and nationally- acclaimed authors, storytellers, talented musicians, and entertainers. The event was well-received by readers and music lovers from all over Hawaii and the mainland. Proceeds from the event go to Hawaii Literacy and Read To Me International.

As a sponsor, Outrigger hosted a promotional booth featuring the return of our popular “Three Strikes, You’re Out” game. Excitement was high, as spectators stood in line for a chance to win fabulous Outrigger logo merchandise. In addition, there were various children’s activities, including a Tic-Tac-Toe game, Lucky Duck Pond, and a special arts and crafts section, where children decorated foam visors to take home. Another main attraction at the Outrigger Booth was the Hawaiian Music CD swap, a new addition to the festival this year, where attendees brought in their used or unwanted CDs and swapped them for a different one from our collection. The live music from the main entertainment stage located next to the Outrigger booth provided non-stop entertainment for volunteers and visitors.

Sunday evening’s entertainment brought about new excitement as Outrigger presented Kani Ka Pila, a special concert and talent search in conjunction with the newly- opened Kani Ka Pila Grille and the Outrigger Reef on the Beach. (See related article “And the Winner Is…Kupaoa“).

As always, we couldn’t have contributed to the success of the Hawaii Book & Music Festival without the participation of the members of our ‘ohana and their families and friends.  A big “Mahalo” to the following people for generously volunteering their time: Ellen Isidro, Heather Doeringer, Lorry Ijima-Sato and her ‘ohana, Danny Wang, Sam Hoffman, Kevin Wong, Val Tanaka and her friend Suzanne Yamada, Jane Inouye and her husband Harold, Taryn Wong, LiLi Hallett, Jo-Ann Yonamine, Suzanne Doty, Peggy Chasteen, Angela Brown, Nancy and Dan Daniels, Jenny Meyers and her daughters Kala and Keala, and Jenny Pang and her daughter Inika.

Hope to see you all next year at the 5th Annual Hawaii Book & Music Festival!