Hawaii's Ambassador of Aloha and Master Host,
Danny Kaleikini

Danny Kaleikini has become a legend in Hawaiian entertainment, drawing audiences from around the world for well over 40 years. He sings in English, Hawaiian and Japanese. In June 2001, Mayor Jeremy Harris had this to say about him: “Danny embodies the spirit of aloha through his extraordinary talent and communication skills.” Since his retirement in 1995 after a 30-year run at the Kahala Hilton, Danny has been active in entertaining locally and in Japan, restoring the Kahaluu Fishpond, developing the commercially successful Aloha Ke Akua Wedding Chapel, and serving on the boards of numerous charitable organizations. He has raised nearly $450,000 for local charities.

Dr. Kiyoshi Adachi
Japan

Dr. Adachi is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Kyushu University, School of Human Environmental Studies. Trained in sociology, his research agenda focuses on aging and volunteerism in Japan. He has published extensively. Among his recent publications is a book entitled Emerging Nonprofit Organizations under the Auspices of Public Long Term Care Insurance in Japan (2003).

Ms. Rita Barreras
Hawaii

Ms. Barreras, MA in Urban Affairs, is Project Director for the Maui Long-Term Care Partnership. The Partnership is a collaboration among Maui and state-level public, private, governmental, and non-profit agencies, and the community at large, that is working to implement a plan to address the long-term care needs of Maui citizens.

Dr. Kathryn Braun
Hawaii

Dr. Braun is Director of the University of Hawaii Center on Aging and Professor of Public Health. Her research focuses on Asian and Pacific Island aging, with publications exploring ethnic differences in life expectancy and mortality as well as cultural variations in disease perceptions and health practices. She is author of the faculty and study guides associated with the telecourse, Growing Old in a New Age. In addition, she is a fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.

Dr. Colette Browne
Hawaii

Dr. Browne is Professor and Chair of the Gerontology Program in Social Work at the University of Hawaii and a faculty affiliate of the Center on Aging. She is the author of more than 70 articles, book chapters, and monographs on gerontology-related subjects and received awards (Social Worker of the Year in Gerontology and Professional Education) from the National Association of Social Workers-Hawaii. Appointed to serve on President Clinton’s Summit on Retirement Planning, she is presently serving on the State of Hawaii’s Policy Board for Elderly Affairs.

Dr. Dong Hee Han
Korea

Dr. Dong-Hee Han is Director of Research Institute of Science for the
Better Living of the Elderly in Busan, Korea, which was recognized by
the Korean Government in 2005. Dr. Han also teaches graduate students
studying gerontology at both Inje and Kosin Universities and engages in the intergeneration Cyber-Neighbor program.

Mr. Tony Kreig
Hawaii

Mr. Krieg has worked For the past 25 years in the eldercare field on Maui as an administrator of Hale Makua, a non-profit organization which for the past 60 years has provided nursing homes, home health, day care and case management services for the frail elderly on Maui. He is currently chairman of the Healthcare Association's Long Term Care Division which represents nursing homes in the state of Hawaii. Tony is married with 3 children and enjoys photography and music. He is a graduate of the University of Hawaii's School of Public Health.

Mr. Wes Lum
Hawaii

Mr. Lum, MPH, is a Junior Specialist at the Center on Aging at the University of Hawaii who is working with the Executive Office on Aging to develop a comprehensive system of support and services for Hawaii's family caregivers. Prior to joining the Center on Aging, Mr. Lum worked in the Government Affairs Department of the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii and was a legislative analyst for the House Majority Staff Office where he conducted research and drafted legislation for the House Committees on Health and Human Services and Housing.

Ms. Mary Matayoshi
Hawaii

Ms. Matayoshi is the executive director of the Volunteer Resource Center of Hawaii. Her work experience includes teaching, Peace Corps administration, directing the Center for Continuing Education and Community Service at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, and serving as State Director of Volunteer Services. She serves on the boards of Read To Me International and Hawaii Pacific Gerontological Association, the Advisory Committee of the Elderly Affairs Division of the City and County of Honolulu, and various other community organizations.

Ms. Sachiko Matsunaga
Japan

Ms. Matsunaga is the founder of the Fukuoka Care Service Social Welfare Corporation which provides such services as assisted living, a group home for dementia patients, care management, visiting care, adult and child day care, and institutional long term care. She has an A.S. in Hotel and Restaurant Management from Paul Smith's College of Arts and Science. She also has experience in international hotel management and has developed a number of other community-based services for older persons.

Dr. Maeona Mendelson
Hawaii

Dr. Mendelson is Volunteer State President of AARP Hawaii, a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization for people age 50 and over with 140,000 members in Hawaii and 35 million in the United States. She is also executive Director of the Hawaii Intergenerational Network, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to social change through intergenerational strategies. She has a Ph.D. in the Philosophy of Social Welfare from the University of Hawaii.

Ms. Rose Nakamura
Hawaii

Ms. Nakamura is the founding Administrator of Project Dana, a faith in action volunteer caregivers program involving a coalition of 30 churches/temples across Hawaii that provides volunteer assistance to homebound frail elderly, disabled persons, and family caregivers. Ms. Nakamura was the first national recipient of the Rosalynn Carter Caregiving Award in 1993 and the prestigious EWC Baron Goto Award for outstanding achievement in 1983.

Dr. Takeo Ogawa
Japan

Dr. Ogawa is a Professor of the Faculty of Human-Environment Studies, Kyushu University. He is also Director of the East Asia Center on Aging, Kyushu University, Chairperson of Yamaguchi Prefecture’s Promotion Committee on Health and Social Services for Older Persons and a Trustee of the Japan Socio-Gerontological Society. Dr. Ogawa specializes in sociological research and is a consultant in the field of community planning for older persons.

Robert Retherford is Coordinator of Population and Health Studies at the East-West Center. He joined the East-West Center in 1970 after receiving his Ph.D. in Sociology at the University of California at Berkeley. His current research focuses on below-replacement fertility and population aging in East Asia and on a variety of maternal and child health issues in South Asia.

Ms. Pat Sasaki
Hawaii

Ms. Sasaki was appointed Director of the Hawaii Executive Office on Aging in 2003. She has since launched the Healthy Aging Project – a statewide community-based strategy to improve older adults’ physical health; development of a web-accessible aging data center in partnership with the University of Hawaii; and is leading efforts to improve public access to longevity and long-term care resources. Her public, private and volunteer endeavors in communications, multicultural education, labor, public health, and aging in the past 20 years have received national and state recognition.

Dr. Makiko Tanaka
Japan

Dr. Tanaka is a Professor of Nursing at the Yamaguchi Prefectural University and recipient of the Academic Award for Old Age from the Yamaguchi Institute for the Elderly and the Yamaguchi Prefectural University Award for Health Welfare. Among the numerous nursing- and health science related associations in which she is active are the Japan Academy of Nursing Science, Japan Society of Hospital Administration, Japan Academy of Nursing, Science and Policy, Japan Society for Clinical Pathways, and the Japan Society on Social Analysis.

Ms. Chengsi Wang
China

Ms. Wang is the Executive Secretary of the Division of Program Marketing and Training of the National Committees of both the YMCAs and the YWCAs of China. She joined the Y in 1984 and has been actively involved in international liaison and community work.