Kristen Nemoto Jay
Commentary
This past year as the editor for The Hawai‘i Herald has been tremendously rewarding, especially these months following our inaugural Pride issue. I was reminded why this paper means so much to me and all those who read it. That we’re a vessel to help share stories that would otherwise not have been told. That we belong to a very proud tradition of helping people feel seen and heard. Our founder, Fred Kinzaburo Makino, created the Hawaii Hochi with faith that people of Hawai‘i will continue to hold true the spirit of aloha and to pass down our stories to each generation thereafter. I’m personally so very grateful to all of you who are reading this, especially our subscribers for continuing to believe in our paper, and all those who called, emailed, DM-ed, and thanked us in person for standing up for inclusivity.
“Grateful” is our fitting theme for this issue. We first thank Grandpa “Yasu,” the late patriarch of the Hori ‘ohana and former owner of Holy’s Bakery, for his advice of “no short cuts” and example of a hard work ethic that showed in his delectable pie recipe ideas and sweet treats. We’re grateful for HIS Hawaii for bringing parts of Japan to Hawai‘i such as senbei crackers, especially when restrictions during the pandemic forced us all to stay on island. We thank Warren Nishimoto and Michiko Kodama-Nishimoto for interviewing and producing over 800 interviews, focusing on the working class in Hawai‘i, in order to help perpetuate and share people’s stories, held and preserved at the Center for Oral History at the University of Hawai‘i. Thank you Carolyn Morinishi for another great Culture 4Kids article to share with our keiki and Wayne Shinbara for capturing the spooktacular open house at Jodo Mission of Hawaii.
Finally, thank you, reader, for your support. The Hawai‘i Herald would not be here without you.
