Susie Chun Oakland served in the Hawaii State Legislature for 26 years, 6 years in the House of Representatives and 20 years in the State Senate. During her tenure in Hawai`i’s legislature, she served on many committees that served to advocate for the kupuna. She was Co-Chair of the Joint Legislative Committee on Long Term Care, 1996 to 1998; Co-Founder (March 2006 – 2016) and Co-Convener (March 2006-2016), Member, Hawaii State Legislature’s Kupuna Caucus, March 2006 to present; Member of the Family Caregivers Working Group, 2014; and many other noteworthy committees and organizations. Susie currently serves as the Program Director of the largest senior center in Hawaii, Lanakila Multi-Purpose Senior Center, in Liliha. She continues to serve on numerous non-profit boards of directors working on affordable housing, child wellbeing, culture and arts, immigrant and refugee, persons with disabilities, education, and sustainability and environment protection issues.

Jeannette Koijane was honored because of her commitment since 1988 to serving those who need serious illness care. Since 2010, Jeannette has been the Executive Director of Kōkua Mau, which was established in 1999 as a statewide network to lead the movement to improve care for everyone. Kōkua Mau partners with health plans, health care systems, hospices, government agencies and other organizations statewide. With Jeannette’s leadership, they strive to make advance care planning and open communication about care and support for those with serious illnesses and their loved ones, including end-of-life, the cultural norm. The Kōkua Mau website is seen as the statewide resource for quality, non-biased information on resources and information on serious illness, including palliative care, hospice care, bereavement and Advance Care Planning, along with Advance Directives and POLST, with information in 13 languages.

Dorothy Arriola Colby is a highly-regarded dementia care specialist with more than 25 years of professional and personal experience in caring for people living with dementia. Since 2014, she has provided dementia trainings for family caregivers and professionals, including physicians on all islands, as well as on the U.S. Mainland. She is a Certified Positive Approach to Care Trainer and Mentor. She is also a Hawaii Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative Memory Care Navigator, Dementia Friends Master Trainer & Champion, and Roslyn Carter Institute Dealing with Dementia Trainer.

Gary Simon is a proud graduate of the 1978 class at Saint Louis High School. He received his bachelor of science in chemistry from the University of Hawai‘i Manoa and says he learned how to reason and how to think rationally, as well as sensibly. More significantly, the degree taught Gary how to think freely and to consider and try different avenues and method to realize a desired outcome or solution. Before retiring in 2019, Gary was the Director of Corporate Affairs and Advocacy at the St. Francis Healthcare System, was previously Executive Director of St. Francis Hospice and Program Director for St. Francis Health Services for Senior Citizens. As a volunteer, he serves on the boards of The Arc In Hawaii, the Hawaii Family Caregiver Coalition, and Kokua Council. Gary served multiple terms on the State of Hawaii Policy Advisory Board for Elder Affairs and was a member of the Statewide Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias. Fast forward to 2023 where Gary is the State President of AARP Hawaii and also the Chair of the AARP Hawaii Executive Council, a volunteer leadership committee that helps set AARP Hawaii’s state agenda and programs.

Emmet White exemplifies a true servant leader who placed the needs of our kūpuna above all. Emmet retired from the Arcadia Family of Companies in 2018 after 23 years of service. During his tenure he established the Arcadia Foundation which provides financial assistance to older adults in need. He expanded Arcadia’s services both onsite and in the community and was instrumental in ensuring the development of a culture of social accountability as a 501(c)3 organization to advocate for more resources for our kūpuna and the professional organizations supporting them. He is married to Betty White, the former Head of School for Sacred Hearts Academy and in June of this year celebrated 51 years of marriage. Together they have three children and seven grandchildren.

Cullen Hayashida has spent over 40-plus years helping to develop over 50 elder care service projects in hospitals, nursing homes, home cares, colleges, and community settings. His work as an educator-researcher and program developer have been directed towards two objectives: (1) to find cost-effective caregiving solutions in the least restrictive environment; and (2) to advocate for older adults as assets to the community. He serves as am ambassador to promote the need to invest in Hawaii’s future generation of students in the field of aging. Cullen’s educational reach goes from Hawaii to Japan and is a vital contributor to speakers at the HPGS biennial conference each year.

Rose Nakamura is the Founding Administrator of Project Dana. In 1989, Rose was asked by her good friend and Founder of Project Dana, Mrs. Shimeji Kanazawa, to help set up an interfaith ministry of compassionate volunteers to visit and assist seniors with support services. Rose had just retired from the East-West Center as Program Officer and Administrator after 25 years. For 28 years, Rose served as Founding Administrator, with the same spirit of compassion that led her first to help organize Project Dana. She retired in October 2017 and has received many awards for her outstanding leadership and achievement, inspiring countless numbers of individuals, staff and volunteers.