Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce Seats New Board

Front-Shirley Blackburn, Teri Freitas Gorman, Mahina Martin, Sharron Joseph, Back-Boyd Mossman, Chubby Vicens, Pua Canto, Randy Piltz, Wayne Wong, Cory Vicens, Kai Pelayo, Paul Mancini. Not pictured Lui Hokoana

Members of the Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce elected officers for the coming year and welcomed two new members to serve on the board of directors.

A blessing was held for the new board at their first meeting of the new fiscal year on July 5, 2016, kicking off the organization’s 10th Anniversary Year.

New president Teri Freitas Gorman will lead an all-wahine executive team comprised of vice president Mahina Martin; treasurer Shirley Kaihua Blackburn; board secretary Sharron Joseph; and past-president Doreen Pua Canto.

New board members Cory Vicens and Wayne Wong will join Lui Hokoana, Paul Mancini, Boyd Mossman, Kai Pelayo Randy Piltz, Paul Mancini, and Mercer “Chubby” Vicens in their community service.

“We are so fortunate to have such breadth and depth of professional talent on our board,” said Freitas Gorman.

“Our Hawaiian chamber is so active that many people are surprised to hear we are a volunteer-managed organization. The deep commitment of our board is a direct reflection of our leadership over the past decade. We owe our current success to our founding president Boyd Mossman and those who followed him: Jimmy Haynes, Howard Kihune, Chubby Vicens, Kai Pelayo, and Pua Canto,” she said.

NEW SLATE OF OFFICERS

President Teri Freitas Gorman was recently named Director of Community Relations & Patient Affairs for Maui Grown Therapies, one of two new state-licensed medical cannabis providers for Maui. She has more than two decades of executive experience in communications, community relations, marketing and education in Hawaiʻi and overseas. A Wailuku native and graduate of UCLA, she has lived and worked in the Netherlands, New Zealand and on the west and east coasts of the US. Teri lives in Ōmaʻopio.

Vice President Mahina Martin is Director of Government & Community Relations for Maui Electric Company. She has nearly 30 years of community service that includes leadership roles in nonprofit organizations, county government and community-driven initiatives. She is also a former Department of Hawaiian Homes commissioner, representing Maui. Born and raised on Maui, she has served on several boards of state and local organizations and organizes Maui Interscholastic League’s sport of high school outrigger paddling for Maui, Molokaʻi and Lāna‘i. Mahina is a Wailuku resident.

Treasurer Shirley Blackburn is co-owner of Maui Land Broker & Property Management, Inc., provider of financial services, rental property management and real estate sales for six-planned community home-owners associations. She is a strong advocate for the Maui Food Bank and Habitat for Humanity. She is actively involved in her husband Joe Blackburn’s campaign for election to the Maui County Council. A native of O‘ahu, she now lives in Wailuku.

Board Secretary Sharron Joseph has lived on Maui since 1969. Employed for 24 years, she currently serves as the Purchasing Assistant for Hale Makua Health Services in Wailuku. A gifted hula dancer, she also serves as vice president for the board of directors of Hālau Kealaokamaile. Sharron lives in Kula.

Past-President Doreen Napua Canto is employed by Pelekana Permits. Known throughout Maui for her generous volunteer spirit, the Central Maui Hawaiian Civic Club recently honored her with the Kupamakaʻāinana Award for community service. She is president of the Kula Community Association and serves the State of Hawai‘i as a Hawaiian Homes commissioner and the County of Maui as a commissioner for the Department of Fire and Public Safety. She recently served on the Special Committee on County Governance. Pua is a graduate of Phoenix University and lives in Kula.

NEW BOARD MEMBERS AT LARGE

Cory Vicens is self-employed as a digital food and brand marketing consultant. Born and raised on Oʻahu and an alumnus of Punahou School, she returned to Hawaiʻi in 2013 after 35 years on the mainland to be closer to her family. Since her return, she has worked with the Living Pono Project, Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce, Secretary-Maui Memorial Medical Center Foundation Board, and the UH Maui College, Maui Food Innovation Center Advisory Group. Cory holds a degree in professional culinary arts from Le Cordon Bleu® Culinary Arts Institute in London, and extensive education in hotel and restaurant business management. She is a resident of Pāʻia.

Wayne Wong is the Maui Center Director of the Hawaiʻi Small Business Development Center Network, providing no-cost business counseling and training to small businesses. He has three decades of information technology experience including several executive positions during the “dot.com” era. He is also a four-time Grammy Award recipient as “Best Hawaiian Music Album” producer. His motivation for serving on the MNHCoC board is to acknowledge his Hawaiian heritage while helping to perpetuate and integrate the culture with western commerce constructs. Wayne has a BS from the University of Washington and an MBA from the University of Puget Sound. He lives in ʻĪao Valley.

The newly installed board will now turn its attention to producing the 10th Anniversary Hui Holomua Business Fest scheduled for Friday, Oct. 7, 2016 at the Grand Wailea.