Special Issue Commemorates 50th Anniversary Celebration Table of Contents Features Aloha and mahalo Jubilee! 2 A Stellar Week of Celebration Gladys Knight Sets the Pace 6 for a Golden Jubilee! Singer Unites Many Cultures in Celebration EXECUTIVE EDITOR On the Shoulders of Giants 10 V. Napua Baker , V.P. for University Advancement President Shumway Honors His Predecessors Genuine Gold 13 EDITOR Honored Alumni Representatives Rob Wakefield , Director of Communications fter months and months of anticipation and Evening of Memories 14 CONTRIBUTING EDITOR effort, it is hard to believe that BYU-Hawai‘i’s Vernice Weneera , Director of The Pacific Institute Golden Jubilee celebration of 2005 is now Hawai‘i Governor Linda Lingle 17 Abehind us. I’m not sure that I’ve ever experienced any - Delivers Keynote Address thing quite as perfect as our Jubilee Week. WRITERS Children Commemorate 1921 Flag Raising 18 Mike Foley With the attitude that they were going to produce Andrew Miller something magnificent, everybody worked together in Jubilee Ball 20 Amanda Beard incredible unity, laboring day and night, and doing it Elder Robert Parchman with the most wonderful harmony. There were no Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann 22 Justin Smith glitches, no arguments, we just did it together. Gladys Addresses Special Luncheon for President Monson Scott Christley Knight and her choir, the Evening of Reminiscences, the landmark speeches by Hawai‘i Governor Linda Lingle and Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, the ART DIRECTOR Fine Arts ExtravaganZa, and so many other moments Anthony Perez , University Communications comprised a week we will never forget. And we can indeed go forward. We can be proud of what BYU-Hawai‘i has become. Jubilee Week has The other thing manifested to me during the Jubilee given us confidence; it has given us the ability to PHOTOGRAPHY was the overwhelming outpouring of the Spirit of look into the future and say we can do even better. Monique Saenz , University Communications the Lord. It was electric and wonderful. Joy and The Lord will remain with us. Continued success Mei Mei Ho gratitude were everywhere. “What hath the Lord will be based on our ability to cling to the prophe - Mary Eaton wrought?” was the question David O. McKay asked cies of President McKay and follow the direction of Mark Philbrick two years after the campus was established in 1957. our current leadership in The Church of Jesus Christ Wally Barrus Now, 50 years later, the Lord hath wrought this of Latter-day Saints so that we can achieve what the 6 50 magnificent, wonderful campus. And to have Lord wants us to achieve. BYU-Hawai‘i is an integral 26 President Thomas S. Monson, Elder Robert D. Hales, part of the Church and the mission of the Church is CHANGE OF ADDRESS To continue receiving Brigham Young University and Bishop Keith McMullin on campus to help us really the mission of this school, to prepare young Celebration at the Polynesian Cultural Center 24 men and women to go forth and influence the world Hawai‘i Magazine , please send address changes to: commemorate President McKay’s prophetic legacy Rowena Reid was a great affirmation of that spirit. for good toward the establishment of peace—peace Devotional With President Thomas S. Monson 26 Director, Alumni Relations according to the gospel of Jesus Christ. BYU-Hawai‘i #1951 _ For me, the most emotional moment was when Community Celebration Day 29 La‘ie , HI 96762 USA I realiZed that the Lord has accepted this campus, With deepest thanks and warmest wishes, email: [email protected] Phone: (808) 293-3648 our humble offering. All of the tears and sweat Historic Markers Dedicated 31 Fax: (808) 293-3491 and mistakes and effort over the years, all of it was www.byuh.edu/alumni worth it, because He was with us all along. Now Hawai‘i Multi-Stake Conference 33 here He was saying, “You feel my spirit, I approve. President Monson Presiding Brigham Young University Hawai‘i Magazine is Now go forward.’” President Eric B. Shumway published twice each year by the University Advancement Office of Brigham Young University Caring Contributors 34 Hawai‘i. BYU-Hawai‘i is operated by The Church University Benefactors Participate in Jubilee of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Printing by BYU Press, Provo, Utah. Jubilee! An Evening with the Fine Arts 50 Finale Concert a World-Class Event Front cover photo by Monique Saenz. t was eight days for the ages—a fleeting period of cele - “I feel so profoundly grateful that the Lord poured out His spirit on bration that was itself worthy of the history books. all of the events,” the president continued. “I couldn’t help but feel that this was a way He showed His love and His acceptance of BYU- I Hawai‘i and what we’ve tried to do over the last 50 years.” For the participants of BYU-Hawai‘i’s Golden Jubilee Week that unfolded from October 16–23, 2005, the days will be Reflecting on a landmark occasion such as this, President fondly remembered as a successful commemoration of 50 Shumway’s thoughts also returned to the first days of the glorious years on this unique campus in the Pacific. university, to the prophet who started it all. Starting one Saturday and ending the following Sunday, “I feel that if President David O. McKay could have been here per - Jubilee Week featured everything you could want: speeches sonally, he would have been pleased,” President Shumway said. and salutations from the leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and from the governor and Indeed, when President McKay, the ninth leader of the Church, mayor; performances by venerable music icon Gladys Knight stood in the cane fields of L a¯ ‘ie in February 1955, he alone could and her Saints Unified Voices choir, the Honolulu Symphony imagine what this university would be like as we all celebrated a Orchestra and several BYU-Hawai‘i musical groups; flag cer - half-century of progress. emonies; the largest alumni chapter conference in the uni - versity’s history and other alumni and student gatherings; No one else could have envisioned the 2,400 students from 76 parades, carnivals, a day at the Polynesian Cultural Center, nations who now walk the halls and enrich the classrooms, or the and lots and lots of food (but even more hungry consumers). dedicated faculty and staff who bless their lives. Certainly, A Stellar Week of Celebration nobody foresaw the facilities nestled into the 100-acre campus And, of course, no major event in these islands would be just a short walk from the shores of windward O‘ahu. Nor could complete without the blessings of rain, winds, and resultant they have imagined the university’s partner in education, the power outages—all of which combined to punctuate, but not Polynesian Cultural Center, which has so significantly contributed deter, the final weekend of the Jubilee celebration. to the education of more than 14,000 students over the years. The day after the activities concluded, BYU-Hawai‘i President Eric B. Shumway expressed gratitude. “Every event exceeded our expectations in terms of excel - lence and quality, including the response of our alumni,” he said. “We can measure the quality in the eagerness and the enthusiasm of the people who came. Their most frequent statement to me was, ‘I had no idea,’ or, ‘It was beyond my expectations.’” Far left: Gladys Knight lifted the crowd to its feet, taking them on a reminiscent trip through R&B music history. Center: Barlow Bradford conducts the Honolulu Symphony and a 100 voice choir made up of BYU-Hawai‘i students and L¯a‘ie community members during the Evening with the Fine Arts con - cert. Above: Transferring from another University in Samoa, Ruby Talataina experienced a wonderful difference when she came to BYU-Hawai‘i. 2 BYU-Hawai‘i Winter 2005 BYU-Hawai‘i Winter 2005 3 All of this prophetic progress was cele - a multi-stake conference that was broad - Obviously, such an enormous venture brated and remembered during the glori - cast live throughout Hawai‘i. takes a lot of planning. In this case, a ous week of Jubilee—commemorated steering committee was formed three along with the thousands of students, Additional events were held in the years in advance to organize and carry administrators, faculty, staff, missionar - McKay Gymnasium (known by most out the events, not just for Jubilee Week ies, community members, financial con - alumni as “the old gym”), McKay Flag but for the entire year of celebration. tributors and others who have blessed Circle (or “the Little Circle”), and other the campus in the 50 years leading up locations around the university and in The committee was comprised of some to this occasion. the community. 30 individuals—all spending volunteer hours beyond their normal duties. The eight days of celebration Heading up the group were were packed with events and co-chairs Vernice Wineera ('77), gatherings of various kinds. Thousands of visitors came onto campus during the Director of the Pacific Institute, Easily more than 40 activities and Rex Frandsen ('68), Assistant celebration, and the Polynesian Cultural Center took place, although an exact Chief Information Officer. Many count is impossible because of hosted 6,000 people. more volunteers put in hours on the number of informal assem - various sub-committees. The blies and reunions organized committee members worked by groups of alumni, students, tirelessly to plan the events, donors, and other participants. Thousands of visitors came onto registration, promotions, reunions, campus during the celebration, and hosting, and other important logistics.