| President's Letter |
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Aloha Friends and Supporters,I’m proud to say it was a good year infulfilling the mission of the OutriggerDuke Kahanamoku Foundation andserving as president was a deep andsatisfying inspiration for me. After witnessing ODKF’s influence fromthe helm, I’m more convinced than everthat charity and volunteerism are themarrow of society’s soul. It’s admirable to convey one’s generosityto family and friends. But it takes a higher,special level of benevolence to give sothat a community will be collectivelybetter served by this generosity. This past year I gladly signed tens ofdozens of letters thanking people for theirmonetary gifts to ODKF. All of the donationswere sent with the intrinsic beliefthat our community can be better if wehelp provide opportunities today fortomorrow’s generations. That is the crux ofODKF’s mission for Hawaii’s water sportscommunity. The support from donors proved especiallysatisfying as ODKF funded $201,000 inscholarships and grants in 2008 – by farour highest total ever! More than 100 of Hawaii’s young peopleand nonprofit organizations – anotherrecord for ODKF – felt the strength ofODKF’s generosity. Our college scholarshiprecipients were an incredibly accomplishedgroup of young men and women.And our athletic grant awardees wereequally deserving of our help. Two ofthem, Christel Simms and Daniel Coakley,swam in the Olympics for the Philippines. A special achievement in 2008 was theintroduction of the Duke KahanamokuAmbassador of Aloha Scholarship. Boardmember Judy Pietsch deserves credit forcreating this innovative scholarship, whilea big mahalo goes to board membersMalia Schreck and Ralph Goto for servingas committee co-chairs. Imagine a scholarship based on characterand a record of personal service to makeour community better – just like DukeKahanamoku himself did for so manyyears. Our inaugural winner was JackPope of Lahaina, but all the finalists werefabulous and a reminder as to the goodnessthat can and should be nurtured inHawaii’s young people. As you read our annual report about thecommunity programs and individuals thatODKF supported, please know that eachand every donation we received helpedmake this success possible. And with thebacking of our donors, volunteers, andfriends, ODKF will continue to perpetuatethe spirit and aloha of Duke Kahanamokufor the good of Hawaii.
It was a fun and exciting year and I lovedevery minute of it. Mahalo everyone! |