Editor’s Note
Mark your calendars! The 43rd Annual Okinawan Festival, hosted by the Hawaii United Okinawa Association (HUOA), will be held on August 30 & 31, 2025 at the Hawaii Convention Center. This beloved event brings together thousands each year to enjoy Okinawan food, music, dance, crafts, and cultural exhibits, celebrating the spirit of Uchinanchu across generations.
As HUOA embraces new ways to connect through digital media, the festival experience now extends far beyond the convention center. Whether you join us in person or follow along online, we invite you to be part of this celebration of heritage, community, and a bright, hopeful future. Learn more at OkinawanFestival.com.
From festival and summer picnic reels on Instagram to oral histories watched across the globe, the Hawaii United Okinawa Association (HUOA) is using digital tools to preserve and share culture like never before. In an age where community is as much online as it is in person, HUOA has transformed its approach to storytelling and cultural connection—bridging islands, generations, and traditions with the click of a button.
Over the past five years, the Hawaii United Okinawa Association (HUOA) has significantly expanded its digital media presence–building a bridge between generations of Uchinanchu while forging new pathways to community connection. Guided by its mission to promote and perpetuate the Okinawan culture in Hawaii, HUOA has embraced digital media and tools not only as a necessity during the pandemic but as a long-term strategy for cultural continuity and community outreach.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 served as a catalyst for HUOA’s digital transformation. With in-person gatherings suspended, HUOA’s executive council quickly pivoted to virtual platforms to maintain its cultural programming. From hosting the first-ever Virtual Okinawan Festival, refreshing its websites to become a central hub of information and resources, to launching a weekly online talk-story show called Yuntaku Live, HUOA ensured that cultural education and celebration continued uninterrupted, even as physical spaces like the Hawaii Okinawa Center remained closed to large social gatherings.
Leading the organization during this pivotal time was HUOA president Lynn Miyahira, whose leadership proved instrumental in guiding the organization through its ambitious digital initiatives. One of the most notable was the Virtual Okinawan Festival, which replaced the annual in-person event. The inaugural virtual festival drew a global audience of over 64,200 viewers throughout the weekend. The festival featured recorded performances by Hawaii-Uchinanchu entertainers, including Jake Shimabukuro and local geino (performing arts) clubs, a cooking demonstration by Chef Roy Yamaguchi, and a Virtual Bon Dance.
The digital format enabled HUOA to reach a captivated local and global audience, including Uchinanchu worldwide. Approximately 60% of viewers during the Virtual Okinawan Festival were Hawaii residents, while others tuned in from the US mainland–including California, Nevada, Oregon, Illinois, Texas, and Alaska–as well as from Okinawa, Tokyo, and Kanagawa, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and South America. During a time of global isolation, HUOA’s digital presence provided comfort, connection, and cultural continuity to Uchinanchu communities worldwide. The success of the Virtual Okinawan Festival demonstrated the power of digital media to expand HUOA’s reach and mission beyond the shores of Hawaii.
In the years following the pandemic’s peak, HUOA continued to invest in digital content to engage its members. The organization produced a series of YouTube videos featuring its community of experts and proud Uchinanchu. Yuntaku Live highlighted community stories, cultural traditions, and offered behind-the-scenes glimpses at HUOA’s diverse network of respected Okinawan figures in Hawaii and abroad. Much of this work was driven by dedicated HUOA members, including David Jones, Chris Iwamura, Jon Itomura, Brianne Nitahara Yamada, and Jacob Higa.
For Chris Iwamura, his involvement with Yuntaku Live was deeply personal. “I have always heard stories about my grandpa dancing but never got a chance to see it for myself,” he shared. Chris began volunteering in the kitchen at the Okinawan Festival in 2018 and later jumped in to help edit the Virtual Okinawan Festival. “I’ve always viewed digital media as a way of preserving generations,” he said. “Looking back on my time spent editing the festival made me realize that these videos we were editing, was something that I wanted to be part of–to help preserve, for future generations.”
Despite physical separation, Iwamura reflects on that time as a manifestation of the Okinawan word yuimaaru–community. “The virtual festival and a lot of HUOA’s digital push brought together a younger generation of Hawaii-Uchinanchu leaders,” he said. “Take Carly Namihira, for example. At the time she was living in New York and was editing segments of the virtual festival in her free time. Not only was she physically so far from Hawaii but she was also six hours ahead. We’d go back and forth editing segments of the festival for months.”
As restrictions and state and federal mandates began to lift and events were beginning to be held in-person again, HUOA’s digital initiatives did not fade–they evolved. The organization strengthened its online presence, revamped its websites, and expanded its digital communications. Members relied on a blend of traditional and digital media platforms like HUOA’s website, the Purple Blast for email updates, the bi-monthly Uchinanchu newsletter, and social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to stay connected.
This blending of traditional and modern communication methods is not new for HUOA–it reflects a long standing commitment to keeping the community informed; a legacy that began decades ago with the Okinawa Rengo News. In August 1968, HUOA (then the United Okinawa Association of Hawaii) published the first issue of the Okinawa Rengo News. At the time, it was a typewritten newsletter distributed to members’ homes, serving as a vital link for those unable to attend meetings or events. Then-president Tommy S. Toma described the Okinawa Rengo News as “the best media to communicate with the members who are not able to attend meetings or functions… and to encourage your participation for a stronger and more effective organization.” The publication chronicled community milestones, shared updates on HUOA member clubs’ annual picnics and parties, and helped foster a sense of unity among members across the islands.
By the early 1980s, the Okinawa Rengo News evolved into what is now known as the bi-monthly Uchinanchu newsletter. Though its format has changed over the decades from typewritten pages to professionally printed issues and now digital editions (available on HUOA.org), the purpose remains the same: to inform, unite, and celebrate the Hawaii-Uchinanchu community. Today, Uchinanchu continues to highlight community events, cultural milestones, and recounts personal stories–bridging generations through shared experiences and collective memory. Its availability in both print and digital formats ensures that HUOA’s message reaches members of all ages, honoring tradition while embracing accessibility.
From 2020 and continuing to today, HUOA’s websites–HUOA.org and OkinawanFestival.com–have undergone a series of redesigns and updates. Led by member Jennifer Kumura and a volunteer team of designers and developers, the team conducted interviews with festival attendees and organizers to build a more modern, accessible, and user-friendly platform for all to access. Their goal was not only to update the design of both websites but to make the backend of the websites easier to manage and maintain for the future.
Jennifer’s involvement with HUOA began in 2018 while she was living in San Francisco. “I had a bit of an identity crisis being away from home. It was while I was living away, that I realized how much of the Japanese and Okinawan cultures were part of my identity.” A phone call with her aunty, Donna Nakamura, led her to the Okinawa Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH) and eventually HUOA. “In 2020, we began a two-year, volunteer-run project to redesign and replatform the HUOA.org website. This project enabled early-career designers and developers to gain real-world experience, working as a team and with a client, which helped to pave the way for landing their first tech jobs.”
What began as a one-woman effort has quickly grown to a team of 10-15 volunteers at any given time, supporting both HUOA.org and OkinawanFestival.com. Kumura credits a lot of the work to her team, including:
HUOA.org
Anouar Nouri, Anusha Nautiyal, Caro Higa, Casey Magnuson, David McGrouther, Gordon Lewis, James Lau, Marco Salcedo, Matthew Laguardia, Michael Cheng, Michelle Berios, Mehz Kharodawala, Mirabella Medallon, Shyli Yazdani, Taylor Fukumoto,
OkinawanFestival.com
Amanda Nitta, Colleen Barrett, Courtney Miyashiro, Lauren Hirai,
“I believe that technology plays a huge role in HUOA’s mission,” Kumura said. “Technology solutions, like a mobile-friendly website, create wider access and more opportunities to discover and learn more about our organization, upcoming events, and resources available–especially for the younger generations.” She adds, “websites are communication tools. The redesign of HUOA’s website is an opportunity for us to share and create more and newer connections between our culture and our community beyond the physical locale of Hawaii.”
Today, Kumura’s team continues to grow and evolve. The refreshed sites are updated on a regular basis and serve as central hubs for news, updates, and cultural resources for members and non-members to access.
As HUOA entered 2025 and the 125th anniversary of Okinawan Immigration to Hawaii, it sought to capture and share the unique stories of its diverse community. HUOA enlisted the help of David Arakawa (also known as David Blue), a freelance videographer who began volunteering with the organization in 2024.
“Everyone who volunteers puts a lot of time and effort to help our community and culture thrive,” Arakawa said. “My biggest fear going into this project was that there would not be enough depth to HUOA to tell enough stories. But now, having seen the behind-the-scenes, I realize how many layers and hands go into making the organization and its events come to life. It’s incredible to see how much people care–Uchinanchu pride. It’s everywhere, and everyone is so proud to be part of this community.”
David has been producing a series of short videos documenting the 125th anniversary year. “I recently interviewed former HUOA president Brandon Nakasone. We talked about how each generation contributes to the perpetuation of the Hawaii-Okinawan community and culture. What we are experiencing as yonsei and gosei is completely different from the challenges our ancestors experienced. I hope that by capturing these events, we’ll be able to remember and share our experiences for future generations to remember and reflect on as well.”
“These videos aren’t just capturing moments,” Arakawa added. “They’re about preserving a point in time so future generations can see all that we were able to accomplish, in so much that our traditions and culture can continue… Social and digital media adds a layer of accessibility to connecting and educating the community and people, like myself–who don’t know anything about their culture but might be curious to learn more.”
Since sharing his videos in March 2025 on HUOA’s Instagram and Facebook pages, the videos Arakawa has produced have been viewed over 150,000 times and have reached communities of people throughout Hawaii, Okinawa, Los Angeles, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Canada, the UK, Indonesia, and Australia.
As we reflect on 125 years of Okinawan Immigration to Hawaii, we honor the traditions, spirit, and values that our ancestors carried across the Pacific. Their legacy lives on–not only in the music, dances, and stories we share–but now also in the digital spaces we create. Digital media has become a powerful vessel for preserving and perpetuating the same culture, traditions, and values that our ancestors brought with them when they immigrated to Hawaii, now allowing us to connect across generations and oceans with unprecedented reach and intimacy.
Through live-streamed festivals, social media, website refreshes, and other digital storytelling initiatives, HUOA continues to evolve while also staying true to its mission. These digital innovations are not departures from tradition–they are extensions of it. They reflect HUOA’s enduring commitment to its member associations, perpetuating the culture, arts, and traditions of Okinawa, and pride for its Hawaii community–now carried forward through videos and online channels that will live on forever.
In this way, digital media becomes more than just a tool–it becomes a bridge. A bridge between past and future. A bridge between Hawaii, Okinawa, and the world. And a bridge between our ancestors of our past and the youth of our future. As we look ahead, we embrace HUOA’s theme for 2025: “Miree Ya Kugani–A Bright, Hopeful Future.” The future is indeed bright and hopeful–not because we leave the past behind, but because we will continue to carry it with us–illuminated by the light of digital innovation, guided by the strength of our shared culture, traditions, and values, and grounded in unwavering pride that Hawaii-Uchinanchu have for this community.
To see all of HUOA’s digital media innovations visit HUOA.org, or find them on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook, @HawaiiUnitedOkinawaAssociation.
About Jessica: Currently leading communications and community relations at FCH Enterprises, Inc. (aka @Zippys on the Internet), Jessica specialize in storytelling, community connection, and being chronically online. With a background spanning entertainment, events, and digital marketing, She thrives on bringing big ideas to life. Whether it’s launching a campaign, hosting a community event, or shaping a brand voice that resonates — if it brings people together with purpose and passion, she’s all in.
