Happy New Year. We hope you had a fantastic 2024. Here is what we have been doing.
At very end of 2023, we took off again for Antarctica to complete the trip that was canceled in 2022. We met friends Carol and Dennis Huebner in Miami and spent New Year’s Eve sailing the Drake Passage, renown as the roughest body of water in the world. Fortunately, our transit was not too bad, although there were several sleepless hours. We arrived in Antarctica on January 1 and spent the next 7 days exploring the area around the Antarctic Peninsula. There were Zodiac rides, kayaking, boat expeditions, glaciers, penguins, seals, whales, and more. It was spectacular.
As long as we were in the neighborhood, we explored Argentinian and Chilean Patagonia before returning home. As it happens, my college roommate and fraternity brother, Rick Lawrence, and his wife, Elin, were traveling South in Patagonia while we were traveling North, so we met up for dinner in El Calafate, Argentina. What’s the chance of that happening?
On our return trip we got stuck in Sao Paolo, Brazil airport for 27 hours. Fortunately, we were able to take advantage of the Business Class lounge. It turns out they serve the same (very good) food for lunch and dinner because they don’t expect people to be there long enough to have two meals. We had four.
On January 21, we celebrated Liane’s mother’s 97th birthday. She is in great health for her age although her memory is very poor.
In March, I flew to Florida to visit my brother, Joel, and sister-in-law, Pam. I got a lesson in “pour painting” from Pam. Very neat.
In April, I was elected to the Board of Directors of the Mid-Pacific Road Runners Club and am the Secretary of the Board. I have also become a Race Director, giving back in gratitude to those who put on the races I have been doing for 30-plus years. It's very fulfilling staging an event that allows hundreds to enjoy the outdoors.
I continue to volunteer with the Red Cross and have become a Supervisor for small teams that respond to local disasters, mainly house and apartment fires. This year I "deployed," virtually, providing assistance to some of those displaced by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
In early May I attended the Road Runners Club of America annual convention in CA and was able to spend an evening with Dave Cohen who was good enough to drive all the way from his home in the desert. Great to see him, but there is too much time between our visits.
Later in May, I did the Denver Marathon. I chose that event because I got to visit with Mark and Jeri Berland and Al Gramet and Noreen Davis. Thanks to their hospitality I got to enjoy the Mile High City by running through much of it.
In July and August, Liane and I sailed with Viking on the Danube from Romania, through Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, the Slovak Republic, and Hungary, ending up in Vienna. Much of the region was under Soviet control until only 30 years ago and some of the countries were fighting civil wars after that. The recovery from all that is seen everywhere. Our guide in Belgrade, Serbia told us that by the time she was 24 she had lived in 4 different countries without moving. She said, “When we wake up in the morning, we know what city we are in, but we aren’t sure what country it is.” Very different from the nations of Western Europe which have been at relative peace for 80 years.
Shortly after we returned from that trip, I was off to Nova Scotia to meet Al Gramet, Harvey Rackmil, and Harvey’s friend, Paul Corban, for a week of biking with Backroads. Beautiful country, great food, interesting history, and excellent company.
In September, Liane and I traveled to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for my 60th Mineola High School Reunion. Our committee selected the location because it was midway between our classmates in the Northeast and those in Florida. These get-togethers are growing smaller as we are all now in our late 70’s. But it was great to see those who attended and those who joined us on Zoom. We also got to spend time with good friends and South Carolina residents, Larry and Diane Stern.
Liane spent her year enjoying being Tutu to Kaia and working on feather projects. She is in the second year of her advanced featherwork training.
In November, she went to Brisbane, Australia with her friend, Mele Kahalepuna Chun, to mount a display of their featherwork at the Gallery of Modern Art, a part of the Queensland Art Gallery. They were participants in the 11th Annual Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, with artisans from all around the region. Although they have now returned from their two weeks down under, their exhibit will remain open to the public until April, 2025.
I rounded out the year with my 18th Honolulu Marathon. The 26 miles keeps getting longer, but it is all about getting it done, having fun, and finishing without injury.
Granddaughter Kaia will be 3 soon. She is thriving in pre-school. In the summer, she started soccer. What can a 2 ½ year old do on a soccer field? We are amazed at the skills she is learning and the fun she is having. Of course, no real games yet. And, she has recently learned that she will be a “big sister” in January when Kim and Nate welcome another daughter to the family.
Kim continues doing contracting in web-based product development. A few years ago, she and some friends founded Piʻikū, a non-profit that brings together aspiring web designers and engineers, professionals to mentor them, and local businesses. The objective is to build a tech workforce and ecosystem here in Hawaii.
Nate is in his second year as Dean of Academics at the Kamehameha Schools Middle School. KS is a school that emphasizes Hawaiian language and culture.
We are grateful that we are able to continue to enjoy our active retirement, we hope that 2024 was good to you also, and that you have a Healthy and Happy 2025.
Love,
Steve and Liane
At very end of 2023, we took off again for Antarctica to complete the trip that was canceled in 2022. We met friends Carol and Dennis Huebner in Miami and spent New Year’s Eve sailing the Drake Passage, renown as the roughest body of water in the world. Fortunately, our transit was not too bad, although there were several sleepless hours. We arrived in Antarctica on January 1 and spent the next 7 days exploring the area around the Antarctic Peninsula. There were Zodiac rides, kayaking, boat expeditions, glaciers, penguins, seals, whales, and more. It was spectacular.
As long as we were in the neighborhood, we explored Argentinian and Chilean Patagonia before returning home. As it happens, my college roommate and fraternity brother, Rick Lawrence, and his wife, Elin, were traveling South in Patagonia while we were traveling North, so we met up for dinner in El Calafate, Argentina. What’s the chance of that happening?
On our return trip we got stuck in Sao Paolo, Brazil airport for 27 hours. Fortunately, we were able to take advantage of the Business Class lounge. It turns out they serve the same (very good) food for lunch and dinner because they don’t expect people to be there long enough to have two meals. We had four.
On January 21, we celebrated Liane’s mother’s 97th birthday. She is in great health for her age although her memory is very poor.
In March, I flew to Florida to visit my brother, Joel, and sister-in-law, Pam. I got a lesson in “pour painting” from Pam. Very neat.
In April, I was elected to the Board of Directors of the Mid-Pacific Road Runners Club and am the Secretary of the Board. I have also become a Race Director, giving back in gratitude to those who put on the races I have been doing for 30-plus years. It's very fulfilling staging an event that allows hundreds to enjoy the outdoors.
I continue to volunteer with the Red Cross and have become a Supervisor for small teams that respond to local disasters, mainly house and apartment fires. This year I "deployed," virtually, providing assistance to some of those displaced by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
In early May I attended the Road Runners Club of America annual convention in CA and was able to spend an evening with Dave Cohen who was good enough to drive all the way from his home in the desert. Great to see him, but there is too much time between our visits.
Later in May, I did the Denver Marathon. I chose that event because I got to visit with Mark and Jeri Berland and Al Gramet and Noreen Davis. Thanks to their hospitality I got to enjoy the Mile High City by running through much of it.
In July and August, Liane and I sailed with Viking on the Danube from Romania, through Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, the Slovak Republic, and Hungary, ending up in Vienna. Much of the region was under Soviet control until only 30 years ago and some of the countries were fighting civil wars after that. The recovery from all that is seen everywhere. Our guide in Belgrade, Serbia told us that by the time she was 24 she had lived in 4 different countries without moving. She said, “When we wake up in the morning, we know what city we are in, but we aren’t sure what country it is.” Very different from the nations of Western Europe which have been at relative peace for 80 years.
Shortly after we returned from that trip, I was off to Nova Scotia to meet Al Gramet, Harvey Rackmil, and Harvey’s friend, Paul Corban, for a week of biking with Backroads. Beautiful country, great food, interesting history, and excellent company.
In September, Liane and I traveled to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for my 60th Mineola High School Reunion. Our committee selected the location because it was midway between our classmates in the Northeast and those in Florida. These get-togethers are growing smaller as we are all now in our late 70’s. But it was great to see those who attended and those who joined us on Zoom. We also got to spend time with good friends and South Carolina residents, Larry and Diane Stern.
Liane spent her year enjoying being Tutu to Kaia and working on feather projects. She is in the second year of her advanced featherwork training.
In November, she went to Brisbane, Australia with her friend, Mele Kahalepuna Chun, to mount a display of their featherwork at the Gallery of Modern Art, a part of the Queensland Art Gallery. They were participants in the 11th Annual Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, with artisans from all around the region. Although they have now returned from their two weeks down under, their exhibit will remain open to the public until April, 2025.
I rounded out the year with my 18th Honolulu Marathon. The 26 miles keeps getting longer, but it is all about getting it done, having fun, and finishing without injury.
Granddaughter Kaia will be 3 soon. She is thriving in pre-school. In the summer, she started soccer. What can a 2 ½ year old do on a soccer field? We are amazed at the skills she is learning and the fun she is having. Of course, no real games yet. And, she has recently learned that she will be a “big sister” in January when Kim and Nate welcome another daughter to the family.
Kim continues doing contracting in web-based product development. A few years ago, she and some friends founded Piʻikū, a non-profit that brings together aspiring web designers and engineers, professionals to mentor them, and local businesses. The objective is to build a tech workforce and ecosystem here in Hawaii.
Nate is in his second year as Dean of Academics at the Kamehameha Schools Middle School. KS is a school that emphasizes Hawaiian language and culture.
We are grateful that we are able to continue to enjoy our active retirement, we hope that 2024 was good to you also, and that you have a Healthy and Happy 2025.
Love,
Steve and Liane