Conversations with Auntie Carol will be presented in print, eBook, and audio editions. I began the project toward the end of more than two-decades of living in Hawaiʻi. It completes the circle of my friendship with Carol as she was one of the first people to greet me when I arrived in Honolulu in 1972. Alone, except for my cat, I had arrived to teach classes in Scottish Highland Dancing and other performing arts. We met at the celebration of Scottish poet and lyricist Robert Burns’ birthday, for which I was booked as an entertainer. That day several people expressed desire to have their children study Scottish Highland Dancing with me. Carol and her family soon welcomed me personally as well as professionally.

You could not be in Auntie Carol’s presence without feeling inspired by the breath of Island living, for she was the embodiment of the Aloha Spirit. Regardless of the season or occasion, a visitor seldom left Carol’s home without a tangible reminder of their visit. Flowers, fruit, vegetables, and preserves were but a few of the parting gifts one carried back across the Koʻolau Mountains to the bustling city of Honolulu, or beyond to the continental United States or across the globe. And although we became close friends, I had no idea that I would eventually help organize family records, help with donations of books and heirlooms, and record many of her memories.

The interviews that are the basis of this literary project are observations on childhood, family, and events that reflect the inner spirit of the interviewee, who lived from 1923 to 2001. I have spent many years researching Carol and people related to her. She was a descendant of Hawaiian aliʻi (nobility and royalty), a grandniece of Col. Robert William Kalanihiapo Wilcox who strove to restore Queen Liliʻuokalani to her throne, and a second cousin of Johanna Pāpakaniʻau Wilcox, one of the six Mau Wilcox Sisters, and the first woman registered to vote in the Territory of Hawaiʻi. The recordings of most of our conversations were conducted in a sitting room filled with antique koa furniture, other heirloom furnishings, books, and photographs. Usually clad in a muʻumuʻu, Auntie Carol’s enthusiasm for life was demonstrated in her animated dialogue with the many people she greeted with her warm voice, frequent nods, and a jangling of bracelets made of carved wood, jade, or gold engraved with distinctive Hawaiian floral and lettering designs.

I am honored to present what I know of Carol’s life and believe that whether you have or will visit Hawaiʻi, you will feel you have taken an Island holiday when you read and/or listen to her stories of childhood on Maui and growing into womanhood on Oʻahu. It has been an unexpected outgrowth of my graduate studies in history at the University of Hawaiʻi and my freelance work as a writer. There are many surprises in Carol’s life, such as her being a solo performer of hula ʻauana for live performances and broadcasts of the international radio show Hawaii Calls in Waikīkī, including Saturday, December 6, 1941. Even if you have not loved history in the classroom, I believe you will enjoy hearing about a lifestyle that many people heartily embrace, regardless of their cultural heritage! When I am fortunate to find a literary agent and publisher interested in an oral history and memoir project, you will have the pleasure of hearing the warmth of Auntie Carol’s words as well as reading the moving stories of her life and family!