Hanging Out with Nolan Hong

This conversation blew my mind! Samantha shared relationship advice and also went into her own relationship story and how it led her to the life and career she has today. She also tells a crazy story about her 8-hour heart surgery where SHE WAS AWAKE THE WHOLE TIME!! Samantha is an Author, Professional Keynote Speaker, Inner Mosaic Coach, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, and founder of The GEMMS with Samantha Kaaua, an international coaching company focused on helping individuals to transform their lives through building healthy relationships.

Bryan is the Executive Director of Mental Health America of Hawaiʻi. He shared how his childhood experiences led to his lifelong commitment to helping others and working in community support, and a crazy story about dropping out of college on orientation day and going across the country by himself in search of his next step of life. We also talked about the impact of covid on mental health in our community.

Ron Mizutani was one of Hawaii’s first Hawaiian news anchors. He worked in TV news for KHON for over 30 years, and later went on to become the CEO of Hawaii Foodbank. Today he’s the President and CEO of PBS Hawaii and an advocate for mental health. Ron is currently working on a book about his journey with depression and anxiety.

Savy is CEO/Founder of Gimme a Break, a nonprofit whose mission is to care for caregivers by giving an emotional and physical break as well as resources for continued well-being. We talked about how she helped her Japanese-speaking mom learn English while she was still in school, how she found her passion for helping people after she created her own carnival in her parent’s garage to raise funds for Ronald McDonald House, and of course we took a deep dive into caregiving.

Learn more about Gimme a Break at www.gab808.com. They also have a magazine for Caregivers called “Givers Guides” and 100% of profits go to support Gimme A Break. They’ve offered our listeners a special holiday rate of $19.99 for 1 year (12 issues)! SUBSCRIBE SPECIAL It’s normally $29.99! Here’s a link to see their November 2021 issue –  GG NOV Vol 2

Ashley is a digital marketing expert and owner of Baxter Digital Media Group. We talk about growing up on a farm in Texas, wanting to be a professional barrell racer (?!!), how she got rid of her Texas accent (and how it comes back), and going from working in marketing for Fortune 500 companies to doing work that makes a difference in the world.

Learn more about Ashley at her website, follow her on instagram & subscribe to her youtube channel!

Dr. Jill Omori (Ep 44) is the Infectious Disease Officer for the City and County of Honolulu and Director of the Office of Medical Education, John A. Burns School of Medicine. With the COVID-19 case numbers surging in Hawaii, we asked her to join us for some Q&A related to testing, quarantine at home, what measures we should be taking now to keep ourselves and our families safe, precautions for kids at school, etc. It was a long list of questions and we’re so grateful to Dr. Jill for taking so much time out of her crazy busy schedule to answer all of them for us.

Dr. Jill is also Executive Director of the Hawaii H.O.M.E. Project, a student-run free clinic which provides free medical care to houseless populations on Oahu. Learn more about their work in this interview with Nolan from 2020, and you can go to their website to see how you can support their work.

Lynn is president of the Nisei Veterans Legacy. She shares about her father who was a member of the 442nd, her 30-year career with the federal government, what it was like working at the Pentagon, being in Washington D.C. when 9/11 happened, and how that event played a critical role in her career.

Learn more about the Nisei Veterans Legacy

Erin is the visionary behind Choco leʻa, maker of artisan chocolates in Manoa Valley. She shared about her mission (“bringing peace to our world, one chocolate at a time”) and how that mission pushed her to be open with her professional and personal struggles at the onset of the pandemic, which in turn led to her writing her first book, “Bringing Peace To Our World, One Chocolate Story At A Time.”

Find Erin’s book and Jamie’s favorite chocolates at https://www.chocolea.com/ and follow Choco leʻa at https://www.instagram.com/chocoleahawaii/

Watch Erin’s episode of Elevate 808 at https://youtu.be/dOVnuZ85gFQ

Robert Cazimero is an icon of Hawaiian music, with a career that spans over 4 decades. This was an AMAZING hang out sesh. Robert shared stories about his parents, growing up one of 12 siblings, getting his start with Peter Moon’s The Sunday Manoa, performing with his brother Roland as the Brothers Cazimero, becoming a kumu hula, and even his go-to karaoke songs. (Heads up, there are a few swears in here, very minor, we left them in because the man is a legend )

Follow Robert’s fan page on facebook

Jamie and I are back with another check in episode. Just us, talking about our experiences with depression and anxiety — realizing we needed help, getting therapy, getting on medication. We’re not experts at all and this is not medical advice! We’re just sharing our own personal experiences and hoping that it may be of help to others .