Story Share Bios

Dave Del Rocco
Dave Del Rocco was born and raised in New Jersey but came to call Hawai‘i home after forty years of life here. He left a good job as a flight attendant to go back to school for a Masters degree in Library and Information Sciences and though he had a bachelors degree in Spanish from Rutgers University, he had a strong desire to learn Hawaiian. The result was a long career as a librarian with the Hawai‘i State Public Library system and then for the past thirteen years as a teacher at Punahou School. Along the way he became fluent in Hawaiian and an excellent storyteller.

Michael Jones
Michael Jones was a researcher at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa working with experimental particle physics from 1976 until he retired in 2015. His work included experiments with neutrino bubble chambers and the DZero experiment at Fermilab and the Belle experiment in Japan. Additional projects including work on issues where science and technology have a substantial impact on society including nuclear weapons and missile defense. He wrote the script for and helped to plan the exhibit “Fifty Years with the Bomb” in 1995. In addition to research, he taught a variety of courses including Physics 100 and “Perspectives on Nuclear War.”

‘Ike Kahaleahu
A first born of a first born of a first born, Kau’ike’olani  Kahikilaulani Kahaleahu, known as ‘Ike, was raised on the windward coast of Oahu in God’s country, Waimanalo.  With the Ko’olau as her backyard and the Pacific as her front, ‘Ike’s innate love for adventure, treasure hunting and the outdoors grew naturally.  Tutu wahine supported her eldest grandchild’s passion for life, beauty and culture and inspired her to pursue Hula, Lomilomi, La’au Lapa’au and other Native Hawaiian Traditions. With lots of firm encouragement and Aloha the knowledge passed on turned into a professional career as a cultural practitioner, including a 10 year long teaching position as the Kumu for the Hawaiian Culture and Hula elective class provided by the UH Outreach College on Mānoa Campus. Today, Kumu ‘Ike resides in Honolulu where she gladly continues to share what she knows with others.

Emma McGuire
Emma McGuire was born and raised on O’ahu. She graduated from Punahou School and later received her undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Presently, Emma is a teacher at Punahou School, where she has taught for 18 years. She currently teaches Ka Papa ʻIke Hawaiʻi in the 2nd and 3rd grades. She is a proud mother of two boys.

Neal Milner
Neal Milner is a retired political science professor at University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, where he worked for over forty years.  Presently, he is a columnist for Civil Beat, a contributing editor of Hawai‘i Public Radio’s  “The  Conversation” and a political analyst for the local television station, KITV.  In addition, he occasionally acts, writes books and plays, tells stories. He is the author of the book  “The Gift of Underpants.”

Ben Moffat
Ben Moffat was born and raised in Palo Alto, California. He came to Hawaiʻi in 1983 for graduate studies at the University in theatre, expecting to stay for three years and then move on.  He has been here ever since, feeling fortunate to call Kaʻaʻawa his home. He has performed across the state, as well as nationally and internationally, as a solo performer and as a member of “Monkey Waterfall,” a dance theatre company he co-founded with Yuki Shiroma. In 1987, he began teaching acting classes at Windward Community College and eventually became a full professor, teaching theatre as well as directing and producing plays. Twenty-two years later, in 2011, he left Windward to pursue his own work. In early 2020, Ben performed the Hawai‘i premiere of “Imperfect Gentlemen,” his one-man show about gender and family dynamics.

Sri Tencate
Sri Tencate is originally from Medan in North Sumatra, Indonesia and grew up speaking Javanese and Indonesian. She attended an American school and after high school enrolled in college in Medan where she received her undergraduate and graduate degrees. After graduation she worked as protocol secretary at the American Consulate and as an English language teacher. She later came to Hawai‘i as an East-West Center grantee to pursue a degree at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. While a student in Hawai‘i she met her soon to be husband. They were married in Indonesia but moved back to Hawai‘i and settled on Molokai. Sri worked at the Molokai High School library and eventually returned to Mānoa to earn a Masterʻs degree in Library Science. She returned to Molokai after graduation and became the librarian at the Molokai Public Library where she worked until her retirement.