 Hi, I'm Rusty Komori, and this is Beyond the Lines. We are broadcasting live from the beautiful Think Tech Hawaii TV studio in the Pioneer Plaza in downtown Honolulu. This show is based on my book, also titled Beyond the Lines, and it's about leadership, creating a superior culture of excellence and finding greatness. Today's special guest is a former Miss Hawaii USA, the former TV host and producer of the very popular Living 808 TV show on K-Chon2 and the president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Hawaii. She is Trini Kaupuiki, and today we are going Beyond Wishes. Hey, Trini. Great having you here. Thank you. Congratulations to you on this very successful show and your book, of course. Oh, thank you. You know, how is it being on the other side now that I'm interviewing and you're being interviewed? I got to tell you, I don't like it. I would much rather be over there. It does feel weird to be on this side of things. But that is my world now, right? I am no longer the interviewer. I am typically the interviewee, so I have to get used to it. Well, Trini, let's go back to the beginning. Can you tell me about what schools and activities you did in your youth? Sure. I grew up on Maui, a country Maui. I attended St. Joseph's School, and then for Intermediate School, I went over to Kalama Intermediate, and then I graduated from St. Anthony Junior Senior High School in Wailuku. And I was very active in school. My mother used to... I used to drive her crazy because whenever something came up, I'm like, I have to do that. I have to join that. But I was active in sports, basketball, volleyball, track. In high school, I was a cheerleader, very active in student government. I was class president for a few years, and my senior year, I was student body president. So, yeah, very active. I loved being involved. And then what college did you end up going to? So I went to Loyola, Marymount University, my freshman year, and then I transferred to the University of Hawaii, where I majored in journalism. Yeah, professional student. I was in college for a long time, but we don't have to talk about that. Oh, you're very educated. I wish that that would be the result of being in college for a long time, but, you know, I was also a professional hula dancer. Oh, yeah. And so whenever a trip came up, I used to dance with Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau at the time. And so whenever a long trip came up, I would take the semester off from school because I couldn't just take a month off right from classes. So that's why it took me longer than the normal student. Yes, but I did finish. Trini, your husband, Sean, and your kids, Malie and Kala, tell me about them. Yes, they're wonderful. I hit the jackpot with my husband, Sean. You know, you never know how someone is going to be. You know, when you marry somebody, you hope for the best. But at the time, you know, I didn't have kids. I didn't have a super demanding career. You know, things change right when you're after you're married. But he's wonderful. He's a wonderful man. He's an attorney, very smart. But, you know, my job has changed over the years. I've had a very demanding schedule, you know, for more than 10 years. I worked early mornings at KH1. So what that meant for him is he had to wake up early, I mean, middle of the night, you know, when the kids are a little waking up, he was the one to wake up with them if they were sick and, you know, made them breakfast, took them to school in the morning. It's a really wonderful, wonderful man. He's super dad. I am very, very grateful and appreciative. My son is 11 years old now. He's a fifth grader. My daughter is 14 and is in eighth grade. So I'll just leave it at that. You can imagine what that is like having a teenage daughter. But yeah, just, you know, normal family active. I'm a chauffeur, you know, every afternoon, driving them around to their activities. But, yeah. No, you have a beautiful family, Trini. Thank you. Thank you. And Trini, let's go back in time. So in 1991, you were 18 years old and you entered the Ms. Hawaii Teen USA pageant. Why did you enter that pageant? Yes. You know, I entered because there was a winner from Maui who had competed and entered. And she was a personal friend of mine. We had modeled together for a few years. And that's the first I even heard of the pageant. And I thought, how incredible is it that someone from Maui, a neighbor island girl, you know, competed and won. And I saw how it had changed her life. So that's originally what got me into that pageant, you know, that what inspired me to compete in the first place. And you won. Yes, you won the pageant. I did not win the first time, though. I won the second time that I competed. And, you know, it was a wonderful experience. You know, keep in mind, I grew up on a farm in upcountry Maui. So this whole pageant world was super different. You know, pageants exposed me to a whole different life, you know, with big ball gowns and, you know, makeup. And, but it opened up doors for me. It was a wonderful opportunity. Do you think pageants are a good thing for girls to do? I don't think pageants are for all girls to do. I can only speak for myself and my personal experience. And, you know, all of the, you know, most of the girls and women that I know that have gone through pageants, you know, really it has benefited our lives. You know, like I said, it exposed me to a whole new world. As Miss Hawaii USA, I was able to travel the world promoting Hawaii. And, you know, just what you learn by having those opportunities, you know, it's opened up doors. A lot of girls will compete in pageants because of the scholarships that they receive. And how it's allowed them to further their education, the lifelong friendships, you know, that you create. So there are a lot of benefits for sure. So in 1999, you're 26 years old, and you won the Miss Hawaii USA pageant. During that time, did you feel like you had any insecurities about yourself? And what do you think you learned about yourself through that experience? Yes. Of course I've had insecurities. Who doesn't have some level of insecurity? I don't remember what my insecurities were at that particular time. But I do know, you know, again, just being from a neighbor island, and this was something I think I felt too with my first pageant is, you know, you're competing against city girls, right? And you kind of assume, I think there was some level of intimidation, by being from small town. But, and I remember too, when I was competing in pageants, there's a saying, there will always be someone prettier than you. There will always be someone more talented than you. There will always be someone smarter than you. Just hope that that person is not on stage standing next to you. So, you know, you always have that in the back of your mind, which I thought was funny. But, you know, I think you just get through it, you know. And that's one of the benefits of pageants too, is, you know, it allows you to be your best self. You gain self-esteem and confidence. And at the end of the day, you just be the best that you can be, you know. And even when you don't win, I mean, there's a lot more failures, right? Losses than winning. But those experiences are so worthwhile. It makes you tough. It does. And you're tough, Trini. Thank you very much. You've got to have thick skin in the news business, for sure. Trini, I want to ask you, what was your first ever job that you had? Oh, gosh. My first job, believe it or not, was I was a maid at a hotel. Really? Yes. I was, I think, 14 at the time. And my friend on Maui, his mom, worked at a hotel. And I can't even remember the name of the hotel. But it was out by Kana Pali area. And, you know, we wanted to make money. We wanted to figure out a way we could make money. And we had these dreams. You know, we pictured ourselves serving cocktails by the pool or doing something fun. But in reality, when we went and applied, you can't have 13, 14-year-olds serving cocktails by the pool, right? So I think the only job that we could do was in the housekeeping department. So that was my first job. And full disclosure, I think I only lasted maybe one or two months. It was a hard job. I have so much appreciation for people, you know, who do that. But I don't think we lasted very long. But I would try. And that was my first job. That's interesting and such a great experience to appreciate all the house, you know, what housekeepers do. But you know what? I will tell you that I still fix my bed the way I learned back then. You know, when the sheets are on really tight and you fold it a certain way, the creases, I still fix my bed that way. Well, you got to give me some tips about how to do that then. I can do that. Yes. So Trini, how did you first get into TV? So when I transferred to the University of Hawaii, I majored in journalism. I loved my journalism classes. I had great instructors. And so I was already a journalism major when I got a call. At the time, I was dancing at a show in Waikiki. I was a hula dancer and also did different dance, disciplines, modern dance, and so forth. And I remember getting a message one night from Ron Mizutani, who was working at KH1 too. And he knew that I was a journalism major. He knew that I had already had experience on TV, hosting shows and modeling and doing commercials and so forth. So he left a message about a possible opportunity. KH1, for the first time ever, was looking at hiring their first weather anchor. That was a good thing. It was a good thing. I was like, oh my gosh. So I went in, had an interview, had a screen test, and the rest is history. Yeah. And you're living 808 TV show that you did. You and John Venari made such a great team. Yes. What did you like most about doing that show? There was a lot of things I loved about working on that show. I mean, that really was a dream job for sure. I remember traveling with my girlfriends years before, and we all went around the circle and we said, what is your dream job? What is your dream job? And mine was the host of my own show. And living 808 was that for me. Working with John is where John and I have been friends for many, many years, way before living 808. We went to college together. I joke and call him my work husband. But it was a fun show and it was special because it allowed local businesses and nonprofits to share their story. In news, it's a different game. And I had been in news for, well, I've been with K-1 for 19 years, but at that time, 15 years in news doing weather as a reporter. So this was something different and it was fun. We traveled. We had Singapore week on the show. We had Seattle week, Los Angeles week. So these are all the fun things that you're not really, you know, you don't get to do in news. So there were a lot of things that I loved. I love interviewing people. I got to interview you. I had a great time on your show. No, it was great. I mean, it was, there were so many things about it that I loved. Yeah, now Trini, so you were the TV host and the producer of Living 808. Now, I know that you don't like to be complacent. How would you try to keep making things better and greater for your show? Yeah, it was challenging because a lot of people don't realize this. Five people, five of us put on Living 808. So, you know, it's an hour show five days a week and five of us worked on it. So it's a big job. We all had to do a lot. There were a lot of long hours. So I would say the biggest challenge is just, you know, the resources, right? I would have loved to have one or five more people on our team. But I think it's just, you know, being able to collaborate with the people you work with, bouncing ideas off of folks. There's a lot of stories to tell in Hawaii. There's a lot of companies that you can highlight and feature. So it's just really having the time to think about, you know, what would your audience like to know? What would the viewers like to learn about, you know, highlighting new restaurants or different new services? You know, that was our responsibility is to share you know, what the viewers would like to know. Yeah, it's a big responsibility. That makes sense. And Trini, before we go to break, I want to ask you about Oprah. You know, Oprah. My bad. Yeah, I heard she really had a great time meeting you. Yeah. Yeah. I'm sure she did. How was that experience? That was amazing. What Rusty is referring to is I was, I was privileged enough to introduce Oprah on Maui when she spoke as part of HMSA's share care event. And when I got the call asking me if I would be available, I'm like, I don't care if I'm on another planet. I will make my way back to Hawaii to Maui for that opportunity. I mean, that's somebody I looked up to my whole life. For sure. So it was a huge honor. And what's funny is, you know, I think only about 20, maybe up to 20 people were allowed to meet her backstage and take pictures with her. And she was standing by herself. And it was my turn to take a picture. So I went up there and I remember her looking at me and she said, I love your show. Oh, wow. And I don't know. She may not have known. She may have just been being polite. But I remember I was like, I had that weird look on my face. And, you know, through Cajun and through Living Aid to Wait, I had the pleasure of meeting a lot of, you know, celebrities, local celebrities. But I turned into that person. I was speechless. The picture that you guys have of me and Oprah, look at this like the stupid look on my face. It's hilarious. Look, there it is. There it is. It's like the cheese. It's a happy look. It's a cheesy grin because I just, I don't know. The smile can't get any bigger. No, it is so funny. But it was an honor meeting her. And she is just as fabulous in real life as she was on her show. So it was such an honor. Yeah. Well, Trini, we're going to take a quick break. And when we come back, we're going to talk about your amazing Make-A-Wish Hawaii Foundation. Okay. Sounds good. You're watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii with my special guest, Trini Kalpawiki. We will be back in 60 seconds. Aloha. This is Winston Welch. I am your host of Out and About, where every other week, Mondays at 3, we explore a variety of topics in our city, state, nation, and world, and events, organizations, the people that fuel them. It's a really interesting show. We welcome you to tune in and we welcome your suggestions for shows. You got a lot of them out there. And we have an awesome studio here where we can get your ideas out as well. So I look forward to you tuning in every other week where we've got some great guests and great topics. You're going to learn a lot. You're going to come away inspired like I do. So I'll see you every other week here at 3 o'clock on Monday afternoon. Aloha. Aloha. I'm Wendy Lo and I'm coming to you every other Tuesday at 2 o'clock live from Think Tech Hawaii. And on our show, we talk about taking your health back. And what does that mean? It means mind, body, and soul. Anything you can do that makes your body healthier and happier is what we're going to be talking about. Whether it's spiritual health, mental health, fascia health, beautiful smile health, whatever it means, let's take healthy back. Aloha. Welcome back to Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. My special guest today is the president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Hawaii. She is Trini Kaupuiki-Clark and today we are going Beyond Wishes. Trini, why did you end up leaving TV to be CEO of Make-A-Wish Hawaii? Yeah. That's a great question. Rusty, I've had 19 wonderful years at K-Chuen and I am so, so grateful for my time there and the experiences, opportunities I've had, but I was just ready for something else. And Make-A-Wish is an amazing organization. As a journalist, I was able to interview the wish children and their families and saw the kind of impact it had in our community. I've always been active with philanthropy. In fact, over the last 11 years, I spearheaded K-Chuen's Laulima Giving Program. So when people think, how do you go from TV to Make-A-Wish? When you know my background and understand it a little better, you see that it's not that crazy of a stretch. I've always been involved with different nonprofits close to my heart and Make-A-Wish is one of them. So when the opportunity came about, I just thought it was a no-brainer for me because I love what they do. It's meaningful work. They've got a great team. And I just feel so blessed now to be a part of it, that I can now focus on one thing and that is granting wishes to children who are critically ill. And our mission is to grant life-changing wishes to every eligible child. So to be able to focus on that one mission is very special and important to me. Well, they're brilliant to hire you as the CEO and president. I think it's an absolutely perfect fit. No, no, thank you very much. I mean, everyone's excited. I mean, I know people that are on the board that are so excited to have you there. Thank you. So now you're granting wishes and Bethany Hamilton, you guys just did one with her. Yes. Can you tell me about that? Yes. So that's a partnership that has been going on for like six or seven years, where children from the mainland or here locally, their wish is to serve with Bethany Hamilton. So about one or two weeks after I officially started, and I should tell you, Rusty, this week is my six-week anniversary. I'd make a wish. So I'm still learning. You know, there's so much to learn and do. But in week two, I believe, I went over to Kauai with four wish families and I was able to witness firsthand the kind of impact, you know, granting a wish has on these families, the whole community. I mean, there was so much support on Kauai that day. I wish the weather was a little bit better. It was cloudy, but they don't care. I mean, they were so happy to be out there. And even this fellowship, you know, with other wish families and the community, I mean, they came out in full force. It was all volunteer, volunteer surf instructors. You know, they provided lunch for all of us. It was so special, you know. But also speaking of make-a-wish, a week after I started, there was something called Grand Rounds that happened at Kapilani Medical Center. And it's something that they do every week, but for the first time ever, they presented make-a-wish. So I was there in the audience and doctors went up and talked about the power of a wish. So these are people with a science background, right? These are doctors. And they talked about how, you know, they can give someone medicine, they can treat them, but they can never give them what make-a-wish has been able to give them. And it was so powerful. You know, when you talk about the power of a wish, you've got, we had three families there that, you know, shared their story, their testimonial, how their lives, you know, have been impacted by the organization. There was not a dry eye in the room. Oh, I'm sure. And because, you know, I would look rummage through my person, I'm like, please let me find a dirty napkin because I needed to wipe my nose. But, you know, I just left that day and every day feeling so good about the decision I made, about the work that I'm doing, the impact that I can have in the community, you know, so really, they may be happy to have me, but I feel blessed. Yeah. That goes both ways. It does. And Trini, you have an amazing group of people that you're working with. And what do you think is like the biggest challenge for you guys right now? Yeah. Oh, I have a wonderful team that I'm so blessed to be surrounding myself with. But I think the biggest challenge is, you know, there are a lot of really great, worthy non-profits out there, right? And, you know, we don't get any state or federal funds or grants. So it's important for us to fundraise. And so we are competing with all of these other really wonderful non-profit organizations, right? It's hard. There's a lot of non-profits in Hawaii for what our population is. So that's, I think, the biggest challenge, right, is just, you know, my goal as CEO is to raise awareness, making sure that people understand the power of a wish and what we do and that it's not just for terminally ill children, it's for life-threatening illnesses or critically ill children. So it's raising that awareness, letting people know how they can get involved. You know, we have so many volunteers that help us do what we do. We have different fundraisers, galas that people can support and be a part of. But really, it's, you know, just that's the biggest challenge is raising funds so that we can continue to do what we do. Our mission is to grant life-changing wishes to every eligible child. And to do that, we need businesses support. We get a lot of in-kind donations that help us do what we do and then, of course, raising funds. Well, Trini, that's why you're on this show because you individually, I mean, you go beyond the lines and your whole team go beyond the lines. I know you read my book last year. Yes. Did you like the book? Of course I did. What's not to like? I loved the book and I remember at the time, because it was so long ago, I have to read it again, but I remember feeling inspired by it. At the time, I was going through something with my daughter and I remember reading it and applying what I was learning to her and what she was going through. I would love to, and I will, reread the book now in my new role at Make a Wish because being the CEO and having, you know, my great team, I know that if I reread it now, I'll be taking different lessons from it. But really, I think everybody, everybody should read it because it's like a roadmap for success and for being a leader. And I remember, you have something in there that leaders are, you learn how to be a leader. Leaders are made. Leaders are made, yes. For sure. Speaking of leaders, you know, we've both been on teams before, whether it be in sports or business. And so we know what good leaders do and what bad leaders have done. What do you think the best leaders do? I think the best leaders inspire their team. You know, they walk the walk, right? They're not just telling people what to do, but they are walking, you know, they are walking the walk. So I think that's important. That's what I'm trying to do for my new team is, you know, I don't know if you've heard of organizational health, but that is important to me. And on my very first day at Make-A-Wish, we had a staff meeting and I talked about that. You know, yes, we need to raise funds. Yes, we need to be out in the community and we have to make sure things are running well and efficiently. But just as important, you know, you've got your staff. I want, you know, minimal politics. I want high morale, low turnover. So these are all things that I'm trying to incorporate with my team, you know, at Make-A-Wish. And you know, it's, there are challenges, of course, but you know, I feel like a good leader is someone who listens. Yeah. Not just talks. Exactly. Or somebody who listens and who genuinely cares for their team, you know, because they're smart and they know, you know. But these are all things that, you know, I feel so blessed that I can now be the boss or manager that I've always wanted. Right? You know, there are some great managers that I've had and I'm like pulling different things from each of them and I'm now trying my best to be what I wish I had or what, you know what I mean? What I think they need and want. Well, you know, Trini, you're a coach now. You're coaching. Yeah. And you know, before we wrap up, I want to ask you one more thing. You are a beauty queen winning the Miss Hawaii Team USA and Miss Hawaii USA. You had a successful TV career. You are CEO of Make-A-Wish Hawaii now. Why are you successful? Why am I successful? Why do you think you are successful? I think I have a good attitude. Yeah. That's God. That's a tough question. Let's see. Attitude and mindset. Oh, yeah. Very, very important. You know, when I look back at my life, I've surrounded myself with good people who love me, keep me in line. So thank you for thinking that I'm successful. But I think that it's a combination of all of those things. I surround myself with smart, good people. No drama, you know. I'm grateful for every day for every opportunity. And it's the journey, right? Even when things are not going my way. I believe everything happens for a reason. There are always lessons to be learned. Sure. So I think all of those things have kind of contributed. You know, you're completely right, but I know why. I know why. Please tell me. I have no idea. Cal, I'll tell you why. Because you have great character, you have great integrity, and you have such positive energy. And obviously your mindset and your perspective is awesome. So that's why. And Trini, I really appreciate you taking time in your schedule to be on the lines today. My pleasure. Thank you for having me. It's a lot of fun with you. I'll come back again. Okay. Anytime. Yes, thank you. Thank you, Trini. And thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Cloy and a special thank you to my clothing sponsor Ilani Incorporated For more information, please visit RustyKamori.com and my book is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and all Costco stores in Hawaii. I hope that Trini and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.