 And I'm excited to journey with you as we learn how to take your help back. We're streaming live from the studios of Think Tech Hawaii in downtown Honolulu and from my home office in Wasiki. Today, we will be talking story with Jonathan Masaki-Shiroma. Wait, let me rephrase that. We will be talking with Lieutenant Kerlo, Jonathan Masaki-Shiroma of the California National Guard and Chief of Media Relations who resides in Sacramento, California. So let's welcome Jonathan Masaki. You said my ranks and I got to behave. I don't can follow and make any kind. So thanks for the introduction. Yes, I'm in Sacramento. And glad to be here, Wendy. Yeah, well, you can take the boy out of the city, but you can't take the country out of the boy, right? That's right. Yes, me. Yes. And I know you're a good boy from Maui. So before we get started, let's learn a little bit about you, Jonathan, and the good son that you are born and raised in Maui. She tell us about you. My mom might not agree everything we just said, but thank you for that kind words. Yeah, I grew up in Maui. I went to Maui High School. I graduated a long time ago. I won't say the exact year. And I went to University of Hawaii at Hilo. And then after graduation, started to work in radio first. And then we're bridged off into TV. My first TV job was with KHON TV News. So I was on the Asana desk there. I would hand Joe Moore his weather scripts and whatnot. And then I moved over to KGB 9 News and became a reporter. And from there, I bridged on to Sacramento, where I did maybe about five or six years on news here. And then was about to go into a bigger position with a different network in kind of a national way. And then I got deployed as a soldier to Iraq. So that kind of wraps up the last 25 years, maybe even more of my life. OK, well, let's take it a little bit slower than that then. So when I first saw you, you were doing television. And I believe that now I was going to ask you if I could mention the station, but you did. So you were with KGMB. And I know back in the day, so what year were you at KGMB? I was actually on air at KGMB from 1998 through 2000, about two and a half years. Wow. And so that's pretty much me. I heard you were on the other station. And then you went to KGMB. I know that every time you come back to town, you always make it a point to go and visit your buddies there. So are there anybody? Is there anybody that's still left there while you were there? You know, there's a few. Mahailani Richardson, as you know, she came back from the mainland and is at KGMB. Well, Hawaii News now. And let's see, who else is on air? I believe, is Keahi Tucker there also? Yes. Yes, so Keahi Tucker was gone when I left. But I understand he did come back after a while. Guy Hagi. And I don't know everybody on there, but there are a few people. And of course, behind the scenes, the main driver of that station, Brenda, so got a de-melo who runs the desk. And you can call her the powerhouse because that she is, I mean, actually a powerhouse, powerlifter, as I learned. Oh, yeah. I call her though. I still call her boss lady. And I get inspired, you know, we're speaking about health. She is a powerlifter. And you know, as we all get a little bit older, she still really shows that the age should not defy you when you do health or fitness. Because she is like doing all of those Olympic-style powerlifts and goes to the gym, does Rahula. So yeah, she's certainly the powerlady. Yes, I know. I wasn't aware of that because you look at her. She's not, she doesn't write because she's not all bulked up. She just does it and it's all the muscle strength that she's working on. So she's going for power. And I really admire all her accomplishments even up to this day. Oh, absolutely. She is the powerlady. And like you said, even at our age or her age, she's still in it and she just loves the sport. So, you know, I was really curious. I know you people on TV, you got to get up early or you got to stay up late and you do all your stories and all of that. So what is like, you know, your lifestyle behind going on TV? I mean, you must have to carry out a line because, I mean, a lifestyle that's extra healthy because you're on camera all the time and people are looking and, you know, they're human, they're going to judge and critique. So what is some of the value of what do you do on, you know, behind the scenes for your health and nutrition? Well, you know, when I was younger, the looking good aspect was totally cosmetic, right? So you want to be seen as this, well, he looks good, you know, in person and whatnot. And it was important to always kind of stand shape and not have that comment that come up like, well, gosh, you kind of fat that person. I never knew he was that big, but, you know, you hear comments from the public. So I think that that was a driver way back when I first got into TV news as you transitioned to, you know, a little bit older at 40s, maybe in 50s, you realize that it's important because of your health. So the aspect of the vanity, the cosmetic side of it all kind of transitions into, yeah, like be healthy when I owed like right now. So I think that's why your fitness goals change as you also age. I know it looks like a very glamorous life, you know, being in front of the camera all the time, but I know that everyone must work really hard at not just looking good, but feeling good because how you feel is how you're gonna project the news and the outcome of your production on a daily basis. So that's quite important, being able to maintain that level of health and wellness. Absolutely. Right? And then you mentioned that you did go to California. So you were doing the news in Sacramento? Right. I came to this station and I asked us the reason why I moved from KGMB to California because I got a job at the time I had an agent and she had really worked my tapes to make it big and TVU. So Sacramento was a huge jump. It was its market or was market 20 at the time. Back then Honolulu was market 73. So to jump all those markets to get into this market to me, I'm okay, I made it. I'm gonna make it into stardom and be this first Asian male anchor on national TV network. That's what my ultimate goal was. So yeah, it was a big culture shock and it was well worth it. I think that was the right thing to do. I missed the islands immensely, but it was a good challenge and I learned so much moving into a big market and the way things are done here is so cutthroat back instead of like in Hawaii where you kind of hang loose. Hey bro, are you looking at the sound bike? Hey, go first. Shut up Mike. Over here, you're all on your own. There is really no aloha in some of the markets that you work big just because it's so competitive. It's very competitive. I mean, you're going against all the other 49 states right there, but again, and we see all the like the mockeries that they do on movies and Halloween men and the women have to do everything to stay at their best. And like you said, basically it all comes down to your personal lifestyle and what do you do when you're not on the camera? Absolutely. I think it's so important that you stay in shape for good reasons though. I think like I said, the cosmetic side of looking good and fitting into that tight suit and really having that nice jawline when the lights are on was something that you got to consider. But at the same time, what's going on inside here? You could be totally looking good on the outside, but inside is what's going to carry you onto your senior year. So the transition to eating healthy and not staying up and partying all night and getting that sleep that you need, very key. But for all industries, you need to just make sure you get that rest and nutrition. And the discipline, right? Absolutely the discipline. And I know that you must have got some discipline from your career change, I want to say, but so when did you get involved with the National Guard in California? Well, you know, it actually, my involvement with the military went back to my days in Hawaii. I was your traditional guard soldier where I would just go to drill one week in a month, two weeks out of the year. It was fun. Yeah, rahaboo, bam bam, play with your weapons and do all the army drills that you do. Then, you know, the events of 9-11 certainly changed everything for every guard soldier across the nation. And that made us all be activated to the two wars that were going on in Iraq and Afghanistan. So in 2005, I got my mobilization orders. It was a pivotal time for me in my civilian career because I had just gotten a really good offer to take my career to the next level. Unfortunately, I got the deployment orders to Iraq at the same time. So it came down to, okay, I signed up for this in peace, meaning my army contract. Do I bail on it now? Or do I honor what I went to training for and go forward with that? So I had to respectfully kind of decline that TV offer. And my agent was extremely upset. She said, there is no way you're gonna get his offer even when you come back from your deployment. I said, I get it, but I signed this and I went on to do my military duty is kind of where it kind of ended my TV career because I had two diplomats back to back. Wow. Well, what a different, I mean, such soul is so different, your career path. But then I know that being in the National Guard, you served in our country, you got deployed and then you were found a way to be able to mix both your careers. So tell us what did that look like? Well, it was interesting. Before I got actually sent to Iraq, the current station that I was working at, I had left the original station. I came to Sacramento four and was given a opportunity at the ABC affiliate here in Sacramento. And so when my producers and management found out, they say, why don't you do a soldier's diary kind of report for us once a week from Iraq? And so I'm like, okay, that sounds like a good way to still stay on camera and give good reports. So I was able to do that mixed in with my job in Iraq, which was to take reporters into the battlefield to combat. And it was all the reporters from national and international press, but along the way, I got to do some stories too. So I would do a live shot with my Sacramento station every Wednesday morning. And then because they would see a network feed, other stations across the nation asked me to start personalizing it with other soldiers that could be from maybe Louisiana. I did a report for Hawaii. I did many California networks. And just all around here and there, because again, the feed was there. So the producers would see that and they'd say, hey, there's a local boy here that could do stories for other stations. So that became kind of like a niche and like really unique opportunity for me in the midst of one of the most challenging 18 months of my life. So that's kind of how I'd blend it together with TV news and being a soldier because of what I did in the military. Wow. See how, you know, Keiko just has a plan for all of us. Amen. He trained you local, you know, in front of a camera and then, you know, you signed up to be part of the National Guard and you did what you had to do. You had some, you know, your, as you said, your agent wasn't happy when you went and you decided that that's the career you wanted to go towards. But then you didn't sort of, you didn't leave it totally. It came with you and you were able to serve our country and have your passion at the same time. So, but first of all, I wanted to say mahalo Jonathan for serving our country for, I believe it's 28 years. Then you've been serving our country? Yeah. I'm not gonna show you my white hair, because there's no more hair on top here. But yeah. You know what? Everyone, every white hair, well deserved. So we all wanted to say mahalo for serving our country. And the blessing is that you're able to carry on doing what you wanted to do because I believe you carry the title of chief of media relations in the National Guard. So that's like, appreciate both worlds. Okay, now. Appreciate it. So when you were doing deployments, tell us what was it like? How would you stay fit? And what was your nutritional intake like while you were serving? Well, you know, I will tell you the US Army and all the active forces in a forward area, the soldier care or the service member care was tremendous. Okay, we had hot meals every three, three, four hot meals a day. So the key that became the thing to really focus on was not overeating because, you know, you went to a different four operating base or wherever we would be driving to, there'd be hot chow. And the hot chow wasn't anything to complain about, okay? It was really good food. They do take good care of soldiers in a forward area. So, but at the same time, there were many, many gyms that were in the bases that we operated on out of. So it became that same thing like you have to really watch your time. Like if you knew you were gonna go on a mission during the day, I wouldn't be up at like three, four o'clock in the morning just to get to the gym to do my exercise, to get my cardio in, to get some strength training in because it was very key in that timeframe to be fit because of what could go on and what you don't know what might happen, but to be mentally alert, to be physically there to be able to respond. So I think it was very key to work that in and my soldiers that I worked with, we all had that same mindset because it was very easy to get into that surf and turf meal and just, just gorge yourself with this wonderful food and then go to bed, you know? So it really, you really became disciplined like you said, to watch and how much you eat per night, per meal. Right, because you could not afford a Kanaq attack while serving, right? Right? Because if you were suffering from Kanaq attack, then then something happened is going down and where are you? You're not on your 100%. So how can you be a great soldier if you're not 100%? Absolutely, you got that right. That's absolutely. So I'm just grateful that you all had that same mindset in your command. And I'm sure, you know, each of you had something to do with that, that that's the lifestyle you all chose. So that's what we, you know, what your command produced. So to shape for that attitude. Yes, absolutely, totally agree. That's amazing. So, you know, in our next slide, I don't know what's going on in your next slide, but can you tell me what's happening here? There's both you and that gentleman there. What's going on? Well, that is NBC News anchor, Brian Williams, okay? And there were some controversies surrounding his actual deployment when he was covering news in Iraq. But the bottom line with him was when I went to arrange, it was a pretty high profile media event and he was there for NBC. And I walked up to him and just said, this is before the controversy thing, controversial things broke. But I went to shake his hand and he goes, no, let me shake your hand. I see that you have a combat action badge on your shoulder there. So it shows me that you were involved with some type of combat action when you were in wherever you went. I said, well, gosh, that's so amazing that someone will like you. He goes, no, no, you're the one. American soldiers, you're the heroes here. And it just, oh, it's like that hit me really hard. Here's this national anchor that, you know, little old nobody me is getting accolades from. I thought, you know, despite what you might say about some of these news anchors or how big their eagles are, he actually was very sincere. I felt that, and that's the exchange. He said, I want to take a picture with you. So I was very humbled. I was very just honored that he took the time to take a picture with me. Wow. Well, I hope he's watching this show and he's gonna take a shout out. So make sure he sees it. I think he just retired actually, you know, so I don't think he's watching, but I'll send him an email. Check it out. I'll send him an email. There you go. Yeah, you get it to him, make sure. So, you know, I know you rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Can you tell us when did you reach that rank and what was the journey like? Well, you know what's so interesting about making Lieutenant Colonel. My final school that I had to go to attend this rank actually took place at Fort Shafter in Honolulu. So there was no openings on the Continental U.S. school houses. So I called my buddy who was a Sergeant Major at the Fort Shafter facility and he said there was X amount of slots that were open. Like, you know, how much better could that be to come back home and spend a month training and getting schooled in the islands with some of your peers and then nighttime, go hang out with your KGMB friends or go back flight in Maui and get mom and dad and come over for dinner and catch the next flight back to Honolulu. So it was the best of both worlds. And I think I ran into you that trip at Willows. In fact, you were doing a few things with the Miss Hawaii Pageant. That is correct. Miss Hawaii and we were like, hey, what's up, you know? And I think Willows shut down right eventually but it was nice to see it. So it was that kind of hominess, not homeliness, hominess to be back in the islands and get my final schoolie to obtain the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. So that's really nothing all that serious but it meant a lot to me. Well, you know, and I also have to ask, you know you're still active duty, I'm serving right now. So what was your life like in the last two years of this COVID duration? That's such a good question, Wendy. I actually was in India, Barcelona and Rome at this time two years ago. Okay, so I was traveling on this wonderful trip, the trip of a lifetime with a really great set of friends. And around February 17th, while I was still in, I believe I was in, I was in India. I got an email from my command saying, we just named you director of public affairs. I'm like, oh, great, thank you. And then I get back and then the world started to shut down. And the world is still, of course, dealing with this pandemic that we know as COVID. So my first year on the job was non-stop. It just went from one mission to another and good or bad, different to what the conditions were like outside. It really tested the, I guess, integrity of us all to try to remain hopeful and positive and continue to try to bring that hope to the public that things will get better. And that was my mission constantly to say to people, we will get through this. And I think when people hear that from someone that's in the armed services, they get a sense of security or they feel that peace. And I tried to bring that in wherever I went because you were dealing with a panicked country, a panicked world, not knowing what to expect. And there's some of that still, but I think we are coming to terms with what this is and hoping for the best and really trusting in our faith to help us through all of this. So it's been an interesting journey for two years and it's still not over, Wendy, you know that. So we just have to hold on. Yeah, we just have to hold on to each other and hold on to that good mana that we have inside of us and spread that mana. And in the midst of the pandemic, how do you work out without going to the gym? I mean, I know you're talking about, I see you on Facebook and workout clothes and all of that, but in despite the pandemic, how did you work out without going to the gym? You know, and I also, on the side, I'm a personal trainer too. So the gym that I was, it was a boutique gym and sadly my clients all at the first part of the pandemic, just there was just no interaction, right? You really didn't know what Zoom was like what we're doing right now. But as time moved on, what I did personally was I turned my garage into my no gym, no excuse kind of scenario where, you know, I had some weights, I had kettlebells, I had, you know, the bozu ball, I had a whole bunch of things that I could use, but I really tried to focus on body weight exercises because what I've learned through all of my travels as a journalist, as a military member, as you know, just someone that's in the fitness industry is there's gonna be places that you just have nothing to work out with, but you have your body, okay? And your body is an excellent weight, if you will, especially with how big my alcohol is. So, you know, that helps with the squats. But anyway, you can do, you can find really good exercises and I encourage anybody to reach out to me, I'd be more than happy to develop a, you know, a type of program for you, but really focusing on body weight type of workouts because you can get a good workout no matter where you are, if there's nothing around, use your body, use a chair, use, use a, I was at my mom's house about two weeks ago in the backyard, I saw one bag of fertilizer. So I grabbed the fertilizer, just did squats, then hold it here, then I did overhead presses and then I walked around, you know, the block, they thought I was an idiot probably walking with the fertilizer, but there's things you can find that are around your house and your body, again, is a good way to use that weight. You know, it's so funny because on that, you're talking about this, because this morning actually on the news, there was a, they did a feature story on this guy, I think he must have been like 400 pounds local guy, lives in Mancaquino side, and 400 pounds and he, I don't know how long ago, a year or so ago, he looked in the mirror and he said, wow, is that really me? And he was not very happy with himself. So then he started to go to the park, like you said, and they show him at the park with his kids rolling around on the grass and just doing sit ups and doing sit ups. So can you imagine, right? His body weight and for him to do a sit up must have been very difficult, but he continued and continued and he started walking with his kids and he did more and more and more. You know that he's under 200 pounds now. Good for him. Yeah, so we want to encourage him. In fact, I would love to have him come on the show as well, but what they said is that he's now half the man that he used to be, right? And that's a good thing. That's a good thing for him. It's a very good thing. So, you know, it doesn't matter where you are or even if you have no equipment, your body, like you said, serves as a perfect tool to get in shape. You are absolutely right on point with that statement. Yeah, so I just want people to know that and that's good that you bring that up, Jonathan, because that's a very, very excellent thing that people all think we have to go to the gym or do all of that stuff, but no, we don't, right? You know, and that's a good thing to point out. You know, I think when we're younger, you know, when I was in college, you know, you hang out with the other jocks and you hang with the baseball players, the volleyball players and the thing to do is get that big arms, get that benching done, because you don't impress the girls, get that date and look really good, right? But as you go get older, you have to be really accepting of what you're able to do. You know, with my coach today, we're talking about, yeah, I'm not going to be doing these gigantic power lifts and, you know, snatching that weight up like this to throw up my back, being at the level or being at that age group that you know responsibly how to work out. If you need a trainer to help you with that, you should get that training and really know good form. Good form is probably the best thing that you need to remember because you can do something wrong and then hurt yourself. So you don't want to get that in your daily schedule where you have to address a modification because of an injury. So you do it the right way. Right, and we have to be age-appropriate, right? Absolutely, absolutely. I mean, like for myself, I'm not a big fan of the gym, hockey or just the commitments, but I do walk. I walk from my hill, I walk down, I go to Omwana and I surf regularly. That's right. I know you want to surf, you was in Waianae last week, right? Just the other day was too big though. So again, being real and age-appropriate went back to our rigyards at Waikiki and I surfed, it was only like maybe two feet, three feet, but it was age-appropriate for me. I got a good three-hour workout. It felt good. The sun felt good on my body, but that's what we need to do. Just get out there. Just move, yeah, absolutely. Basically, that's all we got to do is just get out there and move, right? I totally agree with you. You know, move more, intake less. Probably the easiest way to keep yourself in check. I better write that down, move more. Intake less or more. Or like, let's stay musubis, move walk two more miles. That's the hard part, working on that, but it's a happy medium that we have to reach, right? So Jonathan, I know that you are a dog lover. I know you love dogs. And that's another statement. You truly believe in man's best friend is the fur, four-legged ones. So I know that you're a proud papa of three Kishans. I have a side of you with one, but then I have another side of you with your other three babies. Why Kishans? You know, strangely enough, my first Kishan was in Hawaii. There was a breeder in Ewa and my wife at the time. And we were studying what breed we should get, you know? And so the Dutch say Kishan. We Americans say Kishan. The studying the type of breed that it is, I fell in love with it. So when we got my first Kishan, Omega, she was everything that I wanted. She's very loving, very, you know, a little bit feisty, kind of colloid, but they're very good alert dogs. They will never ever bite anybody, but they will be next to you constantly. So the picture you see with me by myself is with Koa. And Koa is actually, he's a rescue. Koa was a trained medical alert dog for sadly a lady named Judy who passed away, but she had him trained so much. She actually reached out to me. There's a very hard-warming story. I'll say it in 10 seconds. She reached out to me in her last days because she saw me on Facebook and she said, she reached out to my breeder who was the same breeder as who I got my dogs from and said, I would like you to contact this Lieutenant Colonel in California to take my dog Koa. Well, his name was Draco at the time when I passed because I think he would take care of my dog very well. So ultimately that's what happened. I drove down to San Diego to pick Koa up after meeting him. I remember that, I do remember that. Yeah, that's why I have him now. I renamed him Koa because he was Judy's protector. And then my other Kalohe boy, you see in the three pictures, sadly I lost the Kaika, my really dark one in February because he was ill, so I had to help him go to the Rainbow Bridge. But Nalu, my youngest one, means wave and he is always a constant wave just moving and like a big tsunami furball coming down the highway. So they're my life. They really helped me during the pandemic because in addition to working out in the garage, they would be my class, I say, I brought them so we could work out and they would just watch me obviously, but they would be my clients. So they helped me, pets and working out, helped me make it to the pandemic. Wow, so you're a great example of a single man that has true balance in his life, your career choices, your companionship, when you're for babies, and the love and respect for family and friends and making the time always to go and visit you with them. That's, I commend you for that. So I know we're running short on time, but I know I wanted to say Maui Boy does good. So let's summarize your outstanding career in a quick few seconds and what are your plans for your next chapter in your life? I am planning to move back to Hawaii when I retire from the Army, which is in November of this year and find something hopefully in the tourism industry. I'd really want to be an ambassador of Aloha at my old age. I feel that- I got the job for you. I got the right job for you. So you make the move and we'll make the move on this side. Okay, that's what I want to do. You know, Jonathan, we have to leave it there for now. We'll continue with your second chapter of your life, but you've been watching Taking Your Health Back on Think Takawaii. Mahalo to Jonathan Shiroma Masaki for talking, starring with us and serving our country for the last 28 years. Our country, Mahalo is you and we're so proud of you. I'm Wendy Lo. We'll be back in two weeks. See you all then. Aloha, Aloha and Mahalo.