Monthly Archives: February 2012

Call For Talent – for a Good Cause

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If you’ve ever dreamt of being a part of an event that brings together retail, fashion, production, media, promotion and manpower, all for a Good cause, then this Satuday’s CALL FOR TALENT could lead you there.

Jessica Hoffman, Rene Rodriguez, Allie Lee and Kyle Kagamida - Glam Squad members photo by Richard Higashide

You are cordially invited to come and share your talent with Goodwill Industries of Hawaii.  They’re holding a CALL FOR TALENT.  It’s a Volunteer Talent and Recruitment Event that supports this summer’s inaugural event -

Bank of Hawaii presents Goodwill Goes GLAM!

Talent Showcase & Treasure Marketplace

  • What: Call For Talent Volunteer
  • When: Saturday, February 25, 2012 9:00am – 3:00pm
  • Where: Ward Warehouse – 2nd Floor at the Kakaako Conference Room

Volunteers are a very important component of their GLAM event. They could use your talent as a volunteer in these areas; retail: Visual merchandising, production, in-store pulling, fashion: modeling, styling, hair & make-up support, promotion, manpower, social media and more.

This public awareness event will help to further their non-profit mission – helping people with employment barriers to reach their full potential and become self-sufficient.

To officially sign up or learn more about the event visit our website at www.higoodwill.org and click on to Call For Talent Volunteer. Be sure to visit the GoodwillHawaii page on Facebook, then click events and show your support by “joining” this event.

There will also be Special offers for Kamaaina Rewards members at the Call For Talent at Ward Centers:

  • 22 participating shops and restaurants
  • First 100 shoppers who present $76 or more in Ward receipts dated Feb 25th from 10 am to 3 pm will receive one free Screensaver movie ticket. Restrictions may apply.
  • Visit higoodwill.org and click on Call For Talent for more information

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About Goodwill Goes GLAM! August 23-26, 2012:

The inaugural Bank of Hawaii presents Goodwill Goes GLAM! Talent Showcase & Treasure Marketplace begins with an exclusive Goodwill Goes GLAM! Kick Off including a Gala dinner, Fashion Show and exclusive Pre-sale access.  This will set the stage for an unprecedented marketplace of more than 20,000 square feet of glamour and vintage items donated by retail partners and collected from Goodwill stores to support the nonprofit mission.

This major shopping and fashion event will spotlight Hawaii’s style industry and contribute to job-creation, while empowering attendees to learn more about Goodwill’s educational, employment and training programs. Interactive daily activities will showcase job talent, and “green” career pathways specific to Hawaii’s fashion, retail and style industries.

Glam Spotlight – Inspired by YSL

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YSL famous classic Mondrian dress inspires color blocking contemporary - Kaimuki Goodwill window display (collage by Ian Ramos)

Art for art’s sake… Yves Saint Laurent’s (YSL) famous Mondrian dress [pictured above, left] was featured  during his retrospective haute couture fashion show at the Pompidou Centre in Paris, January 22, 2002.  The look on the right, reminiscent of that YSL line, was pulled by Glam Squad member/mentor, Rene Rodriguez – fashion industry consultant, who thought it would be perfect for the window and perfect for the GLAM! event this summer.

a Piet Mondrian work of art serves as the backdrop and inspiration to this YSL classic dress

A little fashion history… did you know that Yves Saint Laurent was discovered as a talented designer well before the age of 21?

Yves Saint Laurent was born in 1936 and grew up in Oran, Algeria. At 17, he left for Paris where he showed his drawings to Michel de Brunhoff, director of Vogue, who published a few of his pieces. Following his time at fashion school, he was introduced to  Christian Dior by de Brunhoff and he went on to work for Dior until his death in 1957. After taking over as art director for Dior, he launched his first collection for the company, the Ligne Trapéze, that year. It was a world-wide success. In 1960, Saint Laurent created ”The Beat” look merging street style and couture.  In 1962, after being released from Dior, he set up his own fashion house with Pierre Bergé. In 1966, he introduced his legendary smoking suit, which is now credited as the first androgynous look of the century.  YSL was the first to launch ready-to-wear (pret-a-porte) as a whole.

In 1983, he became the first living fashion designer to be given a solo exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. YSL held a 300-model fashion extravaganza at the final match of the 1998 World Cup football tournament in the Stade de France.  The following year he was awarded a ‘Lifetime Achievement’ award from The Council of Fashion Designers of America.

A tearful Yves Saint Laurent took his final bow as his long-time muse, Catherine Deneuve, sang Ma Plus Belle Histoire d’Amou

In January 2002, at 65, he announced his retirement. During that time, Saint Laurent became increasingly reclusive and spent much of his time at his house in Marrakech, Morocco.

At age 71, he died from brain cancer in June 2008.  During his career, Yves Saint Laurent was arguably the industry’s greatest designer.

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In the year leading up to the event - Bank of Hawaii presents Goodwill Goes GLAM! in 2012, the Goodwill Hunter highlights fashion finds set aside for THE big event.  Goodwill Industries of Hawaii’s  inaugural event is a showcase of talent, treasure and style — all for a great cause.  When you purchase items at Goodwill, know that more than 90 percent of the retail revenue goes to programs that help people with employment barriers reach their full potential become self-sufficient.

Bank of Hawaii presents Goodwill Goes GLAM!

Glam Kickoff:  Gala Dinner, Fashion Show & Pre-sale:  Aug. 23, 2012

Treasure Marketplace: Aug. 24, 25 & 26, 2012

An exclusive fashion show featuring Hawaii’s top models and stylists will set the stage for an unprecedented marketplace of more than 20,000 square feet of glamour and vintage items donated by retail partners and collected from Goodwill stores. This major Island fashion event will put the spotlight on Hawaii’s style industry as an economic stimulator and contributor to job-creation, while offering the opportunity to explore Goodwill’s own educational, employment and training programs.  Find out how you could get involved and be the first to get your tickets, for more information go to www.higoodwill.org .

The Goodwill of Mrs. America and Mrs. Hawaii

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Mrs. America 2011-2012 Lara Leimana Fonoimoana - and Goodwill’s GLAM! Squad Volunteer.

Here she is, Mrs. America - Lara Leimana Fonoimoana.  She epitomizes humility and a grateful soul.  In 2011, she ran for Mrs. Hawaii as a gesture of goodwill  - to encourage a healthy lifestyle and actively fight to end Childhood Obesity.  Lara won the Mrs. Hawaii crown and was the first runner-up in the 2011 Mrs. America pageant.  She was genuinely happy for April Lufriu, who won the Mrs. America crown.  Her platform brought attention to The Foundation Fighting Blindness a publicly supported charity raising money to fund research for macular degeneration and other diseases.  When April was chosen and won the title of Mrs. World, the very deserving Hawaii-resident, Lara Leimana Fonoimoana became Mrs. America

Lara has done many events as a model/spokesperson & GLAM! Squad Volunteer and here’s what she had to say;

What does Goodwill mean to you?

Lara – Goodwill is a place that I can always count on to find the items that I’m looking for that is within or under my budget.  Having two young children, I know how much money is spent on clothing and how fast they go through clothing.  My children are fortunate to have lots of cousins that allow us to recycle a lot of their clothing, but sometimes we either have duplicate ages or gaps between the kids and Goodwill is such a wonderful alternative to getting affordable clothing.  I also feel so much better knowing that when my children have outgrown their clothes and there is no family member to give it too, Goodwill is always the place I take it too knowing that there is another family that will find use for it.  There have been many items that I have donated that were gently used or not even used at all, and many times when I shop at Goodwill I find the same gently used clothing donated from someone else.  I love the fact that shopping there helps programs that support youth-at-risk, adults with disabilities, Pacific Islanders, people coming off of welfare and joining the workforce and post-incarceration individuals.

What does the Mrs. America crown mean to you?

Lara – I feel incredibly grateful to have been crowned Mrs. Hawaii and then crowned Mrs. America.  It was my first pageant that I ever did and I was very proud that my husband was the reason for me pursuing the crown.  He pushed me to enter and supported me through the journey.  The night I was crowned, my daughter’s eyes beamed with pride and I knew right then and there that our lives were going to change. The platform that I took on as Mrs. Hawaii was Health and Fitness with a mission to end Childhood Obesity.  Having the Mrs. Hawaii crown allowed me to go into communities and work with State and local programs that believe in the same values as I do.  I now have the opportunity to speak to young children about the benefits of fruits and vegetables in their diets and it seems as though my voice has been strengthened with the help of the crown and banner.  The Mrs. America crown has opened more doors and will allow me to bring awareness to communities across the nation.  My plan is to take my local program that I am putting together called “Shake it Up” and take it national and hopefully global.  “Shake it Up” incorporates the Polynesian dance as a form of exercise and the use of raw shakes as a form of nutrition.  I realize that without the crown and banner, I may have not had all of these opportunities to work with various charities and to speak to the youth about Health and Fitness.   I am truly grateful for the Mrs. America title and look forward to making a positive difference, even if it just impacts one person!  

[note: Lara will be mentoring GLAM! Squad volunteers in support of the event - Bank of Hawaii presents Goodwill Goes GLAM! Talent Showcase & Treasure Marketplace which takes place in August, 2012.  Visit www.higoodwill.org for more information.]

Gov. Abercrombie places the Mrs. Hawaii crown on Shana (top left), Sarah Tenney VP of Marketing Communications & Development and Amanda Stevens (The Goodwill Hunter), PR & Communications Manager congratulate Lara and Shana (bottom left), Amos Kotomori (designer & pageant expert) and Gov. Abercrombie with Lara and Shana (right)

When Lara became Mrs. America, Mrs. Hawaii first runner-up, Shana Peete became Mrs. Hawaii.  This is truly monumental as Shana is the first African-American to be crowned Mrs. Hawaii.  Shana, a talented attorney, has done a number of events as a model/GLAM! Squad Volunteer.  We had the pleasure of interviewing Shana.

What does being Mrs. Hawaii & being a part of Goodwill’s GLAM! Squad mean to you?

Shana - What a pleasant surprise it was to be honored with the title of Mrs. Hawaii.  I’m proud to represent our great state and bring to light causes I’m passionate about such as the work of Goodwill Industries of Hawaii. I have worked as a mentor to women in the past (conducting credit counseling and job preparation workshops at a halfway house for soon-to-be-released inmates) and appreciate the job placement services Goodwill provides among so many other services. In 2011, I was fortunate to aid in a [Goodwill] fundraising Fashion Show in Hawaii and another in California.  It was fun and felt so good to help the community.  I look forward to more experiences like this and more chances to work with Goodwill.

(Editor’s Note – Goodwill’s mission is helping people with employment barriers to reach their full potential and become self-sufficient.  Learn more at www.higoodwill.org.)