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The Craftsman
I first fell in love with the Hawaiian Islands in 1974. My first year of marriage was spent on the island of Maui and is where I was first introduced the rhythmical sounds of the tropics. Ukulele was the instrument of choice for the dancing and singing that went along with the islands. Although I had earlier musical training, I had never picked one up. At that time in my life, I was busy working with my hands in the home building industry. Soon a year had came on gone and it was time to return to the mainland and start a family. Time came and went while raising a beautiful family. My love for the islands brought me back again and again. Then in the 2000, I returned for another extended stay, this time for a decade.
Now retired, I built my dream home and lived the life. I began to embrace the Hawaian lifestyle, enjoying the ocean, the people, paddling and all that is Hawaii. The ukulele was always a part of there, and I was always curious. I finally bought one and it wasn't long before the ukulele became a part of my very being. Learning to play uke was such a great opportunity. What more could I ask for?
I had worked with my hands for the better part of my life just like my father had before me. I felt the next logical step was combine my appreciation of the ukulele with the skills I had learned throughout my lifetime as a craftsman. An opportunity presented itself to learn from one of the local masters, and I was able to get with him and build my first uke, a Koa Tenor, oh so beautiful. It was to be an heirloom for someone to have someday. Hopefully they would cherish it and learn to play. But now realizing that there was more than one person that might enjoy having such a wonderful handmade instrument, I set out to build another. This time I selected a different master, my first teacher's teacher. Well as you may have guessed, it didn't stop there. Another beautiful koa and then another and another....and it hasn't stopped.
