NEW KA`U FARM BUREAU PRESIDENT Ralph Gaston, who has helped bring Rusty’s Hawaiian Coffee to the international market, said last night that he is “honored to be chosen as president of the Ka`u Farm Bureau by my fellow members. For the past five years, the Ka`u Farm Bureau has grown into a strong voice for agriculture in the Ka`u District, and I plan to do my part to carry on that tradition. I look forward to working with the board members, directors, and all members to help support and grow the agricultural community here in Ka`u.” Gaston was born in Syracuse, NY and received a master’s in journalism from University of California. He began a career in TV sports broadcasting, starting in Clarksburg, WV and moving to Fresno, CA where he worked at the NBC affiliate for almost seven year. In late 2010, he and his wife Joan decided to make their career change, moving to the Big Island in March 2011 to assist their mother, Lorie Obra, with operations at Rusty’s Hawaiian Coffee. They teamed up with Miguel Meza to form a new company, Island Custom Coffees, which has been in operation for nearly three years. Gaston handles finance and logistics for Island Custom Coffees and helps with shipping, logistics and processing for Rusty’s Hawaiian. Gaston can be reached at 519-395-5838. The new vice president for Ka`u Farm Bureau is Brenda Iokepa-Moses. Iokepa-Moses grew up in Leavenworth, Kansas. She started her career in land management with C. Brewer as the Ka`u sugar company shut down in 1996. Along with John Cross, she helped to organize the Brewer long-term leases for displaced sugar workers who were to become the Ka`u Coffee farmers. She later worked for the management company for the new owners of the coffee lands, under Chris Manfredi, and transferred to the Olson Trust to work again with John Cross for Ka`u Farms Management. Her work includes helping to lease Olson lands to small coffee and diversified farmers. Iokepa-Moses said she also works in the back house of Ka`u Coffee Mill with the international sales of green beans. She has lived in Pahala for more than 20 years and retired from the U.S. Army Reserves “with 21 years of honorable service to my country,” she said. A volunteer for many ag-related organizations over the years, she is chair of the Ka`u Soil & Water Conservation District, president of the Hawai`i Association of Conservation Districts and serves on the Water Board for County of Hawai`i, District 6, which covers the south end of the island from Volcano through Pahala, Na`alehu, Ocean View and Miloli`i, north past Kona Hospital, Keopuka Kai and Hokulia Golf Course. Iokepa-Moses also helps to raise money for local youth volleyball competition and has volunteered for the Ka`u Coffee Festival since its inception. Iokepa-Moses can be reached at 928-0550. See tomorrow’s Ka`u News Briefs covering comments by Hawai`i County Prosecuting Attorney Mitch Roth and Ka`u Police Captain Burt Shimabukuro who both spoke at the Ka`u Farm Bureau annual meeting last Friday. Shimabukuro will meet the public at tomorrow’s Police Department community meeting at noon at Na`alehu Community Center.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Mar 2014 03:10:01 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015