Punahou’s Varsity Football team was also in Southern California, enjoying a range of activities, including a match against Sierra Canyon School, touring UCLA and USC campuses – and a special visit to SoFi Stadium, pictured above.
It felt just like home in Southern California as alumni gathered on Santa Monica Beach to celebrate 100 years of Alumni Lū‘au with the Punahou Alumni Association Southern California (PAASC) in early September. The familiar locale on the beach, where the weather was warm and the breeze was cool, created a celebratory backdrop for a wonderful milestone celebration.
More than 120 alumni and friends attended the kickoff event for the a two-day affair that included a Lū‘au, a pep rally and a Varsity football game. Guests dressed in buff ’n blue aloha wear mingled and reminisced with each other on the beach-side lānai of the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica, as alumni of all ages strung plumeria and orchid lei.
This school year marks the 100th anniversary of Punahou Alumni Lū‘au, and alumni are being invited to celebrate the historic milestone at events around the world. The Southern California event was the first of many Lū‘au celebrations planned in Hawai‘i and on the continental U.S.
Southern California was the perfect backdrop to kick off a year-long series of celebrations to commemorate 100 years of the Punahou Alumni Lū‘au. The Punahou Alumni Association Southern California organized the event, which was attended by more than 120 guests.
At the Santa Monica event, guests dined on local-inspired food, enjoyed Hawaiian music by Hali‘i, accompanied on steel guitar by Pat Quilter ’64 and impromptu hula performances. They were welcomed by PAASC co-chair Tammy Funasaki ’00 Hoffman, and received campus updates from President Mike Latham ’86, Vice President for Institutional Advancement Noelehua Lyons ’91 Archambault and Head Football Coach Nate Kia ’92. Guests represented the classes of 1958 – 2025, Punahou’s newest graduates. The evening ended according to tradition, with the singing of O‘ahu a and Strawberry Shortcake.
On Saturday, the party moved north to Chatsworth, California, where the Punahou varsity football team battled nationally ranked Sierra Canyon School. Alumni enjoyed local-style plate lunches at a spirited pep rally led by the O‘ahu College Band, whose members had traveled from Honolulu for the game. For the more than 60 Varsity football players, the weekend extended beyond the gridiron, with a tour of SoFi Stadium and campus visits to UCLA and USC, a fitting close to a weekend that celebrated Punahou’s past, present and future.
For information on upcoming centennial events or to watch a video celebrating the history and tradition of Alumni Lū‘au, visit punahou.edu/alumni/100-years-of-alumni-luau.
– By Erin Teruya ’93 Kinney
… And on the East Coast
The Lū‘au festivities continued in the Mid-Atlantic region, where alumni took part in lei making, mele and hula. In New York, there was a special gathering which featured an insightful conversation with Kanaka Maoli composer, Leilehua Lanzilotti ’02.
The Buff ‘n Blue spirit was in full swing on the East Coast in September with two unique events with our PAA Mid-Atlantic (PAAMA) and PAA New York (PAANY) regional alumni chapters. In the Mid-Atlantic region just outside Washington, D.C., over 100 alumni and friends gathered at the Penland home in Falls Church, Virginia, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Punahou’s Alumni Lū‘au. Trippi ’64 and Tom Penland hosted the event, which included lei making, ‘ono Hawaiian food, hula and mele, pontoon rides on Lake Barcroft, and a special presentation from the chapter to Punahou School. The chapter gifted a certificate acknowledging 100 years of the Punahou Alumni Lū‘au and an American flag that was raised over the U.S. Capitol on September 9th, which is Daniel Dole’s birthday, the School’s first Principal. It was a memorable time that ended with O‘ahu a, Strawberry Shortcake and Hawai‘i Aloha.
The festivities then moved north to New York City for an intimate conversation with Kanaka Maoli composer and multi-media artist Leilehua Lanzilotti ’02, who was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic to compose a new work, “of light and stone”, which premiered at the opening concert of Gustavo Dudamel’s (Music and Artistic Director) first season in New York City on Sept. 11, 2025. Allen Murabayashi ’90 led the discussion at SkyLounge at LiveShots, a broadcast studio owned by Damon Haimoff ’85, which offers magnificent views of Midtown Manhattan.
Lanzilotti was also honored to be a finalist for the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her work “with eyes the color of time” (string orchestra). Alumni and friends were impressed by Leilehua’s journey from Punahou to award-winning composer, and appreciated her inclusion of Hawaiian culture in the many pieces of work she has produced over the years. Her multi-media piece with her partner, videographer Gahlord Dewald – “the sky in our hands, our hands in the sky” – will be at the Honolulu Museum of Art in February 2026.
Anniversary events in celebration of the 100th Alumni Lū‘au continue this year with festive gatherings – next up: Chicago and the Pacific Northwest.
– By Doug Rigg ’84