Birthdays are always a blast with Na Leo Lani. We celebrate monthly with a sash, harmonious wishes, and an opportunity to ham it up in birthday glory.
Enjoy a glimpse below of our fall birthday gals enjoying their moment, plus a pic from our weekly sisterhood of song.
Irish eyes were smiling this week as we sported many shades of green and welcomed a new tenor, Terry, to the chorus. Our tenor section is growing, and we couldn’t be happier! 🍀
Rehearsal fell on Valentine’s Day this week, so what better reason to sing our favorite love songs, including “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.”
We had other reasons to feel the love as well — we have two new members, Nicole (tenor) and Kristine (lead)! Welcome, ladies! Let the fun begin, and let our chords ring!
We were thrilled to welcome seven guests, including new faces and old friends, at this week’s Membership Night. From the ribbon twirling warmups to a spirited round of tags, it was a nonstop evening of singing, laughter, and fun.
In an interlude between working on our contest songs and a hilarious round-robin game of Betty Boop (and Popeye and Wolf!) (see pic below), members shared how they came to Na Leo Lani and what they love about it.
Rosie spoke of how singing with the chorus had been a source of solace and uplift after her mother’s passing and a long stint volunteering at Hospice Hawaii. Summer, April, and others said they loved the sense of community they have found at NLL. JoAnne — hands down our most radiant and glamorous member — described how singing with Na Leo Lani has kept her young. She is now 88, and her daughter tells her she should never quit! And proving that we are never too old to expand our skill set and build our résumés, Ruth, now in her nineties, imparted how being a part of Na Leo Lani for so many years had put her in line for a leadership position at her assisted living facility, where she now heads the hymn-singing group.
Young or old, singing in harmony is our secret to feeling connected and finding joy!
Thanks so much, ladies, for making our January membership night a success. Let’s continue to grow!
A warm welcome to new Sweet Adeline, Rose, who was confirmed by the chorus as a new Na Leo Lani member this week. Rose brings her melodious voice, warm smile, and previous choral experience to our tenor section. We are thrilled to have her and look forward to many happy musical moments together!
Making it official with our director, Chris, and president, Deb.
We were thrilled to formally welcome new member, Summer, to the chorus at our August 16 rehearsal. Summer comes to us from Velvet Hills Chorus of Colorado Springs, where she was a lead. She has now ventured into the wild roller coaster of baritone — bravo, Summer, and a warm E komo mai to you from Na Leo Lani!
Ar tonight’s rehearsal we marked National Denim Day with a rhapsody in blue — blue jeans, that is. Following some high-spirited singing, we held our annual Board of Directors installation ceremony to welcome new and ongoing members onto the BOD.
Thank you, Music Team and installation volunteers, for making tonight fun!
And a very happy birthday to Karlyn, who did the birthday sash proud with her beaming smile.
Spring has sprung, and with it, we achieved a fabulous new milestone in March — three new members, all of them Leads, in a single month! Congratulations and welcome to Suzanne, Karlyn and April — we are so excited to have you join us. We look forward to a long and mutually rewarding celebration of song together.
Na Leo Lani celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8 with a Wonder Woman theme, and we welcomed three new members to the chorus — April, Karlyn, and Suzanne!
Singing is not only wonderful, it also works wonders at lifting the spirits and building community.
Our very own Rosie Ramiro, longtime Na Leo Lani member and chorus volunteer, was recently recognized by the AARP for her contributions to the chorus and many other causes. In addition to serving as Leads section leader and stints on the NLL Board, Rosie uses her creative talents to make costume accessories that keep us looking festive, floral, and fantastic. When the pandemic began, she turned her sewing skills to making hundreds of face masks for frontline workers. In honor of Rosie’s boundless generosity and energy, fellow chorus member Noel Eto thoughtfully nominated her for the Andrus Award, which recognizes “outstanding individuals age 50 and older who are sharing their experience, talents and skills to enrich the lives of others.”
See excerpts from Noel’s nomination, below. And for the latest on Rosie’s volunteer work, see this Star Advertiser article on the new Acopan Garden at the Manoa Heritage Center — a project close to her heart.
“During the 2020-2021 COVID 19 pandemic lockdown, Rosie has personally sewn and donated over 1,500 face masks to Lanakila Clinic and hundreds of surgical caps, wheelchair bags and lap blankets for Kuakini Hospital. Rosie was nominated and received an award from Hawaii National Bank’s “Hometown Heroes” for her generous mask donations.
“Rosie also became a volunteer assistant to the ukulele instructor at Lanakila Senior Center, after taking the classes herself.
“Rosie has been a member of NaLeo Lani chorus (NLL), the Hawaii chapter of Sweet Adelines International (SAI), a women’s a cappella group for nearly twenty years. During that time she’s served voluntarily on the Board of Directors.
“For NLL, Rosie is the Lead section leader and the lead singer in NLL’s premier quartet, Friends (and sews costumes for them, too). Rosie prints and delivers sheet music to homebound (and not so technical) chorus members. She keeps in touch and visits with members now in care homes. She also donates face masks as prizes for games during NLL’s Zoom rehearsal sessions.
“Rosie participated in SAI’s Diversity, Equality and Inclusion project which included reviewing NLL’s 50 songs of their current repertoire. She researched the history, composer and language of each song to insure that there was no trace of racism, sexism or any inadvertent negative message. This is being done worldwide by Sweet Adelines International.”
Rosie has also become an active presence with the Manoa Heritage Center. She recently gave a presentation about Filipinos in Manoa Valley for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and she recorded an oral history of her family in Manoa Valley for Malama Manoa
Na Leo Lani Chorus 