YMCA to honor kumu Carolee Nishi and her offering of aloha for 50 years

As she walks through the ground floor of the bustling Nuuanu YMCA, silver-haired kumu Carolee Nishi is greeted by a procession of passing students, friends and staffers.

Known to most as Auntie Carolee, Nishi’s wide smile and small, graceful figure has been a fixture at the Y, where she has volunteered to teach hula, ukulele, guitar and Hawaiian culture and language for 50 years through her halau, Hula Hui O Kapunahala.

At a sold-out Sunday luncheon at the Sheraton Waikiki, nearly 1,000 of Nishi’s former and current students, family and friends, will commemorate her spirit of haawi, or giving without expecting anything in return.

Nishi, 75, was busy this past week with rehearsals and event details, but through it all, she said she felt a sense of joy in the milestone reunion. The celebration will include student performances of kahiko or old-style hula, and auana or contemporary hula that have been passed down through the decades.

“I can’t believe how it’s brought so many people together and how excited and how happy we are to join hands and do this together. It’s just great,” she said.

Nishi’s students at the Y range from ages 3 to 90-something and come from all walks of life. Some represent the second and third generation of their families to learn from her.

Nishi remembers the name of practically every child, adult and volunteer she has ever worked with. She began teaching at the Nuuanu Y in 1968 when Bob Masuda, who was then the branch executive, asked if she would help launch a Hawaiian culture program for kids who had no place to go after school.

Masuda, who now works for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, said Nishi is not only a great kumu but an inspiring disciplinarian.

“So the children and young adults who have been under her mentorship have not only benefited from the spirit and skills of hula but have also developed into young men and women of character, which is what the YMCA is about,” he said.

Students describe Nishi as a “living treasure,” and many still remember her after having grown up and moved on. Some now teach hula and Hawaiian culture themselves.

Joy Quensell, a pediatrician who has been Nishi’s student since she was 10, said she has learned life lessons along the way.

“So it’s not just about hula,” said Quensell, 40. “It’s about things like confidence, teamwork, persistence and all of that. She definitely focuses on all of those things. It’s not just learning about hula but about growing and becoming a good person.”

While Nishi’s halau has entered numerous competitions, including the Queen Lili‘uokalani Keiki Hula Competition, the Hula Oni E Hula Festival and King Kamehameha Hula Competition, she said her emphasis has never been on winning.

“I don’t think life is about winning,” she said. “When you get caught up with that, it’s never enough.”

During the time she taught at the Y, Nishi also worked more than 40 years as an executive services director at United Airlines and until last year as a kupuna teaching Hawaiian studies at Wilson Elementary School.

Born in Honolulu, she grew up surrounded by Hawaiian music and culture. Her first teacher was Eunice McLean, who in the late 40s taught her and her sister hula at her home in Kalihi. They practiced on the backyard lanai to music from 78-rpm records.

McLean would bring them to perform for the military —mostly hapa-haole songs and modern-style hula — in costumes sewn by Nishi’s mother. One of the musicians who accompanied them was the late falsetto singer Auntie Genoa Keawe, who became a close friend.

Later, Nishi took classes at the YMCA and eventually at the Mamo Hula Studio in Kaimuki.

Nishi’s uncle owned a saimin stand at International Market Place next to Don the Beachcomber in Waikiki, where she got acquainted with all the performers of the 1950s and memorized their shows from beginning to end.

After graduating from Roosevelt High School, Nishi earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where she continued to dance and study Hawaiian language and history.

She said she felt fortunate to have many teachers, including kumu Alice Namakelua, who taught her slack-key guitar and traditional songs.

While teaching hula, Nishi said it is important students understand the meaning of the words they are dancing to, including the various nuances and layers of meaning. She welcomes students of all abilities, but no one is allowed to hide in the corner.

Laura Kitamura, 90, of Kailua, quickly learned this on her first day of class. The retired schoolteacher has been going to Nishi’s kupuna class for more than 30 years.

“I just love it,” she said. “We dance, play the ukulele and sing. We’re so fortunate to have her. It’s the reason I come.”

Lorraine Mau, 91, of Honolulu, started taking the class 20 years ago and said she has enjoyed many friendships over the years due to Nishi’s infectious spirit of aloha. She now volunteers to help teach the keiki ukulele classes.

“I’ve never met someone with so much love of the culture,” said Mau. “She can teach anybody, and she does.”

Looking back, Nishi said she is pleased to see how many of her students have succeeded in life, which is the reward that keeps her going. She said she never plans to stop learning or teaching.

“All these years, you know what the best thing is? My people are happy.”