The note Roy Sakuma received in December was the most touching he had received in his 40-plus years as a champion of the ukulele: "Aloha, my name is Kailani," the emailed message began. "My husband, son and I live at South Point on the Big Island of Hawaii. Makanaomakualani is a fearless five-year-old adventurer who has never been afraid to do whatever he wants. And this year, his desire to learn to play the ukulele has really taken hold of him.

"He practices and always tries his best. He has a ‘little arm’ just like Nicholas. He has watched (him) on YouTube and he gets so excited … because he’s never seen anyone with an arm like his.

"I really want to help Makana learn to play the ukulele, so I was wondering if you could give me some tips on how to teach him. I’m a novice myself but willing to do and learn whatever it takes to help/teach our son."

The "Nicholas" Kailani Toriano mentions in her email is 16-year-old Nick Acosta, who, like her son, was born without an arm. Using his right elbow to strum in lieu of a right hand, Nick, one of Sakuma’s talented proteges, has learned to play just about any tune that people with two hands can play on the ukulele.

"Nick has inspired Kailani and Makana so much, they’re really looking forward to meeting him at this year’s Great Waikoloa Ukulele Festival," Sakuma said. "I’ll be teaching them there during my free time, and Nick will be helping me."

Sakuma went through his own challenges as a youth. Kicked out of high school for truancy when he was a sophomore, he credits the ukulele with turning his life around.

The following year, 1964, he heard Herb "Ohta-San" Ohta’s hit song, "Sushi," on the radio and decided to call the ukulele virtuoso and inquire about lessons. Ohta-San recognized the boy’s earnestness and agreed to teach him.

Sakuma practiced so hard — eight to 10 hours a day — that he wore out the frets on his ukulele. But he finally experienced the joy and excitement of excelling at something that interested him.

After just 18 months, Ohta-San told Sakuma he had taught him everything there was to learn about playing the ukulele and encouraged him to go on his own as an instructor.

Taking over Ohta-San’s classes while his mentor was on a two-week concert tour in Japan, Sakuma realized that his calling was indeed to be a teacher. He opened his first Roy Sakuma Ukulele Studio in 1974 with 20 students; since then he, his wife, Kathy, and their staff have taught more than 40,000 students ranging in age from 5 to 85.

In 2004, the Sakumas established Ukulele Festival Hawaii with a simple mission: "To bring laughter, love and hope to everyone through the ukulele." The nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization puts on ukulele workshops; donates ukulele to underprivileged children; provides college scholarships to high school seniors who enjoy playing the ukulele; does presentations for schools, church groups, rotary clubs and other organizations; and produces festivals that showcase the ukulele’s versatility as a solo instrument.

Now in its 14th year, the Great Waikoloa Ukulele Festival kicks off with a 90-minute workshop led by the Sakumas.

"We’ve had as many as 150 adults and children in the workshop," Sakuma said. "We teach them a couple of songs and invite them to perform with us later in the day. We’re always so proud of them because they have an enthusiastic ‘Let’s do it!’ attitude even though they have only a couple of hours of practice. We once had 70 workshop participants on stage with us, and we hope even more will perform this year."

After the workshop is live ukulele music throughout the afternoon and early evening by school groups, top entertainers and up-and-coming artists. A dozen ukulele donated by well-known local manufacturers — including family-owned-and-operated Kamaka Hawaii, established in 1916 — will be given away in drawings.

"The Great Waikoloa Ukulele Festival is a homegrown event that welcomes people of all ages and walks of life to relax and enjoy wonderful music performed by children and adults, amateurs and professionals," Sakuma said. "Playing the ukulele isn’t hard. It’s an amazing instrument; even strumming a few basic chords makes you feel happy, puts a big smile on your face. That’s the magic of the ukulele."

Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer whose travel features for the Star-Advertiser have won several Society of American Travel Writers awards.