ASSOCIATION OF HAWAIIAN CIVIC CLUBS
A RESOLUTION
NO. 2020 – 18
HONORING THE MEMORY OF AND ACKNOWLEDGING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF LYNETTE LEI AKAMINE AGARD
WHEREAS, Lynette was born on January 26, 1946 in Honolulu, Hawaii; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was the daughter of James Jushin Akamine and Dora Shizuko Akamine; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was one of 4 children whose siblings were Eldon, Owen, and Gerald Akamine; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was married to Keoni Agard in Kaneohe on October 6, 1984, has a daughter, Karen (Brian) Arakawa Wong, step-grandson, Ryan Wong, and 2 step-granddaughters, Keana Wong and Lyann Wong; and
WHEREAS, Lynette grew up in Palolo Valley in Kaimuki, moved to Kailua in 1996 and later to Kaneohe in 2012; and
WHEREAS, Lynette attended and graduated from Palolo Elementary School in Kaimuki in 1957, William P. Jarrett Middle School in Kaimuki in 1960, Kalani High School in Honolulu in 1964, and the University of Hawaii (Manoa Campus) with a degree in Fine Arts in 1968; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a faithfull servant with a strong belief in Ke Akua and her ʻohana practiced Christianism and Buddhism; and
WHEREAS, Lynette worked at UFO as a self-employed owner and as a professional potter supplying the Annual Soup Bowl Day at Ala Moana Shopping Center with her soup bowls; and
WHEREAS, in 1984 Lynette was employed by the Department of Hawaiian Homelands, as a Homestead Assistant and was always ready with a helping hand, and was dedicated to ka poʻe kānaka who needed assistance with their genealogy, tracing lines of families with Native Hawaiian decent to determine their eligibility to reside on Hawaiian Homestead Land, and retired in 2006; and
WHEREAS, Lynette’s biggest quest was to co-produce a Hawaiian Soap Opera; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a member of Na Wahine, Chapter 1, Honolulu, an active supporter and dedicated member of the Queen Emma Hawaiian Civic Club, having joined on May 22, 2004, was the QEHCC’s Helen Kane Awardee in 2016, a board member, scholarship committee member, chairperson of several QEHCC Christmas gatherings, and attended all the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs Conventions until 2019, as a delegate or an alternate; and
WHEREAS, Lynette participated in the Prince Kūhiō parades, the Hoʻolauleʻa and Hōʻikeʻike, the Aloha Day parades, ʻOnipaʻa at ʻIolani Palace, QEHCC Scholarship Luau, Aliʻi Sundays at Kawaiahaʻo Church and The Cathedral of St. Andrew’s Church, Queen Emma’s, King Kamehameha IV’s, and Prince Albert’s Birthdays at Mauna Ala mausoleum in Nuʻuanu, and the Queen’s Medical Center’s events: Queen Emma’s, King Kamehameha’s Birthdays and Founder’s Day; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a wonderful volunteer, her and Keoni gave a lot of financial support to QEHCC and provided hot meals to QEHCC membership’s monthly meetings; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a great cook and supplied her famous “Onolicious” Bar-B-Que ribs at many social events and potlucks, and always wanted to be in the background and never wanted anyone to know how gracious she was; and
WHEREAS, Lynetteʻs contibutions as a thoughtful, hard-working, kind, dedicated, and generous person will be greatly missed by the Hawaiian Community and the QEHCC; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a blessed person, had great integrity, a beautiful character, and a warm and gentle smile; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was a strong advocate for the Hawaiian culture, language, and people, and whole heartily believed in the QEHCC’s Motto, “Kulia I Ka Nuʻu”, “Strive for the Highest” and “Hawaii for Hawaiians”, was a strong advocate for the Hawaiian Islands Sovereignty Movement with her husband Keoni, was energetically motivated to promote a cultural campaign to restore an independent kingdom for Hawaiians of whole or part Native Hawaiian ancestry and others, due to their desire to exercise self-determination and self-governance; and
WHEREAS, although Okinawan by ethnidity, she as well as her father would say they must have been Hawaiian at one time, and our lahui has lost one of our own – aloha nō; and
WHEREAS, Lynette was called to be with her Lord, her parents, her siblings, her ʻohana, and her friends on Friday, September 11, 2020.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs at its 61st Annual Convention held online in the malama of Makali‘i and the rising of ʻOlekūkolu, this 22nd day of November 2020, honoring the memory of and acknowledging the contributions of Lynette Lei Akamine Agard; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs extends its heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the ʻohana of Lynette Lei Akamine Agard and to the members of the Queen Emma Hawaiian Civic Club; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a certified copy of this resolution be transmitted to Lynette Lei Akamine Agard’s husband, Keoni Agard, her daughter, Karen Lei Arakawa Wong and Queen Emma Hawaiian Civic Club’s Pelekikena Rawlette Kraut, as well as the Governor of the State of Hawai‘i, President of the State Senate, Speaker of the State House of Representatives, Chair of the State Senate subject matter committee on Hawaiian Affairs, Chair of the State House subject matter committee on Hawaiian Affairs, Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and all County Mayors.
The undersigned herby certifies that the foregoing Resolution was duly adopted in the malama of Makaliʻi and the rising of ʻOlekūkolu on the 22nd day of November 2020, at the 61st Annual Convention of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs held online.
Hailama V.K.K. Farden, President
