Pacific Edge Magazine

Brittany Alejo Fishel Headshot 2025

Britney Alejo-Fishell

Women in Business 2025

What inspires you or is most exciting about your job, business, and industry, and what are the biggest challenges? Inspiration is all around us at Haku Maui. We are so fortunate to work with beautiful, locally grown flowers and foliage to create traditional Hawaiian lei for our customers and community. The look of awe...

Umma Headshot 2025

Umma Berkelman

Women in Business 2025,

How did your decision to return to the workforce after being a full-time mom lead you to a role where you could directly impact Hawai‘i’s technological and community development? Every stage of life brings its own unique challenges, especially for women who wear so many hats. When I made the choice to step away...

Chelsie Evans Enos Headshot 2025

Chelsie Evans

Women in Business 2025,

Tell us a little about your role as Executive Director of HCA. At Hawaiian Community Assets, I see myself as a navigator and a connector, responsible for identifying the intricate puzzle pieces that come together to fulfill our mission. But a puzzle isn’t completed by one person alone—it takes the right hands, the right...

Stacy F Headshot

Stacy Kealohalani Ferreira

Women in Business 2025,

If you could spend the day with a world leader, who would it be and why? If I could spend the day with a world leader, it would be with Her Majesty Ngā Wai Hono i te Pō Paki, the newly appointed Māori Queen and eighth monarch of the Kīngitanga. As the second Māori...

Jennifer Grems Headshot 2025

Jennifer Grems

Women in Business 2025,

Who inspires you? Throughout my life, I’ve been inspired by women in leadership who have uplifted, encouraged, and believed in me. These women modeled what it means to lead with purpose, to collaborate with generosity, and to advocate for others with courage and compassion. Their belief in my potential often came at moments when...

Lii, Rachel Headshot 2025

Rachel Lii

Women in Business 2025,

If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? I would swap places with a Pilot. It is the only job where you can be in one part of the world and then another all in a day’s work. What inspires you or is...

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Sarah Light
Women in Business 2025,
What inspires you or is most exciting about your job, business, and industry, and what are the biggest challenges? What inspires me most is the opportunity to create a meaningful impact on people, buildings, and communities. In our work, we get to breathe new life into aging structures, ensuring they’re safe, beautiful, and functional... VIEW ARTICLE Soo Kim
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? I would want to be an environmental conservationist. The allure of learning more about the natural world and making an impact in a different way is very appealing to me. Our natural resources are... VIEW ARTICLE Leina Ijacic
Women in Business 2025,
What were some important turning points in your career that define you? When Covid-19 hit, I was the Chief Administrative Officer at IHS, The Institute for Human Services. We needed a place for houseless people to quarantine or isolate safely, so I helped start the Temporary Quarantine and Isolation Center with the Department of... VIEW ARTICLE Linda Miki
Women in Business 2025,
Use three words to describe yourself: G70 utilized the Gallup StrengthsFinder personality test years ago to help us learn more about ourselves and each other. The software shares your top five out of 34 strengths. Over the years, my descriptions did not really change but interestingly, the rank/order changed. 1) Relator: Someone who builds strong,... VIEW ARTICLE Julie Morikawa
Women in Business 2025,
What inspires you or is most exciting about your job, business, and industry, and what are the biggest challenges? Hawai‘i has the opportunity to be a leader nationally in workforce development by implementing flexible, collaborative programs that are beneficial for our businesses, students, and communities. We are also changing perceptions about what it means to... VIEW ARTICLE Preet Nijjar
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? If I could swap jobs with anyone for a day, I’d probably choose to be an astronaut in space looking down at the Earth. It would be exhilarating and humbling to see and know the... VIEW ARTICLE Kea Peters
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? This is a tough one for me not because I’m not inspired, but because I’m inspired by so many, especially Indigenous women who carry deep kuleana and have shaped the world in quiet and powerful... VIEW ARTICLE Kimberly Ryusaki-Marrero
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? When I was young I wanted to one day volunteer for the Peace Corps to experience the passion of being of service in such a grand way. So I would say to swap and... VIEW ARTICLE Martha Seroogy
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? When I was a little girl, I was fascinated with deep-sea exploration and archaeology. I would daydream about the fact that 80 percent of the ocean remains unexplored and imagine being an oceanographer discovering an... VIEW ARTICLE Jody Shiroma
Women in Business 2025,
What’s your go-to song or playlist that gets you motivated for a busy day? My daily go-to playlist is a mix of Kendrick Lamar, Chappell Roan, Dua Lipa and AC/DC, with some Bob Sinclair, Krishna Das and Snoop Dogg thrown in for good measure! Growing up in Hawaiʻi, local music is ALWAYS on my list,... VIEW ARTICLE Erin Kanno Uehara
Women in Business 2025,
What are you most proud of/grateful for? I am so grateful that I am able to build and maintain both a family and a business that I love. I have found a rhythm between the two that takes a lot of work, but it works for us. What I learn in business I can... VIEW ARTICLE Elizabeth Elkjer
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? Something connected to the ocean—my first love. If I could spend the day as a marine photographer for National Geographic or studying the ocean like Sylvia Earle, my heart would be truly happy. What inspires you... VIEW ARTICLE Aileen Utterdyke
Women in Business 2025,
What inspires you or is most exciting about your job, business, and industry, and what are the biggest challenges? What inspires me most about my role at Pacific Historic Parks is the opportunity to preserve and elevate the stories that have shaped our nation and the Pacific region. Each site we support—from the USS... VIEW ARTICLE Andrea Weiss
Women in Business 2025,
If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? I would work for a foreign aid organization distributing vaccines or healthcare to children and families in any of the devastated areas in our world right now. I could immediately contribute to improving someone’s life,... VIEW ARTICLE Kristi Yamaguchi
Women in Business 2025,
What inspires you or is most exciting about your job, business, and industry, and what are the biggest challenges? I am excited about our growing impact in Hawaiʻi. Through our literacy organization, Always Dream, we are working to ensure children from underserved communities have access to high-quality books in the home environment and the... VIEW ARTICLE Alexis Charpentier
Women in Business 2025,
How has your experience prepared you for this role? Over a decade ago, my public health journey began at Waikiki Health, where I witnessed first-hand the power of compassionate, community-centered care. That early experience inspired a career dedicated to advancing health equity across local, state, and national levels. At the Hawai‘i Department of Health, I... VIEW ARTICLE Janet M. Kelley 
Women in Business 2025,
Profile Text Here If you could swap jobs with anyone in the world for one day, who would it be and why? I would swap jobs with the head of Hawai‘i’s most successful marketing firm to see the inside operations of how they spend their day and do what they do. What inspires you or is... VIEW ARTICLE

2025 Women in Business Issue

Britney Alejo

Founder-Owner

Haku Maui

Umma Berkelman

Economic Development Specialist

Hawaii Technology Development Corporation, a state agency under DBEDT

Chelsie Evans

Enos Executive Director

Hawaiian Community Assets

Stacy Kealohalani Ferreira

CEO/Ka Pouhana

Office of Hawaiian Affairs

Jennifer Grems

Head of School

La Pietra – Hawai‘i School for Girls

Rachel Lii

Regional Sales Manager

First Onsite Property Restoration

Sarah Light

Chief Operating Officer

Seal Masters of Hawaii & Elite Construction Services

Soo Kim

President

Holokai Catamaran

Leina Ijacic

BS-RN, LSSBB CEO-Administrator

One Kalakaua Senior Living

Linda Miki

CEO and Vice Chair Group

70 International Inc., dba G70

Julie Morikawa

President

ClimbHI

Preet Nijjar

Vice President Property Management

Avalon Group LLC

Kea Peters

Founder

Kākou Collective LLC

Kimberly Ryusaki-Marrero

Owner/Designer

Lotus & Lime

Martha Seroogy

Senior Director of Show Operations & Revenue

Cirque du Soleil ‘Auana

Jody Shiroma

Vice President

Communications PBS Hawaiʻi

Erin Kanno Uehara

Owner "Chocolate Connections Officer"

Choco le‘a

Elizabeth Elkje

 Vice President of Sales

Sustainable Island Products

Aileen Utterdyke

President and CEO

Pacific Historic Parks

Andrea Weiss

Chief Executive Officer

Hawaiian Building Maintenance

Kristi Yamaguchi

Founder and Board

Chair Always Dream

Alexis Charpentier

MPH Chief Executive Officer

Waikiki Health

Janet M. Kelley

Founder and President

Mana Means Communications

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