Meet the Staff
 | Diane Haynes Woodburn, Publisher Diane arrived in Hawai’i in 1974 with a backpack, a master’s degree, and a naïve sense of adventure. After surviving more than one death-defying escapade, she settled on Maui to teach at the community college—but soon found the entrepreneurial spirit irresistible. Her love affair with publishing began in 1983 with the launch of her first magazine, Art to Onions. Today she takes great joy in giving back to the Maui community, gardening at her home in Kula, and cooking for her family and friends. |
 | Rita Goldman, Editor In her 36 years as an award-winning writer and editor, Rita has authored magazine articles, book reviews, advertising copy . . . and occasionally gets paid for writing humorous verse under the alias Lovely Rita, Meter Maid. In 2004, the Hawai‘i Book Publishers Association gave their Award of Excellence to her pictorial history book Every Grain of Rice: Portraits of Maui’s Japanese Community, written as a fundraising project for the Nisei Veterans Memorial Center. Rita lives in Ha‘iku with a very large cat named Smudge. |
 | Shannon Wianecki, Food Editor & Associate Editor Shannon is an inveterate snoop—in the best sense of the word. Her fascination with how and why people do things, what animals do when we’re not looking, and what things taste like has served her well as the author of numerous articles on dining, travel, and the natural environment. Shannon has put pen to paper for publications in the U.S. and Australia, including Fodor’s Hawai‘i and Freedom in Your Relationship with Food: An Every Day Guide. She is working on a new edition of Ho‘ike o Haleakala, a high-school science curriculum based on native Hawaiian ecosystems. |
 | Cecilia Fernández Romero, Art Director & Senior Designer “Mami, asquibi!” One of Cecilia’s earliest memories is of asking her mother for something to draw with. All her life, art has been her escape, her grounding, her means of expression. Born in Argentina, Ceci graduated from the National Buenos Aires University as a graphic designer, and came to Maui No Ka ‘Oi as a freelancer with more than a decade of experience. In 2004, she became MNKO’s art director, creating the magazine’s distinctive look. Ceci’s passions are photography, fine-art painting, and crafts that she enjoys creating with her son, Kai. |
 | Alix Buchter, New Media Technologies & Marketing Manager While earning a degree in sociology/social psychology from UC–Santa Cruz, Alix founded an organization for young women dedicated to cultivating social responsibility. In 2006 she moved to Maui, where her love of the arts led her to Hui No‘eau Visual Arts Center. As technical projects manager, she modernized the Hui’s technology. A world traveler, Alix has sung at such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall, and is the only MNKO staffer to have turned down an audience with former President Bill Clinton, to sing at the Cardinal High Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. |
 | Lisa Castillo, Controller “It’s genetic,” Lisa explains when you ask why she loves numbers. “My mom was a math teacher for 30 years, and my dad was an engineer.” Lisa studied economics at the University of San Francisco, returned to her native Maui, and worked in Wailea for three successful companies within the visitor industry. In 2006 she joined Maui No Ka ‘Oi as controller, and found herself right at home. Literally. Her great-grandparents owned the house that now serves as offices for MNKO; Lisa’s office is where Great-grandmother Augusta Texiera used to work as a healer. |
