Diane Woodburn of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine speaks with Managing Director JP Oliver (Grand Wailea Maui, A Waldorf Astoria Resort) & the President of the board for the Maui County Farm Bureau Teena Rasmussen.
In this podcast JP talks about being here to help open up the Grand Wailea property 29 years ago and then returning in 2018 as Managing Director, what it’s like overseeing over 1,400 employees on property, how he approached temporarily closing the resort in March in response to Covid-19, the importance of helping employees during the closure, donating food and goods to the community, how the property has embraced the Hawaiian culture, how they introduced the Aloha Pledge to guests in late 2019, what goes into the process of reopening the resort, and his expectations for how the property will adapt in the near-term after they reopen.
Diane also speaks to the President of the board for the Maui County Farm Bureau Teena Rasmussen (24:57) about how she first came to Maui at age 20 to help with her parents flower farm, how she ended up working as the Director of Economic Development for Maui County for 8 years, why she helped start the Made In Maui festival, her transition to the Maui County Farm Bureau, what it has been like handling the pandemic with local farmers, how Maui County has supported farmers with purchases during this time, the importance of sustainable agriculture on Maui, and her advice for people looking to get into farming on Maui.
