No strings attached

Mike Sciacca

On a sunlit evening in Huntington Beach, the soft melody of “As Time

Goes By” wafted through the summertime breeze along a row of busy

shops in an outdoor business mall.

Far away in another part of the world, this one torn apart by the

ravages of war, the melodic sounds of Hawaiian music has brought

comfort to troops confined to an indoor base devoid of much sunlight,

where time seems to stand still.

The bond that has united local groups of caring individuals with

soldiers stationed in Iraq has been the ukulele.

The four-stringed Hawaiian instrument, which resembles a small

guitar, has had a profound affect on each side.

“I am amazed at how this has taken off,” said Shirley Orlando, the

owner of Island Bazaar, a shop that sells everything Hawaiian and is

home to two ukulele clubs -- the Kolohe Ukulele Players and Ukulele

Jam.

Orlando, who previously owned Huntington Music for 25 years, was

teaching ukulele club members the song “As Time Goes By” during their

recent Thursday night strum-along.

“The generosity of these people has brought a lot of happiness to

our soldiers,” said Orlando, who has written the musical “Surf City

USA,” which will make its debut during the 2006 season of the

Huntington Beach Playhouse. “As long as people keep sending money,

we’ll keep sending ukuleles. Our ukulele clubs are the ones

responsible for all of this. They’ve just been wonderful.”

It all began last fall, when Orlando told her friend and fellow

ukulele enthusiast, Anita Coyoli-Cullen of Huntington Beach, that she

wanted to send ukuleles to Hawaiian troops stationed in Iraq.

Coyoli-Cullen’s daughter, Diane Gilliam, also of Huntington Beach,

was a military intelligence interrogator in the U.S. Army stationed

in Iraq, where she survived a 2003 helicopter crash that killed five

soldiers aboard the aircraft.

“My daughter was telling me what life there was like for our

soldiers,” she said. “They are confined to base most of the time and

read and such to pass the time.

“I thought Shirley’s idea was great, and when she turned to the

ukulele groups, they in turn made all the rest possible.”

Through the legwork of Coyoli-Cullen, the help of Ohana magazine

editor Mel Ozeki and Carrie Takenaka -- the leader of the Units

Family Support Group in Hawaii -- Orlando was able to pack up six

ukuleles and songbooks and send them to the 29th Support Battalion of

the U.S. Army stationed at Camp Anaconda in Iraq.

The battalion commander wrote Orlando, thanking her for the

gracious donation, stating in his letter that the gift “gives us the

perseverance we need for the months ahead as we continue our mission

in Iraq.”

A few weeks after sending off the six ukuleles, Orlando mentioned

the effort to a gathering of the Kolohe Ukulele Players. She said she

would match the club for each dollar they donated, and the club was

able to collect enough for 25 more ukuleles.

Combined, Orlando said, the Kolohe Ukulele Players and Ukulele Jam

clubs have “generously” donated nearly $800.

Contributions have also come from other clubs and individuals,

including $56 from the Michael E. Rodgers Senior Center in Huntington

Beach. The Oasis Senior Center in Costa Mesa raised $405 through its

club, the Ukulele Strummers; and the ‘Ainahau O Kaleponi Hawaiian

Civic Club, to which Coyoli-Cullen belongs, collected $249.

To date, the effort has sent 88 ukuleles and songbooks to Hawaiian

troops in Iraq, Orlando said, adding that three other units have

since inquired about obtaining ukuleles.

“I think these ukuleles have brought these troops the spirit of

Aloha.” Coyoli-Cullen said. “I think it helps take them away from

where they are stationed and reminds them of home and family. If you

can do that for someone, just for a few minutes a day, then that’s a

great thing.”