Glenn Wakai
| Glenn Wakai | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Hawaii Senate from the 15th district |
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Assumed office January 19, 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Norman Sakamoto |
| Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives from the 31st district |
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In office January 2003 – January 19, 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Nathan Suzuki |
| Succeeded by | Linda Ichiyama |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 14, 1967 Japan |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Miki Wakai |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California |
| Website | glennwakai |
Glenn S. Wakai (born May 14, 1967) is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Hawaii Senate since January 2011 representing District 15. Wakai consecutively served in the Hawaii State Legislature where he served from 2003 until 2011 in the Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 seat.
Glenn Wakai was given up by his teenage birth mother for adoption 47 years ago. Wakai was adopted by a Japanese-American couple in Hawaii when he was about 18 months old. While he later learned that he had been adopted, he never sought to find his birth mother out of consideration for his adoptive parents. Two years ago, when his adopted mother died of illness, Wakai's father gave him a passport. It was made out to Mitsuru Shimabukuro and had a photo of Wakai as an infant. When his father died, Wakai decided to seek out his birth mother. He was helped by his wife, Miki, who is originally from Japan. That was one of the important factors that got the wheels turning for last year's reunion. Not only was his wife a Japanese who could help locate the organization in Japan that handled the adoption, but his birth mother had also married an American, which meant there would be no language barrier when they met. Wakai's birth mother, Yoko Boughton, and her American husband were living in Okinawa, but flew to Hawaii for the special reunion last year. Yoko had gone to Tokyo to become a beautician when she gave birth when she was 16. She initially planned to raise the child herself, but her relatives strongly opposed the decision. Bitterly disappointed, she returned to Okinawa without the baby. She gave birth to a boy she named "Mitsuru," with the hope that he would have a "fulfilling" life as his name means.
Wakai earned his BAs in broadcast journalism and sociology from the University of Southern California.
Glenn Wakai is President of non government organization Reach Out Pacific.
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Wikipedia