{"id":2157,"date":"2023-10-04T12:02:26","date_gmt":"2023-10-04T22:02:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/?p=2157"},"modified":"2023-10-04T12:02:26","modified_gmt":"2023-10-04T22:02:26","slug":"polynesian-cultural-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/polynesian-cultural-center\/","title":{"rendered":"The Center of Attraction"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

PHOTO BY ANTHONY CONSILLIO<\/p><\/div>\n

With president and CEO P. Alfred Grace leading the way, Polynesian Cultural Center gears up for its 60th anniversary celebration.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

When crossing paths with P. Alfred Grace for the first time, several of his attributes become immediately obvious. For one, he\u2019s a man of large stature. For another, he possesses a lovely Kiwi accent. And for still another, he\u2019s got a wonderful and active sense of humor.<\/p>\n

The latter quality is apparent as he recounts the time a woman accepted his business card and straight away asked, \u201cWhat\u2019s the P in your name stand for?\u201d Sensing an opportunity to spin a good yarn, he explained that his parents had given him the unusual moniker of \u201cPalfred\u201d at birth \u2014 a designation he grew to dislike. Once he was old enough, however, he quickly added a period and voila! Goodbye, Palfred \u2014 hello, P. Alfred.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Polynesian Cultural Center o\ufb00ers hundreds of students at Brigham Young University-Hawai\u2018i employment opportunities year-round. Many choose to work as performers in daily shows. PHOTO COURTESY POLYNESIAN CULTURAL CENTER<\/p><\/div>\n

Grace was kidding, of course, but he never got around to telling the woman the real story behind his name.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was so sincere that I didn\u2019t have the heart to tell her I was only joking,\u201d he confesses. \u201cSo, somewhere out there in the world, there\u2019s a woman who still thinks my name is Palfred.\u201d<\/p>\n

The truth is this native of New Zealand was given the full name of his grandfather \u2014 the P standing for Puataata. As he explains, pua means \u201cto blossom\u201d while taata refers to one\u2019s spirit. In essence, his birth name was a promise that wherever he went in life, his soul would not only bloom but flourish, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what my mum said. I don\u2019t know anything other than that, but I do know you never doubt your mother. She\u2019ll always give you the positive,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Turns out Mom was as prescient as she was positive about her son\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

For the past decade, Grace has made a name for himself as president and CEO of Polynesian Cultural Center, the longtime tourist destination and entertainment hub that is preparing to celebrate six decades in business in October. (See story on page 16.) Since succeeding Von Orgill in early 2013 and becoming the first former Brigham Young University-Hawai\u2018i student and PCC employee to be named to C-suite positions, Grace has been instrumental in guiding the nonprofit through difficult periods while allowing the center \u2014 which employs some 1,400 residents, more than half of whom are students at BYU-Hawai\u2018i \u2014 to also flourish as an educational and cultural resource for the Pacific Islander community.<\/p>\n

Despite his obvious impact on the center\u2019s day-to-day operations, Grace downplays many of his accomplishments. Instead, he prefers touting the achievements of those who serve with him today, and crediting those who\u2019ve mentored him in the distant past \u2014 \u201cgiants\u201d such as Robert Iwamoto Jr., co-founder of Robert\u2019s Hawai\u2018i; Leona Nakaahiki, former vice president of sales at Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays; and Ron Letterman, former head of American Express.<\/p>\n

Modesty, it appears, is yet another one of Grace\u2019s obvious qualities.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I\u2019ve done anything good in my time here, it\u2019s that, well, I\u2019ve been surrounded by very good people,\u201d he acknowledges. \u201cThey\u2019re all very competent, all very passionate, all very committed. We have a good team.\u201d<\/p>\n

And yet, every good team needs a leader who guides and motivates members through challenging times. For PCC, Grace has been that person.<\/p>\n

During the pandemic, for example, when the center was trying to find its way back after being closed for so long (an entire year) that, as its jovial leader jokingly puts it, \u201cthe grass had grown where we had emptied the lagoon,\u201d Grace implemented a business plan that required a sizable shift in how things would be done.<\/p>\n

Essentially, the bold proposal called for placing a ceiling on attendance numbers. No longer would the center sell each of the available 2,700 seats for its popular l\u016b\u2018au, but rather keep daily accommodations to 400 guests. Likewise, instead of bringing in a seemingly unlimited number of diners to fill PCC\u2019s largest restaurant, Gateway Buffet, Grace and his team put a cap on the number (800) of patrons.<\/p>\n

While such a decision strikes at the heart of traditional business models that encourage profit-making opportunities at every turn, Grace says the new path forward meshed better with the center\u2019s emphasis on quality over quantity, customer satisfaction over financial gain.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom a business point of view, our management team knows how many people they\u2019re catering for in a day,\u201d explains Grace, who credits Letterman with floating the idea of capping attendance numbers to him more than three decades ago. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to worry about cooking more chicken because you know there will only be 800 people today. Everything is geared toward achieving those numbers and doing it all correctly.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo us, when you cap attendance and you also provide a satisfactory experience, it creates demand, and that demand pushes the online booking window well out,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

Beyond the improved experience for guests, the big winners at PCC continue to be its student-employees, many of whom work in one of the center\u2019s Polynesian villages or as performers in nightly shows, and who remain as committed as ever to their 19-hour-a-week jobs.<\/p>\n

As Grace observes, \u201cThey work hard, they dance hard and they serve hard during the l\u016b\u2018au. On top of that, most of them are still carrying 15-18 credits in college.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really mean this sincerely, but the vast majority of these students are far more advanced than I was at their age,\u201d he says. \u201cThey just seem to have their acts together a little bit more about where they\u2019re going and what they want to accomplish. Yeah, you have the odd guys who are just enjoying life day by day, but then you have a lot of young people who see this as a huge commitment on the part of their families, particularly the international students, whose families are sacrificing so much to send their children to the university over here.\u201d<\/p>\n

All of which makes Grace proud to be a part of a financial promise that PCC makes to its student-employees.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe commitment that we have with them is this: Between funding from our church and from private donors, and working here at PCC or at BYU-Hawai\u2018i, they can graduate with no debt,\u201d he vows.<\/p>\n

Grace has strong familial ties to the center, which first opened its doors to visitors on Oct. 12, 1963. Early on, his uncle, John Elkington, was given the assignment of constructing the center\u2019s Maori Village and later served on PCC\u2019s board of directors. Elkington was also the person who brought a young Grace to the islands for a vacation and wound up convincing him to stay by attending BYU-Hawai\u2018i. That was in 1983.<\/p>\n

At the time, Grace wasn\u2019t sure how he would pay for schooling, but fortunately, he possessed a rugby background that wound up having a financial perk.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce some people found out I played rugby back in New Zealand, I was offered what they called a talent award,\u201d he says. \u201cNow the university didn\u2019t have rugby as a collegiate sport \u2014 it was a club sport \u2014 but they offered me a talent award and that covered my tuition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Initially, his goal was to graduate with a degree in business, return to New Zealand and begin work as a tour operator.<\/p>\n

\u201cI come from the central north island \u2014 we have a beautiful lake there along with hunting and fishing \u2014 and I felt that being a tour operator had a good future in that area, and it was something I thought I\u2019d enjoy,\u201d explains Grace, the youngest of four children who were raised on a farm in the small town of T\u016brangi.<\/p>\n

Those plans were interrupted after he met a fellow student from the L\u0101\u2018ie community, Valerie Enos, fell in love and became engaged. Marriage, however, was put on hold when he chose to serve a full-time mission in his native homeland for the center\u2019s owner, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Following two years abroad, he returned to the islands, began working at PCC and made good on his promise by tying the knot with Enos.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first job at PCC was dancing in the night show and honestly, I didn\u2019t care for it,\u201d explains Grace. \u201cBut I did it because my wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, danced in the night show. She danced in everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

In contrast, Grace chose to limit his performances to the Maori and Fijian dance forms.<\/p>\n

\u201cI figured those were the manly ones and they weren\u2019t too difficult for me,\u201d he says, laughing.<\/p>\n

Eventually, he moved from being a dancer and serving as a sales guide to accepting an account executive position based in Waik\u012bk\u012b. To his credit, Grace made the 35-mile trek from L\u0101\u2018ie to Waik\u012bk\u012b for 20 years \u2014 with the only interruption coming when he briefly took a position with Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays before PCC, in recognizing his value as a top-notch salesman, wooed him back.<\/p>\n

Once Grace returned to the fold, it was only a matter of time before he was invited to move up in the operation\u2019s ranks. In 2009, he gladly accepted PCC\u2019s offer to be its chief operating officer, and four years later, to serve in his current roles.<\/p>\n

In reflecting upon the last decade, Grace admits the years have been fruitful for him and his \u2018ohana, which include three daughters, their spouses and their growing families. Yet apparently time hasn\u2019t been kind to one of his finest features.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s ironic that my first year as president and CEO was the 50th anniversary of PCC, and I had hair and everything,\u201d he says with a grin. \u201cNow, here I am 10 years later and it\u2019s like, oh, my gosh.\u201d<\/p>\n

All jokes aside, Grace is elated to still be in a position where he can impact others\u2019 lives for the better. In the end, one of his very best qualities is that he simply cares about others.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere at PCC, our goal is to continue focusing on providing worthwhile, unique and uplifting experiences that are cherished by our guests,\u201d he says, \u201cwhile continuing to provide great employment and learning opportunities for all of our employees and, in particular, our students.\u201d<\/p>\n

THE BIG 6-OH<\/h3>\n

When Polynesian Cultural Center o\ufb03cially turns 60 next month, it\u2019ll be an opportunity for many former student-employees to gather once again in L\u0101\u2018ie.<\/p>\n

The celebration won\u2019t be as extensive as the center\u2019s 50th anniversary jubilee a decade ago, yet more than 700 alumni are still expected to take part in the festivities. In fact, many will be flying in from around the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a reunion for us with alumni looking to meet up with their former classmates and coworkers,\u201d explains president and CEO P. Alfred Grace. \u201cThey\u2019ll also be working in our villages again and they\u2019ll put on an alumni show, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

PCC has employed thousands of student-employees since opening to the public on Oct. 12, 1963 \u2014 nearly two years after its owner, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, authorized construction of the nonprofit center. Its mission has been to preserve and share the spirit of Polynesia from six Pacific regions \u2014 Aotearoa (New Zealand), Hawai\u2018i, Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti and Tonga \u2014 with guests while also providing employment opportunities and scholarships for students at nearby BYU-Hawai\u2018i.<\/p>\n

Since its debut, PCC has welcomed more than 42 million visitors to the 42-acre site it shares with the university. Over the years, visitors have been entertained and educated at the center, attending events such as the World Fire Knife Dance Competition, visiting villages to learn more about Polynesian culture, participating in a l\u016b\u2018au and catching evening shows such as H\u0101\u2013Breath of Life.<\/p>\n

One of its main attractions, Huki: A Canoe Celebration, has been closed since spring 2020. But Grace promises that the parade of canoes showcase will make a much-anticipated return next summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re looking at enhancing our Hawaiian experience over the next few years,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n

To learn more about PCC and its October anniversary specials for members of \u2018Ohana Club, a free kama\u2018\u0101ina loyalty program, visit polynesia.com<\/a> or call 800-367-7060.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With president and CEO P. Alfred Grace leading the way, Polynesian Cultural Center gears up for its 60th anniversary celebration…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":2159,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover-story"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Center of Attraction - Hawaii Island MidWeek<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/polynesian-cultural-center\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Center of Attraction - Hawaii Island MidWeek\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"With president and CEO P. 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