Joan Husted “is” my very special friend (“Longtime union negotiator Joan Lee Husted advanced conditions for teachers,” Star-Advertiser, Oct. 5).
As the Hawaii State Teachers Association’s (HSTA) first president, I was fortunate to “find” Joan after winning our first collective bargaining election.
Bargaining was a new concept for America’s teachers and Michigan State was a leader in this new “game.”
As a former Michigan teacher, Joan had helped to bargain for a contract for her local, so when HSTA Executive Director Al Hamai and I learned of Joan’s past experiences, we quickly asked her to be a part of HSTA’s first bargaining team. She was then a counselor at King Intermediate School.
The bargaining team selected her as its chair and from that moment in time (1971), as a gifted and talented negotiator, she became the shaker and mover of collective bargaining in Hawaii.
We were so fortunate that Joan dedicated her life’s service to HSTA. Amen!
Odetta Fujimori
Waialae Nui
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