Every Sunday, “Back in the Day” looks at an article that ran on this date in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. The items are verbatim, so don’t blame us today for yesteryear’s bad grammar.
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Here’s a ripe idea for Lei Day from someone who knows his "leis." A mighty good idea to follow up.
Walter Doyle writes in:
"Dear Don — About that Lei Day idea. Leis are getting more and more popular on the mainland all the time. Every delegation, fraternal or otherwise, which leaves here for the states with a bunch of paper leis is swamped with requests for them.
"Why not some enterprising concern here have leis fixed up ready for mailing. Some sort of a fancy paper box after the style of a Christmas box which neckties or sox are sent out in.
"Have a card attached to the lei explaining its significance and that everyone in Hawaii is wearing on Lei Day a lei made of real flowers. If it is too late now to start this, it might be a good suggestion for some enterprising merchant to keep in mind for next year as I KNOW Lei Day will be an annual event.
"Walter Doyle."
Now that’s a splendid idea. We can’t send real flowers but we can send the idea. People are so darned interested in Hawaii and will appreciate anything from here, and would be especially cocky about it if they could jauntily explain "Oh, yes, I had this sent me by a friend in Hawaii."
… George Armitage of the tourist bureau … said that anyone who wanted to send leis to the mainland (they’ll have to be paper leis) could call at the tourist bureau and get free the little lei booklet which they issue explaining the lei and the sentiment attached to it and a few other things about Honolulu.
Now that’s a ripping idea. Follow it up. Choose a lei, feather, shell, paper or what not that can be send to the mainland, and SEND IT with message of aloha from Hawaii. Time it to arrive on Lei Day, which is May 1, and be sure to include the message, "May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii."
