We lost an important member.. RIP Hawaii 50

[kerneltime]

Len Kojima was Hawaii 50 here.. his passion for the ukulele is unsurpassed and his impact on the ukulele community runs wide and deep.
Rest In Peace! I wish I got to know you sooner and met you more often..

 

[Steedy]

The worldwide ukulele ohana has lost a great friend in Len Kojima, who lost a years-long battle with colon cancer. I never met Len in person, but he was on these forums when I joined 10 years ago, and his posts were always informative. He and I messaged each other a few times regarding ukuleles, and he was always very kind and respectful. He was a great man and a great ambassador of peace, love, & 'ukulele.

 

[rainbow21]

Craig Chee just posted about Len on FBook. Apparently he was well known and loved on the islands. Sorry to hear of his passing.

 

[Kyle23]

I haven’t posted in a long time but I came to post this.

I remember seeing Len on the forums for years, turns out I met him on accident during a Hawaii trip in 2019. I was at Hawaii Music Supply and he walked in and just started talking. We talked for a bit and I still just thought he was some friendly man who I didn’t know. I played a few songs with Corey, posted the video here of us playing and what do you know… Len comes into the thread and tells me that he met me earlier that day. I’ll never forget it. I wish I had known it was him when we talked, but even as a “stranger” he was just so natural to talk to. What a guy. He will be missed.

 

[Cadia]

I haven’t posted in a long time but I came to post this.

I remember seeing Len on the forums for years, turns out I met him on accident during a Hawaii trip in 2019. I was at Hawaii Music Supply and he walked in and just started talking. We talked for a bit and I still just thought he was some friendly man who I didn’t know. I played a few songs with Corey, posted the video here of us playing and what do you know… Len comes into the thread and tells me that he met me earlier that day. I’ll never forget it. I wish I had known it was him when we talked, but even as a “stranger” he was just so natural to talk to. What a guy. He will be missed.

Oh no! So sad to hear. I greatly enjoyed his posts. As Steedy said, always kind and respectful. May he rest in peace.

 

[DownUpDave]

Like others have written before me I met Len through the forum. He loved the ukulele and everything associated with it, he embodied the Aloha spirit. We messaged each other from time to time and he was always kind and thoughtful. He will be sorely missed.

 

[LukuleleStrings]

He was a good guy and I’ll miss him for sure. He was a constant at the Ukulele Site and I’m sure it won’t be the same without him.

 

[merlin666]

I haven’t posted in a long time but I came to post this.

I remember seeing Len on the forums for years, turns out I met him on accident during a Hawaii trip in 2019. I was at Hawaii Music Supply and he walked in and just started talking. We talked for a bit and I still just thought he was some friendly man who I didn’t know. I played a few songs with Corey, posted the video here of us playing and what do you know… Len comes into the thread and tells me that he met me earlier that day. I’ll never forget it. I wish I had known it was him when we talked, but even as a “stranger” he was just so natural to talk to. What a guy. He will be missed.

That's how I met him too, at Kaka'ako HMS store where he was building a uke. We had a good talk about ukes and he also mentioned his cancer. A short encounter but enough to make a lasting impression. I did not realize he was a member until I posted about my visit and he mentioned that we had met.

 

[Bluesy]

I always enjoyed Hawaii 50's posts. I'll miss his voice here.

Bluesy.

 

[sam13]

I met Len through this forum and he was so kind and helpful ... a gentle, positive force.

From Hawaii, he introduced me to a fellow Canadian who is a world class luthier ... in my home town! I now own one of the luthier's Ukes and I will think of him when I play it.

The Ukulele world is small and the loss of his kind voice will be significant.

RIP Len.

 

[Bill Sheehan]

So sorry to hear this. May Len rest in peace.

 

[Joyful Uke]

I never got to know him, other than seeing his posts here on UU, but am sad to hear this.
My condolences to all who knew him.

 

[Kenn2018]

I only knew him through his thoughtful posts on the Forum. Condolences to his friends and family.

Thanks for letting us know Kerneltime.

 

[Joe T]

RIP Len. I'm sorry for his family and this communities loss.

 

[Tigeralum2001]

I met Len in either '11 or '12 when we both took Ukulele lessons in San Jose. We became good friends. UU has changed a lot, but back in the early teens, it was a place of lots of Aloha and good will and Len was a large part of that. If you had the chance to meet him, you met a rare gem.

I already posted a memory on FB and while I have many, many more, my thoughts boil down to 2 salient points. 1. I am a better person because I knew him. 2. He will be greatly missed.

My thoughts and prayers to all of his family and friends, of which there are many.

 

[Patrick Madsen]

Len always called me "his brother in ukes" because we had Moore Bettahs built at the sametime or one after the other, I forget. He and Stan were always there for any reason. This is really a shock reading he passed. May he rest in peace and join the ukers who previously passed.

 

[Nickie]

Godspeed, Len. I regret never having met him.

 

[Booli]

So sorry to hear about Len's passing.

Back around 2015-2017 we interacted via PM quite often. He was always helpful, insightful and generous with sharing his experience, both via PM and in his forum posts.

He also had a singular wit and great sense of humor from the interactions we had together.

I am sad he is no longer with us. He will be missed for sure.

Thanks to kerneltime for sharing the info with the community here.

 

[kerneltime]

A wonderful and heartfelt tribute to Len by the folks @ Theukulelesite

 

[stevejfc]

RIP Brother Len