Hastings & Pleadwell

28/08/2022

Please RSVP

Please join us to celebrate the life and legacy of the beloved Barbra An Pleadwell

26/07/2021

Barbara A. Hastings has recently completed her two-year tenure as the first Neighbor Island chair of Hawaii Public Radio (HPR) board. She will continue on the board's executive committee.

"I continue to be awed by the outstanding performance of HPR, how it operates; how it fundraises; how it brings important news to communities across the islands. The dedication and contributions of its members keeps it thriving and nimble enough to ride out a pandemic. José Fajardo, the guy at the top for the last several years, has proven to be a brilliant choice for HPR."

30/04/2021

Aloha Family and Friends of Hastings & Pleadwell,

To honor the memory of our founding partner, Barbra An Pleadwell, Hastings & Pleadwell, LLC (H&P), has established two funds in her name—a multi-year scholarship fund for college-bound women through the Zonta Club of Hilo and a library fund for YWCA O'ahu’s Fernhurst facility which supports women transitioning from prison.

The multi-year scholarship will benefit college-bound girls or women on O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Island. The scholarship will give preference to applicants focused on women’s studies or communication.

The YWCA’s Fernhurst provides transitional housing for women impacted by the criminal justice system. The library’s aim will be to provide them with carefully chosen books to help their self-growth and build knowledge of current affairs. Barbra Pleadwell, a former chair of the YWCA board and dedicated volunteer, was a staunch advocate for the women at Fernhurst.

To contribute to the funds:

• Barbra An Pleadwell Scholarship Fund donations can be made through Zonta Club of Hilo website at https://www.zontahilo.org/. Under the “Donate” button, please note the donation is in memory of Barbra Pleadwell.

• Barbra An Pleadwell Fernhurst library fund, YWCA O‘ahu donations can be made at https://www.ywcaoahu.org/. Please note it is for Fernhurst library.

Alternately, checks payable to the Zonta Club of Hilo or YWCA O‘ahu can be sent to Hastings & Pleadwell, 2316C Ainakahele Street, Hilo, Hawaii 96720.

23/03/2021

Aloha Friends of Hastings & Pleadwell,

With unbelievable sadness we report that Barbra An Pleadwell, partner of Hastings & Pleadwell, has passed away.

Barbra had been grappling with health issues for some time and lost the battle Monday, March 22, 2021. She was 50 years old.

She had been a force in our community, and a strong women's advocate, dedicated to the YWCA, the Organization of Women Leaders and the Junior League of Honolulu (JLH). With JLH, she helped launch the HerStory conference, then worked with Hawaii Business Magazine to create Wahine Forum, a women’s business conference.

She was an adept communication strategist with more than 26 years of experience. She architected information campaigns and maneuvered organizations through issues and crises.

Pleadwell led information and education campaigns locally, regionally and nationally. Her work has been recognized for significant, measured effectiveness. In 2009, she led a national campaign using social media to reach young adults for National Cyber Security Alliance and led efforts to launch the nonprofit’s social media channels. In 2011, working with online brands such as Facebook, VISA, Google and McAfee, she helped craft a strategy to establish cohesive and unified messages about online safety. The “Stop. Think. Connect.” campaign continues to be used nationwide, and now, internationally.

Before founding H&P, she worked for the Hawaii Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Department of Health as a strategist and media spokesperson.

With H&P, Pleadwell led communication for seven years to promote smoke-free places in Hawaii for the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii and to defend the law. She architected the Coalition’s rebranding and helped it reach unlikely partners, from bars to artists’ lairs, to reach people about smoke-free environments. She also led communication strategy for Sutter Health Pacific Kāhi Mōhala, Hawaii’s only free-standing psychiatric hospital, where she had previously been board chair.

Among the first professionals profiled in Hawaii Business’ “Twenty for the Next 20,” she was also in the first group honored by Pacific Business News’ “Forty Under 40.” She and partner Barbara Hastings received the Small Business Administration's Women in Business Champion Award for Hawaii and Region IX in 2007. In 2011, she received OWL's Leader of the Year award.

Pleadwell grew up on Guam, the third generation of her family to live in the U.S. Territory. She came to Honolulu for higher education and stayed. She earned degrees with Chaminade University of Honolulu and University of Hawaii at Manoa.

She and Jayson Harper were raising two daughters, Bella Grace Harper and Amelia Levy.

Each of us at H&P send our love to her family and many friends at this sad time.

Sadly,

Barbara A. Hastings

18/08/2020

The acquisition includes KITV’s satellite station and translators, including KHVO-ABC 13 in Hilo and KMAU-ABC-12 in Wailuku, that rebroadcast the station across Hawaii, as well as four digital cable networks — MeTV, Hawaii TV, Start TV and Heroes & Icons.

10/04/2020

An update on HRA operations in light of COVID-19. We hope everyone in the community is doing what they can to stay safe and healthy.

28/01/2020

https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2020/01/28/hawaii-news/retired-journalist-mike-middlesworth-dies-at-age-81/

John Michael “Mike” Middlesworth, retired newspaperman and vice chairman of the state Judicial Selection Commission, died Jan. 14 at Hilo Medical Center. He was 81.

27/01/2020

https://www.staradvertiser.com/2020/01/25/hawaii-news/former-advertiser-editor-pursued-second-career-in-community-service/?fbclid=IwAR0koIVeya7RUcYIMTV_hGIqpP1kcMZetTUmaB0VF7xd5Fj7HAglbHG23As

Veteran journalist John Michael (Mike) Middlesworth, the former managing editor of The Honolulu Advertiser who later followed his passions to help his Hawaii island community, died earlier this month. He was 81.