Our Team

Steve is studio head of ID8 Studios, producer of the documentary, “Shaka, A Story of Aloha,” and “Chief Lemon Head” at Project Lemon Tree and Lemonade Alley. Steve is an owner of SaaS Ventures, a software and website development firm and the author of SumoSum, a financial forecasting app. Prior to ID8, he was conceptualist, story guy and branding/art director in entertainment, real estate, foodservice, retail and casino resort development. For more, see stevesue.com

Christian serves as the Director of Business Development and Pole Infrastructure Enterprise at the Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO). As Director, she leads a team in exploring new products and services to complement HECO’s existing portfolio of customer-driven initiatives. She worked for other utility companies and in public policy previously in Oklahoma and Iowa.

Ryan is a native Hawaiian entrepreneur, community organizer and journalist who joined the ID8 team as an associate producer of “Shaka, A Story of Aloha.” He has co-founded startups and nonprofits focused on agricultural technology, public health, and civic engagement, and consults with Hawaii organizations on community building, public relations, and marketing. 

Jill is a communications professional who combines her expertise in journalism, public relations and video production in multiple roles.  She is currently the Story and Content Manager at KHON2 News and an associate producer of “Shaka, A Story of Aloha.” With a passion for community service, Jill is a member of the distinguished Selection Committee for the Living Treasures of Hawaii.

Blair is the President & CEO of Koa Restoration and Maintenance. Prior to KRM, he was the General Manager of Otis Elevator Company with over 12 years of business leadership in various technical fields. He serves as the Vice-Chair for the Hawaiʻi State Advisory Board on Veterans’ Services. He is an active volunteer in the community and member of numerous business organizations in Hawaiʻi.

Alice is the founder and Chief Happiness Officer of Happiness University. She is an expert life guide, and author of six nationally award-winning books on life wisdom, self-growth and happiness. She has two columns, one in MidWeek titled “A Mindful Moment,” and and an award-winning column in the Sunday Star-Advertiser called “Go Ask Alice” that offers pertinent life guidance.

Amber is a professional sales trainer with Accelerate Performance Sales Consulting. She provides sales training sessions for Google sales teams by creating customized sales trainings content and delivering effective, inspiring sessions that help sales teams in tech industries improve and increase results.

Aaron is the General Manager of American Carpet One. In his downtime, he contributes to non-profits like Bizgenics and is instrumental in reeling in prizes and donations for Lemonade Alley.

Christina is the Marketing Coordinator at Hawaiʻi Energy and has marketing experience in a variety of industries from television to education to nonprofit. She is passionate about data-driven campaigns and analyzing results to determine strategic opportunities.

Creighton is the Director of Strategic Planning for Hawaii Electric Industries. He has a track record of supporting the community and providing strategic advice to enable organizations such as Bizgenics Foundation to better serve the community.

Dennis is one of the founding fathers of Lemonade Alley, covering and promoting the story through video storytelling. Dennis is the operational partner of Bizgenics’ ID8 Studios. He is a seasoned veteran of both TV and film production as the founder and owner of Pacific Focus, a video production firm, and 1013 Integrated Branding, a creative agency.

Elena is the Executive Director at the Native Hawaiian Education Counsel. NHEC’s mission is to Coordinate, Assess, and Report & Make Recommendations’ on the effectiveness of existing education programs for Native Hawaiians, the state of present Native Hawaiian education efforts, and improvements that may be made to existing programs, policies and procedures to improve the educational attainment of Native Hawaiians.

Ellise Fujii is the Director of Development and Marketing at the Boy Scouts of America, Aloha Council which serves nearly 11,000 Scouts on Oahu, Kauai, and Hawai’i Island, as well as American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Prior to joining the Aloha Council, she provided development, marketing, and public relations consulting services to for-profit clients in hospitality, restaurant, real estate, and retail as well as to non-profit organizations serving Hawaii and the Asia-Pacific region.

Ian is Senior VP of Business Development & Operations at Locations Hawaii Real Estate. Ian is responsible for identifying and creating strategic business development opportunities and acquisitions, in addition to overseeing the operations of our subsidiary business lines, including Property Management and other key business initiatives.

Dr. Abhari is committed to digital transformation and data-driven applications for social innovation, open entrepreneurship, and alternative education. He founded STEMD2 R&D Group to support STEM education in underserved communities and led federally-funded research projects in professional development, connectivist learning, and mathematics education. Dr. Abhari is an Assistant Professor of MIS at Fowler College of Business at San Diego State University. He has a Ph.D. in Communication & Information Sciences with interdisciplinary backgrounds in Business and Engineering.

Louise is a Partner at Dentons, practicing litigation/dispute resolution in business, employment, real estate, intellectual property, construction, receivership, creditors’ rights, matters. She was one of the founding partners of Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing, which combined with Dentons in 2018. She is a past president of Hawai’i State Bar Association and Hawaii State Bar Foundation. She serves on boards including Child & Family Service, Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream Foundation, UH Foundation, Island Holdings, Bizgenics Foundation.

Mark is the Director of the CASE Center for Entrepreneurship at Punahou School. He was also a co-founder of Foundation 9 Entertainment (F9E), which grew to be the largest independent game developer in the world. During his 11+ years in growing this business, Mr. Loughridge oversaw the creative direction of the company, spearheaded new product development, and provided leadership on strategic planning. Mr. Loughridge sold his stake in 2006 and now invests in a variety of projects, with a particular interest in educational innovations and technologies that foster creativity.

Minette brings experience in program & business development, marketing and fundraising. Formerly a fundraiser for Kupu, Minette helps ID8 programs on a part time basis with a full time position in regional funding for Red Cross.  

Kimee produces Hawaii Comedy Festival, an ID8 annual event and is the director of ImprovHI, a Honolulu-based sketch comedy group. She’s also a Hawaii born actor best known for her regular role as Medical Examiner Dr. Noelani Cunha on CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0” and “Magnum P.I.” Other professional credits include: The 3X Emmy Nominated musical children’s series “Hi-5,” the Original Broadway Cast of “Mamma Mia,” and the 2nd National Touring Company of “Miss Saigon.”