Stephen Gomes

Marketing

Go East Young Gomes

Two things have always been a focus in my life, that’s ‘ohana and the love of my home Hawai`i. Being born and raised on Kaua`i (the most beautiful place on earth) if you can believe this, had its positives and negatives. Of course the Garden Isle was amazing to look at and the weather was almost always perfect, but as a young boy I got rock-fever. I felt the need to get away and really enjoy and experience more of what the world had to offer… Now that I’m older I have an appreciation of Kaua`i I never had when growing up there, especially now living in the marine climate of the Northwest. Another thing that amazes me is when I go back, how my family and friends who have been there all these years—still enjoy it.

Da Name “Braddah”

Many in the Northwest know me as “Braddah Gomes,” and wonder how that came to pass. The nick-name originated in the Northwest, and thank Cousin Clarice my radio co-host on the old “Music of Hawai`i Radio Show” for it. By nature I’m Kolohe (Trouble maker) and many times during the radio program I would playfully let my pride and boastfulness of being from the most beautiful and lovely place on earth Kaua`i (see…) overtake my sensibilities. I love Maui, but would always talk trash about the Valley Isle where Clarice is from. So to get back at me she would say “No Act Braddah,” so the name just stuck, and I adapted it 1994.

Go East young Gomes

My coming to the Northwest evolved more than 25 years ago, and it was fueled by my constant case of rock-fever and my ‘ohana being some where other than Kaua`i. A week after graduating from Kaua`i High School in 1979, I moved to Ewa Beach on O’ahu with Mom, step-dad Kimo and my two Sista’s Lavon and Suelyn. I worked and went to Leeward Community College. A couple of years with my AA in hand I headed over to UH Manoa and majored in, what else Psychology-I needed da help.

The Mainland Move

In 1985 rock-fever took a hold of me for the second time. I was on O’ahu and an opportunity to move to San Francisco came up. My ‘ohana again came through, my lovely Sista Lavon was attending college in San Francisco and she told to move up and stay with her for a while and go to college at San Francisco State University. So off I went thanks to my ‘ohana. Five years later I graduated with a BA in Television and Radio News from SFSU, then moved back to Hawai`i. I spent a year and a-half on O’ahu and rock-fever got a hold of me yet again. This time my lovely mother offered me an opportunity to move to Seattle. Her hook to me was, “It so cheap to buy a home here.” 14 years-later I’m still in the lovely Pacific Northwest married to Denise Gomes and helping her raise my extended family of Jacob, Cheris (Both on their own) Jesse, Jordan, Tanner and Micah Kaleo`okalani Gomes. We live in da Pearl City of Washington—Renton !

I’m very happy for this Hawaiian Community in the Pacific Northwest. It allows us to stay close with my Hawai`i upbringing with all the friends we have made here. Best of all, it gives my ‘ohana an opportunity to learn and enjoy the magic that are the Hawaiian Islands. Aloha…A hui hou.

Back to About Us