Wednesday, May 29, 2024 Seventeen years ago, just before Alaska Airlines commenced its inaugural flights to Hawaiʻi, two Alaska employees had a lunchtime conversation that still resonates today. “I still remember,” said Jill Tanga , of the meal she shared with her colleague, Lucy Purcell, in 2007. “We had lunch and we wanted to find ways to specifically support our Pacific Islander community.
So, we organized with the intent of ensuring that Hawaiʻi and the host culture is accurately represented in our service.” Their conversation was the first step in forming Alaska’s business resource group, the Pacific Islander Alliance (P.I.
A.). Tanga, born on Oʻahu and part Native Hawaiian, continues to serve as one of the group’s leaders today.
Over the years, P.I.A.
has supported employees and acted as cultural advisors and ambassadors for the airline. The P.I.
A.’s balanced approach strengthens company initiatives and employee engagement opportunities, including educational, career, and leadership development, as well as participation in community and volunteer events. “As an airline that takes people to travel to Hawaiʻi, we have the kuleana (responsibility) to make sure that we are doing that in a really intentional way,” said Shanyn Wright, one of the leaders of P.
I.A. She explained that P.
I.A. was founded in part “to make sure that there was a Hawaiian or Pacific Islander perspective in the room.
” Lindsay Tuiasosopo, another P.I.A.
leader, explains that P..