Luau Committee
Asian Pacific American Heritage Association
Standing Committees
The objective of this committee is to brainstorm ideas, create venue and programs to benefit the Pacific Islanders communities. We meet online monthly.
Meet The Team
Penina Partsch
Committee Chair
Penina is a warehouse manager for an art and frame gallery and works with TAPA Houston. Her memorable vacation spot was a trip with her sisters to Spain. She was raised from the time she could walk as a performer in her family’s Polynesian entertainment company.
Jim Travlos
Committee Member
Among Jim's varied career experiences, he worked as a safety diver in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, researched lunar soil samples including the lunar orange soil and lunar rocks, worked on the development of the space suits needed for future Space Shuttle missions and worked and performed Arc Jet heat shield testing for upcoming Space Shuttle flights.
Luis M Chen
Committee Member
Luis wears many hats in helping community to thrive. He works in the IT field and founded Asian Pacific American Employee Resource Group (APA ERG) Houston Chapter at Comcast. He has a cat and he loves gardening. His favorite vacation spot was Hawaii and became a permanent resident before moving to Houston.
Sina Maiava
Committee Member
More info to come
Jackie Leong
Committee Member
More info to come
Sofia Sheikh
Committee Member
More info to come
Pele Bennett
Committee Member
Pele is of Asian and Pacific Island descent and originally from Houston. She has been blessed to call the beautiful islands of Hawai'i her home for eleven years. Her background is in non-profit work, with experience in fundraising, marketing, event planning, and program development. Through her work with the Pass Foundation, She has created programs that primarily support underserved and Pacific Island communities in fostering healthy lifestyles.
Tusi Silva-Partsch
Committee Member
coming soon...