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Being a mayor's wife and a career person herself, it seems that there is so much pressure on Gail Mukaihata Hannemann, but apparently she enjoys every moment of her waking life. Gail Hannemann spent more than 15 years in Washington D.C. as congressional aide and professional staff member of the U.S. House of Representatives prior to moving to Hawaii in 1992. Married to Honolulu mayor Mufi Hannemann, Gail currently serves as CEO of the Girl Scouts Council of Hawaii and an active member of various community organizations.
Asked how it felt to be married to the mayor of Honolulu, Gail said that it made her life better in a sense that it became more organized yet stayed appealing. Their professional career, according to Gail, makes for an interesting conversation during the end of the day, which puts their relationship on even stronger ground despite their busy schedules.
It is these conversations and the eagerness to learn about one another that form the very roots of Gail and Mayor Mufi's partnership.
Love Story in D.C.
Gail Hannemann was a congressional aide when she met Mufi, who was then employed by the Department of Interior, at the nation's capital. They developed mainly a working relationship, often assimilating themselves to each other's cultural ascription.
"I was working for a Congressman who represented an area that was multi-ethnic and it had a lot of Asian-Pacific Islanders," she said. "And so, clearly I understood the Asian side to it. It was the Pacific side of it, in terms of some of the cultures I really didn't quite get a full appreciation for."
"So actually, we had met at a Congressman's reception, and we started talking. And I was asking him a lot of questions about Polynesian culture which, clearly, that's what his orientation is," Gail added.
Eventually, their professional relationship blossomed in to coupledom. A few years later Gail moved to Hawaii with Mufi as her husband.
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