Page 3 | Guampedia Newsletter, October 2020
New Features on Guampedia Gift Shop
Momoko Mary Koyama Halstead is the artist, designer, and owner of SPN.dylus670, a modernized cultural jewelry collection using spondylus shells. She is the first cultural producer from the Northern Mariana Islands to be featured in the Guampedia online gift shop. Halstead was born and raised on Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands. She is a mother of three beautiful daughters who serve as her main motivations in life. Halstead’s passion for the arts and culture are ever-present in her work as she creates designs suitable for all ages so that one may, “take a piece of home wherever you may go.” Halstead lives by the phrase “everything happens for a reason.” In high school, she was encouraged to join the Tasi and Ali’i’s Polynesian dance group by one of their musicians, the late Faaea “Uncle Tala” Talalemotu. Although hesitant at first, the words of Uncle Tala to “just try it out and if you don’t like it, just quit,” persuaded her to join. Halstead fell in love with the art form and has continued this love of dance for over 15 years, eventually becoming a team leader herself within the group. Halstead would enroll herself in the Northern Marianas College, taking classes by day and working as a cultural dancer for dinner shows by night. She obtained an Associate of Arts Degree with an emphasis in Education, becoming a special education teacher-aide at Kagman High School in Saipan, working to make a positive impact on her students through the
As the safer-at-home orders continue on Guam, and the holiday season just around the corner, Guampedia would like to take this time to showcase our online giftshop. You can safely browse through our collection of books, posters, jewelry, and more. To help connect our MicrONEsia region, we’ve been working towards building more educational content of the region over the last several years. In the midst of the region’s tourism industry shutdown as a result of the
education of school curriculum and life skills. Despite an already busy schedule as a teacher, dancer, and mother of three, Halstead began a new hobby in jewelry making after spontaneously purchasing a used Dremel, a power tool used for grinding; sanding; and polishing, at a garage sale. Halstead started small by making pieces from spondylus shells to give as gifts to friends and family. In no time, the demand for her jewelry increased and she opened her business, SPN.dylus670, earning her respect as both an entrepreneur and artist. Halstead keeps with her love of art and culture through her continued practices in dance and jewelry making. She continues to share her love of art through each piece of jewelry she makes and no longer has any hesitation to start something new, knowing she can “just quit” and move on to the next adventure. Click here to browse through her selection of modernized spondylus jewelry designs and click here to follow her Instagram page @SPN.dylus670.
Covid-19 pandemic, we are also working towards providing authors, artists and cultural producers in the region the opportunity to showcase their products in Guampedia’s virtual giftshop. In this issue we feature our first artist from Saipan, T.A.S.A. organization’s launch into social enterprise, and a wife & husband team producing island themed face masks - a new “essential.” We welcome Eulalia Villagomez Arriola, who will be coordinating this new and ecxiting effort! Click here to explore our virtual gift shop!
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