Vickie Van Fechtmann

Vickie started playing ‘ukulele when she was about 8 years ago and living in San Francisco. Her teacher taught Hawaiian songs exclusively. It was then that she fell in love with Hawaiian music.

Vickie recalls, "We would go to a kanikapila in Alameda where there was a steel guitar player and I loved the sound." The first professional player Vickie listened to was Bobby Ingano.

After retiring from nursing, Vickie moved to Hawai‘i Island and now lives in Puna, about 30 miles from Hilo. She survived the Kilauea eruption.

Vickie has been playing the steel guitar for about 6 years but started taking lessons from Kumu Alan Akaka about a year ago. In addition to her love for music, she also makes Japanese woodblock prints. She is also a member of a hula halau.