Oh dear friends, you are owed an explanation. All of your very recent email-efforts sent to our website-linked: Inette@ReturnVoyage.com or Iokepa@ReturnVoyage.com have been bouncing back in your faces as “Undeliverable.” And, to our deep distress (and yours) that remains true.
The story harkens back to our emergence from those “ten years of grooming” on the beaches and woodlands of Kaua’i into the more public face of this 29 year walk of faith. Under the Grandmothers’ guidance, always, we understood that we were to deepen that faith and speak the truth of our experiences across the country. With every bit of wealth and possession relinquished at the start - and no phone, computer, house, or income for those ten years, we had not the faintest idea how a speaking tour on the Continent could manifest.
Then our many friends stepped in. Respecting the Native Hawaiian people’s cultural wisdom and aspirations - and wanting very much to be part of that, they showered our journey with their generosity.
First came Tom Leonard, a profoundly accomplished early-software designer, who insisted that we would need both a computer and a website. He flew us from Kauai to the Island of Hawaii and built us a simple and delightful site that we kept intact without upgrade for ten years. He bought us our, www.ReturnVoyage.com domain name and he linked the two email account that are bouncing back at you this week. That was May 23, 2007.
We never paid a dime to him for the domain because Tom wouldn’t hear of it. This was his contribution to our walk of faith.. For almost 20 years, he paid those unseen bills and continued to be our tech savant - answering questions regardless of the time zone or the tech-idiocy of ‘Iokepa and me, the users..
But, just this past week -literally the day that our annual, three-month, speaking-tour ended, so did our ability to send and receive emails. It was the very first day back home on Kauai, when I called Tom. My last call for Tom’s help had been in September - so when I reached out to him this week and got his full mailbox, I called his wife and dear friend, Gordana. Her news banished thoughts of emails or websites: Our dear friend and supporter, Tom Leonard had died.
Our hearts are consumed with for the profound loss of this powerhouse man - and the pain of his death to Gordana and their sons. And that’s where we remain.
On May 7, 2026, our domain - held firmly in Tom’s name all these year, will expire. Emails on the unpaid account will stay “Undeliverable” and "Irreclaimable”. The very large corporation holding that access to the domain and the emails won’t speak to me at all, because it is Tom’s account for our ReturnVoyage.com
In the midst of the genuine grief, Tom’s son (and my own) are busily committed to helping restore Tom’s intention. But it ain’t easy. Forms have been filled out; death certificates attached; Tom’s driver’s license photo of both sides included - and still…and still…no dice.
So for now, until this is resolved, reach us at: Inette.Miller@outlook.com. We promise to keep you posted.