Our 2025 presenters

Mike Skinner lives in Denver, Colorado where he is a Executive, but his passion is researching and sharing Polynesian Pop culture stories. 

He is a Tiki event veteran having presenting popular symposiums across the country including; Wild West Tiki; SeaWorld - San Diego’s Exotic Masterpiece; Waltah Clarke and the World of Aloha Fashion; AHOY! Exploring Mid-Century Nautical Tiki; Tropical Space Age Design - The Look of Paradise and Tiki After Dark – The Erotic Side of Exotica.

.https://www.facebook.com/CrusoeSociety

   Craig 'Colonel Tiki' Hermann was born into Tiki: Growing up in the 70's
in Southern California, he spent his toddler days playing in his
backyard jungle of ponds, waterfalls, overgrown vegetation, bamboo
fences, colored lights, and tikis. In the late 90's, Craig moved to San
Francisco and investigated local bars while taking part in the swing
dance revival with his wife. A chance trip to the Tonga Room and joining
up with other geeks on a Yahoo! discussion group (which would later
become Tiki Central) re-kindled that which was lost in the faded dreams
of the 70’s.

"The Colonel," nick-named for his (at the time peculiar) choice of
facial hair and bombastic playful buffoonery, has been involved in both
the Craft Cocktail and Polynesian Pop communities for a quarter century. He has given seminars and led talks at various cocktail and Tiki events, he was a founding member of the Cocktails & Spirits Online Writers Group (CSOWG), and his cocktails have appeared in cocktail books, magazines, and have been featured at multiple Tiki bars and events.

Craig & his wife Heather 'Tikimama' Gregg, created, & organized the
Portland, Oregon event “Tiki Kon.” With a group of creative friends,
they developed a weekend event from the 2nd annual "NorthWest Tiki Crawl & Original Home bar tour."  Over the next ten years, Tiki Kon would grow and change in fashion with the PNW 'Ohana involved. In 2013, As the last original founder, Craig handed the reins over to the next generation. In the final decade of the event, Craig continued to support and contribute to Tiki Kon and was able to concentrate on his particular focus: Cocktails, decor, and overarching theming.

Craig continues to consult and teach as "Colonel Tiki" when and wherever he can. Craig seeks to evangelize whole ingredients, deliberate
technique, ethnobotanical appreciation, and the academic geekery
associated with flavor theory, mixology, technology, and showmanship.
Craig is leading four fun and fulfilling seminars this year at
Beachcomber Bash in a curiously comprehensive jaunt through the jungle of Tiki Drinks. You can find The Colonel at www.coloneltiki.com and his culinary club "The Society of Syrups" at www.societyofsyrups.com 

Hailing from the Beaver State, Rich is one of the many folks who found there is a natural overlap between Tiki and Halloween.  Rich’s previous home haunt ‘City of the “Dam”med’, was featured regionally and nationally on ABC, NBC and the front page of the Wall Street Journal. The main show was fully automated with custom built animatronics, lights, lasers, fog, pirate canons etc. all synchronized to music and video. The last version of the main show was a 12.5 minute Disney tribute featuring the Enchanted Tiki Room, Pirates, Princess and the Frog and of course Haunted Mansion. At the West Coast Haunters Convention a few years ago "Birds Are Scary” was the phrase of the show. The neighboring vendors however still had that song stuck in their head a month later after hearing it every 15 minutes for 3 days straight. 

Rich’s website is tekitiki.com

Kim Cook has had a love of all things tiki or tropical for as long as she can remember. She credits her early years growing up in southern California, with influences such as Disney, seeing tiki’s decorating apartment complexes, and various tiki type restaurants, as planting those seeds of fascination with tiki lore.

Along with her husband Mark, they have continued to enjoy those influences. On their first anniversary they even stayed at the Polynesian Hotel, here in Ocean Shores. Kim and Mark have had a home tiki bar for over 20 years; however, they did not always know of the great

community of tikiphiles. Once discovered, getting together with like-minded tiki aficionados has been the best part. Their home bar, The Headhunters Hideaway has just gone through a major change with a recent move. The bar is much larger and has allowed for more collecting of their beloved PNG artifacts.

In addition to their home bar, they even have the Teeny Tini Tiki Bar at their recreational property in Ocean Shores!

Kim is always looking for ways to add some additional layers to the bar, and sometimes that can mean getting a bit crafty. She is going to  present a small class on how to carve a tiki in a fun noodle of all things! She says talent is not required and would love to show those interested in how to create a fun addition to their tiki space.

 As far back as Jason can remember, he has been a collector of unusual things, a crafter, a plant nerd, and likes  having too many irons in the fire. His desire to constantly be doing something, helping others, and learning new things was what ultimately led him down the Tiki rabbit hole.  

His friends Pat and Vikki introduced him to Tiki by taking him to Thatch, now Hale Pele, in Portland, OR around 2009. His fascination with the decor, drinks, and history have only grown from there.  

In 2011 when he purchased his home he began to transform his den into Councilman's Cove. The name was born from being a member of the Canby, OR City Council. The anchor piece of his collection was a Witco bar he purchased from Keith and lovingly restored. The layers of his collection and knowledge of Tiki have only grown from there. So two has his friends in the Tiki community.  

Some of the other irons Jason keeps in the fire are, his career in the ornamental horticulture industry, giving back to his community as a member of City Council and a long list of other community organizations, sewing, woodworking, and many creative activities, medieval reenactment and research, gardening, and a love for all things Christmas.  

The presentation and classes Jason will be leading fold many of his passions and years of knowledge into what he hopes will be a fun and educational experience. 

Bio Coming Soon

 Born and raised in Oregon, my tiki journey started young—with Baskin-Robbins Daiquiri Ice (my gateway to loving rum!) and endless spins of my Disneyland Tiki Room record. 

As a lifelong craft enthusiast, I’ve always loved creating things by hand, but it was those early flavors and sounds that came full circle when my husband and I fell in love with the world of tiki. Since then, we’ve visited over 60 tiki bars around the globe, built our own home tiki bar, and embraced tiki events as part of our adventures. 

Bio Coming Soon