‘Ohana Wa‘a Laulima: Making Paddling Accessible
By Mālielani Larish On a bright Sunday morning, half a dozen members of ‘Ohana Wa‘a Laulima respectfully hold the hull of a sleek canoe while Kahu (Reverend) Kauila Haumea invokes a Hawaiian prayer of blessing. ‘Ohana Wa‘a Laulima (the canoe…
HEART: Growing Hilo’s Love for Theater
By Mālielani Larish Performing arts lovers of all ages are lucky that Larry Reitzer grew disenchanted with lounging on the beach. After a 30-year career in the entertainment industry, Larry retired and moved to Hilo with the intention of penning…
An Album for the Community: Martin Charlot’s Konawaena Mural
By Mālielani Larish As he approached the entrance to Konawaena High School’s Ellison Onizuka Gym, Martin Charlot gazed up at the mural that wraps around the gym’s façade—a mural painted by his own hands more than 40 years ago. On…
HAKA: The Hawai‘i Animal Kuleana Alliance
By Mālielani Larish Moving hastily, Syndi Texeira lifted her neighbor’s dog, an 80-pound pit bull mix named Bear, into a vehicle for transport out of Leilani Estates. It was May 3, 2018, and the police and civil defense had informed…
Sharing the Art of Palm Craft with Sylph Nightbloom
By Mālielani Larish With a luxurious green palm frond perched on her lap, Sylph Nightbloom gives the opening instructions to the workshop participants gathered around her. “Lift the first two palm leaflets up,” she says as she demonstrates, “so they…
Hawai‘i County’s Innovative Native Forest Dedication Program Provides Tax Incentives for Preservation and Restoration
By Mālielani Larish Did you know that special tax incentives exist for Hawai‘i County landowners who want to restore or preserve native forest on their land? The County of Hawai‘i Real Property Tax Division initiated the Native Forest Dedication Program…
Ikaika Dombrigues: Perpetuating Sacred Hawaiian Wisdom
By Mālielani Larish Wearing a black hat brimmed by a brilliant red feather hakupapa (hat band), Kahuna Nui O Pali Tu Po Paki O Lono Ikaika Dombrigues is as calm as Hiloʻs Mokuola (Coconut Island) on which he sits. Ikaika…
Nick Wong: Hawai‘i’s Rising Talent
By Mālielani Larish In his music video entitled “Flowers,” Hawai‘i-grown musician Nick Wong strolls through cherry blossom trees, holding hands with a mysterious person who hides behind a waterfall of black hair. They laugh, dance, and stargaze together amidst the…
Lopaka Rootz: Uplifting Listeners with Positive Vibes
By Mālielani Larish Transfixed with awe, a four-year-old Lopaka Rootz gazed upward at Ziggy Marley as he poured his soul into a performance on O‘ahu’s North Shore. Dreadlocks swaying to the irie vibes, Ziggy beamed his smiles directly at Lopaka,…
Celebrating the 2% Land Fund Successes
By Mālielani Larish A Hawaiian yellow-faced bee zips through the air like a flash of black lightning, attracted to the fragrant white flower of the endemic maiapilo shrub. On this weekday morning, the shoreline of ‘O‘oma in North Kona is…
The Boys & Girls Club of the Big Island
By Mālielani Larish Embraced by trade winds and an expansive view of the bay, 100 members of the Hilo Boys & Girls Club sing “Ho‘o Nani” to bless the afternoon meal. With a “Pa‘i ka lima!” from their leader, the…
Drew Daniels: Fertility from Fire
By Mālielani Larish Everything is perfect; everything is aligning, Drew Daniels thought to himself. Gazing at soft morning clouds framing a gold-dazzled ocean, he gently rocked his baby girl to the rhythm of cane grass dancing in the wind. Two…
Aircrete: A Versatile DIY Building Material
By Mālielani Larish Adopting a yoga tree-pose, Stefanie Fisher effortlessly holds an aircrete block skyward. Surrounded by the model aircrete home that she is helping to build, the sunlight streaming in through the dome’s atrium illuminates her smile. “Here, try…
Fantuzzi: Global Troubadour at Home on Hawai‘i Island
By Mᾱlielani Larish Awakening to ocean breezes and bird song, Fantuzzi looks forward to a day of wrestling with rocks, planting trees, and honoring Pele on the land in lower Puna that he calls home. After months of performing in…
Tiana Malone Jennings
By Mālielani Larish ”You are supposed to do music,” Aunty Mahealani Kuamo‘o-Henry said as she gazed steadily into Tiana Malone Jenning’s eyes. “Hawai‘i is opening up your path and refining you for your purpose in the world.” Tiana left Aunty…
Aha Pule ‘Āina Holo, A Prayer Moving Throughout the Land
By Mālielani Larish Embraced by bright sunshine and crisp breezes, a group of runners bearing a wooden Lono staff exit the busy Highway 19 and enter a verdant field near Anna’s Ranch in Waimea. A crowd of supporters welcome them…
Iris Viacrusis: Creating Fashion from Paris to Paradise
By Mālielani Larish Dressed in a velvet azure gown made by Hawai‘i Island fashion designer Iris Viacrusis, and adorned with a peacock feather collar that she had handcrafted herself, Aunty Doreen Henderson graced the 2013 Merrie Monarch stage with an…
Kainani Kahaunaele: Revitalizing Hawaiian Music
By Mālielani Larish In 1999, after four months of sailing from Hawai‘i to Micronesia as a crewmember of the E Mau—Sailing the Master Home voyage, the day had arrived for Kainani Kahaunaele to give her gift to Mau Piailug. Papa…
The Hawaiian Cultural Center of Hāmākua
By Mālielani Larish On a balmy Thursday afternoon, the sounds of Hawaiian oli (chant) break the calm of downtown Honoka‘a. A student from Lanakila Mangauil’s Papa Oli class stands in the doorway of the Hawaiian Cultural Center of Hāmākua, embodying…
HPM: 96 years of Perseverance
By Mālielani Larish “Mike, wake up! There’s no school today!” Roused from sleep by his neighbor’s excited shouts, Michael Fujimoto awoke gradually. As the news percolated into his consciousness, Michael thought to himself, “Wow, that’s great!” He could spend the…
Living Pono: Bula Akamu
By Mālielani Larish Sitting on the white sands of Kamakahonu Beach, framed by the lush slopes of Hualālai Volcano and the dazzling waters of Kailua Bay, Bula Akamu closes his eyes and breathes deeply. Two hundred years of history unwind…
Hawai‘i Island Nonprofits Help Fukushima Victims
By Mālielani Larish Fukushima Kids Hawai‘i Standing on a narrow Tōkyō street while the ground beneath her shuddered violently, Yumi Kikuchi looked up at the swaying ancient skyscraper that she had just abandoned. Yumi decided to return to the building,…
Heavenly Strength: The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls
By Mālielani Larish When Jane and Lenny Sutton first explored their property, they experienced the same awe that guests feel upon arriving at The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls. Peering over dense jungle, the Suttons spied a glimmer of a waterfall…
Keau‘ohana Forest Restoration
By Mālielani Larish A strawberry guava tree quivers as Jaya C. Dupuis tugs at its roots, freeing them from beneath a mossy log. One stubborn root remains anchored to the earth, so she follows it to a cluster of young native kōpiko seedlings. Kneeling down,…
