Talking Story With Jerry Benson, Master Canoe Builder
By Mary L. Moody When I first met Jerry and Leina‘ala Benson in October 2011, I was unaware that their neighbor and good friend, Herb Kāne, had died earlier that year, in March. Having recently moved to the island from…
Featured Artists: Ginger Anne Sandell & Tina Clothier
Featured Cover Artist: Ginger Anne Sandell A constant companion in Ginger Anne Sandell’s life is the creative force that drives her to the easel and compels her to lay paint on canvas. Her mother, an artist herself, encouraged her in…
Rashani Réa: Passionate Earth Steward
By Karen Valentine In spring 1988, Rashani Réa rode her motorbike through the vineyards, orchards, and medieval villages of southern France, a frame drum tied onto the back, stopping only to look at her map to find a spiritual community…
In Memoriam: Ginger Sizemore
By Barbara Garcia Editor’s Note:Sue Springer submitted a request for us to publish a story on her friend, Ginger Sizemore, in June 2019. Due to Covid-19 causing us to reduce the number of stories we publish in each issue, it…
Cruisin’ with Kona’s Kenny Tagavilla
By Fern Gavelek Music has weaved in and out of Kenny Tagavilla’s life since small kid time. His paternal grandmother sat him down as a keiki to teach him to play ‘ukulele—but no, he didn’t want to pick it up.…
Featured Artists: Jane Chao & Shay Niimi Wahi
Featured Cover Artist: Jane Chao Jane Chao was born in Harbin, Manchuria, China, in 1929. Her father was in the military—his job was to keep the railroad safe in northern Manchuria which was under Japanese occupation. He was working for the…
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…
Petroglyph Press: 60 Years of Sharing Local Culture, History, and Storytelling
By Nancy S. Kahalewai For six decades, the Reed family has been busy printing and publishing in downtown Hilo. Petroglyph Press, Ltd. owners David and Christine Reed are now celebrating the 60th anniversary of the business that David’s parents, Steve…
Featured Artists: Trish Helms Kimball & Susanna Anderson
Featured Cover Artist: Trish Helms Kimball Trish Helms Kimball grew up on Hawai‘i Island and has lived here for most of her adult life. Her family’s home was in Hilo, and they often spent weekends and summers at their beach…
Ipu Stories—From Seed to Stage
By Nancy S. Kahalewai There are few things as unique as the feel, shape, sound, texture, decoration, source, and even lineage of a Hawaiian ipu drum. Pahu (drums) are part of the bedrock of traditional Hawaiian hula traditions, dancing, and…
Featured Artist: Alexander Rokoff
The paintings featured on this issue’s cover and table of contents were both created by the same artist, Alexander Rokoff. The cover’s Blind Shepherd is about ‘aumakua (personal gods). Alexander explains, “To me, it feels similar to the Native American…
Island Treasures: Ginger Sandell
How many people have you known who could create fine art as well as they “crunch numbers?” Ginger Sandell can do both, and do them well! Fully retired from her CPA career in 2020, Ginger is finally able to focus…
Journey from the Land of Hibiscus to Hawai‘i Island
By Jan Wizinowich Although not native to Korea, the hibiscus has long been its national symbol. Probably originating in India, the hibiscus is easily transplanted, and endowed with adaptability. It most likely made its way north through China into Korea,…
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…
Suzanne Wang: Ceramicist Comes Full Circle
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu The idyllic rural-village feel of Wailea/Hakalau is what Suzanne Wang wanted when she moved to Hawai‘i Island 11 years ago. She set up her ceramic studio on the lush Hāmākua coast in 2016, both living and working in a…
Featured Photographers: Don Hurzeler & Kirk Shorte
Featured Cover Photographer: Don Hurzeler Don Hurzeler’s business cards say he’s an author, photographer, and old retired guy. We think the latter is far from true, Don seems busier than many people half his age. As a lifelong athlete, nothing…
Elizabeth Theriault’s Journey with the Drum—A Pathway of Heart
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu When Elizabeth Theriault moved to Hawai‘i in 1985 with her husband and son, she came with eagerness to integrate into the Hawaiian culture. Elizabeth, a lifelong creative artist, grew up in a diverse multi-cultural family of hunters,…
Featured Artists: CJ Kale & Tina Clothier
Featured Cover Photographer: CJ Kale CJ Kale grew up on the Waianae Coast of O‘ahu and has lived on Hawai‘i Island more than 25 years. His early years were spent on the water, as a surfer and competitive swimmer. Those…
Hawaiian Kingdom Lives on at Uncle Robert’s Awa Bar
By Stefan Verbano Big Polynesian hands hoisted the massive tile “puzzlepiece” mural upright at last, and Rika Blue took a step back to admire her creation for the first time in its rightful place. This moment was the vindication of…
Ikaika no Kohala: A Community Connects through Story and Art
By Jan Wizinowich When the historic Kohala Village HUB’s (KVH) main building was lost to fire in March 2019, a heart center of the community vanished. A year later Covid hit, disrupting community connections. These dual tragedies inspired folks at…
Stepping Beyond the Water’s Edge with Adventurer and Artist Joshua Lambus
By Sara Stover Joshua Lambus is literally paddling through a sea of foam noodles. Clinging to these bright green, blue, and pink cylinders are visitors of all ages, many of whom have never been snorkeling before today. As he scans…
Featured Artists: Jeannie Garcia & Kathleen Carr
Featured Cover Artist: Jeannie Garcia Jeannie Garcia grew up in Pennsylvania and attended York Academy of Arts in York, Pennsylvania. After college, she moved to Southern California and trained at the Mission Renaissance Studios in the traditional methods used by…
Savoring the Moment with Kailee Spark
By Sara Stover It was 1997 and Kailee Spark was sitting in a sunny patch on the floor in her California home, listening to her parents’ CD Wacky Favorites over and over. The more that little, sapphire-eyed Kailee played the…
Featured Artists: Barbara Hanson & Candace Lee
Featured Cover Artist: Barbara Hanson Barbara Hanson’s gallery in Hōlualoa Village is an experience that is best done in person, so people can see the process, touch the material, and see the different stages of her artwork coming together. Barbara…
Featured Artists: Cindy Coats & Anthony Dohanos
Featured Cover Artist: Cindy Coats You Are Here, the image on our cover, was created for the 2011 Ironman triathlon. Artist Cindy Coats says, “The shape of the island is so distinctive and recognizable, and because of that it’s like a…
The Creative Adventures of Kawika Singson
By Sara Stover Daredevil. Lava chaser. Photographer. Host of television series Everything Hawaii. While all are accurate descriptions of Kawika Singson, the moniker he prefers is “creative adventurer.” “I don’t call myself a photographer. I just like to be creative,”…
Darien Hsu Gee: Crafting Ideas into Captivating Stories
By Fern Gavelek For some people, filling a blank page with their own words can be daunting. Not for Waikoloa Village resident Darien Hsu Gee. The wife and mother authored five novels—three under the pen name Mia King—which have been…
Featured Artists: Stephen Davies and G. Brad Lewis
Featured Cover Photographer: Stephen Davies Stephen Davies grew up in central Florida. He attended the University of Virginia for a couple of years, before heading to Spain for a year, where he taught English at Berlitz School. While Stephen was…
Featured Artists: Suzanne Dix-Kaliko and Tim Wright
Featured Cover Artist: Suzanne Dix-Kaliko Suzanne Dix-Kaliko was 18 when her high school art teacher gifted her a set of oils and she began to paint. Raised in a small town in western New York, Suzanne was always an artist.…
