Waimea Plantation Daughter Remembers Georgia O’Keeffe: A Conversation with Patricia Jennings
By Catherine Tarleton “I know you paint flowers and skulls in the desert,” said Patricia Jennings, 12, to her family’s famous dinner guest, “and that you have a wonderful brush technique,” she added, recalling an article she’d read in Time…
Suzi Bond Helps the Stars Shine in Volcano: The Executive Director of KDEN Likes a Challenge
By Alan D. McNarie It’s a rainy November evening in Volcano. A small group of aspiring actors have gathered at the Kilauea Military Camp Theater (KMC) to try out for Kilauea Drama and Entertainment Network’s (KDEN) annual winter musical—this year,…
Keeping the Magic Alive: Sleight of Mind with “Arneleo the Great” and “The Great Barusky”
By Marya Mann Although the element of surprise is the capstone in the magician’s pyramid of tricks, magic is no accident. Just ask two Kona tricksters who found serious commitment in a very funny business. Is it optical illusion or…
Sustainable Hawai‘i Youth Leadership Initiative: Youth Inspire All to Dream of a New Earth
By Marya Mann On the sunlit day, outdoors at the West Hawai‘i Civic Center, Skyla (“Sky”) D. Graig-Murray, a student at West Hawai‘i Explorations Academy, asks this question: “How often have you asked a young person what is their dream…
Konabob and the Unique Kona Walkingbass
By Shirley Stoffer Bob Stoffer, known as “Konabob” to many people in Hawai’i and around the world, had loved Hawai’i and Hawaiian music for a long time before moving to the island. He listened to Hawaiian music at his bakery…
A Master Chinese Brush Painter: Shirley Pu Wills Practices the Art of Imagination and Chi
By Fern Gavelek It’s both what you see and what you don’t see that create the magic in Chinese brush painting. “The thing about Chinese brush painting is you imagine what’s not there,” says Shirley Pu Wills of Captain Cook.…
A Beloved Daughter Retires: Fanny Au Hoy
By Fern Gavelek She walks through the treasure-filled rooms—fingering the china, straightening a photo frame, smoothing a quilted bedspread and then opening wide an upstairs window. As the fresh air fills the stately bedroom, Aunty Fanny turns around and grins.…
Professing Change
By Jessica Kirkwood As humanity faces ecological degradation, increasing social and economic inequality and a growing sense of fear, dissatisfaction and unrest, UH-Hilo Professor Dr. Catherine Becker wants her students to imagine and create a Hawai‘I that is environmentally sustainable,…
Pages from Cowboy Romance and Reality: Paniolo Preservation Society Saddles Up
By Catherine Tarleton When I was a little girl, I caught horse fever early and as fervently as a suburban D.C. kid could. I read every horse book in two libraries, drew pictures, wrote stories and fought my brother for…
Kaliko Beamer-Trapp: A British Transplant and his Love Affair with ‘Olelo Hawai‘i
By Alan D. McNarie Kaliko Beamer-Trapp sits with two students in a tiny conference room at the offices of Kahuawaiola, the teacher training and certification program for Hawaiian language immersion schools, in a redwood “temporary building” on the University of…
Nā Maka O Ka ‘Āina: Couple Seeks to Broadcast Hawaii’s Reality
By Marya Mann To carry on traditions, some people sharpen their tongues or sharpen their pens. Others sharpen their spears. Joan Lander and Puhipau of Nā Maka o ka ‘Āina—“The Eyes of the Land”—sharpen their focus, creating no ordinary picture…
The Many Expressions of Mayumi Oda: The Goddess Garden Path to Saving the Planet
By Marya Mann “I just returned from Japan. I arrived there the day of the earthquake. I had traveled to Japan to visit a village where I had been asked to come and help create a Buddhist utopia.”–Mayumi Oda, Hawai‘i…
The Art of Noho Lio O Paniolo: Making the Hawaiian Tree Saddle
By Denise Laitinen Few pieces of equipment are as important to a paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) as his/her saddle. Just as a golfer needs good clubs and a mechanic needs good tools, so does a cowboy need a good saddle. “My…
The Empowerment of Community: Jim Channon Promotes Self-Confident Resiliency for the Future and Potential Disasters
By Cynthia Sweeney The drumbeat of our messages about sustainability has just gotten a little bit more intense. The recent cataclysmic events in Japan and New Zealand remind us of our own vulnerability, to the point where we’re not only…
Gentle Rhythms—Becoming Kapa.The Arts of Marie McDonald: Kapa, Lei, and the Art of Lifelong Learning
By Catherine Tarleton When Marie Adams McDonald was an art student at Texas Women’s University, she was required to take a course in Texas History. “But I was never required to take Hawaiian History,” she said, “Even though I went…
Rolling Into the Hearts of Hilo: Today’s Roller Derby Girls
By Devany Vickery-Davidson The Hilo Civic Auditorium has only sold out twice in the last 30 years. The first time was in November, 2010, and more recently in March of 2011. Both events were due to the huge outpouring of…
The Natural Kahu – Daniel “Kaniela” Akaka, Jr.
By Richard M. Esterle The year is 1991, and preparations are being made to craft the Mauloa, the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s replica of an ancient single‐hulled canoe, using ceremonial protocol throughout the process. A group is gathered inside a tent…
…And Trees Fly Forward: Puna Farmer’s Bhakti Yoga Practice is Immersed in Farming
By Richard Mark Glover Sankirton Das bucks entanglement with the material world through the practice of farming on five acres in Puna. “It allows me space to funnel consciousness. I chant all day,” he said. In the afternoon light, Sankirton’s…
Horse & Buddy: A Match that Builds Independence for Riders with Special Needs
By Denise Laitinen Boyson Kihe guides his horse back and forth between narrowly spaced poles; zig zagging through the entire row of poles without knocking over a single one. It’s an advanced move requiring balance, focus and skill. Boyson smiles…
Roses in My Heart: Aunty Marjie Spencer
By Catherine Tarleton Marjorie Naholokahiki Burke Spencer has a little while to talk story before she teaches ‘ukulele class at the resort. Her Hawaiian bracelets jingle on smooth, unspotted hands as she waves and gestures, occasionally touching her face, occasionally…
13 Grandmothers Raining Wisdom
“When the Grandmothers come from the four directions and speak, the world will heal.” —Hopi Prophecy By Mayra Mann Grandmothers circles are arising. Out of the native lands, in cities, and across the many islands and continents of the planet,…
Kona’s Unique Three Ring Ranch: Wild Animals at Risk Receive Sanctuary from a Fellow Survivor
By Margaret Kearns Sometimes it takes a few wake-up calls before setting out on an intended life path. For California native, Ann Goody, it was an amazing series of events—a combination of both incredible luck and disastrous, near-death experiences—that redirected…
Sailing 101: The Sailing Club at Hilo, Na Hoa Holomoku of Hawai‘i
There is nothing like being out on the bay in Hilo, especially on a sunny and windy day, one perfect for those who enjoy sailing these deep blue waters. You can expect an ever-changing pattern of cloudy skies and rain,…
Coffee Wives Created a Cottage Industry with Lauhala
By Fern Gavelek Times were especially tough during the 1930s Depression Era in Kona. Cash was scarce among residents of the Kona Coffee Belt along the slopes of Hualalai. To help subsidize their families between coffee seasons, Holualoa wives and…
A Paniolo Family’s Tale: Ichiro Yamaguchi, Son of Parker Ranch’s First Japanese Cowboy
By Catherine Tarleton In 1920, American women voted in their first presidential election; commercial radio was born; and the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $100,000 and a curse. In the Territory of Hawai‘i, Waikiki boasted five…
Community Sharing, Local Style at a Hands-On Lu‘au
By Andrea Dean Ever been to a lu‘au and got to make your own lau lau? (Say that 10 times fast!) Ka Hana No‘eau and the Hawai‘i FFA (Future Farmers of America) Foundation have created the Kohala Style Lu‘au, where…
Scott Seymour Nurtures a Family Floral Tradition
By Fern Gavelek Scott Seymour has an eye for decorating with plants, whether it’s planting on a sloping hillside or designing a table centerpiece, the self-taught, flower-arranging guru is the go-to guy in Kona for spectacular flower arrangements. A landscape…
John Tanaka: WWII Hero, Inventor, Artist, Novelist
By Catherine Tarleton John Tanaka’s life spans 80-plus years across two centuries and throughout, he has remained youthful, inventive, positive and forward-thinking. His ageless face and energetic voice make one wonder if there’s a fountain of youth hidden in John…
Hollywood Calls Local Boy from Hilo; Still, His Heart Stays in Hawai‘i
By Cynthia Sweeney Pomaika’i Keko’olani still shakes his head in disbelief. A local boy arrives in Hollywood, and fresh off the plane, he is greeted by a chauffeured limousine that whisks him off to a major studio for an audition…
Physical Challenges Never Stop This Triathlete: Jason Patrick Lester Keeps Running on Faith
By Fern Gavelek “Today is the youngest you will ever be. Live like it.” This advice comes from Jason Patrick Lester, who recently posted it on Facebook to his nearly 3,000 “friends.” Fewer than a dozen words, they speak volumes…
