Education on the Ocean: Pua Ka Ilima Treats Keiki to Sailing Adventures
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu It was a 19-day adventure on the open seas for Ralph Blancato and his crew to pilot a 42-foot sailboat from California to Hawai‘i Island. In July 2022, Ralph and his team of three people sailed successfully…
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…
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,…
Iopa Maunakea: Standing Firm with the Men of PA‘A
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Dry land taro plants are being hand-watered by two young men, one with headphones and the other holding a sprayer, in the Pāhoa morning sun. Banana trees, young la‘i (ti leaf), coconut, ‘ulu, and other thriving endemic…
Kevin Rhinehart—Always Pushing His Limits
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Life for Kevin Rhinehart changed drastically when he suffered a life-threatening stroke in January 2012 at the age of 53. At the time, his career as a successful psychotherapist was flourishing and he performed regularly as a…
Adventure on the Seas with Pete Hendricks
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Pete Hendricks knows something about curiosity: it’s why he’s done so many different things over the course of his lifetime. Born on August 1, 1938 in Los Angeles, Pete grew up nearby in Long Beach with four…
Fukushima Store: Repurposing a Historical Building
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu When you walk into Union Pasifika Tattoo shop in Waimea, you are greeted with a multitude of things to look at: a dragon and tiger intertwining in a mural on the walls and ceiling, colorful artwork, vintage…
Hāwane Rios Shares Her Soul’s Purpose
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu The first time Hāwane Rios fully comprehended a legend told in the Hawaiian language, it touched her so deeply that she wrote a song to remember it. It is the love story between Poli‘ahu (goddess of the…
Puakõ’s Historical Hokuloa Church
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Driving through the tropical coastal community of Puakō, one will notice that huge mansions have replaced many of the humble beach shacks that once populated the little village of 163 homes. There is one building that is…
Kepā and Onaona Maly: Saving History
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Sharing stories is what Kepā Maly and his wife Onaona have been doing for almost 40 years now, working as record keepers and cultural historians for the people of Hawai‘i. This dynamic husband and wife team have…
Tong Wo Society’s Historic Kapa‘au Building Opens Once a Year
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Situated high on a hill in Kapa‘au is a colorful historical building constructed by early Chinese immigrants in 1884. Called the Tong Wo Society building, it served several purposes: a spiritual Taoist gathering place, a meeting house…
Keeping up With Kapa: Jani K. Puakea Fisher
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Pre-contact Hawaiian kapa was some of the most exquisitely made barkcloth in the entire world. After contact, cotton muslin and other fabrics were introduced to the Hawaiian Islands by settlers, and the intricate art of kapa making…
Creative Filmmaking on Hawai’i Island
By Ma’ata Tukuafu Beautiful and diverse Hawai‘i Island, with its verdant rainforests, black sand beaches, and seasonally white-capped mountains, has been showcased in many films made over the years. From 1918’s The Hidden Pearls to the most current film productions,…
Try Look Inside: Yvonne and Keoki Carters’ Artistic Life
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu A life with deeper connection is what husband and wife team Yvonne Yarber Carter and Keoki Apokolani Carter strive for. With their creation of original music, their professions in land-based cultural education to steward native plants, trees,…
Fifty Shades of Blue: Artist Helen Nahoopii
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu When Helen Nahoopii was a young girl, she was known as the “creative one” in the family. Her mother, a chemist and tax consultant, recognized that Helen saw the world in a unique way; she didn’t think…
Kūkahi and the Love Machine
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu Kūkahi Allan Nu‘uanu Lee was only seven years old when he wrote his first song. Very interested in music at a young age, he was drawn to the piano and taught himself to play by ear at…
Flying through the Air with the Greatest of Ease: Aerial Arts on Hawai’i Island
By Ma’ata Tukuafu If you’ve ever been to a circus, the trapeze performersʻ seemingly effortless performances might have intrigued and inspired you. In the past five years, several people on Hawai‘i Island have begun teaching different forms of aerial arts…
Kuha‘o Makana Kawaauhau Case: Downloading from Heaven
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu When Kuha‘o Makana Kawaauhau Case plays music on the piano or organ, he can feel how his melodies affect the people listening. Kuha‘o is a self-taught musician who found his talent at the age of nine when…
The Alonzo Spirit Band: Music for the Soul
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu It was in 2007 when Alan “Alonzo” Rosen began hearing voices in his head; not crazy voices, but rather, he was hearing notes, lyrics, melodies, and completed songs. After meditation or sometimes in dreams, Alan would hear…
Epic Origami: Folds and Creases for Awareness
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu In the origami world, there are two types of people: those who follow instructions, and those who create the instructions. Julien Lozi, an astronomer at Subaru Telescope in Hilo, explains how he is considered a “folder” of…
Meet Hawai‘i’s Dr. Doolittle, Paul Breese
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu When Paul Breese and Jean DeMercer-Breese began co-authoring their book about the history of the Honolulu Zoo, they had no idea it would take ten years to complete. Paul Breese served as director of the zoo from…
Kohala’s Hawai‘i Institute of Pacific Agriculture: Growing an Interest in Food Farming
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu At the UH Hilo Commencement Ceremonies held in May 2017, the numbers of graduates in various fields were impressive. However, a disturbing trend surfaced, with only 18 graduates completing a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and fewer…
Historic Campus Gets New Life, New Vision
By Ma’ata Tukuafu The parking lot is brand new. The short walk is breathtaking as the sun shines through the lush trees and the road curves, opening up to beautifully renovated buildings. This is the Kohala Institute at ‘Iole (KI),…
Kahua Ranch ‘Ohana Reunion
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu With humble pride in his voice, Godfrey Kainoa Sr. speaks about three gold and black plaques lined up in his living room. The inscribed awards are from the O‘ahu Cattlemen’s Association for three generations of hardworking Hawaiian…
Motifs in Polynesian Design
By Ma‘ata Tukuafu From the earliest European voyagers who traveled the vast Pacific Ocean in the 1500s to the vast numbers of visitors who spend their savings on touring the Pacific islands, the lure of Polynesia has always been present.…
