November–December 2022

Hawai‘i Island’s Community Magazine The Life | 2022

November – December Nowemapa – Këkëmapa

The Life Hawaiÿi Island’s Community Magazine

– December | Nowemapa – Këkëmapa 2022

Arts

Rashani Réa: Passionate Earth Steward 10 By Karen Valentine Crusin

with Kona

s Kenny Tagavilla 46 By Fern Gavelek Community

In Memoriam: Ginger Sizemore 16 By Barbara Garcia Culture

On Hawai‘i Island You Can Pick 22 the Weather You Want By Walter Dudley

Kawaihae Canoe Club Celebrates 50 Years 40 By Jan Wizinowich

Sustainability

Uncle Tilo Teaches Water is Life 32 By Stefan Verbano

Planting the Forest Back Together 27 By Rachel Laderman

Mālami Mokupuni: 36 Backyard Chickens for Food Self-Sufficiency

By Rachel Laderman

Front cover: Obake, watercolor painted on silk, by Jane Chao. Table of contents: A Touch of Winter, watercolor on Arches paper, by Shay Nimi Wahl. Read more about the artists on page 53.

Hawaiÿi Island’s Community Magazine

– December | Nowemapa – Këkëmapa

Ka Wehena: The Opening

Ala Ke Ola and Aloha

By Kumu Keala Ching

Medicinal Plants from the Garden

Calendula: An Herb for Wise Women

By Brittany P. Anderson Business

Building Business with Soul:

Emotional Intelligence and Its Impact on the Bottom Line

By Arliss Dudley-Cash MA, MBA

Talk Story with an Advertiser Big Island Motors

Ma‘ata Tukuafu

Local Food Magic of Mushrooms

Recipe for Mushroom Toast

By Brittany P. Anderson

Featured Artists

Artist

Chao

Table of Contents Artist

Nimi Wahl

Ka Puana: Closing Thoughts

333: E lei no au i ko aloha

Mary Kawena Pukui. Olelo Noeau: Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings

To Our Readers

It’s miraaculous we are closing out our 14th year of publishing! The future of Ke Ola Magazine is up to you, dear reader. Please read on.

While we were at the Kainaliu Music Festival in September, it filled our hearts with joy to see so many folks we have featured in stories over the years. We got to aloha Maka Gallinger, who was featured in our November–December 2019 issue. Congratulations to Maka for putting the festival together—it was a huge success! The soundman for that evening, Pat Eskildsen, is the bass player for Kahulanui, which we featured in our November–December 2012 issue. (Kahulanui was also one of four bands who played at Ke Ola’s 10-year anniversary concert in January 2019.)

Brian Kiernan and his son, Derek, who announced they were closing their store after 17 years to pursue other projects, were featured in a May–June 2014 story. It was wonderful to hear Tani Waipa perform—we featured Tani and her group Hoku Pa‘a in our March–April 2019 issue, and they performed at Ke Ola’s 10th anniversary concert, too. It was also great to see and hear Lopaka Roots again. Lopaka was featured in our January–February 2021 issue. One of the reasons we attended this event was to hear and meet Kenny Tagavilla, who is featured in this issue, and it was wonderful to run into Tommy “Kahikina” Ching, who we have scheduled for a story early next year.

Realizing how many people’s lives Ke Ola has touched was tangible confirmation of its relevance to the island. Many of the subjects we’ve featured in stories these past 14 years have shared with us how the stories helped them exponentially, which is incredibly gratifying—finding out how Ke Ola has improved the lives of so many people! Although itʻs been a rough few years, hearing these types of comments reminds us how important to the community this magazine is, and how much people would miss it, if it stopped publishing.

“ Keep the Stories Coming— Advertise in Ke Ola Magazine! ”

Our deepest gratitude goes to our advertisers and subscribers who have kept our stories coming to you all these years. We repeat this statement a lot, not just because it’s true, but also because, in speaking with people all over the island, we still come across those who are misled, thinking that because Ke Ola is primarily distributed for free, that the magazine doesn’t cost anything to produce. The reality is, our costs have exceeded our income since Covid began.

Unfortunately, like so many other small businesses, our production and shipping costs have skyrocketed, so the fact that we are still able to publish is truly a “Christmas miracle,” and there are not enough words to express our mahalo to those who are supporting it financially with an ad or subscription. It is not too late to order holiday subscriptions for yourself or your loved ones anywhere in Hawai‘i or the US mainland. All orders received by December 1 will be eligible to start a subscription with the January–February issue. Information is on page 57. In addition to the subscription, we will mail your recipient a notecard in December, letting them know about your gift. Won’t it be rewarding to give this gift, knowing you are helping Ke Ola continue? To those who have businesses, or know someone who owns or manages a business, if you want to ensure Ke Ola continues, purchasing an ad will definitely do that, and it will also help that business reach tens of thousands more people at the same time, making it a win-win.

Many years ago, we counted how many other island publications had come and gone while Ke Ola remained strong (around nine); however, there is no guarantee how long we can continue without huge and ongoing support from the community. We are currently considering all creative options, so Ke Ola may have an entirely new look and feel next year! With your support we can continue to provide stories that fill our spirit, connect us all to the life of the land here on Hawai‘i Island, while supporting local writers and artists in this timeless, quality publication.

If you would like Ke Ola to continue, now is the time to support it financially: For advertising info, call/text Tanya 24/7 at 808.747.4410 or email Tanya@KeOlaMagazine.com To place subscription orders, keolamagazine.com/subscribe; subscribe@KeOlaMagazine.com

Ke Ola Magazine recognizes the use of the ‘okina [‘] or glottal stop, as one of the eight consonants of (modern) Hawaiian language; and the kahakō [ā] or macron (e.g., in place names of Hawai‘i such as Pāhoa). Ke Ola Magazine respects the individual use of these markings for names of organizations and businesses. Socialize with us : Facebook.com/KeOlaMagazine Instagram.com/KeOlaMagazine Twitter.com/KeOlaMagazine

With much aloha, Barbara Garcia and Tanya Yamanaka We love getting your letters to the editor of 50 words or fewer. Story ideas and submissions are also welcome. We accept email and submissions through our website. KeOlaMagazine.com HIeditor@KeOlaMagazine.com keolamagazine.com/suggest-story-idea/ keolamagazine.com/write-letter-to-the-editor/

Tanya and Barb, September 2022

Ala Ke Ola

Na Kumu Keala Ching

Ā - Ala ke ola ē Ē – ‘Elele ka pono ī Ī – ‘I‘ini ke ala mua ō Ō – ‘O‘ole‘a ka mana ū Ū – ‘Ulele ke ala ē

Ho‘omaka ke ala pa‘a pono ma mua ou, e ‘ike i ke ola ā e hana i ka pono! ‘O ‘oe ka mea i ho‘olaha ‘ana i ka pono‘ī ma mua ou, ‘o ia ho‘i ke ola o nā kūpuna. Ola nā kūpuna i loko o kō kākou ala. E ‘ulele ho‘i ke ala pono me ke aloha!

Ā - Journey of life always Ē - Messenger of righteousness Ī - Desired journey found before Ō - Determined spirituality within Ū - Swiftly by the journey chosen

Begin the righteous firm journey before you, observe the life and complete the life with righteousness. You are the one to announce the righteousness before you, this life is the life of the elders. As the elders live within us all! Move swiftly upon this righteous journey filled with gentleness, unity, relationship, humbleness and patience!

Aloha

Na Kumu Keala Ching

E Akahai ē E Lōkahi kū

Embrace gentleness within and beyond Firmly standing upon unity seen and unseen Live, speak and know the truth, truth is life Eternal humbleness is truly the flames of life Know and be patient, patience is a gift Compassion recognized seen and unseen

‘O ke aloha ka mea i ho‘ōla ai ma ke ola ā e ola ke ala pono ma ‘ō aku o ka hana aloha. ‘O ia nō ka mea nui ma kēia ao hulihuli, e nānā iā ‘oe iho ma mua o kou kuhi hewa iā ha‘i. E ola ke aloha ā e ala ke ola!

Compassion (gentleness, unity, truth, humbleness and patience) is what brings healing within the life’s journey and the living journey is beyond our work of compassion. We embrace this mindset as we journey within these changing times, observe within before pointing at the wrong beyond. Live compassionate and journey beyond.

Encouraging the mindset of compassion during these times of change! Truth will guide our journey!

For more information on Kumu Keala and Nä Wai Iwi Ola, visit: nawaiiwiola.org

‘Oia‘i‘o nō Ha‘aha‘a ē Ahonui, Ahonui, Ahonui Aloha

Rashani Réa:

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 founded by Thich Nhat Hanh called Plum Village. She spotted a hand-lettered sign saying, “Go slowly, breathe, and smile.” Turning in and entering a peaceful garden, she was immediately surrounded by joyful children running up to greet her.

Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, known simply as Thây (pronounced “tie”), had escaped the war in Vietnam, helping many other people escape as well. He then established Plum Village—an international monastic community of “Engaged Buddhism,” near Bordeaux.

“From that moment, Plum Village became part of my life,” says Rashani. “Less than an hour passed before I was invited by Thây to sing for the sangha [community] in an oak grove, where many nuns, monks, and lay people were having a picnic.”

Today, living in Hawai‘i, Rashani, a strong yet gentle voice in the interspiritual movement, is herself a worldtraveling poet, prolific artist, singer/songwriter, passionate earth steward, skilled group facilitator, and much more. Born and raised in Northern California to Bohemian parents, Rashani’s father was a well-known artist and a professor of aesthetics at Stanford University. She had an unorthodox childhood, hanging around with celebrated composers, artists, writers, and poets. She loved writing poetry and creating art with calligraphy and collage, a practice she continues to this

day, printed on cards and published in 40 books. As a young teenager, inspired by Martin L. King Jr. and Sister Corita Kent, she became a social and eco activist.

“My mother would say, ‘It’s too beautiful to go to school. Let’s go to the beach today and write poetry!’ or ‘Let’s go to the museum.’ My brothers and I were immersed in the arts as well as comparative religions and timeless wisdom traditions. Our mother, a Taoist at heart, hosted study groups in which she would share about diverse wisdom traditions and created a summer home school for art, poetry, spirituality, and philosophy.”

In 1970, during the war in Vietnam, when her brother was ranked high on the draft list, the entire family left everything and moved to England.

Three years later, they moved to southern France, where Rashani raised her son and spent 18 years renovating a 17th-century stone farmhouse, which became the first Elisabeth Kübler-Ross center in France. With her home just an hour and a half ride from Plum Village, Rashani visited often and was invited to open Thây’s dharma talks with poetry and songs.

“I witnessed Thây’s teachings being embodied day after day. Several of the Vietnamese people there were deeply traumatized from the war. Here was this humble, soft-spoken man in brown robes gently accompanying trauma survivors into the miracle of the moment! ‘If we heal the moment, we heal the past,’ was his philosophy.

“Every day, some sort of celebration was happening there. Every hour a mindfulness bell was rung. Whatever you are doing, you stop, and simply breathe. You gently come back to yourself with each breath. There was a calmness there that

Rashani Réa at her Hawai‘i retreat center in 2014.

Passionate Earth Steward

was so beautiful. It changed my life.”

Deeply moved, creativity poured through Rashani. At the end of her first summer at Plum Village, she was inspired to record an album of songs and poetry. Returning to California, where her son was attending an alternative school, she rented a sound studio and gathered together excellent musicians. Take Refuge in the Moment became her eighth album and one of seven albums inspired by the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh.

Rashani sent a copy of the cassette to him as a gift of gratitude. A few weeks later, she received a letter: “Thây wants you to know it’s the most beautiful rendition of his poetry that he’s heard.” The letter also said, “Would you like to join us on his US tour to sing at his dharma talks and retreats?” “I felt deeply honored. I sang at his retreats, dharma talks, and large public gatherings in Berkeley, and other cities.” In 1990, she was ordained by Thich Nhat Hanh into the Order of Interbeing.

The Lamps are Different, but the Light is the Same Rashani still creates art, sings, facilitates councils and retreats, and shares the multi-faceted jewels of wisdom she has absorbed over the years, gathered from a vast and varied group of renowned teachers all over the world. Her main focus, however, is caring for 14 acres of rural land in Hawai‘i.

Although mentored and ordained with the Buddhist teachings, Rashani draws from many wisdom traditions,

including Native American, which is part of her heritage. Having been exposed by her parents to a multitude of spiritual traditions, Rashani asks, “Don’t all religions embody a different expression of the same essential truth? I love the Sufi saying, ‘The lamps are different, but the light is the same.’ Whether one is Indigenous, Agnostic, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, or Christian, the light is the same.”

The Song Gatherer

During the ‘80s, Rashani was inspired to record music, drawing from the energies of many different places, including Hawai‘i. She ended up making 15 albums, the first in 1986, recorded in caves, crypts, and cathedrals in the south of France. She traveled the world offering participatory concerts, councils, and retreats.

“Being a song gatherer, I would gather songs whenever I traveled. Wherever I was I would learn the songs of the people. I first came to Hawai‘i in 1987,” she says, “feeling a calling to record songs inside lava tubes, using rattles and drums and my voice.”

In 1991, shortly after her father’s death, Rashani was diagnosed with advanced Lyme disease. “I had been ill for many years without knowing what I had. My immune system was exhausted. Medical specialists in California told me that I must take intravenous antibiotics for at least 12 months if I wanted to live. I thanked them for their suggestion and instead, I answered another calling and moved to the Big Island of Hawai‘i, where I envisioned having a beautiful year. That same year I wrote ‘The Unbroken’, a poem that has circulated the world.”

Collage and poem by Rashani.

There is a brokenness out of which comes the unbroken, a shatteredness out of which blooms the unshatterable. There is a sorrow beyond all grief which leads to joy and a fragility out of whose depths emerges strength.

There is a hollow space too vast for words through which we pass with each loss, out of whose darkness we are sanctioned into being.

There is a cry deeper than all sound whose serrated edges cut the heart as we break open to the place inside which is unbreakable and whole, while learning to sing.

“This poem is my great teacher,” says Rashani. “I don’t actually claim it as mine. It came to/through me as an unexpected gift when I was in the darkest abyss of my life.”

Rashani believes that Pele called to her when she was

debilitated, and inspired her to reconnect deeply with the ‘āina (land) and the ancestors of the island. She ended up co-creating a successful retreat center while she slowly healed, and held women’s councils for seven years.

“I was guided and assisted in countless ways by Madame Pele, extraordinary kūmu [teachers], beloved mentors, and ancestral guides,” she says. “Eventually, I discovered how to transform the ineffable cry of anguish into song. I became a death doula and a grief whisperer and have held space for countless people who were imploding with trauma, grief, sorrow, rage, anguish, and anger.”

We Are All Alchemists

“I asked Pele one day, ‘Why am I here?’ She replied, ‘You’re here to create beauty and alleviate suffering for many people.’” The year 2001 led to another change and move for Rashani. She felt her journey at her sanctuary in Hawai‘i was finished, that her years of retreat centers were complete. Although she started traveling again and seeking her new home throughout many states in the US, she was called back to Hawai‘i, to a piece of land in a remote region of Ka‘ū.

“For me,” Rashani says, “Hawai‘i was where I came to relinquish everything I thought I knew. Pele dismantled who

Rashani celebrating the legacy of Thich Nhat Hanh in Kailua-Kona, March, 2022.

Rashani at Plum Village with Qûyen and Quan, 1988.

I thought I was so I could reremember who I truly am. I came here to discover primordial grace, to hide out in a way, and be close to the elemental forces, to care for the land and create beautiful gardens after spending time in the busy world interacting with many people. For the first several years, this island was my chrysalis, my refuge, a place where I could be anonymous. It was essential to give back to the ‘āina that had healed me, and then I would return to other countries to cross-pollinate timeless wisdom with many other people. More recently, people have found me and I’ve made myself more available.”

All photos courtesy of Rashani Réa, except Thich Nhat Hanh

For more information: rashani.com

Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh at Plum Village. photo courtesy of plumvillage.org

In Memoriam:

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 takes us longer to schedule them. By the time I contacted Sue to schedule it, sadly, Ginger had passed away. It is our privilege to publish Ginger’s story to help carry on her legacy.

If You Look, I Can Be Found Please, Catch me if you can Spin and twirl me around You can make me sparkle If you look, I can be found —Ginger Sizemore

Marilyn Virginia “Ginger” Letterly knew she wanted to be an artist from a young age. Both her parents were talented; her father was a wild life oil painter, and her mother had many creative talents, too. At age four, Ginger found a treasure chest—a box of shells her father had brought home from when he was in the Navy, stationed on O‘ahu, during World War II. She was enthralled. Around the same time, she came across a box of buttons her mother had saved. These two collections inspired her to start stringing together necklaces, and selling them in consignment stores.

Ginger was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and grew up in Brighton, Colorado. After graduating from business school in 1962 at 19 years old, she visited O‘ahu with a girlfriend and never went home!

Her dream was to open a store in Waikīkī, where she could sell her own jewelry. She began with a table— not even a kiosk—called Ginger’s Treasure Chest in the International Market Place in 1964. She sold trinkets and trained parrots to rollerskate across her table, entertaining the tourists. She also met her future husband there, when he became a customer. She and Sherman Otis ended up owning eight successful retail stores in Honolulu over the course of 16 years. She was known to create her jewelry while sitting in front her store, and also for selling exotic birds.

In 1979, at the young age of 35, she and Sherman decided to “retire” on Hawai‘i Island. She sold her shops, opened a wholesale jewelry design business, taught classes, and continued to create wearable art. She utilized the extensive inventory of beads she brought with her. Eventually, she became interested in other art forms, namely photography, sculpting, lampwork, bead making, seed bead jewelry, needleweaving, and writing poetry. A special note, needleweaving is an art form that Ginger originally created. It consists of small, wearable tapestries that incorporate beads,

Ginger in 2015, dressed to dance hula at Kona’s Life Care Center, which she did every Christmas. She loved the beautiful hibiscus flowers and always had gorgeous blossoms from her garden in her hair.

found objects, collectibles, coins, and various fibers. She and others loved it so much that she started a popular workshop to teach it.

Hawai‘i Island

Ginger was passionate about many other things. She helped create a bird park, which was to be known as Papalani Petbird Park in South Kona. Ginger was skilled at training large birds,

Ginger Sizemore

such as macaws. Her love of birds and ability to train them would have made her a perfect fit for leading the bird shows. The couple brought all of Ginger’s trained birds including her roller-skating parrots Ruby and Mango, and her white cockatoo Daisy Mae Crackers. Due to many circumstances, the bird park never opened; however, it was what brought her and Sherman to Hawai‘i Island—they moved to Pāpā Bay Estates, continuing to raise pet birds. Eventually the birds were adopted by a local bird sanctuary in Ocean View.

Another of Ginger’s passions was scuba diving, and yet another, dancing hula. Jackie Haleiwa knew Ginger for decades. They originally met when Ginger and Sherman first moved to Hawai‘i Island—they were neighbors and shared a love for jewelry making, scuba, and hula.

Jackie shared some hilarious memories with Ginger. She recalls, “Scuba diving was really fun with Ginger as long as you were not her partner. She was a tremendous swimmer. When you’re a partner you’re supposed to look out for each other, and Ginger would be so intent on what she was looking at that she forgot you were even there. You were constantly tugging on her fin while she was following a baby octopus or looking at what was living in a shell. She lived in the right side of her

brain all the time. She was that creative. One time I took her to ‘Trash’ [Kamilo] Beach, and I was on crutches. We found a [fishing] net, and Ginger wanted it. I couldn’t help, so she did it herself. She brought it home, aired it out for about six months—it stunk so bad—and then hung it from the ceiling in her kitchen, putting plastic crabs in it and everything else. That net hung there until after she passed away! She was always wonderfully excited about so many things, that’s what I miss. She was terrific at anything she touched.”

Ginger danced with Hannah’s Makana ‘Ohana in Ocean View, directed by Kumu Hannah Uribes. Hannah was another dear friend of Ginger’s in addition to being her kumu. Their hālau competed in the annual Kūpuna Hula Festival in Keauhou.

Being 30 years Ginger’s senior, Sherman’s health declined in the late 90s. He introduced her to his good friend and neighbor, Burley Sizemore. Burley became a great help to the couple in Sherman’s final years, and Ginger felt it was destiny that she married this wonderful man in her later years. She was known to say, “I was so blessed to marry two of the greatest men on earth!” She and Burley were married for more than 12 years. In Pāpā Bay, they were terrifc square dancers, with Ginger sewing all the costumes. When they could no

Ginger detailing a carving for a client in 2018. She always surrounded herself with the inspiration of real flowers from her garden as she painted.

Best friends and neighbors, (left to right) Ginger, Sue Springer, and Ethel Hamar enjoying pie at Hana Hou Restaurant in 2016.

longer manage the Papalani farm, they moved to their Ocean View home, shortly before Burley’s death.

Neighbors and Friends

One of the things Ginger created was a workshop in her home. She invited everyone in—anyone who wanted to create art, she was willing to teach them. She taught watercolor and acrylic painting, glass work, beading, polymer clay pendant design, needleweaving, tapestry, clothing design, and quilting. Along the way she formed many lasting friendships.

Jackie shares, “You know how some people say they don’t have any hobbies? Ginger didn’t have enough time for all her hobbies. They were her life and she made a living from them. The other part was just for fun and she was extremely generous. I considered her a very close friend.”

Neighbor Sue Springer says, “Ginger’s writing reflects her crazy sense of humor, her strong faith, and her passion for life, the ocean, and animals.”

Sue and Ginger were close friends and next-door neighbors. Sue and other friends put together a scrapbook with photos of Ginger’s artwork, jewelry, newspaper clippings, and ads from Ginger’s Honolulu businesses, and also a book of poetry Ginger created during her last days in 2020.

Angels on the Scene

Sue shares, “A former neighbor and dear friend, Tammy Opalinsky Clay, had stored a large motor from her husband’s boat in one of Ginger’s many storage sheds. Ginger called her in Texas, asking her to come get it. After visiting for two weeks, Tammy didn’t want Ginger to live alone and offered to be her caregiver. [Amazingly, in 2005, Tammy and her husband Mark were Burley’s in-home caregivers.] Ginger agreed to let her stay. Tammy signed on for the next four months, but Ginger lived another full year! We traveled a lot— she returned to the International Market Place to see where her shops had been. I have a great picture of her hugging a statue of Don Ho—she knew him personally! We visited the Honolulu Aquarium with her running commentary of all the sea creatures. We also made it to Maui’s Aquarium. The Honolulu Bead Show was so fun with our expert in tow. Kaua‘i was a great trip, also.

STRONGER TOGETHER!

Bay Clinic and West Hawaii Community Health Center have merged. We are now island wide with a new name; providing comprehensive medical, dental, and behavioral health care for the entire ‘ohana.

For locations, services and hours of operation, please visit us online at: HICommunityHealthCenter.org

Close friend, Jackie Haleiwa, with Ginger’s macaw, Ruby. Jackie is wearing a necklace with macaw feathers that Ginger’s mother made. photo courtesy of Jackie Haleiwa

“Covid clipped her wings a bit, but the hula hālau came and did an open air dance fest with her. The worship team of her church, Ocean View Evangelical Community Church, came and did an outdoor concert for her, as she smiled from her lānai. She did not like being secluded from her friends, so they signed up to take turns visiting.

“We will finally get to have her Celebration of Life open house—her Attitude of Gratitude party—she helped plan it for

November 19, 2022. What fun it will be to celebrate my friend and her amazing touch she left with all who knew her! Such a happy, creative soul landed in heaven July 25, 2020.”

A Woman of Faith While perusing the scrapbook of Ginger’s life’s work, there is one common thread: it is clear she was deeply rooted in her faith. Whether it’s her jewelry, tapestries, paintings, or poetry, Ginger’s faith is weaved into it all, as noted in her poems. Ginger is missed by all. Her legacy will live on forever in her creations.

Sheller’s Prayer Lord grant that I may shell Until my dying day And when it comes to my last search I then most humbly pray, When in the Lord’s great shelling bag, I’m peacefully asleep— That in His mercy I be judged As good enough to keep.

—Ginger Sizemore

All photos courtesy of Ginger Sizemore’s collection, except Jackie Haleiwa

Young Ginger with the classic Hawai‘i look, circa 1960.

A cozy area outside her “Little Grass Shack” is embellished by Ginger’s collection of nets. Overhead, a light she created from a glass sea float adds an eclectic touch. Garden art was everywhere on her three acres.

Calendula: An Herb for Wise Women

By Brittany P. Anderson

The midwife holds a clear bag of dried herbs over a large box. The box is filled with supplies in preparation for the impending birth. She explains each item contained within the homebirth kit to the expectant mother.

“Here is this wonderfully soothing calendula herb mix for you. You’ll want to add a little to the bath and soak in it daily for a few days after the baby comes,” the midwife says as she places it into the box.

Calendula is a member of the Asteraceae family. This bright and beautiful bunch is commonly known as the daisy or marigold family. The cheerful look of the calendula flower is unassuming, yet it possesses powerful wound healing abilities.

As with so many ancient remedies, the once common knowledge of using plants that grow around the home is all but lost in this modern world.

Calendula has been used after childbirth since the Dark Ages for its anti-inflammatory and therapeutic capabilities when applied to the skin. Midwives and herbalism have a history intrinsically linked together. The term for midwife in medieval French was sage femme, which directly translates to “wise woman.” The wise woman knew how and when to pick herbs and put them to medicinal use.

Today we use the word midwife, derived from old AngloSaxon midwif, which meant “with woman.” Social mores at the time dictated that men were not allowed to participate in any woman’s health issues. This left the village female herbalist to be with the woman during childbirth. Creating herbal tonics and tinctures centered around pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum caused many midwives to be accused of witchcraft.

Prior to the 15th century, midwives learned their craft through oral tradition within their village. Then, formal medical training was established, and women were barred from these early institutions.

Being blocked from the medical industry, women leaned on their knowledge of natural remedies advancing midwifery and solidifying it as a female-dominated field.

The medicinal benefit of herbs is frequently observed, yet seldom scientifically studied. You should always ask your healthcare provider before using any kind of natural remedy, even one that comes from plants.

In a published study from The Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, 72 women found their Cesarean-section wounds healed faster with calendula ointment when compared to women getting the standard hospital treatment. They also reported the calendula ointment reduced redness and swelling in the area.

It is the petals of the flower that are rich in flavonoids—a compound with anti-inflammatory capabilities. There has been a renewed interest in calendula by the cosmetic industry utilizing it in everything from diaper rash creams to anti-aging facial toners. Gels and lotions made from calendula can boost collagen production, decrease inflammation, and improve skin hydration.

Growing calendula for the home garden is easy in most climates on Hawai‘i Island. The plant is a perennial, meaning it lives for more than two years. However, calendula is an annual in extremely cold or overly hot locations. Calendula can grow in most soil types in full sun and does well in containers making it a versatile medicinal plant for Hawai‘i Island gardeners.

Calendula is an excellent companion plant in the garden as its flowers attract pollinators and beneficial insects. The medicinal portion of the plant is the flower, usually picked in full bloom and then dried in indirect sunlight.

There are quite a few different cultivars of calendula with variations in flower color. You can find pale yellow to doubleheaded flower heads in light peach. There’s even a variety with variegated leaves. Because the attractive flowers retain their beauty when dried, calendula is often used in potpourri mixes.

Whether used for medicinal purposes or to add a splash of color to potpourri, the calendula plant is beneficial to all Hawai‘i Island home gardens.

A baby rocks in its bassinet fast asleep after a hard and long journey. The new mother swirls her toes into a brew of herbs steeping in the clawfoot bathtub. She descends into the calendula-infused water to soothe her skin and heal her body as has been the way of wise women for centuries.

On Hawai‘i Island You Can

By Walter Dudley

One reason Hawaiʽi is known around the world as paradise is that the climate across our island chain is about as perfect as any place on Earth. But what many people don’t realize is that Hawaiʽi Island is the global champion when it comes to the variety of different climates on one island. Back in 1866 when Mark Twain rode across the flank of Mauna Kea from Hilo to Kawaihae, he wrote “snow and ice clasped its summit like a claw...and one could see all the climes of the world at a single glance...” According to the 1884 Koppen Climate Classification System, Hawai‘i Island has 10 of the 14 climate zones on Earth. Basically, you can pick the weather you want and drive there on Hawaiʽi Island.

Hawaiʽi also has some of the lowest variability in climate throughout the year. Lying in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, far from continents, keeps day to day and month to month changes very small. Also, being in the tropics means that the difference in the length of days from winter to summer is less than two-and-a-half-hours in Hilo, whereas in Seattle, the winter—summer difference is more than seven-and-a-half hours. Instead of the four seasons in a year that they have on the mainland, here we have only two: hoʽoilo: the cool season (generally October to March), with a lower sun, more rain, and more variable winds; and kau: the warm season (generally March to October), with the sun high overhead and steady trade winds.

We do have day-night (diurnal) differences, and Hawaiʽi Island is again the champion with the most extreme diurnal weather pattern across the islands. For example, Hilo airport recorded 127 inches of rainfall in 2021, continuing to hold the title as the rainiest city in the US. Yet, solar water heaters and photovoltaic panels work just fine in Hilo because the maximum rainfall is at night with minimum clouds and rain during the day when the sun is brightest.

With so few changes from day to day and throughout the year, why do we have so many different climates on Hawaiʽi Island? We can thank the māuna (mountains) for giving us this great climate diversity and the resulting ecosystems that range from tropical rain forest to alpine tundra and even desert—all within an hour’s drive. As you drive from Hilo up Daniel K. Inouye Highway (aka Saddle Road), the temperature drops as much as five degrees fahrenheit for every 1000 feet you climb, going from nice and warm at sea level to near freezing on the summits of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea at almost 14,000 feet high. It is not unusual to see snow atop Mauna Kea and even Mauna Loa, and some people sled or even ski when the summit is covered with snow.

From just offshore in Hilo, you can feel the greem lush warmth of the Hilo coastline and see snow on Mauna Kea in the same glance. photo courtesy of Robert J Wong

Pick The Weather You Want

Rainfall

It’s not just the temperature that changes as you drive across the island, the change in rainfall is dramatic. As you drive up above Hilo, rainfall increases to some 300 inches per year, but then begins to suddenly fall off at higher elevations, leaving the upper slopes very dry and usually cloudless. Why do we have this rainfall pattern on the windward or so-called “rainy” side? It’s mostly caused by something known as “orthographic rainfall.” As the trade winds blow across the ocean, sunlight causes water to evaporate. When the moist air hits the slopes, it is forced to rise, forming clouds, and as the clouds continue to rise up the mountain slopes and the air cools, the clouds can hold less and less water, causing it to rain. It’s kind of like squeezing a sponge, which eventually runs out of water. Notice in the photo that the clouds stop abruptly, not little by little.

As the clouds rise to cooler and cooler elevations, suddenly they hit warmer air. This is a relatively thin layer called the “inversion layer.” The winds now blow around the māuna and not over them, with little moisture left for the dry side, leaving the leeward side clearer and dryer—a perfect place for beach goers.

Above the inversion layer on the western slope of Mauna Kea, about an hour’s drive (~40 miles) east of Kailua-Kona, and an hour’s drive (~45 miles) west of Hilo, lies Puʽu Laʽau where the humidity is so low that there is a “dry forest” area. But the Kona side does get some rain as all that sunlight heats the ground causing air to rise, not only creating the inversion layer, but bringing onshore winds with moisture. They often get afternoon rain on the slopes and hence a perfect environment to grow some of the world’s best coffee.

The many climates of Hawaiʽi Island have changed over time. If you look across the saddle from Mauna Loa to Mauna Kea another mystery presents itself. There are numerous strange looking rock formations not typical of volcanoes. These are left over from the Ice Age. Yes, there were glaciers atop Mauna Kea, some going back 200,000 years and others formed as recently as 13,000 years ago. You will see weird scratches on the lava created as rocks were dragged by glaciers over ancient lava flows. As you drive by Mauna Kea County Park in the Pōhakuloa region, you will see deep gulches that were carved out by these glaciers. Also, when the ice melted it left boulders, called “erratics,” sitting isolated as if they fell off the back of a dump truck. Much of this former glacial area has been protected as the Mauna Kea Ice Age

Natural Area Reserve and includes Lake Waiʽau, one of the highest lakes on Earth at 13,020 feet elevation and sitting in a shallow depression once filled with ice, also of great cultural significance to Native Hawaiians.

Lava erupting under the ice also produced an extremely dense form of basalt lava rock which was perfect for making stone tools, especially for “adzes”—the blades used for cutting before metal arrived in Hawai‘i. The reserve includes the site

of the world’s largest rock quarry for making adzes.

Looking across from Mauna Kea to Mauna Loa is another amazing site that has recorded world records. Hawai‘i Island is home to the oldest lab established to measure changes in carbon dioxide on our planet—the Mauna Loa Observatory. In 1956 NOAA set up a scientific laboratory to “observe” and monitor the amount of various gases in the earth’s atmosphere. The site on Mauna Loa, at 11,500 feet elevation, was chosen due to its location above the inversion layer, to avoid any locally polluted air, and measure samples of well-mixed air from the upper atmosphere. It was the first and remains the oldest station on Earth, measuring the composition of the earth’s atmosphere. What they have discovered over the years is what continues to make headlines in the news around the world—it is getting warmer across the planet, with record heat being recorded everywhere from England to the Italian Alps to China and India. The cause and effect are clear—the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen from less than 320 ppm (parts per million) in 1958, when detailed measurements began on Mauna Loa, to over 400 ppm today—a 25% increase in less than 65 years, a mere blink of the eye in geologic time. Alas, everything is changing way too fast.

Lake Wai‘au, one of the highest lakes on earth at 13.020 feet elevation. photo courtesy of Janet Coney

Surfing and Other Water Sports; Many Options

Not only can you drive to the weather you like, but also to where surf is breaking. Our position in the middle of the Pacific not only gives us mellow weather, but it makes Hawai‘i the best surfing location on earth. Portugal may get the biggest waves ever surfed so far, but here we can pretty much always find breaking waves to surf. In fact, you can go surfing and diving pretty much year-round, but exactly where changes with the season. Breaks on the northwest to northeast shores typically occur during winter when strong winter winds in the northern hemisphere create swells that travel down to the islands. Our northern hemisphere summer is winter in the southern hemisphere and strong winter winds there create swells that break against our southern (southwest to southeast) shores. So, surfing gets shared around the island, and this is also good for diving and fishing as calmer water on the opposite side of the island from the breaking surf creates safer diving and fishing conditions with clearer water. It’s a win-win.

Rainbow Capital

Our amazing weather has also helped Hawai‘i earn the title as “Rainbow Capital of the World.” There are many Hawaiian words for rainbow, ranging from “anuenue,” to “punakea” (barely visible rainbow) to “kahili” (rainbow shaft) to “anuenue kau pō” (moon rainbow—yes—you can also see those on Hawaiʽi Island). When Mark Twain visited Hawai‘i, he remarked that rainbows were “as common in the islands as fog and wind in San Francisco.” Lucky we live Hawai‘i!

Top of the inversion layer as seen flying into Hilo airport. photo courtesy of John Coney

Reference: Atlas of Hawaii, edited by Sonia P. Juvik and James O. Juvik, Chief Cartographer: Thomas R. Paradise, third edition, 1998.

Skiing, sledding, and snowboarding on Mauna Kea. photo courtesy of John Coney

By Rachel Laderman

Planting the ForestBack Together

The Kealakekua Forest Nursery (KFN) is the biggest native plant nursery in the state, and it is run with a big heart, driven by love for the land and Hawaiian heritage. It provides seedlings for many reforestation projects, including the largest reforestation program in the history of Hawai‘i.

The nursery, nestled on the lower slopes of Mauna Loa, was started to fulfill a need for native plants to be grown in the same environment that they would eventually be planted in. dōTERRA, a company that sells essential oils, was seeking a sustainable source of ‘iliahi (sandalwood), the native tree prized for its warm scent. Native Hawaiians used ‘iliahi for medicine, carvings, and to scent kapa (bark cloth). Hawai‘i Island’s sandalwood was heavily logged in the 1800s for sale to China, where it was

in enormous demand for use as incense and furniture. Thousands of tons of the fragrant tree were hauled out of the forests, devastating the forest ecology as well as the community. After logging, the lands were turned into cattle ranches. Invasive grasses took over, and the hooves and grazing of cows, plus goats, sheep, and pigs, eroded the soil and degraded the remaining native forests.

In 2018, dōTERRA purchased the Kealakekua Heritage Ranch, which still had patches of native forest, including some not-very-healthy ‘iliahi. The ranch had at one time been slated for development but had been protected by the Department of Land and Natural Resources through the US Forest Service’s Forest Legacy Program. dōTERRA established the ranch as the 9,627-acre Kealakekua Mountain Reserve (KMR), and

Sandalwood seedlings ready to transplant. photo courtesy of Katrina Isch

Koa seeds ready for cleaning and planting. photo courtesy of Katrina Isch

Sandalwood ready to be planted. photo courtesy of Katrina Isch

“Their plan includes harvesting only dead or dying ‘iliahi for their essential oils, which are extracted and distilled in Hawai‘i,” explains Keli‘ikanoe Mahi, director of Hiki Ola, a nonprofit offering education and cultural awareness through KMR. Healthy trees are left to grow to maturity, which may take 60 years. “They have planted 1500 acres so far, towards a plan of one million trees; 300,000 trees planted so far.” Keli‘ikanoe is the former principal of Ke Kula ‘o ‘Ehunuikaimalino, a Hawaiian language immersion school, where she first started taking school groups to work on reforestation. She continues to connect that community and the land through Hiki Ola.

The Barton family volunteers every month in the nursery. The nursery welcomes people who want to learn and ideally to develop the sort of long-term relationship the Bartons exemplify! photo courtesy of Keli‘ikanoe Mahi developed a 10-year forestry management plan to restore the native forest, with a focus on ‘iliahi.

Careful Processing

Forest Solutions, a company located in Pa‘auilo that has provided forestry services for 25 years, helps run the nursery and reforestation project. In addition to ‘iliahi, KFN grows a large amount of koa, pilo, ‘ōhi‘a, ‘a‘ali‘i, and naio, which also has a fragrant oil. All aspects of the nursery involve research, figuring out the best ways to propagate and ensure the healthy life of the different native species.

The nursery is located at 3400 feet, downslope of, but within the KMR reforestation area, all of which is now fenced to keep out hooved animals. “The seedlings get to grow in the same conditions they will be planted out in,” says Katrina Isch, who helped start the nursery in 2019. The nursery workers enjoy going up mauka to collect seed, which is possible

because pockets of old native forest survive intact in kipuka— knolls or other areas lava flowed around. “It’s a treasure to have this seed source,” says Katrina.

Lore Witt, a nursery technician with Forest Solutions explains, “After collecting the seed, we process it and clean it. All the seeds are different and require different processing. We sow them in trays, and when big enough we prick them out and give them space to grow and breathe. Then we put them outside in the sun and get them ready to go in the ground, which is always a really exciting day.” She adds, “I love my job, all aspects of it. I love seeing the whole cycle.”

KFN is “planting the forest back together,” as Katrina puts it—at several sites around the island. As with a forest, they

plant in succession, starting with koa and ‘a‘ali‘i, because these saplings can handle direct sunlight, and then once they are established, a mix of other native species are planted in their shade. When the forest is established, it will start to reseed naturally. Until that time, the nursery shelters the seedlings from pests and harsh conditions.

In the four years since being planted, the koa trees are now 15–20 feet tall. “I am always filled with joy and hope as I drive through the area that was planted in 2018, in awe of how they grow so fast,” says Keli‘ikanoe. It does bring hope that the forest can be planted back together, with the work of so many loving hands.

For More Information and Volunteer Opportunities: hikiola.org kealakekuaforestnursery.com

Rachel Laderman, Lynker Sustainable Pacific Program Hawai‘i Island

Koa seedlings sprouting in the Kealakekua Forest Nursery, the largest native plant nursery in the state of Hawai‘i. photo courtesy of Katrina Isch

Driving down from the nursery in the evening. photo courtesy of Katrina Isch

Emotional Intelligence and Its Impact on the Bottom Line

By Arliss Dudley-Cash MA, MBA

According to Travis Bradberry, author of Emotional Intelligence 2.0, “Emotional Intelligence is your ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others, and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships.”

Emotional Intelligence is being recognized as a key ingredient to being a successful leader. In 2004, Psychologist Daniel Goleman wrote an article in the Harvard Business Review that highlighted Emotional Intelligence as the main factor that sets high performing leaders apart from their peers who have similar technical skills and knowledge.

Emotional Intelligence, or EQ (as opposed to IQ), is broken down into five main components:

Self-awareness

Self-regulation

Social skills

Motivation

Empathy

How can the five components of Emotional Intelligence help in business?

First, self-awareness gives us a clear view of our feelings, needs, and behavior. When we are truly self-aware, it is easier to self-regulate by taking responsibility for our actions and meeting our own needs. We are less likely to blame others or rely on others around us to meet our needs. We become aware of how our actions affect those around us (social skills) and what is and isn’t appropriate in context. By being more aware of our needs and behavior, our excitement to show up and grow our business can improve (motivation). Empathy allows us to understand perspectives outside of our own and see situations from another person’s point of view.

Finally, as we navigate working with others in our business, we are better equipped to set healthy boundaries, respect the boundaries of others, and have productive communication. We waste less energy on conflict and emotional hangovers. The overall work environment is more positive, which improves employee retention and promotes more feelings of fulfillment and happiness at work.

How does EQ impact the bottom line?

Based on a research study done with over 42,000 people, by

Dr. Bradberry, individuals with high EQs make an average of $29,000 per year more than people with low EQs. On average, every point increase in Emotional Intelligence adds $1,300 to an annual salary. There is a linear relationship with increase in annual income with an increase in Emotional Intelligence. Why is this? Individuals with higher EQ are better communicators, they bring higher value to their clients and customers, and they perform better in stressful situations. Unlike IQ, which is thought to be a fixed and unchangeable, EQ can be increased through learning self-awareness, self-regulation, social skills, motivation, and empathy.

Ways to increase Emotional Intelligence:

1. Be willing to see the other side—If your actions or choices impact another person or group, be willing to see the impact of that action or choice from their side. Would you want to experience that outcome if you were on their side?

2. Know the difference between intent and impact—Intent is what you thought the outcome would be and impact is the actual outcome that happened. If you impact someone in a negative way, take responsibility for that and apologize. Denying the impact of something because of a positive intent can be more damaging than the initial negative impact.

3. Practice self-evaluation—What areas of Emotional Intelligence are you strong in and what areas could you improve? Are you able to see yourself as not perfect and still be supportive and gentle with yourself as you are learning? Make a plan for the areas you want to grow and improve in.

4. Reactions to stressful situations—How do you react when you are under stress or pressure? Do you go to a place of blame or shame of yourself or others? Do you get upset or angry with yourself or others? Emotional Intelligence is highly valued in the business world because individuals with high EQ can stay calm under stress and make sound decisions.

5. Where are you shining your light?—Are you shining your light on your accomplishments or are you championing others around you? You can be outgoing and confident and allow others around you to shine. This can help in building trust and relationships which are so important in business.

In order to practice Emotional Intelligence in our businesses, we must start on the inside first—with ourselves. You can’t give to others from an empty cup.

For more information: soullutions.com

Uncle Tilo Teaches Water is Life

By Stefan Verbano

This is scribbled on a chalkboard hanging in the window of Todd and Archer’s shop in Pāhoa. It’s their business motto, and the inspiration for why the tiny storefront is crammed full of water filtration and treatment equipment, display racks of cylindrical, spongey-looking white filter cartridges, pHbalancing plastic capsules made to be floated in rain catchment tanks, and a preassembled floor model of a complete filtration system—with its array of valves and looping snake of PVC pipe— mounted to the wall.

Complete with chair and desk, there’s only enough space inside Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water for one or two shoppers at a time. This seems curious at first when considering Hawai‘i Island is home to the largest rainwater harvesting community in the United States, where some studies suggest nearly 100,000 people rely on around 40,000 privately owned rain catchment tanks for their primary water needs. However, after talking with the owners of the store for a bit, it becomes obvious...they do a lot of house calls.

The store is named after Todd Lolla, who goes by the nickname ‘Tilo,’ formed from his initials. On a Saturday morning, Todd is standing in the parking lot out front surrounded by a semicircle of people sitting in folding chairs. They’ve come from as far away as Ka‘ū to attend the free monthly water education class. It’s a well-rehearsed

presentation about home water treatment, paused briefly partway through to pass out pencils and the 14-page booklet, Rainwater Harvesting in Hawai‘i: Just the Basics. He lectures largely from this text, pointing out to the audience a particular chart, graph, or an image of filtration and treatment equipment—as they gingerly flip pages and follow along.

The class is science-heavy. Todd goes into depth about concepts like pH adjustment, filter micron sizes, types of ultraviolet light treatment, and heavy metals testing. He incorporates subjects ranging from hydrology to epidemiology to engineering. Even with all the science jargon, he manages to keep it lighthearted, too. He’ll often ask via a show of hands, “who was brave enough to take a look inside their catchment tank before they came to class?”

On some Saturdays, very few hands shoot up in response. Todd draws on an entire career’s worth of experience from working as a water well driller and project engineer in the southwestern United States. Moving to Hawai‘i was meant to be a transition to a slower and more peaceful lifestyle, but it turned out his skills were in very high demand in his new home.

“Technically I’m retired,” he says. “So, I don’t want this to be a job as much as I want to be able to take my experience and my education and say, ‘Okay, it’s time to give something back, and this is what I can give.’ The educational component is our contribution back to this community, and rainwater just happened to be the thing we got attached to.”

“The quality of your water is a direct link to the quality of your health.”

Todd Lolla uses a power drill with mixer attachment to stir a rain catchment tank after adding a dose of chlorine bleach. Proper disinfection of tanks, he says, is a crucial part of home rainwater treatment.

Uncle Tilo’s—which celebrates five years in business this December—has put on more than 60 of these free classes, drawing anywhere from a handful of people to several dozen. Most have been held right there on the sidewalk in front of their store on the first Saturday morning of each month, when the marketplace is bustling with customers. County road workers in big white trucks come and go picking up plate lunch orders, and pungent wafts emanate from the fish shop next door. Other times Todd and Archer have taken their program on the road and looped around the island holding classes in community centers.

Tilo The Problem Solver

Usually, the most popular of these classes, Todd says, are unfortunately the ones being held in Hawai‘i Island communities actively experiencing water problems. “They’re concerned,” he says about a class taught a few years ago in the town of Ocean View that saw more than 60 attendees. “They know there are problems, they can see the discoloration in their tubs and showers and sinks. They realize there’s got to be something going on and they want to know what it is.”

The trouble in Ocean View stems from increased volcanic gasses from the ongoing Kīlauea eruption creating acid rainfall in communities downwind of the volcano. The very-low-pH water ends up in catchment tanks and is cycled through household plumbing where it corrodes copper piping and imparts the water with a sickly blue hue.

“They have to add some kind of a pH-correction to their system,” Todd says. “They have to add mineral beds with calcium carbonate in them to raise the pH of the water, to introduce some more minerals in there so that the water isn’t

Inside Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water, there’s a display of plastic capsules made to be filled with pH-neutralizing minerals and floated in catchment tanks to neutralize acid rain. Above it is an array of different sized water filter cartridges.

A shelf of filter cartridges, acid rain neutralizing mineral packs, and pipe-end debris screens found in the showroom of Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water.

A fully-assembled floor model of Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water Filter Pack located along one of the store’s walls. It contains 20-micron and 5-micron sediment filters, a stainless steel flow meter and a heavy metals-reducing carbon block utilizing Quantum Disinfection technology.

(Left to right) Todd Lolla, otherwise known as Uncle Tilo, Archer, and store manager Marion Dodge stand outside Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water in Pāhoa on a Saturday morning before the start of one of its monthly water education classes.

acidic. Back on the mainland, most of the problems there are the opposite—the groundwater is so hard and full of minerals that everybody is installing water softeners to try and get rid of it. We’re on the other end of the spectrum, so we’re always thinking about adding minerals to the tanks.”

The other, much more dangerous metal often leached by acidic catchment water is lead. “The lead is in our plumbing system,” Todd says. “Every house, every building has brass fittings, every faucet fixture is brass, every shutoff valve is brass, and the connectors at the pump are brass. Brass contains lead, so if you run acidic water through there it will dissolve some of that lead and carry it into the water.”

Thankfully, the solution to acidic water is simple—make it more alkaline and it won’t eat away at these metals as it makes its way to the tap. Other problems plaguing the Hawai‘i rainwater harvesting community have similarly simple solutions: keeping pathogens that cause illnesses like Rat Lungworm Disease, Staph infections, and Leptospirosis out of a catchment tank can be as simple as using the right ratio of disinfectant in combination with a suitable two-stage sediment filter. Some of Todd’s advice can seem like a no-brainer, too: pressure wash roofs, periodically flush out piping, cut the jungle back from structures. All of this, put in his reassuring and matter-of-fact tone, tends to put his listeners at ease.

“I see the lightbulbs going on all the time,” he says. “I get a lot of people who are grateful for starting the conversation. It gives them a lot to think about, and they now have the tools where they can do something and improve their situation greatly. There’s no more mystery.”

Archer’s Travels Bring a New Perspective

Prior to meeting Todd in Hawai‘i and starting the business, Archer had spent years traveling around the globe, living in intentional communities and getting a firsthand look at how access to clean water can affect quality of life. It was during these adventures that she coined the motto written on the store’s chalkboard today.

“When I went around the world, the water was so different everywhere,” she recalls. “Especially the communities living on rainwater. I’d ask, ‘Let me see your system,’ and they would say, ‘Oh no, no, no, we never look in there.’ And I’d say, ‘Why not?’ And they’d answer, ‘Because you’ll never take a bath again.’ So, then I would go into places where I’d say, ‘Let me see your rainwater harvesting system,’ and they would say, ‘Yes, come and see!’ The health of the people in those two communities were completely different, and I could see that.”

It was the lessons learned over the course of her travels, paired with Todd’s technical know-how and mastery of engineering, that laid the foundation for Uncle Tilo’s educational endeavors.

“His education and background came from being a well driller in the southwest desert, and I had this experience where I was exposed to diverse water systems, and to all these different qualities of water,” Archer says. “There had to be something we could do, if we were going to live here in Hawai‘i, to find a niche and give a gift to our community. And then it was clear— let’s start teaching people what you know. The water brought us together.”

Water can be an “intimate” subject, as she puts it, and there have been instances in the past where talking openly about it has made people sensitive, defensive even. She opens the classes by reassuring attendees that the purpose of their

gathering is to educate and not to pass judgement.

“You don’t know what you don’t know,” she says. “But if we can teach you to ask the right questions, or to know what the language of what being a rainwater harvester is, then we’ve done our job. I tell people, ‘Look at our website. Read the education tab. Go out and look and see if you have these things in your tank. Then you can come to the class and ask specific questions. Bring us pictures of what you’ve got, and let’s talk about it.’ That is empowerment through education.”

All photos courtesy of Stefan Verbano

For more information: tiloscleanwater.com

from the parking lot of Uncle Tilo’s Clean Water in Pāhoa during one of its monthly water education classes. Todd and Archer have put on more than 60 of these classes

Backyard CHICKENS for food Self-Sufficiency

By Rachel Laderman

When times get tough, people get chickens. It’s a practical way to gain more food security. A chicken coop in the yard also reduces the environmental footprint created by shipping eggs from the mainland’s large-scale, high-production poultry farms.

Islanders interested in food self-sufficiency look to the Polynesian wayfinders who settled in Hawai‘i around 1,000 years ago: what did they bring in their double-hulled canoes? Along with the “canoe plants” of coconuts, taro, sweet potato, and other valuable and versatile plants, the travelers brought dogs, pigs, and chickens (moa in Hawaiian—red jungle fowl). Although today’s domestic chickens are of a different lineage, it shows that chickens are a tried-and-true element of a foodproducing Hawaiian homestead.

The number one benefit of backyard chickens is, of course, fresh, amazing eggs. But chickens also provide the services of a good gardener: they provide bug, coqui frog, and weed control, and fertilizer. If contained, the scratching of chickens can help you create or refresh garden areas when you rotate them into and out of the designated space. After years of providing eggs, if desired, chickens can then provide meat and broth. The entire life of a chicken is beneficial to a farm.

Hawai‘i is ideal for raising chickens. The warm temperature allows for more outside scavenging for food all year, and they have a shorter winter laying break. The islands host few predators—notably mongoose, rats, dogs, and cats—but this is mild compared to the onslaught of predators on the mainland, where chicken farmers must protect their flocks from foxes, coyotes, raccoons, large birds of prey, and snakes.

What is the disadvantage most people would point to in raising chickens (other than loud roosters)? Cleaning out the coop. As valuable as chicken manure is for the garden, it is no one’s favorite chore to muck out the smelly stuff from inside an enclosed roost. The potential to cause a nuisance odor is one of the reasons cited in zoning ordinances that restrict commercial chicken farming.

A style of animal-housing called Korean Natural Farming solves this dilemma and is perfect for raising chickens in Hawai‘i. The cornerstone of the design is to have a deep litter base of wood chips that is kept dry, with lots of air flow. Microorganisms living in the wood chips eat the poop and uric acid crystals (chicken’s version of urine, a whitish solid), and create self-cleaning, smell-free bedding for a coop.

Background photo: These chickens have azolla, a protein-rich water fern, in their water tubs, to supplement and reduce the cost of purchased feed.

Top left photo: Chicks showing their curious nature; these are six-week old Black Star Sex Link, Rhode Island Red, and a mystery chick.

Top center photo: Simba Prevost places albizia logs and wood chips over an earth floor to create the base of a new Korean Natural Farming coop.

Top right photo: This coop design is large and airy, with ample nesting boxes.

Chicken Food Crunch

If chickens are so perfectly suited to life in Hawai‘i, why do we import the majority of eggs from the mainland? One big reason lies in the cost of feed. A few chickens can be raised on scraps and fruit to provide eggs, but for a bigger flock, chickens need a high-quality diet that is most economically supplied by grains currently only available from the mainland. Only a handful of farmers on the islands have found the balance needed to raise poultry successfully on a commercial scale.

Still, it is possible to reduce reliance on shipped feed. Smallscale chicken farmers have come up with many creative local foods such as utilizing moveable chicken tractors over pasture; sourcing excess coconuts, bananas, papayas, oil seed cake,

and restaurant compost; and growing azolla (a nutritious water fern) and black soldier fly larvae (a non-nuisance fly grub that eats compost).

Extra Eggs?

Another benefit of raising chickens: you can raise your popularity, or a little cash, with your extra eggs. If you have too many eggs to give away, the next step is to sell eggs commercially to a grocery store or restaurant. On Hawai‘i Island, this means getting a permit from the Health Department, which requires washing and packing eggs in a commercial kitchen, having a current food handlers license (online and free), and paying an annual $100 fee. Eggs must be in new containers—none of those used cartons that your

friends are so happy to drop off—with Health Department approved labels.

No wonder local, especially organic, eggs are pricey in Hawai‘i! But for the small farmer or gardener, it’s not the ton of cash pouring in, it’s the multiple benefits of healthy, tasty eggs; fertilizer, bug, and weed control; and the satisfaction of adding to neighborhood food security—a real consideration on an island.

All photos courtesy of Rachel Laderman

Rachel Laderman, Lynker Sustainable Pacific Program

Magic of Mushrooms

Recipe for Mushroom Toast

By Brittany P. Anderson

A newly fallen tree haphazardly leans against another, joining its fallen brethren to succumb to the weather and rot. The elder tree lays quietly adorned with rounded shelves of golden orange. These brightly colored frills are none other than the chicken of the woods mushroom.

Chicken of the woods, Laetiporus surphureus, is one of several edible mushrooms found on Hawai‘i Island. The wide and flat fungi grow along the base of decaying trees. These heavy, meaty mushrooms are easily spotted with their showy orange color against a backdrop of brown and green.

On decaying relics of a kukui nut orchard, the forgotten trees grow pepeiao, also known as wood ear mushrooms. Pepeiao, Auricularia cornea, grows in clusters on rotting broadleaf trees. To the touch, these mushrooms are elastic yet jelly-like and look remarkably like an ear, as their name suggests. Hawai‘i Island’s fungophiles troll the island’s forests and trails, looking for delectable wild fungi.

Trekking through switchbacks along a densely forested gulch deep in the heart of the Hāmākua coast, a couple works together collecting white wood ear. As leaves dance overhead in the fine rain, the snow-white ruffly white wood ear, Tremella fuciformis, clings to the sides of trees along the path. They gently pry the gelatinous mushrooms, with a seaweed-like texture, from their perches.

Many of the world’s cultures have used mushrooms for medicinal and culinary purposes. In Chinese medicine, wood ear is used for treating various ailments, including improving blood circulation. Today, white wood ear is used as an ingredient in cosmetics for its anti-aging properties. Mushrooms are also common ingredients in soups and stir fry, where they offer flavor and texture.

There is an inherent risk associated with foraging for wild mushrooms. Hence, proper identification is key to avoiding accidental poisoning, illness, or hallucinations. Instead of foraging, cultivating edible mushrooms has risen in popularity on Hawai‘i Island.

While combining mushroom spores and dead wood seems like an easy enough recipe for growing mushrooms, the simplicity is deceiving. Mushroom cultivation is a careful balance of temperature, humidity, and sterility.

Mushrooms are grown in sterilized sawdust as a growing medium and kept in a highly controlled environment. Less like a farm and more like a laboratory, commercial mushroom growers must keep bacteria from taking hold.

In an unregulated environment, there are millions of bacterial spores, and each one has the potential to compete with the mushroom culture. Growers use extreme caution to disinfect all tools, surfaces, and body parts that may come near their growing mushrooms.

Within the laboratory-like setting, it is also essential that those working in this environment wear respirators. An antiaerosol respirator protects against inhaling mushroom spores, which can cause respiratory issues, and introducing bacteria

into the growing room.

LocaL Food

Hawai‘i Island home growers can find mushroom kits made locally using a 5-gallon bucket and don’t require stringent climate control. Some have even found success in inoculating logs with their desired mushroom culture.

Luckily, you don’t have to forage or grow your mushrooms on Hawai‘i Island. Several local growers offer a variety of beautiful and delicious mushrooms, from the highly medicinal lion’s mane to elegant pink oyster mushrooms.

This Mushroom Toast recipe highlights mushrooms’ flavor and can be made with one type or a medley of your favorite fungi.

Mushroom Toast

2 Tbs unsalted butter

8 oz mushrooms, ends trimmed and sliced into even pieces

3 cloves garlic, smashed

3 large sprigs of thyme

½ shallot, finely minced, about 2 Tbs Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp sherry vinegar

3 Tbs crème fraiche

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and melt butter. Once melted, add mushrooms (do not overcrowd the pan), garlic, and thyme. Occasionally toss until mushrooms are light brown and tender. Add shallots, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for 1–2 minutes, until shallots are tender and fragrant. Discard garlic and thyme. Add sherry vinegar and the crème fraiche. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer all together for a moment. Taste and adjust seasoning before removing from heat. Place a few generous spoonfuls of mushrooms and sauce on top of toasted bread.

Serving suggestion: top with arugula leaves and poached egg.

Kawaihae Canoe Club

By Jan Wizinowich

It’s early morning at Kawaihae and outrigger canoes dot the horizon carrying the kūpuna paddlers. Soon, the men’s master crew will be gliding into the boat ramp after an early morning run heading north. A Matson barge approaches the harbor, a cubist two story structure. Many things have changed in this little corner of the island, but as always, Uncle Manny Veincent, Kawaihae Canoe Club (KCC) president and head coach, is a presence at the club—doing repairs, checking inventory and making sure everything is pono (right).

November 2022 is the 50th anniversary of KCC, and while not the oldest club on the island, it is a cultural treasure within historic Kawaihae Village. With its fresh water spring, rich reef and calm anchorage, Kawaihae was a center of activity in old Hawai‘i. It is the place where Kamehameha gained final dominance over Moku o Keawe and where he resided while making plans to unite the islands.

Evidence of the “make strong” spirit of King Kamehameha resides in Kawaihae, channeled through Manny and the many men and women who stroked KCC to state championships, conquered ʽAlenuihāhā and Kaʽiwi Channels and paddled the Kuhio Day Long Distance Race on Kaua‘i.

Origins

Manny grew up in Keaukaha, Hilo, where life was simple and of the land. His canoeing adventures started when he was 13 and a neighbor took him along with a gang of boys paddling, fishing, and camping in an old-style koa canoe.

In 1972 Manny was fire chief, stationed in Waimea (where the Firehouse Gallery is now) when Elaine Flores, Mabel Tolentino, and members of the Hawaiian Civic Club approached him to help form a canoe club in Kawaihae.

KCC was formed in 1972, when canoe paddling was experiencing a resurgence. The Moku ʽO Hawaiʽi Canoe Racing

Association (MOHCRA) was created in 1973, and in addition to Kawaihae, there were seven other active clubs.

“When the club first started, folks at Kawaihae didn’t know anything about paddling. The club was just that white hill over there and we had a big keawe tree and a shed next to the road,” remembers Eunice Veincent, who is still paddling at 86. But there was no shortage of members, who came from

Celebrates 50 Years

Kohala, Waimea, Honokaʽa, and even Paʽauilo, more than 200 strong.

That first year Kawaihae surprised everyone when they won the first race of the season, which took place in home waters. They went on to win the state championship that year and the next three years. It was all due to hard work. “We had only one practice in the afternoon. We’d start at 4pm with the kids,

The 1983 Men’s Master’s crew paddling Waipunalei: Harrison Pagan, John Lightner, Ipo Kaulapali, JK Speilman, Ted Vangelder, and Oscar Ahuana. Waipunalei was named after the area where the koa log was taken.

and then the adults. We didn’t finish practice until 8:30pm,” said Eunice.

It’s All About the Keiki

Now young paddlers have van transportation, but back in the day Manny and Eunice would stop and pick up kids on their way down to practice every day. Manny also coached

Pop Warner football and in his own inimitable style recruited paddlers for the off-season.

“When I was a little kid we used to play Pop Warner football for Manny. At the end of the season, he gave us all this paper and said, ‘Don’t worry about it. Just take it home.’ So, we took it home and got the signatures and what it was, he was signing us up with canoe paddling,” remembers Jerry Bess, a top surfer who started at the age of 10 and paddled with KCC for 12 years.

Historically canoes were considered providers for their island community. In current times, the canoe feeds the community in ways that go beyond food.

“For us young guys, Manny really showed us how to work as a team. Accountability, training hard, helping out each other. Commitment, club orientation, getting there on time, helping out with the canoe. He worked us so hard. It was us 16s all the way up to the 18s, we were undefeated. It was because of Manny’s coaching,” said Jerry.

More than winning races, KCC has provided a cultural link that’s been a lifeline for youngsters and the community as a whole. This was the spirit of the club fostered by the willingness of Coach Manny and his wife, Eunice, to give their all for the paddlers.

“We would stay down there on Saturdays and we’d take canoes out on Sunday and Eunice would feed all of us. That’s how we all learned to steer as kids. Today, you look at the top steersmen, they grew up with us. They’re from Kawaihae,” remembers Grant Kaʽaua, who now coaches paddling at Keaʽau High School and whose daughter, Pakelakahiki, is a top

steersperson and got her start at KCC.

Manny’s other love is ranching and Nienie Ranch, his 300acre ʽĀhualoa mauka cattle operation has provided off-season fitness training for many of the paddlers, as well as giving them confidence.

“Some of my fondest memories are KCC ‘cross-training’, which involved going to Manny’s ranch and tackling 1000-pound bulls—without the help of horses. And then castrating them and branding them,” said Grant.

The Wahine

Beyond regatta wins, the KCC women “made strong” at the Kauaʽi Kuhio Day Long Distance Race in 1989 and 1990. Crew member Ululani Patterson Odell remembers, “We could hear the waves breaking on shore from where we were staying. Once there, we could see the waves and they were a heart stopper. We paddled out to the wave, went up and back down with a slam. But once we got going, everything clicked. You had to be ready for this race mentally and physically. Manny prepared us for both.”

In 2004, 2007, and 2010 a team of 18 Kawaihae women paddled across the ʽAlenuihāhā Channel for the first time in over a century. The planning and training leading up to the first crossing took two to three years and demanded complete commitment. It was not just a sport, but a spiritual connection.

“There’s something so powerful. The old Hawaiians call it spirit or mana. It goes deeper than the physical. You do it and a brilliant light opens up and you gain all this knowledge,” remembers Manny.

1983 crew Pete Erickson, Nate Hendricks, Jerry Bess, Keoni Lindsey, Tom Hurley, (kneeling) Scotty Grinsteiner.

The Koa Canoes of KCC

Everything Manny does originates from a well-lived life grounded in Hawaiian culture. Beyond coaching, he is a master canoe builder and has led the way in every stage from harvesting the logs to design and building.

In 1975, Moku ʽO Hawaiʽi Canoe Association (MOHCRA) mandated that all clubs use koa canoes for racing by 1980. In 1977, two logs, gifts from Richard Smart, were harvested from Parker Ranch land, Laupāhoehoe mauka. They were transported to KCC where Manny was joined by Harry Fergerstrom, Frank Puhi, Kahu William Akau, and others to birth Kai Hawanawana (Whispering Sea), the club’s first koa canoe. She was followed in 1982, by Waipunalei (named after the area where the logs came from).

Another koa canoe, Leimomi, was added early in 1982, donated by the DeGuair family and named in honor of John DeGuair Jr’s widow, Grace. Sadly, in November 1982, Hurricane Iwa swept in, destroying the shed and both Leimomi and Waipunalei

The club’s current canoe Waihou, was constructed from a log donated by F. Newell Bohnett, then-owner of Puʽu Waʽawaʽa Ranch and named after the area where it originated on the shoulder of Hualālai. Begun at the club, Waihou was sent to Sand Island to be finished by master canoe builder, Tay Perry, and ultimately christened around 2015.

Kūpuna

About 20 years ago, a group of paddlers made up of Steve Bess, George Fry, Roger Harris, Harry Buscher, Charlie Campbell, Michael Bates, Phyllis Fox, and others, decided to slow things down a little. They began paddling three days a week. “We wanted to just have fun. Paddle to the Mauna Kea [Hotel] and talk story,” remembers George Fry.

Now the group has mushroomed into two groups of three or

longer competing, at 90, Manny continues to coach.

four canoes that go out at different times and has proved to be a great introduction to Hawaiian culture. The kūpuna group has also developed into a fundraising source for the club, making it possible for the keiki to participate off-island and to add canoes and other equipment to the club.

Legacy

Over the years, Manny and thousands of club members have kept the culture alive. Not just through paddling, but by creating an oasis of abundance and a place to come together, old style, like the annual hoʽolauleʽa.

“I joined the club in 1998 and learned a lot along the way from Manny about building canoes, rigging canoes, fixing canoes, and medicinal Hawaiian plants. We have five acres and most of it was overgrown with dead keawe and weeds. I asked

Manny if it would be ok if we clean it and plant native Hawaiian plants. So, I took it on as a project but Manny took on the leadership,” recalls Bob Momson.

KCC’s lasting legacy is all the people that have received lifechanging help along the way. There are numerous stories, told and untold, about the positive effects of Manny and KCC. “I cannot thank Manny enough. He’s a pivotal person in so many of our lives. I just love him for the character he is. I appreciate so much his hard-nose ways, and his huge heart. He’s taught us so much; how to take care of everything,” concludes Grant.

All photos courtesy of kūpuna paddler George Fry

For more information: kawaihaecanoeclub.com

Blessing of Waihou, the current KCC koa canoe. The initial shaping was done by Manny and a crew of volunteers and was finished off by master canoe builder Tay Perry on O‘ahu.

Crusin’ with

By Fern Gavelek

Kenny Tagavilla is pictured with a cherished guitar, custom-made by Big Island musician, soundman, and instrument maker, Alvin Inouye. Kenny credits Alvin for keeping music on his mind since a teen. photo courtesy of Johnny Prehn. In the background and inset are two of Kenny’s album covers.

Kona’s

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. However, while attending a church youth camp as a middle schooler, Kenny saw all his peers making music “and then it all clicked”—he took to the ‘ukulele like a fish to water.

On and off throughout his 42 years, Kenny has also played electric bass, electric and acoustic guitar, and written and recorded music. While Kenny says he always sang songs, it wasn’t until the end of high school he discovered he “had a voice” and later was the lead singer in several bands, including his own group: Koa Ridge.

Known in the local entertainment scene as Kenny T or Kenny Tagavilla, the humble Hōlualoa resident has performed in Hawai‘i Island restaurants, clubs, and as part of a worship team at Kona Baptist Church in Keauhou. Most recently, under the direction of Kona music producer and two-time Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award winner Jaz Kaiwiko‘o Yglesias, Kenny recorded a handful of cover songs (songs released by others) and two originals, “Cruisin’,” and “Jo‘tham’s Song.”

Claiming he’s “just a regular guy,” Kenny’s lifetime involvement with music has evolved to be less about himself, and more about how his performance can “touch others.”

Learning to Play Multiple Instruments

Kenny says once he started to play ‘ukulele as a youth, he “was hooked” on learning to play more songs. As he couldn’t afford to buy cassettes, he learned to play songs from listening to them on the radio. He’d first sing the song and then play the sounds he heard in the music. He basically taught himself the fingerings and started jamming with his friends.

“Around my senior year, the Kona group Pa‘ani Pila got big and I really got into them,” the Hilo High School graduate recalls. He also got interested in what Kapena and Ka‘au Crater Boys were playing. “It was a whole different thing on the ‘ukulele with their music.”

As all of Kenny’s music mates played ‘ukulele—five of them— he decided to learn how to play electric bass and guitar. “Some of the other guys did too, and we switched off.” The boys started doing gigs for friends. “We’d have a couple guys in one band and another pair of us were in another…I was in three to four different bands at one time. I’d jump in and play their stuff; it was fun times.”

Kenny with producer Jaz Kaiwiko‘o Yglesias in Jaz’s Kona studio. photo courtesy of Tia Tagavilla

Kenny, son Koa, and percussionist Gary Hicks playing at Kainaliu Music Festival in September 2022. photo courtesy of Barbara Garcia

Once out of high school, the 17-year-old started doing carpentry work and that’s when Kenny met Hawai‘i Island musician, sound man, and instrument maker Alvin Inouye. Their early relationship was a defining time for the young man and his journey as a musician.

“I couldn’t leave my eight-string Kamaka ‘ukulele in my car so I brought it to the job site,” remembers Kenny. “Alvin scolded me and after looking at my ‘uke, offered to clean it up, and that’s how it all started.” Alvin saw potential in the youth and built him some custom instruments. He also did some homegrown, basement recordings with Kenny that inspired the teen to continue playing music.

“If it weren’t for Alvin, I wouldn’t have done as much as I’ve done in the music world or taken music as serious as I did,” continues Kenny. “Alvin was one of those people, through the years, that when I’d put music to the side, he’d pop up and ask, ‘What’s happening?’ He’d encourage me to get back into it.”

Juggling Work, Gigs, and Family Kenny soon started playing with his friends at local venues “to go out and just have fun.”

Kenny and Jaz at soundboard. photo courtesy of Tia Tagavilla

He had a regular job driving a truck and says he juggled work with playing gigs at family parties, local bars, and restaurants, or “wherever they would let us make noise.”

While Kenny was being inspired by island musicians like Braddah Iz, the Peter Moon Band, and Cecilio & Kapono, Alvin opened Kenny’s eyes to country music, including Garth Brooks and Kenny Chesney; also to music from the 60s and 70s. In his late 20s, after being introduced to different music genres, Kenny picked up the acoustic guitar and started playing different music.

“I grew up in the 80s and all of a sudden, while playing the different acoustic guitar sound, I became aware of more music to play,” he explains. “I started playing Kenny Rogers, Lionel Richie, Phil Collins, Billy Joel, and the Beatles. When you discover them, it opens your eyes to how good that music sounds.”

It was during this time Kenny started the band Koa Ridge; it had five musicians and a female vocalist. They played a wide variety of music as each member “brought something to the table.”

“Koa Ridge was one of the best bands I’ve been in,” he says. But after more than a decade of doing double duty with work and gigs—plus making time for his young family—Kenny says he got burned out. “It got to a point where it was just craziness, out playing parties and bars and I finally said I was done with it.”

Church Brings Kenny Back to Music

Around 2012, Kenny was recruited to play music at church, where he found “it was a whole different thing playing for the Lord, and during the morning instead of late at night.” He is part of a team of musicians and worship leaders who perform a mix of contemporary songs and old hymns chosen by Kona Baptist Pastor Brian Frable.

Kenny said he started playing outside church again here and there, but it was different, and not about being seen and heard but more about what he could leave behind. “If people are blessed by what I’m doing and sharing, it’s kind of what I was meant to be,” Kenny explains. “My outlook now is not about me and more about enjoying the sharing of music.”

One of the songs performed in church, Mercy Me’s “I Can Only Imagine,” has become a favorite for parishioners and Kenny has been often asked to sing and play it at memorials and events.

Kenny confides the Christian-based, spiritual song is about going to heaven and he feels different when he sings it. “When I started playing the song, I didn’t think it would have such a profound impact on people, but it has.”

Performing mainly in church through 2019, Kenny started jamming with a couple buddies and brought along his son, Koa. They hung out Sunday afternoons in the garage, called themselves the Man Jam and posted quick videos on Facebook. Jaz saw the videos, called up Kenny, and convinced him it was time to start recording music solo. While Kenny admits he thought “that dream was past,” Jaz encouraged him and they got started.

Recording Music Becomes a Reality

Jaz, a performer in his own right, who recently retired from KAPA Radio and is teaching music at Konawaena High School, laughingly describes Kenny “as an R&B musician in a country musician’s body.” Saying Kenny sings for all the right reasons—

“he loves to sing and has a pure intent”—Jaz figured he could take Kenny’s musical gift and give it its own identity.

Jaz helped Kenny record a cover of Lionel Richie’s “Sail On” in December 2020 at his Mixed Emotion Studio in Kona. Released under Jaz’s Lāhui Project label, the song was considered for a nomination for a Nā Hōkū Hanohano award in 2021 for Single of the Year. Next, they recorded a cover of “I Can Only Image,” which garnered lots of radio air time. “I never thought I’d hear my song playing multiple times a day on the radio,” smiles Kenny.

In June 2022, Kenny released his first original song, “Cruisin’,” about chilling out after a long day of work and going for a ride with your girl. Most recently he recorded another original about Koa’s close friend who passed away, “Jo‘tham’s Song.” Jaz hopes to release all these songs, plus some more originals and covers, on an album soon.

Catch Kenny Livestreamed Friday Nights

Offering a weekly online hour of music and special guests, Friday Night Live Jams presents Kenny and two others performing virtually from three different places. Kenny is in Kona, Wayne Kim is on O‘ahu, and Matty Wong is in Mountain View each performing songs from different genres live on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Airing at 7pm most Fridays, the livestreamed show began in conjunction with the onset of Covid and allows listeners to comment and chat during the broadcast. The musicians don’t play all together, as there is a slight time delay, but Kenny is happy to bring spontaneous music to listeners around the world.

“I thank God for music. I rarely go through the day without

having some music playing, I just think it’s part of my life,” notes Kenny. “It’s allowed me a lot of opportunities to meet friends and share the same passion.”

CD covers credits:

I Can Only Imagine CD cover courtesy Lāhui Project Sail On CD cover photo by Vaea Iona

For more information: jaztheproducer.com facebook.com/ FridayNightLiveJams

Kenny and his 18-year-old son, Koali‘i, like to make music together, including in the Man Jam. They both play the same acoustic guitars by BreedLove. photo courtesy of Johnny Prehn

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 last emperor of China. Jane vividly recalls, “When I was four years old, my father was afraid I may be kidnapped by bandits. At that time there were many bandits in Manchuria. He sent me, my mother, and my older brother to Japan to avoid being kidnapped. Two years later my father joined us in Japan when he was promoted to the position of military attaché from Manchuria to Japan. I spent my elementary education in Tokyo during my childhood. When I was in third grade, my art teacher in school told my mother I should have a real art teacher because I showed talent, so I was sent to a teacher who taught Chinese brush painting, known in Japan as Nanga [Southern Painting].

“When I was 12 years old, my father was promoted to be the Northern Commanding Chief (two star general), stationed in Northern Manchuria, Harbin. We returned to China, and I attended the Japanese Girls High School there, graduating in 1945. During that year, Japan lost the war and surrendered. My father was captured by the Russian Red Army and sent to Siberia. I have not seen my father ever since. Right after my father was captured, the Chinese communists came into town. My mother took me and my brother and escaped to Taiwan—it was the only safe place we could go. I went to a two-year English college in Taiwan. I met my late husband Linus Chao, who was studying fine arts at the Taiwan National Normal University. Through him I met his friends who were almost all artists. I learned art from them, even though I had not touched art brushes since we left Harbin, and I began to paint seriously. In 1955, Linus and I got married in the Catholic church. The church sent Linus to Walt Disney Studios to learn cartoon animation. He produced cartoon animation films for education films and for the church when he returned to Taiwan.

“In 1969, President Kennedy opened immigration to allow qualified persons to apply for immigration to the US. At the time, we had an art studio and produced many cartoon films. Linus applied for immigration, and we moved the whole family to America. Since I was a child in Japan, I knew about Hawai‘i as the place for hula and beautiful music, with no discrimination by race. At that time our children were six, eight, 10, and 13 years old. We needed a safe place to let our children grow. That is the main reason we came to Hawai‘i.

“With Chinese and Japanese art, basically they are with very

quiet colors, never using red or green colors directly. After I came to Hawai‘i, my eyes can see nothing but beautiful colors and fragrant smells. I didn’t have enough colors to express the beauty of the flowers of Hawai‘i, so I used many colors to paint my paintings. Obake anthurium are so beautiful; I could not capture enough of the beautiful colors.

“Now I am old and cannot stay in Hawai‘i by myself. I have four children, seven grandchildren, and eight greatgrandchildren, and I’m grateful that my daughter can take care of me. After more than five decades, I have recently left the island for Seattle. I took many beautiful pictures of flowers before I left Hawai‘i. I hope I will still paint beautiful flowers until the day I die.”

For more information: jane.chao@me.com

Shay Niimi Wahl grew up in Pa‘auilo, on the Hāmakua coast. Her rural upbringing made Shay aware of the beauty of the island, which she seeks to capture in her art.

Shayʻs previous career was teaching, where she integrated art into her elementary grade’s classes. After retiring, she began life as a full-time artist. Shay says, “It was a dream come true. I painted to my heart’s content.” What she hadn’t expected in retirement was to resume teaching art, this time to adults.

Shay paints mainly with watercolors on silk and paper, often with sumi ink and acrylic paints. She always begins with the traditional Asian method of gongbi, which is a meticulous detailed style of painting that originated in early China. She includes strokes of the spontaneous style of Chinese painting, xieyi, resulting in a combination of styles and a combined flavor of east and west.

Shay compares her painting style to life in Hawai‘i, where many cultures meet and mix. “My paintings are an expression of aloha, and a deep appreciation of the boundless beauty found in nature. Our beautiful surroundings inspire me to worship the Creator by way of a brush and a rainbow of colors.”

For more information: ShayWahlArts.com

Table of Contents Artist:

Shay Niimi Wahi

Big Island Motors

Talk Story with an Advertiser

David De Luz Sr. started selling used cars in the Bayfront area of Hilo 61 years ago, naming it Big Island Motors. From those humble beginnings with a small car lot, David expanded his business to selling travel trailers, then opened his first franchise in 1969 with Rambler/Willys Jeep at Big Island Motor’s current Keaukaha location. From there, he acquired more franchises, including Subaru, Chevy, and Toyota and expanded to add Kona operations. David De Luz always prided himself on having the most affordable used cars, and that tradition is still followed, by having the largest selection of preowned affordable vehicles in stock at Big Island Motors!

Wayne De Luz, son of David Sr., has run Big Island Motors since 1993. Later, he purchased it from his father, and he added Hyundai to the lineup in 2007. David Sr. always had a knack for buying and selling cars, something that Wayne has inherited as well. Along with attending college with an emphasis in the automotive industry, Wayne learned the car business from his father. Having literally worked in every position, he knows the business as well.

The team at Big Island Motors survived the 2008 recession and most recently, the Covid-19 pandemic, by sticking to the company mission statement of “Real Value, Real People, Real Simple.” Wayne says, “We have been fortunate enough to have had a good supply of new Subaru and Hyundai during this time and as production slowly comes back, inventory levels are looking good for the future. In fact, the Subaru brand has gained tremendous popularity and is the second largest selling brand on the Big Island, based on recent RL Polk reports!

“A lot has changed in the last 61 years, most notably the digital marketplace. The internet has brought the showroom to the customer’s home and now directly to their phone 24 hours, 7 days a week. You can now shop for a car anywhere, anytime and even buy one online!”

The next big change is electrification and Big Island Motors is well prepared to take on this new challenge. Already selling the popular Hyundai Ioniq EV along with home charging systems, they are soon to be selling the Subaru Solterra EV. Wayne shares, “Looking to the future, we are in the process of adding high capacity fast charging stations on our properties, as well.”

Visit Big Island Motors at their Hilo or Kona locations for stellar, old-fashioned service, or shop online at their comprehensive website.

Big Island Motors

Hilo: 1 Keaa St. 808.961.4411 Kona: 75-5793 Kuakini Hwy. 808.329.5274 bigislandmotors.com

Ma‘ata Tukuafu, RS

Talk Story with an Advertiser

Whether she is listing a multimillion-dollar home or helping her clients search for a modest dwelling, Ma‘ata Tukuafu puts in the same amount of effort and commitment.

Before Covid, Ma‘ata was a property manager, and obtained her real estate license in January 2019. (Hawai‘i law requires that you have your license if you manage more than one home.) She began working earnestly as a Realtor in January 2020, realizing she could bring integrity, fairness, and kindness to the profession. While many businesses had to shut down in March 2020 (including property management), real estate sales were deemed essential. This gave Ma‘ata the time to hone her business skills and learn the system via online classes. She also attributes having a good broker as helping her with her successes.

When asked what helps her stand out from other Realtors, Ma‘ata mentions, “First, every vocation I’ve had has given me skills that enhance my business. I’ve worked for a large international tour company, at interior design, a law firm, bookkeeping, I’ve also run my own businesses; eBay sales for others, and a cleaning business hiring many workers. Second, I’m a people person. I grew up on O‘ahu and have been on this island since 1998. I know a lot about the culture, and I know a lot of people. I love connecting people and creating gatherings. I bring all these skills to what I do now.”

Throughout her many vocations, Ma‘ata has continued writing articles for various outlets, including Ke Ola Magazine. As a professional writer, she says her favorite type of real estate transaction is listing properties, because she loves creating the properties’ descriptions.

Ma‘ata also shares, “I like to learn new things, and create new businesses. One of my dreams is to create a ‘Skill School,’ a type of vocational school for adults. I see a lot of handson skills that are falling by the wayside—sewing, cooking, plumbing, and handyperson type things. I’d love to connect people who are in the trades, to hold classes for those who are eager to learn. Our island kids really could use a vocational/ trade school, and I’d want to be part of setting it up.

“When I go to sleep at night, I like to know that I did the best I could throughout the day, and possibly touched at least one person in a heartfelt way. I’ve had families, older couples, buyers from out-of-state, and foreign sellers. Many turn into repeat business, but most of all, they become friends.”

UA MAU KE EA O KA ‘ÄINA I KA PONO.

The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness.

[Its sustainability depends on doing what is right.] Proclamation by Kona-born King Kamehameha III in 1843. Later adopted as the Hawai‘i state motto.

Publisher, Editor

Barbara Garcia, Call/Text 808.345.2017, Barb@KeOlaMagazine.com

Operations Manager

Tanya Yamanaka, Call/Text 808.747.4410, Tanya@KeOlaMagazine.com

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Award Winning Realtor® Celebrating 18+ Years in West Hawaii!

OCEAN VIEW COTTAGE, KAILUA KONA

3 Bed | 2 Bath | 1,188 sq ft interior | 10,000 sq ft lot $825,000 | MLS 661993

Wood floors, open beam ceilings, updated kitchen. Open floor plan w/covered lanai offering ocean views. Terraced backyard w/deck, plus mature fruit trees & plantings. Ideal location, just minutes from downtown Kailua Kona.

CASUALLY ELEGANT W/GUEST QTRS, S. KONA

4 Bed | 3 Bath + 1 Bd/1 Ba | 2,925 sq ft | 23,727 sq ft lot $2,999,000 | MLS 663449

Sprawling single level with fully permitted 800 sq ft guest quarters. Exquisitely landscaped grounds w/ large saltwater pool & spa plus 1,000 sq. foot covered pavilion for outdoor enjoyment. Fully owned photovoltaic system.

PRIVATE KOLOKO ESTATE, KAILUA KONA

3 Bed | 3 Bath | 2,264 sq ft interior | 10.5 acre lot $1,500,000 | MLS 657312

Spacious, secluded multi-level home on over 10 acres of wooded forest. Gracious home surrounded by well-manicured terraced gardens. Multiple decks offer ocean views. Open floor plan w/wood-burning fireplace.

EXCLUSIVE PUAKEA BAY RANCH HOME, HAWI

4 Bed | 5 Bath | 4,132 sq ft interior | 10 acre lot $2,549,000 | MLS 663550

Inviting, private & secluded equestrian property located south of Hawi. Flowing floor plan w/chef’s kitchen, huge family room w/fireplace, expansive primary suite & three car garage. Ocean views from both levels. Solar heated pool w/large covered lanai.

Aloha and warm holiday greetings, As a 20+ year resident of the Big Island, I find it easy to experience joy & awe daily. Gazing at the ocean, watching a brilliant sunset, or simply enjoying the scent of tropical flowers all remind me of the life‘s simple blessings. As we approach this holiday season I’d like to take a moment to express sincere thanks to all the residents & visitors who contribute to the unique, inviting spirit of Hawaii.

Celebrate and enjoy the season!

Kelly P.S. If you or someone you know needs professional advice from a seasoned real estate professional, feel free to contact me. I‘d love the opportunity to earn your business!