JUNE 8, 2016 - VOLUME 31, ISSUE 23
The
Molokai Dispatch T H E I S L A N D ’S N E W S S O U R C E S I N C E 198 5
M I L E S T ON E C E L E B R A T I ON F OR K A H U L A P I KO By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor
H
undreds gathered for this year's 25th annual Ka Hula Piko festival, held at the Kualapu`u Rec Center last Saturday. Molokai Ka Hula Piko began in 1991, and was founded by the late Kumu Hula John Kaimikaua, Halau Hula O Kukunaokala and the Molokai community.
Several days of cultural education and activities lead up to the festival, including an excursion to the sacred kukui grove Lanikaula at Pu`u O Hoku Ranch, and a kumu hula talk story discussing the origins and traditions of hula. Early Molokai mo`olelo tell of hula's beginnings at Ka`ana in west Molokai. Today, the event brings halau from around Hawaii to celebrate the traditions of hula and the oral
traditions that tell of Molokai as hula's birthplace. Pictured here, a halau of `opio from Queen Liliuokalani Children's Center in Kona shared a selection of Hula Kahiko (ancient hula) and Hula `Auana (evolved with Western influence.) Molokai's Aunty Loretta Ritte joins spontaneously in dance, while attendees could appreciate ancient arts such as kapa pounding, demonstrated here by Kanoelani Davis.
Penning Poems for Peace
THIS WEEK’S
Dispatch
By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor
L
ast week, nearly 30 Molokai students were honored as winners of the 17th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Peace Poetry Contest. This was the first year Molokai youth participated in the event, and many shares their thoughts on peace in two languages, using many poetry forms such as haiku, free verse and metered rhyme. "We are holding this first Molokai peace poem ceremony to honor 26 winning students and also to highlight 57 out of 207 entrants [who] wrote poetry in the Hawaiian language with an English translation," said Melinda Gohn, the Coordinator of the International Peace Poem Project and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Peace Poetry Contest, via email. "We find this to be an unparalleled linguistic event that must be celebrated!" Fifth grade student Kairee LimaVilla from Kualapu`u Elementary School was the grand prizewinner for the island, selected from the more than 200
Photos by Catherine Cluett Pactol
Preschool Visits Kapualei Ranch
Pg. 2
Photo by Catherine Cluett Pactol
entries on Molokai. Lima-Villa’s poem begins, “Peace can be seen/Peace can be felt/Peace is not war/but help…” LimaVilla concludes: “Peace walks the earth/ and it doesn’t stop/now peace can take you high/ and never let you down.”
Gohn said, “Lima-Villa’s poem incorporates our human emotions of belief and love with our ability to observe the world – and envisions peace as existing within and without us all. We are de-
He Mo`olelo Aloha ma Kalaupapa, Part II Pg. 3
Poems Continued pg. 2
Why We fly with Makani Kai ‘Well, the people here are friendly. And if I have a problem, they can switch things around so it’s not a problem. They’re very accommodating.” Rachelle, here with her grandniece Kalena, is a case manager for the Office of Aging and endeavors every day to bring services to the elderly. She says her work is fulfilling. Her favorite part of the job? “Seeing how grateful the kapuna are for every little thing they receive.”
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$50 online fare, every seat, every flight, every day. MakaniKaiAir.com | (808) 834-1111
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Kalena Corriea & Rachelle Ingkupau Molokai Born & Raised