Waianae pushes to bring the E Ala canoe home

WAIANAE—The E Ala canoe is finally trying to make the Waianae Coast, its original home, permanent. Crew members of the canoe along with State Rep. Maile Shimabukuro have written up a final draft proposal to allow the docking of the double-hulled inter-island voyaging canoe.

Built in 1982 at Pokai Bay, a group of volunteers from the Waianae Hawaiian Civic Club helped construct the canoe to use as a teaching tool for keiki and kupuna across the Leeward coast. Upon completion, Waianae and Nanakuli High School had programs that used the canoe to train students to sail, and the canoe was docked at Waianae boat harbor.

The canoe was continuously combined into regular curriculum until 2002 when these programs were cancelled. Funding, liability, and other issues ended the school-based programs. With repeated cases of vandalism, the E Ala has been moved and docked at the Sand Island Maritime Education Training Center (METC), where it has been ever since.

With transportation problems and an inconsistent group of volunteers, many E Ala volunteers found it hard to continue training on the canoe with it docked so far away at Sand Island.

Now with three new captains, trained previously by the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS), the push to return E Ala home is stronger than ever.

“For me the reason for bringing it back, is Waianae is its home. E Ala was built for our people on the coast, it’s only right for it to be there,” said Sam Kapoi, the newest E Ala captain. “It’s such a big education tool, we are collaborating modern teaching techniques with techniques that is in our blood, teaching kids how to survive in a canoe and how it was done during our ancestors’ time. We want this to be not just for Hawaiians but anyone that wants to learn. Learning is key.”

Earlier this year the E Ala returned back to Waianae sailing from Sand Island with captains Kapoi, Kaina Holomalia, and Waimea McKeague along with several Nanakuli and Waianae High School students. But the celebration was short lived as it returned to METC.

Now with help of Shimabukuro and the support from PVS, the Waianae Hawaiian Civic Club, and other volunteers, and a petition with over 700 signatures, the finish line to keep the canoe at Pokai Bay to help educate keiki looks a little more clear.

“It’s so important to start with the kids when they are young, their brains function better and soak up more of the knowledge given to them,” said Kapoi. “In April when we took three canoes to show residents of Waianae, many of them that saw the canoes didn’t even know they existed. They saw something that is in our culture and blood and still alive today and that meant a lot to us.”

The major concern is the safety of the canoe once docked. Included in the plans of returning the canoe home is construction of a halau to keep the E Ala safely stored. The target area for the halau construction site is its original storage area near the Kuilioloa Heiau. With the proposal soon to be sent to the City and County, volunteers are now in the process of searching for funding of the project.

According to Shimbabukuro, a federal grant and State legislative measures are being submitted to provide supplemental funding for the entire project.

“At this point, I will be sending the City my written proposal soon, and Makaha Studios is finishing up the video proposal,” Shimabukuro.  “We aim to set up a meeting with the City in mid to late September to show them the video and hope to get permission to use the land at Pokai Bay to dry dock the E Ala.”

For more information, visit http://waianaehcc.org/voyaging%20canoe.htm.