Circle Island Tour: The East Maui Taro Festival

Parents and keiki gathered to hear favorite mo’olelo or learn how to make lomi lomi sticks and kapa.  Lei Ishikawa of Pukalani began pounding kapa seventeen years ago, responding to a call to make kapa for the reinterment of na iwi kupuna that had been displaced.  At the Taro Festival, Lei explained how to scrape away the ‘ili, make a cut with a niho māno (shark-tooth knife), peel away the bast and pound it with a hohoa on a kua pōhaku (stone anvil).  Lei also demonstrated beating with the wooden i’e kuku on the kua la’au (wooden anvil) and the final step of applying a watermark to the kapa.

Bright sunshine and a light breeze created a perfect day to enjoy cultural presentations, ono grinds, agricultural exhibits, crafts vendors and community information tables.  Community organizers included Mahealani and Ed Wendt of Kaenae with Kana’iolowalu, the Native Hawaiian Roll; Cynthia Rodriguez, the new executive director of ‘Ohana Makamae Inc. family resource center; Aunt Tweetie Lind and Scott Crawford of Kipahulu ‘Ohana and Kapahu Living Farm; and representatives of the Hana Community Endowment Fund.  Barry Chang,
President of Hana Canoe Club, and other club volunteers were on hand to get the word out about the upcoming Hana Sarah-Joe Regatta, featuring a 5-mile distance race around Alau Island and inshore sprints.  The Taro Security and Purity Task Force offered samples of several varieties of ono Hawaiian taro and explained how a combination of heavy rain, drought, the high cost of water and the need for more land dedicated to taro have reduced production in Hawai’i.  The Task Force is working with UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources to survey growing practices across the Hawaiian islands, including a free soil and taro quality report for participating growers.

Performing artists at the Festival included Kaui Kanaka’ole’s Halau Hula, Uncle Richard Ho’opi’i, and Ola Hou.  Many played the songs of Hana-born Pekelo Cosma, the Na Hoku Hanohano Award-winning songwriter and master of Hawaiian slack key who died in 2011.  Pekelo’s young daughters Nakama and Elle danced hula and sang, with many smiles greeting Nakama’s strong, clear voice.  The crowd applauded and cheered spontaneous hula by friends and beloved kupuna, including Auntie Julia from Moloka’i.  Maui’s own Willie K provided the musical crescendo for a great day in Hana.

The festivities continued on Sunday with a taro pancake breakfast at Hana Bay, sponsored by the Hana Business Council, followed by tours of Kahanu Garden and the Hale O Pi’ilani Heiau, Mahele Farm at ‘Ula’ino, and a lo’i excursion to Kapahu Living Farm in Kipahulu.