10:00–11:00am | Saturday, March 12
Okinawan Princess Book Discussion: Getting to Know Your Culture with Author Lee A. Tonouchi
Lee A. Tonouchi going read his Skipping Stones Honor Award-winning children's picture book Okinawan Princess: Da Legend of Hajichi Tattoos, share some of his Okinawan themed Pidgin poetry, and talk about his journey on how he wen connect to his Okinawan culture. Lee A. Tonouchi is one Hawai'i Okinawan yonsei known for writing in Hawai'i Creole. His poetry collection Significant Moments in da Life of Oriental Faddah and Son: One Hawai'i Okinawan Journal won da 2013 Association for Asian American Studies Book Award. In 2016 his play UchinaAloha premiered at Kumu Kahua Theatre for which he won one Po'okela award for his script. His oddah books include his Pidgin short story collection Da Word, his Pidgin essay collection Living Pidgin: Contemplations on Pidgin Culture, Da Kine Dictionary, and Buss Laugh. When he not writing, he eating, cuz he's also one food critic for frolichawaii.com. Maui Okinawa Kenjin Kai Showcase (10 minute video)
Video highlights some of the items in their museum, cultural classes and activities, including the Maui Okinawan Festival and Maui Okinawa Children's Day Camp. |
12:00–1:00pm | Saturday, March 12
Solomon Enos: The Land is the Canvas
Join us for a discussion and viewing of 40+ pieces of Solomon Enos' visionary artwork. "Much of the work I do as an artist revolves around my fascination with the power of stories. The stories we tell ourselves as individuals and as a species, defines and is defined by the nature of our reality. When I paint and draw, I am keen to propagate visual narratives that puts the focus on the transcendence of our contemporary quagmire. And to this end, I have been greatly inspired by the poetry of Joy Harjo, who moves between worlds of despair and worlds of profundity and healing, and often within a single poem. With utmost humility, I aspire to do the same with every canvas." Having grown up along the Wai’anae Coast, within a family that is heavily involved in cultural preservation and community building, I have witnessed variations on the themes in Joy’s work, from crippling grief to profound compassion. I am especially drawn to her consistent acknowledgment for the land where she stands, and the peoples she stands with, who are also part of the water, sands and soils below. This deep sense of awareness for the narratives woven into every expression of life, animate and inanimate, sits comfortably along side with the values of my ancestors. Her holistic vision of hope moves beyond definitions of “us and them”. Reflecting on her work, helps to give me access to the whole spectrum of the human condition, expanding my palette and my capacity to help manifest a new and much more noble definition for what it means to be human." |
2:00–3:00pm | Saturday, March 12
Pua Aquino: Let's Make a ʻOhana Kalo Plant!
After reading and discussing the book My Kalo has Lau, Big and Green, participants will learn the Hawaiian value of the word laulima and its connection to the kalo plant. Participants will make their own “family tree” using handprints to create an “‘ohana kalo plant.” Pua Aquino was born in Mākaha and currently resides in Māʻili, Oʻahu, with her boyfriend and kids. She has a Bachelors of Arts in Hawaiian Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and has been working in the early childhood education field since 2004. She first developed a love for culturally relevant early childhood curriculum after working at a Hawaiian Immersion preschool for 4 years and has spent the last 13 years working for Ka Paʻalana Homeless Family Education Program, a program of Partners in Development Foundation. My Kalo Has Lau, Big and Green is her first published children’s book and she hopes to write more books in the near future. For more information about the Partners in Development Foundation, please visit www.pidf.org |
4:00–5:00pm | Saturday, March 12
Shari Tamashiro: Kachashii 101: Learn How to Dance Like an Okinawan
Learn the basics on how to dance this famous Okinawan folk dance. This session is designed to teach and empower anyone to participate in this dance that is featured at most Okinawan celebrations. Time permitting, there will also be an introduction to Okinawan style whistling. Shari Y. Tamashiro is a producer of the Hawaii Eisa Festivals and was designated a "World Eisa Ambassador" by the Okinawan government. She has managed the Yuimaaru Learning Room at the Okinawan Festival for many years and created the popular "How To Be More Okinawan" series. |
7:00–8:45pm | Saturday, March 12
Waikiki The Film: Screening & Discussion with Producer Connie Florez
Watch and discuss the themes and the making of the movie, Waikiki The Film, with Connie Florez. Connie Florez, an indigenous film producer and director, has produced many award winning documentaries, movies, and television features. As co-producer and assistant director of Waikiki the Movie, she will be sharing the themes and stories behind the film. FOR MATURE AUDIENCES: Contains domestic violence. This session was not recorded. Kapiʻolani Community College students, faculty, and staff may email [email protected] for access to the film. |
The above photo was taken at Hoʻoulu ʻĀina by Aunty Kaʻohua Lucas
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Ongoing | Saturday, March 12 – Friday, April 22
ʻĪmaikalani Kalāhele: Nānā I Ke Kumu: Helu ʻEkolu Poetry Reading
ʻĪmaikalani Kalāhele
Nānā i ke Kumu (2020) A poetry video produced on the occasion of the National Endowment for the Arts Big Read Hawaiʻi, organized by Lama Library, Kapiʻolani Community College from March 10 to April 22, 2022. Words and images by ʻImaikalani Kalāhele, from Nānā i ke Kumu, Helu ʻEkolu (2020) authored by Lynette K. Paglinawan, Richard Likeke Paglinawan, Dennis Kauahi, and Valli Kalei Kanuha, designed by Barbara Pope Book Design, and published by Liliʻuokalani Trust. Nānā i ke Kumu, Helu ʻEkolu (2020) presents ancient and fundamental Hawaiian values and traditions associated with grieving and healing practices with the goal of addressing modern-day family conflicts, including drug addiction, abandonment, divorce, incarceration, and domestic violence. The book is intended to inspire those who work with Hawaiian families as well as individuals—teachers, clergy, medical practitioners, social workers, law enforcement, and community leaders. ʻĪmaikalani Kalāhele is a Kanaka Maoli artist, poet, musician, and activist from Nuʻuanu, Oʻahu. For over forty years, he has played an integral role in Native Hawaiian art, exhibition making, poetry readings, kanikapila, and community organizing. His multifaceted practice which includes drawing, writing, weaving, singing, painting, storytelling, and installation addresses Americanization and occupation, land politics and dispossession, as well as processes of decolonization and indigenization in Hawaiʻi and Oceania at large. on our journey |
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Ongoing | Saturday, March 12 – Friday, April 22
At Home Crafts: Make Your Own Basket and Journal
Start weaving along with this small basket video and then continue on to watch Gaye Chan's Carrying Capacity and basket weaving videos. Use recycled materials like magazine covers to sew your journal. Then use your journal while attending Emily States' Nature Journaling Workshop. Pick up supplies from the following public libraries while supplies last:
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