Poke Nūhou - News briefs

By Ka Wai Ola Loa Staff

Free Keiki Fair honors a Princess

The Ali‘i Pauahi Hawaiian Civic Club invites the public to the third annual Free Keiki Fair honoring Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, great-granddaughter to Kamehameha I and benefactor to the Kamehameha Schools. The fair, sponsored by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, takes place Sunday, Dec. 19 on the grounds of Kawaiaha‘o Church across from Honolulu Hale. Enjoy Hawaiian games and prizes, make and take gingerbread houses, ‘ukulele lessons, lei making, kapa making, poi pounding, food, and entertainment by the Nänäkuli Performing Arts Center, Hawai‘i Youth Opera Chorus, T&T and much more. Auntie Pualoke Dela Cerna, pictured, will return to teach lauhala weaving, and keiki attendees will receive free books, courtesy of First Book. For information, call 282-4931. - Photo: Courtesy of Ali‘i Pauahi Hawaiian Civic Club

Native Hawaiians appointed to Abercrombie cabinet
Neil Abercrombie, who was sworn in as Governor on Dec. 6 on the grounds of ‘Iolani Palace, has announced all but two cabinet appointments. Among the Directors named are several Native Hawaiians:

• William J. Aila Jr. as the Chairperson of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. Aila is the Wai‘anae Boat Harbor Master and a member of Hui Malama ‘O Mäkua, a community group dedicated to protecting Mäkua Valley, which is used for training by the Army. Guy Kaulukukui, the Associate Director for Strategic Partnerships at The Kohala Center and former Chief of Staff to Honolulu City Council Chairman Todd Apo, was appointed as DLNR First Deputy Director.

• Alapaki Nahale-a and Bobby Hall as the state Director and Deputy Director, respectively, of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. Nahale-a is a Hawaiian Home Lands Commissioner and Executive Director of the Hawai‘i Charter Schools Network; Hall has worked for the state for more than three decades, including 15 years at DHHL.

• Keali‘i Lopez as Director of the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. She is the President and CEO of ‘Ölelo Community Media.

• Sunshine Topping, the Human Resources Director of Sandwich Isles Communications, as Director of the State Department of Human Resources Development.

Other appointments include:

• Management Consultant Bruce Coppa as Director of the state Department of Accounting and General Services

• State Sen. Russell Kokubun as Chairman of the state Department of Agriculture

• Richard Lim, Co-Founder of Sennet Capital and former President and COO of City Bank, as the Director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism

• Pat McManaman, the Deputy Executive Director for the Hawai‘i Civil Rights Commission, as Director of the state Department of Human Services

• Jodie Maesaka-Hirata, Acting Warden of Waiawa Correctional Facility, as the Director of the state Department of Public Safety

• Glenn Okimoto, the Budget Director of the University of Hawai‘i system, as Director of the state Department of Transportation

• Maui County Budget Director Fred Pablo as Director of the state Department of Taxation

• state Sen. Dwight Takamine as Director of the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations

• Maj. Gen. Darryll Wong, the Chief of Staff of the Hawai‘i Air National Guard, as Adjutant General of the state Department of Defense

• Kalbert Young, Maui County Finance Director, as Director of the state Department of Budget and Finance

The Department Directors face confirmation by the state Senate. Abercrombie has said he wants to keep two Cabinet-level members from the previous administration: Schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi and University of Hawai‘i President M.R.C. Greenwood.

As of this writing, two more appointments were pending: Attorney General and Health Director.

Turn your great idea into a business
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs Mälama Loan program has teamed with Kapi‘olani Community College to provide an eight-week class for those who are interested in starting a business. The curriculum includes:

• How to set and achieve realistic business goals
• How to identify your customers and the best way to reach them
• How to create a winning financial plan
• How to set up and use a cash flow schedule
• How to spend your sales efforts where they will do the most good
• How to set up a pricing structure
• How to find the best resources to use when the class is over
• How to present your business plan to a loan officer

The class meets every Tuesday and Thursday evenings from March 1 to April 28 at KCC. The class fee of $231 will be reimbursed by OHA to every Native Hawaiian who completes the course requirements.

Come for a preview of the class on Thursday, Feb. 24 in Manono Hall at 5:30 p.m. Call 734-9153 for more information or 734-9211 for registration.

New scholarship fund honoring late OHA Trustee to benefit Ni‘ihau students
Students from Ni‘ihau have until Feb. 18 to apply for a new scholarship set up specifically for their pursuit of higher education.

The Jean Ileialoha Beniamina Ni‘ihau Scholarship Fund is “among the first of its kind to provide post-secondary scholarship support specifically for Ni‘ihau students who are interested in pursuing higher education,” according to a statement from the Hawai‘i Community Foundation, which is administering the fund.

Scholarship criteria are:
• Demonstrate financial need
• Minimum GPA of 2.7
• The student must be a resident of Kaua‘i or Ni‘ihau
• Two letters of recommendation
• Essay describing family descent from and connection to Ni‘ihau; hänai relationships will be honored. Applicants should address their proficiency in the Hawaiian language and list any courses or programs taken in Hawaiian language. Proficiency in Hawaiian is not required; however, preference will be given to applicants who are fluent or proficient in Hawaiian.

The fund was established by Wayne James Rapozo and the Rapozo Family with the support of the Beniamina family to honor Ilei Beniamina, a Ni‘ihau native, educator and former OHA Trustee who devoted her life to Hawaiian education and culture.

Wayne James Rapozo said the Beniamina fund recognizes and supports the Ni‘ihau community’s work to emphasize education for its youth, which Ilei Beniamina was an important part of.

Rapozo said the community’s unique legacy remains its significant contribution to language and culture in Hawai‘i. “Aunty Ilei and the Ni‘ihau students she worked so hard for are proof that all of us can successfully straddle two worlds, the traditional one and the modern one that we all face today,” he said in a statement.

For information or to apply, visit www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org.

Lunalilo Home seeks administrator
Lunalilo Home, established by the will of King Lunalilo, is a not-for-profit organization that provides adult residential and day care services for indigent and infirmed küpuna.

Lunalilo Home announces a new position of Administrator, which will report to the Executive Director and be responsible for Lunalilo Home’s services that it provides to its beneficiaries and the Native Hawaiian community.

Responsibilities include budget and finances, operations, program, product and performance delivery, personnel and staff management, and marketing.

Lunalilo Home has completed a strategic plan that will enhance and expand its services to küpuna, their ‘ohana and the communities in which they live, and is seeking a leader who is able to advance the goals of transforming the organization into the foremost system of elder services for küpuna.

Qualifications are: master’s degree in administration or equivalent combination of education and experience, demonstrated commitment to Hawaiian values and culture, two years fiscal management of organization, five years in senior or executive management position, and familiarity with elder care needs and policies.

Send cover letter and resume, with subject line “Administrator Position” via e-mail, lunalilohomeHR@hawaii.rr.com or fax, 808-395-8487. Qualified applicants only.

Genealogy workshops start in January
Fran McFarland’s genealogy research workshops are popular for their hands-on approach to learning. Over two days, students will learn about the cultural differences between Hawaiian and Western genealogical standard practices, and visit the Hawai‘i State Archives, Hawai‘i State Library, First Circuit Court Records and Bureau of Conveyances.

McFarland, a member of the Utah Genealogical Association, has helped people research their roots to find missing branches of their family tree or establish blood quantum for Hawaiian-entitlement programs.

Classes are held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursdays in the Kana‘ina Building on the ‘Iolani Palace grounds. The $75 fee includes instruction, syllabus and workbook. Students must sign up for both days.

The 2011 schedule is as follows: Jan. 6 and 13; 20 and 27; Feb. 3 and 10; 17 and 24; March 3 and 10; (skip 17); 24 and 31; April 7 and 14; 21 and 28; May 5 and 12; 19 and 26; June 2 and 9; 16 and 23 (no class on 30); July 7 and 14; 21 and 28; Aug. 4 and 11; 18 and 25; Sept. 1 and 8; 15 and 22 (no class on 29); Oct. 20 and 27 only. There are no classes in November and December.

For information or to register, call McFarland at 808-203-7245 or email fjmvana@juno.com.

Bishop Museum offers holiday discounts, unique gifts 
This holiday season, the Bishop Museum’s Shop Pacifica is offering shopping specials featuring unique and locally made products.
 
A three-day sale Dec. 18 to 20 offers 25 percent off of all clothing, all Bishop Museum logo gift items and all food items.  
 
From now to Dec. 31, shoppers will receive a free gift with purchase: spend a minimum of $25 and receive a free black and white 1920 Hawaiian Hall poster; spend at least $50 and receive a free Bishop Museum mouse pad; and for minimum purchases of $100 receive a free Bishop Museum logo T-shirt.
 
There is no admission fee to shop at Shop Pacifica. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. except Tuesdays and Christmas Day, when the museum is also closed. 
 
For information about Bishop Museum, visit www.bishopmuseum.org or call 847-3511.

Holokü Ball 2011 – save the date

The elegant Holokü Ball is organized by the Hawaiian Civic Club of Honolulu, founded in 1918 by Prince Kühiö, pictured. - Photo: KWO archives

The Holokü Ball is set for Saturday, March 5, 2011, 5:30 p.m. at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel Monarch Room.

The annual gala is a benefit for the Hawaiian Civic Club of Honolulu’s scholarship fund for Native Hawaiian post-high students.

The night includes a festive welcoming reception, sumptuous dinner, silent auction, star-studded entertainment and more. Cost is $150 per ticket; tables of 10 are available. Corporate tables range from $2,500 to $10,000.

Formal announcements and invitations will be mailed Jan. 3, 2011.

Art Lunch Lecture highlights hale building
Learn about Hawaiian-style hale building at a free lecture by master hale builder Francis Sinenci, aka Kumu Palanai, at noon Dec. 28 at the Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 250 S. King St, Multipurpose Room.

“Hale Kahiko Hou – A Functional Art Form” will cover Sinenci’s experiences learning and teaching the craft. Sinenci is a master in the state’s Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program, which funds partnerships between masters and apprentices in folk and traditional arts.

The lecture is part of the Art Lunch Lecture series presented on the last Tuesday of the month by the Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts and the Friends of the Hawai‘i State Art Museum.

For information, call 586-0900.