Author Archives: Bianca Moragne

Honoring Hawaii’s First Homestead

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

Honoring Hawaii’s First Homestead

Beginning in 1921, a selected group of hardy Hawaiian families began building a life in Kalama`ula. They cleared kiawe, constructed homes and infrastructure, planted gardens and raised livestock. It was difficult work, but because of their success, more than 6,000 Hawaiian Homesteaders now live around the state, according to OHA Chairperson Colette Machado.

“They had to make do and… they overcame that and succeeded,” said Machado. “If it wasn’t for the Kalama`ula demonstration, [Native Hawaiians] wouldn’t be where we are today.”

Last week, the descendants of Hawaii’s first 42 homesteaders in Kalama`ula gathered to celebrate 90 years since the establishment of the Kalaniana`ole Settlement, as it was known.…

Sharing the Love of Music

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

Sharing the Love of Music

Inside the white brick walls of Kaunakakai Elementary School room A-103, the reverberation of melodies fill the air after school Mondays and Wednesdays as keiki, parents and community members tackle playing some of the toughest string instruments to learn.

The students are a part of the Molokai Community Band and the 21st Century Instrumental Music program, an after-school music program for individuals of all ages to receive group music lessons and learn a string or woodwind instrument. The focus is learning how to read music, play an instrument and interact with others in a group environment, said Bob Underwood, a first grade teacher at Kaunakakai Elementary and volunteer string instrument teacher.…

Taking Your Meds the Right Way

Monday, April 28th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Jon Mikami, RPh, and Kelly Go, RPh, Molokai Drugs, Inc.

Medications can make a world of difference—if you take them the right way. Half the time, though, this doesn’t happen, at least when it comes to drugs doctors prescribe for chronic conditions.

Sometimes people miss doses. Or they might stop refilling the prescription or never get it filled in the first place. Why does this happen? Costs or side effects of drugs can be an issue. Also, complex dosing schedules or multiple drugs can be really confusing.

The problem is not taking medications the right way can threaten your health, increase complications, and lower your quality of life.…

Collard Greens

Monday, April 28th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Glenn I. Teves, County Extension Agent, UH CTAHR

On Molokai, the summer heat can overwhelm many of the vegetables that grow well in the winter. Collards or collard greens can grow at a time of the year when local greens struggle and are in short supply. A primitive member of the cabbage family, it belongs to the “Acephala” group meaning “cabbages without a head.”

Collard is a corrupted term from the word “colewort” meaning “wild cabbage plant.” Native to the southern Mediterranean in an area called Asia Minor, a part of Turkey, it was carried in all directions and is popular in Portugal and Spain to the west, Bosnia, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia to the east, and African and India to the south.…

Molokai Fitness: Nutrition Tips

Monday, April 28th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Ayda Ersoy

We’ve talked already about how important exercise is. This week we’re going to take a little break from discussing exercise, and go back to nutrition.

Why is nutrition so important? Because you become what you eat. But why is it so hard to control what you eat? Because you have got in the habit of eating the way you do. So, you need to create a new habit. Your habits control most of what you do, and if you can create a habit to eat more healthfully then you will do it. It is not about following a diet, because no matter how strict you are, if you just see it as a temporary diet then it won’t have a long lasting effect.…

Free Disaster Preparedness Classes on Molokai

Monday, April 28th, 2014

Free Disaster Preparedness Classes on Molokai

Maui Civil Defense Agency News Release

Following a major disaster, the number and scope of emergencies increases dramatically, and first responders who provide fire and medical services may not be able to meet the immediate needs in all areas. Factors such as number of victims, communication failures and road blockages will prevent people from accessing emergency services. People will have to rely on each other for help in order to meet their immediate life saving and life sustaining needs. To help prepare for such emergencies, training is available, which will be provided on Molokai through a series of free classes.

During disasters, family members, fellow employees and neighbors will spontaneously try to help each other.…

Molokai Student Winners at State History Day

Saturday, April 26th, 2014

Hawaii Council for the Humanities News Release

On April 12, Molokai students presented projects that placed and earned History Day medals, as well as garnered special state awards and prizes from Hawaii organizations at the 2014 Hawaii History Day State Fair. The annual competition involves hundreds of students and teachers from the islands of Hawaii, Kauai, Maui, Molokai and Oahu. Hawaii Council for the Humanities again sponsored the state competition, the theme of which is Rights and Responsibilities in History.

Molokai High School student Cendall Manley won a bronze medal for her Senior Performance project titled “Prohibition: A Dilemma Between Individual Rights, Personal Responsibility and Governmental Power” and is a qualifier for the 2014 Kenneth E.…

Aka`ula School Celebrates 10 Years

Friday, April 25th, 2014

Aka`ula School Celebrates 10 Years

Editor’s note: Reprinted here with permission are two student-written articles that originally appeared in Aka`ula School’s newsletter.

By Madison Trenner, grade 5

On Saturday, April 5, Aka`ula School celebrated a decade of “Learning and Leading Together.”  On this beautiful spring day current students opened with the school oli.  Victoria Newberry presented a colorful history of how a group of energetic people came together and started a school.  Towards the end of her speech, we were blessed with a short shower.  Lunch was a plate of tasty tortillas filled with meat and vegetables.  For dessert we had the biggest cake I have ever seen. …

Money Matters: 2015 County Budget

Friday, April 25th, 2014

Money Matters: 2015 County Budget

Money may not be everything, but around county budget season, it becomes pretty important. Mayor Alan Arakawa presented county councilmembers with his proposed $622.6 million Fiscal Year 2015 budget last month, and since then, the council has been traveling to various districts gathering public input.

On Molokai, the three-hour meeting held two weeks ago garnered a lively turnout and a full slate of testimony.

“We’re here to listen to you as to what your needs are,” said Molokai councilmember Stacy Crivello.

This year’s proposed budget is a $63.3 million increase — 11.3 percent — from last fiscal year’s financial plan adopted by the council.…

Advocating for the `Aina

Thursday, April 24th, 2014

Advocating for the `Aina

In celebration of Earth Day, hundreds of attendees, young and old, examined taxidermies of the endangered native Hawaiian duck, learned how to check plants for invasive fire ants using peanut butter, and pinpointed areas of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, the most remote island archipelago in the world.

The community gathered at Molokai’s 22nd annual Earth Day festival at the Kaunakakai Ball Field last Friday evening to honor the values of aloha `aina and malama `aina. Kupuna Moses “Moke” Kim inspired island youth to malama `aina through the Hana Kupono program at Molokai High and Intermediate School. This year’s theme, “He Wa`a He Moku, He Moku He Wa`a; your canoe is like an island, an island is like your canoe,” is a testament to Kim’s mission to preserve Molokai’s natural and limited resources, according to event organizers.…