Author Archives: Colleen Uechi

MEO Celebrates 50 Years

Friday, February 20th, 2015

Community Contributed

By Lyn McNeff, CEO, Maui Economic Opportunity, Inc.

This year Maui Economic Opportunity (MEO) celebrates 50 years of service to the people of Molokai and Maui County. MEO began in 1965 as nonprofit grass roots Community Action Agency chartered to fight poverty in Maui County.

For more than two generations MEO has been engaged in this effort through community advocacy and by providing needed services such as transportation, early childhood development, youth services, inmate reintegration back into the community, and micro loans and business development services to low-income entrepreneurs.

Continuing with efforts to expand upon our work in the community, on March 21, MEO will host our 50th anniversary fundraiser dinner “Dancing with Our Stars.”…

Hula Girl’s Flower

Friday, February 20th, 2015

Hula Girl’s Flower

Community Contributed

By Glenn I. Teves, UH CTAHR County Extension Agent

As May Day approaches, many locals are busy preparing for the festivities, which often include the cherished tradition of lei giving and receiving. Whether it’s to commemorate graduations or other special occasions, the air is filled with the delightful scents of various blooms like plumeria. Amidst the hustle and bustle, some may find themselves seeking out a flower delivery lesmurdie to ensure their flower or lei arrangements are as vibrant and fragrant as the memories they evoke.

Plumeria, also known as Frangipani and pua melia, is native to Tropical America, and include two main species, Plumeria obtusa and acuminata that will cross to produce an array of colors, including white, yellow, pink, and red.…

Lono I Ka Makahiki

Friday, February 20th, 2015

Community Contributed

Editor’s note: Makahiki is celebrated by students island-wide annually, including students from Aka`ula School. Below, reprinted with permission from Aka`ula’s newsletter, are what students had to say about the experience.

Na`iwa

By Sydni Pawn, Sophomore

Lono I Ka Makahiki! It is the time of year when schools from all around Hawaii  come together to celebrate Makahiki. Makahiki is the season when ancient Hawaiians observed harvest by holding  strength and skill competitions. We play  games like  `ulu  maika, where you roll a circular stone between two stakes. Konane is often called Hawaiian checkers. Pa Uma, is stand up arm-­‐wrestling. Schools from around the state visit the sacred Makahiki grounds called Na’iwa.…

Stand Up World Tour at Turtle Bay

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Stand Up World Tour at Turtle Bay

Community Contributed

By Clare Seeger Mawae

The opening of the Stand Up World Tour for 2015 was the Turtle Bay Women’s Pro along with the Na Kama Kai Youth Challenge leading to the main event, the Sunset Pro at Sunset Beach. Alex Mawae from Molokai had the experience of his young life with challenging conditions, big surf and being around kids who just ripped in the surf. The World Tour has always had the Na Kama Kai events added in for young and upcoming paddlers to attend. This year at Turtle Bay, the youth outnumbered the women with 20 youth competitors.…

Hand Sewn Mahalo

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Hand Sewn Mahalo

There’s nothing that says “thank you” quite like putting a hand stitched quilt around the shoulders of a veteran, according to Linda DeGraw, a part-time Molokai resident and quilter.

“Quilts are such a comforting and homey kind of appreciation,” DeGraw explained. “It’s really special when you put that quilt on [a veteran] and wrap them in all the prayers, love and energy that goes into making it,” she said.

A national foundation that DeGraw is part of, Quilts of Valor, makes it their mission to offer gratitude to veterans with handmade quilts. The organization has gifted more than 113,000 quilts across the U.S.…

Strong Finish at States

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Strong Finish at States

Lately, the Molokai girls’ basketball team has had a flair for the dramatic. After winning the majority of their league games by wide margins, the Lady Farmers kept fans on pins and needles during a heart-stopping series of season-ending games.

Just days after a pair of one-point wins gave them the Maui Interscholastic League (MIL) Division II title, the Lady Farmers again won down-to-the-wire duels, this time in the state championship on Oahu from Feb. 10-12, to claim seventh place over league rival Lanai.

“The last six games have been nail-biters,” said Head Coach Lee DeRouin. “…That’s been our strength all year, is being able to execute with two minutes left in the game.”…

Vet Center Awaits Final Inspection

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Vet Center Awaits Final Inspection

Only an inspection and a certificate stand between Molokai Veterans Caring for Veterans (MVCV) and the official opening of their brand new, long-awaited center.

The center just needs approval from the Department of Wastewater, the last in a lengthy series of inspections. Members will then wait for the county to process their application for a Certificate of Occupancy, which MVCV officers said could take a few weeks.

After nine years of construction and legal woes, the veterans said it’s the last agonizing step before the center is finished.

“It’s been a lot of hard work. … I tell people it’s not the start.…

Corpuz, Makaiwi Win Titles

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

Molokai produced a first-time champion and a repeating champion at last Saturday’s wrestling meet. After coming in second two weeks ago, Desiree Corpuz won the girls’ 117-pound class for her first title of the season, while Saydee Makaiwi took the 127-pound weight class for her third title this season.

Second-place finishers for Molokai included Jarron Boswell (160 B) and Kui Han (285) for the boys, and Kailaoe Cabanting (117), Cendall Manley (145) and Jasmyn Davis-Namuu (168) for the girls. Manley finished behind Lahainaluna’s Carly Jaramillo, the reigning state champion in the 140-pound weight class.

Lahainaluna again dominated the field with nine boys’ champions and six girls.…

Time Management Workshop

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

KBC News Release

“I don’t have enough time!”  How often have we said this?  What tasks need to be done?  How am I ever going to wade through all this “stuff?”  The Kuha`o Business Center (KBC) is presenting a workshop on Time Management on Thursday, Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. as a way to answer these questions.

Each of us has tasks we need to accomplish for self, work, and family.  Some of the subjects to be discussed are: How to organize your day, how to set priorities, and the importance of information storage and its retrieval.  The workshop will be based on the work of David Allen, who has written three books on the subject. …

Pine Lads Best Farmers

Wednesday, February 18th, 2015

The Lanai boys’ basketball team topped Molokai twice over the weekend, beating the Farmers 57-38 on Friday and 64-45 on Saturday to end the regular season.

On Friday the Farmers stayed in step with the Pine Lads and were only down 38-37 after three quarters. However, the Pine Lads outscored them 19-1 in the final quarter for the large win. On Saturday the Farmers did the opposite, bringing in 19 points in the fourth quarter, though it wasn’t enough to beat the Pine Lads’ consistent offensive performance throughout the game.

Edel-Marc Alvarez’s 13 points led the charge for the Farmers on Friday, and Kaina Adolpho was the top scorer on Saturday with 11 points.…