Community

General news which affects the Molokai community in one way or another.

Guardianships

Wednesday, August 9th, 2023

By Eileen M.S. Nims, J.D.

There are two ways in which a person can receive guardianship over an incapacitated individual: Power of Attorney and Guardianship Petition. 

Medical Power of Attorneys allow you to designate ahead of time, who is going to be able to speak for you when you no longer can. For many Molokai adults, this is an easy possibility to ensure you have an advocate who can talk to your doctor, your insurance company, a care-home etc. when you no longer can. It avoids confusion and provides clear instructions as to who you have chosen and directed that person to do on your behalf.…

Obon Festival Returns

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Obon Festival Returns

By Jack Kiyonaga | Reporter 

Beneath tanzaku adorned with the names of the dead and set to the staccato of taiko drums, Molokai’s Guzeiji Soto Mission celebrated the Obon Festival for the first time since 2019. 

Obon Festival, or Bon, is a Japanese holiday marking the return of deceased ancestors’ spirits to the land of the living. Bon dances became popular statewide as Japanese immigrants arrived in Hawaii around the turn of the 20th century. Molokai’s Guzeiji Soto Mission was founded in 1927 and is one of only nine Soto Missions in Hawaii. 

Saturday’s celebration was preceded by Buddhist services at Kapa’akea cemetery and the temple itself.…

Last of the Librarians? Let’s Hope Not

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Last of the Librarians? Let’s Hope Not

By Jack Kiyonaga | Reporter 

Five years ago, a group of Molokai librarians representing school, private and public libraries came together to address a growing drift on Molokai. Part of a statewide trend, Molokai had shed full-time, certified librarians from most of its schools.  With no bookstores on-island, Molokai’s librarians have had the task of inspiring and supplying the next generation of readers. This responsibility has fallen on the shoulders of a select few. They call themselves the Molokai Library Services Cadre (MLSC). 

Diane Mokuau is the librarian at Molokai High School, winner of the 2021 School Librarian of the Year Award, and president of the MLSC. …

Kamakani Farms: Salt, Chickens, Tomatoes—and Wind

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Kamakani Farms: Salt, Chickens, Tomatoes—and Wind

by Paul Hanley | Community Reporter 

“I didn’t want to do conventional farming,” says Cameron Hiro, who operates Kamakani Farms in Hoolehua with his wife Jacqueline and their ohana. A fourth-generation homesteader, Hiro resides on agriculture lands where his mother Janice and her late husband, Cameron’s stepfather Joseph Pele, and other family members once grew vegetables.

Though Cameron didn’t want to farm he stayed in the food industry. After high school, he studied restaurant, culinary and catering management, which led to a 35-year career in cooking, catering, and event management. In 2017, he and his brothers Raymond Hiro and John Pele became owners of Hiro’s Ohana Grill at Hotel Molokai.…

Free Mobile Market Delivery for EBT/SNAP Customers

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Sustʻāinable Molokai News Release

Sustʻāinable Molokai’s Mobile Market is proud to announce free mobile delivery for EBT/SNAP customers as part of the Da Bux Program. With no minimum purchase required, this new service aims to make healthy and fresh produce more accessible to the Molokai community. 

Customers can order online and receive their groceries at their doorstep, with free delivery available for EBT/SNAP recipients. Visit MolokaiMobileMarket.com to purchase fresh, locally-grown, and produced food. Our online store opens weekly from Sunday at 3 p.m. to Tuesday at 12 p.m. Order pickups are on Thursday and deliveries are every Friday.

The Da Bux Program is designed to support Molokai’s local food system by increasing access to healthy food options for all members of the community.…

A Whale of an Opportunity

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

A Whale of an Opportunity

By The Molokai Dispatch Staff

A life-sized inflatable humpback whale named Kamakai visited Molokai last weekend through NOAA’s Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. The kohola, or humpback whale, offered keiki the opportunity to explore the species’ biology, along with participating in educational activities, marine arts and crafts and movie showings of “Humpback Whale.”…

Unreliable Transportation Decreases Dental Services

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

There are now decreased dental services on Molokai due to unreliable transport into and out of the island. 

Dr. Tabitha Chiu, DMD writes: 

“Dear Nalu Dental patients,

In the few months that l’ve been working at Nalu Dental, l’ve felt so welcomed by everyone that l’ve met. It’s been a privilege to be able to provide dental care to your community. Unfortunately, due to the unpredictability of transportation on and off the island, I will be pausing my commutes from Oahu. It has become difficult to manage my schedule when flights are consistently delayed, often without notice. I hope to return once transportation is more reliable.…

Reflections from the Outgoing Editor

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Reflections from the Outgoing Editor

After 15 years at The Molokai Dispatch, I’m stepping away from daily operations at the newspaper and into a new role in journalism. I’ll now serve as Hawaii Public Radio’s Maui Nui reporter – the station’s first full time employee not based on Oahu. I’m honored to have this opportunity and so grateful I can continue to live and work on Molokai while bringing more Molokai, Maui and Lanai voices to the statewide airwaves. 

Over the past 15 years, The Molokai Dispatch has been a foundation for me on Molokai. I’m so grateful to the Dispatch for bringing me to the island I’m blessed to call home, and all the opportunities it has afforded me since then. …

With Apologies to Kala’e

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023

Disappeared.

Gone.

Turned to poo-brown

by clowns with “authority.”*

These blues and greens,

such vibrant life,

such beauty

they refuse to see.

Always trying so hard

to erase

so they desecrate

and they deface,

replacing history,

never wanting to leave

so much as a trace

of Kanaka Maoli

for occupying eyes

to see

as they use stolen keys

to uproot rainbow trees

and they paint over paradise

making something so nice 

a dull brown

making you forget the Queen’s crown

making you forget the U.S. Marines

helped tear the Queen’s flag down

making you forget that this ain’t

America as they paint

and they paint

and they paint over laughter

and life

and love

and they shove their greedy paws

and their white

man made laws

and their codes

and their rules

all over this stolen land

where Hawaiian tongues

were long banned

and now there are cops

in schools

putting Hawaiian children 

in handcuffs

and I agree with Aunty Scarlett

that enough is enough

when, instead of getting tough

on corrupt police

and on chemical companies

and on the military

polluting the aquifer,

the land

and the sea

they are using

the taxes on our tea

to deny Hawaiians like Kala’e

the right to just be

free

and to be freely creating beauty

for all eyes to see

while not hurting a flea

much less a tree

the air

the water

or the soil…

If you look at history

honestly

you will see

that since 1893

crimes like these 

are truly

human rights violation

and it should make your blood boil.…

Molokai Students Learn Cybersecurity

Wednesday, July 26th, 2023

Molokai Students Learn Cybersecurity

By Jack Kiyonaga, Reporter 

The email starts as something benign: an inquiry from a distant family member, a reminder to pay for your Amazon Prime subscription, a promo for a credit card. You click the link and it’s all over from there – you’ve been hacked. 

Kaunakakai School fifth grade teacher Kawika Gonzales is helping students across Molokai navigate this complicated digital landscape with a recent summer camp called the GenCyber Program. As the lead instructor for the state-wide program, Gonzales led 10 Molokai students ranging from fifth to 12th grade in a weeklong investigation into the strange, marvelous, dangerous, complicated world of the internet. …