• Submission Deadlines

    Advertising

    Thursday 4pm

    August 20, 2026

    Content

    Friday 4pm

    August 14, 2026

    To print on:

    Wednesday

    August 19, 2026

  • Join us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Subscribe via RSS

Culture & Art

Rediscovering Hālawa

Thursday, August 13th, 2026

Rediscovering Hālawa

By Dayanti Karunaratne

With its rich history and epic views, Hālawa inspires people in many ways. For accomplished archaeologist Patrick Kirch, a trip to the east end valley when he was just 13 years old literally shaped the course of his life. More recently, when retirement gave him the opportunity to continue exploring, he turned to Hālawa.
“I decided that I would return to where I started, literally,” Kirch said, explaining that he wanted to apply new methods and knowledge to the site of one of the earliest settlements in the Hawaiian Islands. After re-connecting with residents of the valley, he decided to “un-retire” and team up with Bishop Museum to revisit Hālawa.…

Posted in , , commentsAdd your comment

Printing With Paʻa

Thursday, August 13th, 2026

Printing With Paʻa

By Dayanti Karunaratne

With every crank of the wheel, community is being lovingly produced, print by print, by an enthusiastic group at a small Kaunakakai studio.
During a workshop held on August 7, eight people gathered inside Pa’a Printmakers Studio. Using simple cutting tools, participants scratched images onto sheets of plastic that would eventually be placed under a press. As the group worked, they also encouraged each other and discussed ideas, which had the natural effect of drawing them together.
Denise Karabinus, Director of Honolulu Printmakers, came to Molokai to teach the workshops last week. She said printmaking naturally builds community.…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea 

Thursday, August 6th, 2026

Celebrating Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea 

By Dayanti Karunaratne | Editor

With Hawaiian flags of all sizes grasped in the hands of babies and held on long bamboo stakes, the usual Saturday market crowd at the Molokai Public Library swelled on August 1 for the annual Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea gathering.
“Sovereignty comes from the people. Sovereignty comes from your communities, fighting for what you want, fighting against the things you will not put up with,” said Jon Osorio to the group. Osorio, the former Dean of the Hawaiʻinuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, came to Molokai for the event.
Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea translates to “The day of restoring freedom” in English and recognizes events in 1843 that saw a British naval captain claim Hawaii for the U.K.;…

Posted in , , commentsAdd your comment

MAC Market Makes Two

Wednesday, July 29th, 2026

MAC Market Makes Two

By Dayanti Karunaratne

The pandemic changed many things on Molokai, including the long-running Saturday morning market in Kaunakakai. Thankfully, there are people in the community who saw a way forward and worked together to create the Molokai Arts Center Market, which celebrated its second anniversary this month.

“It is a great space — not just for selling and buying but for featuring the talent on this island,” said Alice Ka’ahanui, Executive Director of the Molokai Arts Center (MAC). “It has become a community hub where the vendors have developed relationships as an arts community, and where residents and visitors come to look for that unique gift because they’re mostly handmade.”…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

Molokai Holokai ‘More Than a Race’

Thursday, July 23rd, 2026

Molokai Holokai ‘More Than a Race’

By Dayanti Karunaratne

Hundreds came out for the annual Molokai Holokai last weekend, July 17 and 18, boarding all kinds of watercraft to test themselves and battle each other. From inter-island races attracting international competitors to the Keiki and Makua, which included a two-year-old participating for his second time, a total of six races took place over the two-event.

“It’s a lot of work, but when I see the kids smile, it just touches my heart and makes it all worth it,” said Clare Albino, who organizes the event with her husband, Gordon Albino. 

The couple work year-round on the event, which began in 2003 under the name A Celebration of Youth Opportunity.…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

Catching Up With High Watah

Wednesday, July 15th, 2026

Catching Up With High Watah

By Dayanti Karunaratne | Editor

 

There’s something kind of perfect about celebrating the Fourth of July in one of the biggest shopping centers in America. This year, along with the mall’s offerings of Americana — snacks, deals and loud urban culture — the Ala Moana Center also presented a bit of Molokai in its long weekend lineup: a free concert by High Watah.

Since moving to Oahu a couple of years ago, the island reggae band has been performing concerts in Hawaii, California and Las Vegas. Most recently they opened a new concert and event venue in downtown Honolulu. With their producers and distributors located in New Zealand, the band is gaining a following there, too.…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

King Kamehameha Day An Elegant Celebration

Wednesday, June 17th, 2026

King Kamehameha Day An Elegant Celebration

 

By Dayanti Karunaratne | Editor

From the red carpet to the poi board, the events celebrating King Kamehameha Day had something for everyone. The annual festivities honor Kamehameha I, also known as Kamehameha the Great, the founder and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii. This year, it was held at the Molokai Yacht Club, with great lengths taken to show off the pretty shoreline setting.
“It is really spectacular — the lights and the natural beauty,” said Tylor Tanaka, President of the Ho‘omōhala O Moloka‘i Foundation, who organized the weekend.
Both the King’s Gala, held on June 12, and the Hoʻolauleʻa on June 13 were organized by Ho‘omōhala, a local nonprofit that focuses on cultural heritage through educational programs and other events.…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

Getting Creative with the Crown Flower Lei

Thursday, May 28th, 2026

Getting Creative with the Crown Flower Lei

By Dayanti Karunaratne

The crown flower lei is among the most common lei types, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something new to learn. At last week’s Molokai Arts Center lei-making workshop, attendees learned to pull apart the petals and how to make patterns using the skirts, pods and crowns of the plant.

“To see the different styles is really amazing. When we were growing up, it was just one way; with the crowns of the flower. We didn’t do all these different styles,” MAC Executive Director Alice Kaʻahanui said.  

About 25 people attended the event at Hoʻolehua Homestead Makeke May 17.…

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment

‘We Are Polynesia’ Wraps Up May Day in Kaunakakai

Wednesday, May 20th, 2026

‘We Are Polynesia’ Wraps Up May Day in Kaunakakai

By Léo Azambuja

An impressive display of cuteness and cultural affirmation by kindergarteners and elementary school students from Kaunakakai Elementary School before hundreds of parents, relatives and friends closed this year’s May Day celebrations last week.

“Let us begin the dancing and excitement by traveling to Tahiti. The kindergarteners from kumu Tere Neuhart and Ms. Kini will begin the dancing. The kindergartners will entertain you with a fun number entitled Tahiti, Tahiti,” the emcee for the school’s 2026 May Day Program said before the first of 11 performances May 15.

This year’s theme for Kaunakakai School’s May Day, “We Are Polynesia,” took the audience through several Polynesian cultures, including Tahiti, Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, New Zealand and, of course, Hawaii. …

Posted in , , commentsAdd your comment

Honolulu Brass Quintet at St. Damien of Molokai Catholic Church

Wednesday, May 6th, 2026

Honolulu Brass Quintet at St. Damien of Molokai Catholic Church

MAC News Release

The Honolulu Brass Quintet presented by Chamber Music Hawai‘i will be performing at a free event at St. Damien of Molokai Catholic Church on Monday, May 18 at 5:30 p.m.

Since its inception in 1976, the Honolulu Brass Quintet has performed throughout Honolulu and the state of Hawai‘i. As one of three resident ensembles regularly presented by Chamber Music Hawai‘i, HBQ offers full-length brass performances in premier venues across its home island of O‘ahu, performing regularly at the Doris Duke Theatre and Blue Note Hawaii in Honolulu, as well as the Palikū Theatre on the Windward side of O‘ahu. …

Posted in , commentsAdd your comment