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Kalaupapa, Window of Opportunity

Thursday, October 23rd, 2014

Community Contributed

By Father Pat Killilea, St Francis Church, Kalaupapa

I had never previously broken into a house in my 70 years of living, though it is not unheard of in my own family. Several years ago, my mother related in her comical fashion how she had awakened in the middle of the night thinking that a burglar was coming in through the kitchen window. It was my younger brother who had arrived home late after the door was locked.

Now here I was at 7:30 a.m. trying to get in through a jalousie window at the rear of Dolly’s house.…

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Maunaloa and Kilohana Schools Among Best in State

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

Maunaloa and Kilohana Schools Among Best in State

Molokai has one of the smallest populations in the state, but that population is home to two of Hawaii’s best public elementary schools, according to a state-wide school performance program.

Based on scores from the 2013-14 school year, Maunaloa and Kilohana ranked within the top five percent of Hawaii public schools in the DOE’s Strive HI program, which reviews school performance through the four categories of achievement, student growth, readiness and gap rates. On Oct. 16, the Department of Education (DOE) recognized both schools with two $15,000 checks.

“To have two coming from Molokai, it’s a phenomenal accomplishment,” said Jessica Worchel, the DOE’s Special Assistant to the Superintendent.…

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Molokai Keeps 1989 Memories in Play

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

Molokai Keeps 1989 Memories in Play

As an assistant girls’ volleyball coach at Molokai High, Billy Dudoit used to always gather his players together. He would look into their eyes, in mid-game huddles, in post-game debriefings, and tell them how to block better and serve straighter. But when he gathered them together that Saturday night, on Oct. 28, 1989, he knew his usual rhetoric wouldn’t cut it.

That evening, he and much of the Molokai community were camped out at the island’s lone airport, waiting for reports on a missing plane carrying 20 passengers, including eight Molokai High volleyball players, girls’ head coach Odetta Rapanot and school athletic director John Ino.…

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Flushing Cesspools Down the Toilet

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

Hawaii relies on its cesspools more than any state in the nation, according to the Department of Health (DOH), and officials want to change that. The DOH is proposing revised rules that would prevent new cesspools from being built and require switching to septic tanks if owners sell property with a cesspool on it. Before installing septic systems, they must make sure that the professional they hired is knowledgeable of details like a Septic Tank Bacteria.

The DOH feels that “Hawaii has fallen behind all other states in eliminating cesspool pollution,” according to an informational handout that Sina Pruder, an official from the DOH’s Wastewater Branch, reviewed in a public hearing on Molokai on Oct.…

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GE Crop Debate Shakes Molokai

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

GE Crop Debate Shakes Molokai

A single initiative on the November election ballot has the Molokai community in such a heated debate that “vote yes” and “vote no” only refer to one thing: whether or not the cultivation of all genetically engineered crops in Maui County should stop while studies are done examining effects on human health and the environment.

The “vote no” campaign opposes the initiative, highlighting the hundreds of jobs on the line that could be lost in Maui County if a moratorium on growing genetically engineered (GE) crops goes through. Supporters of the initiative say they don’t want farming practices they believe are detrimental to land and people to continue without a comprehensive, independent study completed.…

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Council Members Visit Molokai

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

Council Members Visit Molokai

Six Maui County Council members and one candidate visited Molokai on Oct. 7, giving voters a chance to hear about their plans and passions before the Nov. 4 elections.

Council Chair Gladys Baisa, running for her fifth and final two-year term in office, hosted a luncheon and invited fellow councilmembers Mike Victorino and Don Couch, Jr., who are also seeking re-election, as well a new face to the political scene, Council candidate Ka`ala Buenconsejo.

“I’m delighted that Council Chair Baisa…invited her colleagues to come to Molokai,” said Robert Stephenson, President of the Molokai Chamber of Commerce. “The access to the council is very good, and they’re very receptive.”…

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Local Author Publishes Children’s Book

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

Local Author Publishes Children’s Book

 

Molokai’s Todd Yamashita has authored his first children’s book, bringing together his passions of Hawaiian culture, his two kids, environmental conservation, intergenerational relationships between keiki and kupuna, and his wife’s fishpond restoration nonprofit, Ka Honua Momona. “Uncle’s Magic Thrownet,” colorfully illustrated by Jamie Mechel Tablason in hardcover, is available for sale throughout Hawaii and on Amazon.com.

“Writing a children’s book has been a dream of mine for a long time,” said Yamashita, who also owns The Molokai Dispatch newspaper. “Children’s books should be simple and fun, and especially now that I have kids of my own, it’s a unique opportunity to introduce important values and themes to the next generation.”…

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Lions Road: Walk for Sight

Friday, October 17th, 2014

Molokai Lions Club News Release

The Molokai Lions Club reached out to the community on Sept. 27 and for the third year in a row, they were rewarded with a good turnout for their Walk for Sight. More than $2500 was raised. Big thanks Molokai!

The 37 walkers included club members, Leos, and community residents. The Molokai High School Leo Club, under the direction of Advisor Julia DeGeorge, came out with 24 members. Way to go Leos!  One Leo in particular made 20 laps around town!

More than $2000 of this money will go towards the school vision screening programs that include bringing over the Maui eye doctors and supporting the Retina Vision Van.…

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Festivals of Aloha

Friday, October 17th, 2014

With hundreds of paddlers and supporters in town for the Molokai Hoe, the Friendly Isle showcased Hawaii’s past and present through its three-day long Festivals of Aloha. The festivities also echoed the Hawaiian tradition of Kulaia — gathering together in celebration before the annual canoe races to Oahu.

“[We] focus on what our ancestors used to do before,” said emcee Lyndon Dela Cruz, who remembers similar celebrations from his childhood. “…It’s good that they’re bringing it back. We missed it.”

Thursday night kicked off with the crowning of the Royal Court. Molokai residents Clayton and Annette English were selected as this year’s mo`i kane and mo`i wahine.…

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New Molokai Beginning Farmers Program

Friday, October 17th, 2014

UH CTAHR Extension Service News Release

A new, island-wide Beginning Farmer Program will begin this month. Twice-monthly classes will be held in Ho`olehua at the UH Extension Office and at UH Maui College-Molokai Farm focused on commercial crop production. A beginning farmer is defined as one who has farmed less than 10 years.

The aging of farmers is a matter of national security. In 2010, the average age of the workforce nationwide was 37, while the average age of farmers was about 58. There’s has been a 30 percent increase in farmers over the age of 75 and a 20 percent decrease in the number of farmers under the age of 25.…

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