LIHU‘E — Students from the Punahou School’s Hawaiian Class mulled their gatherings from a morning-long tour of the facility, Tuesday in the courtyard of the Kaua‘i Museum.
“They’re here to study Kaumuali‘i, the last King of Kaua‘i,” said Chucky Boy Chock, the museum’s executive director. “He’s from Kaua‘i.”
What the studies did not include is that Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana‘ole Pi‘iko‘i, born on March 26, 1871 in an area close to Kuku‘iula, Koloa, was the third grandson of Kaumuali‘i.
Educated on O‘ahu, California, and England, Kuhio returned to Hawai‘i to take a prominent role in government.
Kaua‘i Museum, along with ‘Ahahui Kiwika Hawai‘i or Mo‘ikeha Hawaiian Civic Club, will present its celebration of Prince Kuhio, Saturday starting at 10:30 a.m. and running until noon at the museum.
There is no admission for Kaua‘i and Ni‘ihau residents. Guests with admission to the museum, Saturday are invited to view the celebration at no additional charge.
“We’ll have Kumu Hula Naomi Yokotake and Kupuna Ihi Kaneali‘i presenting a morning of mele and hula,” Chock said. “Kupuna Ihi is wonderful at telling the stories, and Kumu Naomi Yokotake is able to weave song and hula into the tribute to Prince Kuhio.”
Kuhio, while home from Congress in 1917, formed the first Hawaiian Civic Club of Honolulu with seven other friends after realizing that he did not know the people he saw, nor they knew him. He wanted to see Hawai‘i’s culture to be preserved, not only for the Hawaiian people, but for all of Hawai‘i.
“We have multiple celebrations honoring Kuhio because of his legacy,” said Chock, who is also a member of the Royal Order of Kamehamea, Kaumuali‘i Chapter No. 3. “Kuhio made his mark everywhere. All of the celebrations have their special reason for honoring Kuhio. It is all pono. He was a great voice for all of Hawai‘i.”
The 10th Annual Anahola Prince Kuhio Day Celebration takes place, March 14 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Anahola Beach Park.
“It’s on the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands side of the park,” said La Contrades, president of Ka Hale Pono, Inc., a nonprofit organization in Anahola since 2007. “This year, we depart from celebrating an individual kupuna, but celebrate ‘ohana, or families. Ka Hale Pono shares the legacy of Prince Kuhio at this event, for his work to ensure the health and wellness of the Native Hawaiians through his actions.”
This is a free event — donations of canned food for the Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank are welcome — that offers a variety of educational opportunities and events to improve the health and well-being of individuals and families within Anahola.
The event is presented in partnership with the County of Kauai, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, DHHL, and Ka Hale Pono, Inc.
Kuhio spearheaded the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act in response to a dwindling Native Hawaiian population. In 1921, with the enactment of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, the United State set aside approximately 200,000 acres of land to establish a permanent homeland for Native Hawaiians who were “a landless and ‘dying’ people.”
More celebrations are planned at the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i Resort and Spa, located in the proximity of Kuhio’s birthplace.
Exact details are available at press time, but Diann Hartman, the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i’s marketing director said the resort will present its protocol, craft fair assortments, and possible cultural demonstrations as part of the celebration.
The month-long calendar of events culminate on March 21 when the Royal Order of Kamehameha, Kaumuali‘i Chapter No. 3 hosts its annual birth celebration of Prince Kuhio on March 21 with the opening processional starting at 9:30 a.m. at the Prince Kuhio Park, a site maintained by the Royal Order of Kamehameha as Prince Kuhio’s birth place.
There is no admission to view the protocol involving ho‘okupu at the bust of Prince Kuhio, and ensuing mele ho‘okupu.
The Royal Order of Kamehameha, originally formed by King Kamehameha V to honor the legacy of his grandfather, Kamehameha the Great, unifer of the Hawaiian Islands.
Following the overthrow of Queen Lili‘uokalani, the Royal Order of Kamehameha went underground after being considered a threat by the Provisional government.
Prince Kuhio, in a torchlight ceremony in 1903 at the statue of Kamehameha I, publicly declared the restoration of the Royal Order of Kamehameha and the creation of the Hawaiian Civic Clubs.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
