PO‘IPU — Dan Funamura, of Po‘ipu, was aware of Prince Kuhio and the Prince Kuhio Park on Sunday, as he enjoyed the hospitality of a Thai farmer family set up on the makai edge of the park on the same date The Beach House Restaurant was hosting more than 50 vendors at its monthly craft fair.
“Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!” said Dan, who is the husband of Barbara Funamura, considered the mother (inventor) of the Spam musubi. “March 26 is Prince Kuhio Day. It’s the day he was born in a grass hut in an area close to where Prince Kuhio Park is located. I live close by here, and I walk past this park daily. That’s how I got to know these hardworking people. They work really hard.”
The Royal Order of Kamehameha I Chapter No. 3 Kaumuali‘i and the women of Na Wahine O Kamehameha announced the annual Prince Kuhio Commemorative Celebration for 2024 that will take place on Saturday at the Prince Kuhio Park, starting with the procession of dignitaries at 9:30 a.m.
“Only the dignitaries that include the ho‘okupu presenters get to sit under the tent,” said Kupuna Ihi Kaneali‘i, who officiated the Prince Kuhio protocol at the Kaua‘i Museum that took place last Saturday. Kaneali‘i was also present at previous Royal Order of Kamehameha protocols, as a representative of the Hawaiian civic clubs and the Hawaiian Homes.
The list of dignitaries includes the most prominent people, including the mayor’s office, the governor’s office, Hawai‘i Legislature and dignified Hawaiian groups led by the Royal Order of Kamehameha and Na Wahine Hui O Kamehameha, Aha Hui O Ka‘ahumanu, Hasle O Na Ali‘i, the Hawaiian Civic Clubs, the Department of Hawaiian Homes and more.
Diginitaries offer ho‘okupu and mele in honor of Prince Kuhio, who was born Prince Kuhio Kalanianaole Pi‘ikoi.
The Royal Order of Kamehamea I was created in 1865 by Kamehameha V to commemorate his grandfather, Kamehameha the Great. Containing dignitaries from the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, the Royal Order ceased to exist following the overthrow of Queen Lili‘uokalani in 1893.
Following several attempts at trying to reestablish the Royal Order, on May 13, 1903, in Honolulu, the first formal organizational meeting of the “new” Order took place where Prince Kuhio was chosen the Ali‘i Aimoku, or the highest position in the Order.
He held this position until his death in 1922. In 1924, when the Royal Order of Kamehameha held its first Territorial Convention, one of the convention’s main pursuits was the restoration of Prince Kuhio’s birthplace.
Kuhio served as a delegate from Hawai‘i to Congress from 1902 until his death in 1922. His greatest contribution to the Hawaiian people was the establishment of the Hawaiian Homes Commission that promised Native Hawaiians homesteads.
Some of his other contributions include the dredging and construction of Pearl Harbor, the establishment of the Makapu‘u Lighthouse, Hawai‘i Volcano National Park and the Kilauea National Park.
