Ka`u Calendar News Briefs Saturday, April 23, 2016

National Park Week continues through tomorrow, with free entry to Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. See more below. Photo from NPS

RURAL HEALTH AT WORK in Our Communities was the theme of Ka`u Rural Health Community Association’s 19th annual general membership meeting and conference on Friday, April 15 at Pahala Community Center.

Ka`u Rural Health Community Association's new board and staff
are, in front, Jessie Marques, Stacyn Lopez, Shawnetter Navarro,
Mahealani Taganas and Donna Kekoa. In back are Theresa Richardson
and Devin Navarro. Missing is Tracey Andrade. Photo from KRHCAI

Newly elected Board of Directors and staff are Jessie Marques, Stacyn Lopez, Shawnetter Navarro, Mahealani Taganas, Donna Kekoa, Theresa Richardson, Delvin Navarro and Tracy Andrade.

Five Community Health Worker Program Scholarships of $1,000 each went to the organization’s program students Stacyn Lopez, Resa Salmo, Daniel Mokiao, Nicole Moore and Sunshine Kahapea. The scholarships were funded by the Alu Like Employment & Training Program.
Hawai`i Department of Health’s Office of Program, Planning & Policy provided five more scholarships for Betty Jo Adams, Donna Kekoa, Terri Scott, Annabelle Stone and Lauren Wong Yuen.
KRHCAI founder Jessie Marques presented certificates from Hawai`i legislators and Hawai`i County Mayor Billy Kenoi to KRHCAI President Donna Kekoa.
Conference attendees heard presentations from representatives of Ka`u Hospital & Rural Health Clinic, USDA Rural Business & Development Grant Programs, Commission on the Status of Women, Alu Like, Ka`u Intermediate & High School Health Occupation Students of America and Hawai`i County Office of Aging/Aging & Disabilities Resource Center.
Attendees received free blood pressure and vision screenings.
For more, see krhcai.com and Ka`u Rural Health Community Association’s Facebook page. Call 928-0101.
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Miss Peaberry candidate Khloe Moses

KEIKI WAHINE FROM SIX TO NINE years old are participating in Miss Ka`u Coffee Pageant’s Miss Peaberry category on Saturday, May 14. They join Junior Miss Ka`u Coffee and Miss Ka`u Coffee candidates on stage at Ka`u Coffee Mill at 6 p.m.

Miss Peaberry candidates are six-year-old Pahala Elementary School Kindergartener Khloe Moses, daughter of Jack and Brenda Moses, of Pahala; eight-year-old Pahala Elementary School student Jazmyn Navarro, daughter of Jonathan and Jennifer Navarro, of Pahala; and nine-year-old Pahala Elementary School student Chazlynn Pua Queja, daughter of Chad Queja and Jerilyn Pua, of Pahala.

HOMELESSNESS CONTINUES to be a focus at county, state and federal levels
Gov. David Y. Ige signed a fourth supplemental proclamation on homelessness, which will remain in effect until late June. The supplemental proclamation allows the state to continue its coordinated efforts with the counties to create short- and long-term housing projects statewide.
Under the most recent extension, the proclamation cut the development time by up to a year for units specifically dedicated to homeless persons. There are three such housing projects currently underway.

Miss Peaberry candidate Jazmyn Navarro

“Extending the proclamation will continue the momentum,” said Scott Morishige, the Governor’s Coordinator on Homelessness. “It’s the right thing to do. When we consider the number of homeless individuals in our state, we must employ every tool at our disposal to connect these people to homes as quickly as possible. This is a statewide issue which affects nearly everyone.”

Since October 2015, the emergency proclamation has temporarily suspended laws that impede or are detrimental to rapid and efficient execution of emergency functions.
Projects currently underway include the following a 32-unit permanent supporting housing project by Hawai`i County in Kona.
U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee advanced the Fiscal Year 2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, legislation that will provide key funding for programs to support Native Hawaiian housing and address homelessness. Sen. Brian Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing and Urban Development, worked to ensure more homeless assistance funds go to states with a greater need for housing resources. He also worked to include $5 million in funding for the Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant program and additional resources for affordable housing programs in Hawai`i and across the country.

Miss Peaberry candidate Chazlynn Pua Queja

“Homelessness and affordable housing are major challenges for us in Hawai`i, and this bill increases federal resources the state can use to help families access safe, affordable housing,” Schatz said. “Hawai`i will need the federal government to remain a strong partner in the effort to combat homelessness, and this bill is a good start. It provides funding for housing assistance including veterans housing vouchers, shelters, supportive housing and homelessness service providers.”

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VOLCANO SCHOOL OF ARTS & SCIENCES Middle School classes present Theater Night Spring 2016 on Thursday, May 5. Each class performs a one-act play with a comic theme.
Sixth grade offers Poultry in Motion by Patrick Rainville Dorn. The fractured fable scrambles the stories of Chicken Little, who believes the sky is falling, and the Little Red Hen, who tries to get her feather-brained friends to stop loafing around and bake some bread. Meanwhile, Foxy Loxy is lurking nearby Young MacDonald’s Free-Range Poultry Farm, hoping to snatch some chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys for an afternoon buffet.

Seventh grade takes on the humorous murder mystery No Body to Murder by Edith Weiss. Bad news, in the form of severe thunderstorms and an escaped convict, threatens the guests at the Come On Inn of Nova Scotia. By the end of the day, gung-ho aerobics instructor Billie Body is mysteriously murdered during a power outage. Was it the cook’s lemonade that poisoned her, or did someone else have a hand in Body’s death? Inspector Black, on the scene in search of the escaped convict, has his job cut out for him. Suspicions range from Garth the gardener, who weeds with an axe, to an inept doctor on holiday from malpractice suits, to a hairdresser who constantly changes her appearance. Everyone has a hidden motive to want Billie Body dead.

In their final performance for VSAS, eighth-grade students perform After Hours by Kevin Stone. All is quiet on the storefront as the owner of a small clothing shop locks up for the night. Little does she know that when the lights go out, activity in her store really picks up. Two lively mannequins, LuAnn and Patty, have been waiting all day for a chance to loosen up. When they discover fellow mannequin Danny in a mistakenly delivered crate, the night really gets interesting. He not only gets out of his box, he thinks outside the box when a pair of bungling burglars breaks in.
To find out how these zany plots resolve, head to Kilauea Military Camp Theater in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Curtain is at 6 p.m. Admission is free; donations are gratefully accepted.
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LEARN ABOUT THE VITAL ROLE of `ohi`a lehua in native Hawaiian forests, the many forms of the `ohi`a tree and the lehua flower tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. at the Kahuku Unit of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. See nps.gov/havo.

Learn about the health benefits of kalo tomorrow. Photo from NPS

TOMORROW IS NATIONAL PARK Rx DAY, a community health initiative to “prescribe” time in parks to promote wellness.

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park Park rangers and Dr. Craig Kadooka lead an easy, one-mile roundtrip hike of upper `Iliahi Trail. Meet at Kilauea Visitor Center lanai. The first 200 walkers receive a reusable water bottle and fresh fruit. Hawaiian practitioners Edna and Sam Baldado demonstrate the health benefits of kalo, and Ka`ohu Monfort shares how Hawaiians use plants to heal and cure. HMSA will also provide a table with health information.
National Park Week ends tomorrow, with free entry to the park continuing today and tomorrow.

JAZZ IN THE FOREST CONTINUES with performances at 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. a week from today on Saturday, April 30. The shows at Volcano Art Center in Volcano Village feature the Jazz guitar artistry of Curt Warren and Grammy-nominated guitarist Reggie Griffin with Volcano Art Center’s Jazz Ensemble.
Tickets are $20 for VAC members and $25 for non-members for both shows. Ticket holders will be able to purchase wine and Volcano Red Ale and Mauna Kea Pale Ale from Mehana Brewing Company before each performance.
Tickets are available at volcanoartcenter.org, VAC’s Administration Office in Volcano Village and VAC Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.