Friday, July 26, 2024

Kaʻū News Briefs July 26, 2024

Aikane Plantation Coffee will represent Kaʻū Coffee at Experience Volcano Festival this
Saturday and Sunday in Volcano Village. Photo by Ophir Danenberg

AT EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, many well known local musicians and more than 60 coffee farmers, food creators, artists, crafters, musicians, dancers, Hawaiian cultural practitioners and vendors will participate at venues around Volcano Village.
Among the musicians are Keoki Kahumoku, Tui Masaniai, Ti Chun, Makana Kamahele and Boni Narito.
Quilts in the Forest is one of the stops
during Experience Volcano Festival.

Other Hawaiian music will come from Huliau, Ola Loa, Mano Ali'i, Brandon Nakano, Kyle Stringz, Tutu Bee, Wes Awana, Adam Kay and Genesis Pililani. More live music will come from Tom Gagne, The Screaming Geckos, Wendell Ing Jazz, and Rocky D'amore.
Among the presenters are Aikane Plantation Coffee Co., Ultraviolet Alchemist, Picking Up the Pieces, Breathing Space Hawaii, Ola's Creations, Nap Glass & Spiral Triangle Studios, Coby’s Creations, Bao & Dim and Paradise Preserved,
Also presenting will be Bella Anela Jewelry, 50 Designz/Grindz & Ka`u Designz, Kolea Creations, Volcano Community Foundation, Lock-Jaw Lemon Peel, Ka`u Kreations Boutique, TLC Oils, Fused Fragments, Dov Abrams, Marty Davis, Love Bali By Archer Kelly, Yurts Of Hawaii, Hilo Baykery, Diane Hanzel, Nani Diaz, and Periwinkle Moon.
On hand will be Garimo’s Real Soap Studio, Eclectic Virgo Creations, Kealoha Gifts, Pukana Lā Farms, Looking Glass Stained Glass Artwork, Misty Vaught, Lakuna Links, Aunties Aloha Lemonade, Alchemy Farm Hawaii, Yolanda's Gifts With aloha, Kumiko Designs, Cocoa Rose Hawaii and Scott Pincus.
Other presenters include Warren Ink, Hawaii Pacific Parks Association, Na Makua Designs, Lynda Nolte Watercolors, Momi’s Confections, Island Love Studio, Tamisha Lee Glassworks, Luti Fine Arts, Big Island Luffa, Shay Hachiya, J.M. Designs, Lucky's Island Street Food & Tacos, Mystic Rebel, Mala Hanai Pua, Ohu Bean, Chunkies, Quilts In The Forest, and Aunty Ponds Thai Food Truck.
See map and schedule and visit www.experiencevolcano.com.



SIGNIFICANT CRACKS AND BUCKLING ON CHAIN OF CRATERS ROAD led to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park keeping it closed between Hilina Pali Road intersection and the Maunaulu parking lot. That section, however, reopened to bicycles and pedestrians on Friday.
    The Park statement says, "The cracks likely formed due to the intrusion of magma into the Upper East Rift Zone of Kīlauea volcano this week. The park engineer and rangers inspected the road this afternoon and discovered 10 locations with cracks and buckling, making it unsafe for motorists. Rangers placed signs to warn bicyclists and pedestrians of the uneven pavement."
    Escape Road between Nāhuku lava tube and Maunaulu, and Crater Rim Trail south of Nāhuku, are also open. The previously closed backcountry areas have reopened but trailheads can only be accessed on foot
Magma intrusion under Chain of Craters Road has apparently lifted the surface, almost like
a wave. A section has been closed off to all but walkers and bicyclists. NPS photo

 or bicycle. Kulanaokuaiki Campground has reopened and is accessible on foot or bicycle.
    Kīlauea is not erupting, and according to the 
Rangers and engineers found ten locations with cracks
and buckling of Chain of Craters Road.
USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
, the unrest in the Upper East Rift Zone that began July 22 has ended. More than 1,500 detected earthquakes were recorded between July 22 and July 26, including 30 earthquakes at magnitude-3 or greater.
    The park will monitor Chain of Craters Road over the weekend. Park visitors are urged to plan ahead and check the park website for any closure or hazard alerts at www.nps.gov/hawaiivolcanoes.

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COMMUNITY MARSHALLESE AND HAWAIIAN COORDINATOR JOBS are offered in Kaʻū along with a Lead Student Coordinator position. See https://www.recyclehawaii.org/join-our-team. The three positions, with work available as early as Aug. 5, come through Recycle Hawai'i and Kaʻū High's Global Learning Lab with its three year Hawai'i Youth Clean Stream Campaign and Waste-to-Wealth Initiative, funded by the EPA. The slogan of Recycle Hawai'i is "Think Global, Act Island" and its mission is "Transforming the Culture of Waste."
    Both the Marshallese and Hawaiian positions require native language reading and writing skills and a commitment and ability to outreach into these communities. They are part-time positions, with three days a week at the school, and include off island travel. The positions earn $35.000 to $42,000 a year. 
    The Lead Student Coordinator position is for someone who has worked with high school students and will coordinate group field trips, assist with classroom instruction and help students with photography, videography and documenting their progress. The coordinator will also help transport students in the program from around Kaʻū and assist with travel. The position provides $45,000 to $50,000 a year in compensation.
     The Hawai'i Youth Clean Stream Campaign and Waste-to-Wealth Initiative is a three year grant program that aims to embed environmental justice initiatives in programs designed to significantly reduce the volume of waste sent to landfills on Hawaiʻi Island. The partnership between Recycle Hawaiʻi and the Kaʻū Global Learning Lab fosters the development of youth-led, community-based education campaigns that promote composting, raise awareness about plastic pollution, and inform the public about ongoing recycling opportunities.
    See details of the program, jobs available and apply at https://www.recyclehawaii.org/join-our-team,

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. Support this news service with advertising at kaunews.com. 7,500 copies in the mail and on stands.


State Department of Health has launched a public awareness program Beat Diabetes. It runs through October,

A BEAT DIABETES PREVENTION PROGRAM was recently launched to motivate people with prediabetes to adopt healthier behaviors to prevent Type 2 diabetes. The public is encouraged to take the Prediabetes Risk Assessment and talk with a health care provider about the need for additional testing. For people with blood glucose levels in the prediabetes range, participation in a lifestyle change program, like the Beat Diabetes Prevention Program, can lower the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
    Type 2 diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in Hawai'i and the number one cause of blindness, kidney failure, and lower limb amputations in the U.S. Diabetes complications are caused by high blood glucose, also known as blood sugar that damages small blood vessels and nerves. People with prediabetes do not yet have blood sugar levels in the diabetes range, but are at high risk for developing diabetes.
    "We should be investing more in preventing diabetes than expanding dialysis capacity," said state Director of Health Dr. Kenneth Fink. "We unfortunately have significant health inequities with Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders having higher rates of diabetes and progression to kidney failure. Increasing prevention efforts and improving disease management will help address this."

Image from BeatDiabetes.hawaii.gov
  "The good news about prediabetes is that having it doesn't automatically mean that you will develop diabetes," said Lola Irvin, DOH Chronic Disease Prevention & Health Promotion Division administrator. "Making lifestyle changes to lose weight, such as eating healthier and increasing physical activity, can prevent the development of diabetes and may also reverse prediabetes back into the normal blood glucose range."
    For people with prediabetes, losing just 5-7 percent of body weight may reduce the chance of developing diabetes by more than 50 percent for adults at high risk. However, making the necessary lifestyle changes to prevent diabetes may feel overwhelming. Enrolling in a lifestyle change program like the Beat Diabetes Prevention Program can be the easy first step to help build new, healthy habits. Participants will join a group of people with prediabetes and learn from a trained lifestyle coach.
    "My role is to guide our participants through a certified Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) diabetes prevention program, providing support and encouragement as they go through their journey to a healthier lifestyle to prevent Type 2 diabetes," said Jen Valera, a master life coach with the Hawai'i Primary Care Association.
    The DOH statement said that participants have highlighted how the program and the group support have led to positive life changes:"Having the support of others helps me stay motivated. When I'm not feeling up to eating healthy or exercising, they help me through it." - Cory A."The program started my weight loss journey. It's inspired me to do a lot of things in life, and I've come a long way." – Lei K.
    The Beat Diabetes campaign will run through October. To take the Prediabetes Risk Test or sign up for the Beat Diabetes Prevention Program, visit BeatDiabetes.hawaii.gov.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. Support this news service with advertising at kaunews.com. 7,500 copies in the mail and on stands.


The Reunion features the screening of a PBS film Ka'u Sugar,
A Town Remembers 
on the history of the sugar plantation
 and the closing of the mill in 1996


5,500 in the mail, 2,000 on the streets Volcano to Miloli'i
 See www.kaunews.com