Ka`u News Briefs Sunday, July 5, 2015

South Side Shaka Restaurant & Bar wins Most Imaginative in Na`alehu's Fourth of July Parade Saturday, with Hawaiian Idol winner
 Victor Sonma, who will soon go to American Idol tryouts in Las Vegas. Photo by Peter Anderson

KA`U FAMILIES ENJOYED A FUN-FILLED Fourth of July in Na`alehu Saturday. The parade, sponsored by O Ka`u Kakou, drew pa`u riders on horseback, community groups walking and riding on decorated vehicles and floats, participants competing for Most Imaginative and Most Patriotic categories. Thy Word Ministries-Ka`u won Most Patriotic, and South Side Shaka was Most Imaginative. Grand Marshall was Kaohi Mokuhali`i. Pa'u Queen was Lorilee Lorenzo in a gown on horseback. Miss Ka'u Cofee Maria Miranda graaced the parade representing th Ka'u Coffee farmers.
A two-day rodeo followed the parade.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

 

Thy Word Ministry took the Most Patriotic Trophy at Na`alehu July 4 parade yesterday. Photo by Peter Anderson

EAST KA`U’S STATE SEN. RUSSELL RUDERMAN, who owns Island Naturals grocery stores, has made a public statement that he  implemented a $10 per hour minimum wage for his employees as of July 2015. While most staff are already above $10 per hour, some entry-level employees received an unexpected raise in their paycheck this month as the company adopted the voluntary higher minimum wage standard, he said. 

Grand Marshall of the Na`alehu Fourth of July parade was Kaohi Mokuhali`i.
Photo by Peter Anderson

       Ruderman, who recently received the state Small Business Administration’s Businessperson of the Year Award, said  he believes strongly in investing in his staff for motivational and retention purposes. “In recent months, we have seen some national companies raise their minimum wage voluntarily, and we want to be in the forefront of this movement locally,” Ruderman said. “But it’s also the right thing to do. Treating employees well, and paying them well, is good business. Island Naturals values our staff and strives to provide a good work environment, higher wages than local standards, and treats staff with respect.

   “While $10/hour is not a true living wage in Hawai`i, this is a step in the right direction, as raising our minimum also results in higher wages for mid-level staff. Doing so approaches a living wage for more and more workers. We are happy to share our success with our staff, and we all work together to make our company successful.”
      Island Naturals operated three naturals food stores on the Big Island, in Hilo, Pahoa and Kailua-Kona, with more than 200 employees.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Na`alehu July 4th parade's first-ever Pa`u Queen is Lorilee Lorenzo.
Photo by Peter Anderson

MARTI TOWNSEND IS SIERRA CLUB Hawai`i Chapter’s new director. Sierra Club’s volunteer leaders voted unanimously to name her as director. 

      Townsend comes to the Sierra Club with over ten years of experience in community organizing, public interest advocacy and environmental law.
      “She has an impressive record,” said David Kimo Frankel, Chair of the Sierra Club’s Hawai`i Chapter. “She knows how to empower people so that they can effectively engage policymakers to protect Hawai`i’s resources.”
      Townsend received a certificate in Environmental Law from the University of Hawai`i’s William S. Richardson School of Law in 2005. She is a graduate of Boston University.
      “The Sierra Club is a force for good in the world,” Townsend said. “Club volunteers are fighting to uphold our right to clean energy and protect our special places throughout the islands, and I am honored to help support their efforts.”

Miss Ka`u Coffee Maria Miranda represents the thriving Ka`u Coffee industry,
which includes her own family. Photo by Peter Anderson

      Before joining the Sierra Club of Hawai`i, Townsend served as Executive Director of The Outdoor Circle, a century-old, local, environmental organization working to keep Hawai`i clean, green and beautiful. In this role, she helped advocate for the establishment of Hawai’`’s Environmental Court, which is only the second of its kind in the United States. Her advocacy also supported the broad opposition to the appointment of Carleton Ching as Director of the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Her work at The Outdoor Circle established a program to digitally map all trees in Hawai`i that are protected on the Exceptional Tree list, as well as improve and expand public greenspaces and prevent efforts to weaken Hawai`i’s prohibition against billboards.
      Prior to The Outdoor Circle, Townsend served as Program Director and then interim-Executive Director for KAHEA: The Hawaiian-Environmental Alliance. KAHEA works to protect Hawai`i’s imperiled natural resources and perpetuate the unique Native Hawaiian cultural traditions that rely on them. While at KAHEA, she advocated to establish and enforce protections for Papahanaumokuakea in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, improve public health
protections in the predominately Native Hawaiian community, expand critical habitat for Hawaiian monk seals and uphold protections for the conservation district on Mauna Kea.

Summer Fun checks out the Poke at July 4 Parade. Photo by Teri Martindale

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CO2 EMISSIONS THREATEN OCEAN CRISES, concludes the BBC’s Environment analyst Roger Harrabin. He points to the journal Science, where “experts say the oceans are heating, losing oxygen and becoming more acidic because of CO2. They warn that the 2C maximum temperature rise for climate change agreed by governments will not prevent dramatic impacts on ocean systems. And they say the range of options is dwindling as the cost of those options is skyrocketing,” writes Harrabin.

      The BBC story reports that “twenty-two world-leading marine scientists have collaborated in the synthesis report in a special section of Science journal. They say the oceans are at perilous risk from the combination of threats related to CO2. They believe politicians trying to solve climate change have paid far too little attention to the impacts of climate change on the oceans.”

Ka`u Auto Repair brings a shocking reminder to drive safely each July 4 weekend.
Photo by Julia Neal

      Professor Manuel Barange, director of science at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, said, “Climate change will continue to affect ocean ecosystems in very significant ways, and society needs to take notice and respond. 

      “Some ecosystems and their services will benefit from climate change, especially in the short term, but overall the impacts are predominately negative.
      “Negative impacts are particularly expected in tropical and developing regions, thus potentially increasing existing challenges in terms of food and livelihood security.
      “We are allowing ourselves to travel a uniquely dangerous path, and we are doing so without an appreciation for the consequences that lie ahead."
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Ka`u Multicultural Society celebrates diversity in Ka`u.
Photo by Crystal McIntosh

“THE VISITOR INFORMATION STATION is closed indefinitely,” reads a notice on Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station’s website. “No services, including phone, restrooms or guides, are available. University of Hawai`i closed the facility and the road to the summit on June 24 after protests caused crews to turn around when they were attempting to start construction for the second time.

      “No services, including phone, restrooms or guides, are available,” the website explains. “Please check this website (ifa.hawaii.edu/info/vis) for updates before planning to visit.

      “Mahalo for your understanding and we apologize for the inconvenience.”

      MKVIS is a popular destination for individuals and groups visiting the summit and participating in stargazing organized by the station and tour companies.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Po`o Wai U, the most traditional Hawaiian rodeo event, wrapped up
yesterday at Na`alehu. Other events continue today. Photo by Julia Neal

FOURTH OF JULY RODEO continues today at Na`alehu Rodeo Grounds. Entry is $7 a person. Yesterday wrapped up the first round of many events, and a Po`o Wai U Champion was named, Kahiau Onaka, with a time of 21.24 seconds. Po`o Wai U is the most traditional event, and Hawai`i is the only place where competition takes place. It stems from a tradition of chasing stray cattle in the forest and tying each one onto a forked tree branch pounded into the ground until there is time to move the animal back to the herd.

OBJECTS VISIBLE IN KA`U’S DARK SKIES this month include planets, two full moons and nebulae. Lew Cook described them in this month’s edition of Stars Over Ka`u for The Ka`u Calendar. 

      “Saturn continues his battle with the claws of Scorpius while Jupiter and dancing partner Venus have set,” Cook said. “Venus is at its brightest this month, all the while growing larger. By the end of the month, it has become larger but has slimmed down into a thin crescent.

Bikers patriotic to the U.S. and Hawai`i during the
Fourth of July Parade in Na`alehu.
Photo by Crystal McIntosh

      “The full moon graces us with two appearances this month: the first and 31st of July. The full moon on July 31 is a blue moon. The term blue moon refers to a season that has four full moons rather than three. The fourth full moon was termed blue. Since there are only 12 months in a year, if you have 13 full moons, one month has to have two full moons. The moon appears to go around the Earth in 29.53 days, so one month must have two full moons. But you can bet it won’t be February!
      “There are some rare atmospheric conditions that cause the moon to have a bluish tint. Volcanic eruptions that put huge amounts of dust in the air or major forest fires can do this. After Krakatoa erupted, the moon had a bluish tint, although the sky had a lot of dust. Dust particles need to be larger than typical, lest the moon, sun and stars will be reddened.

      “Pluto, once deemed a planet but now demoted to a dwarf planet, is back in the news. The New Horizons spacecraft has been traveling for ten years to get to Pluto and this month will pass close enough to get pictures and data. Don’t expect to see many pictures, because it requires the radio signal to travel four-plus hours and three billion miles to get to the Earth. The data transmission rate will be only one kilobit per second, about as slow as dial-up was in 1972 here on earth. Pluto is in Sagittarius, and its position is marked on the chart, but please don’t waste your time looking for it, because it is very faint (14th magnitude) and in an area packed with stars. 

      “Those of you who have telescopes or large binoculars can enjoy several nebulae in Sagittarius. Perhaps the best of these is M8, but M7 was also catalogued by Charles Messier. The stars in M7 have had time to blow away the gas and dust that they were created from, but the gas and dust are still in the area of M8. That is what makes the Lagoon nebula, M8, so pretty!”

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.  

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

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_July2015.pdf.

Ka`u News Briefs Saturday, July 4, 2015

Classic Cars are a regular in the Volcano Fourth of July Parade held this morning. Photo by Ron Johnson

Hare Krishna followers pull their wagon at Volcano Parade.
Photo by Ron Johnson

FOURTH OF JULY KICKED OFF this morning with the annual Volcano Parade, with may community groups, businesses and government representatives participating, followed by a morning of music, theater, food, games and arts and crafts sales at Cooper Center on Wright Road. Fourth of July events include a ceremony at Kilauea Military Camp, a parade in Na`alehu and two days of rodeo at Na`alehu rodeo grounds. See more in tomorrow's Ka`u News Briefs.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

NO STEWARDSHIP GRANTS were approved by the County Council’s Finance Committee this week, although more than $1.1 million funded by .25 percent of property taxes sits in a county fund. It is earmarked for nonprofits that help the county care for lands bought with open space funds generated from two percent of property taxes.

Management of Kawa could involve a county and community
partnership in the future. Photo by Julia Neal

     In Ka`u, a partnership with the county exists with the nonprofit group Ka `Ohana O Honu`apo. However, the Honu`apo land around Whittington Beach Park was purchased before two percent funding became available, making the organization ineligible to use the .25 percent stewardship funds at Honu`apo. The Ka `Ohana organization has a crew of volunteers and raises money on its own, receiving grants and donations from other sources.
     At Kawa, Ka `Ohana has a project to cut back invasive plants. Another organization, Na Mamo O Kawa, led by Kai McGuire and Kaui Felder, has been helping to clean the access and other areas used by surfers and other community members and is still working on its formal organization as a 501C3.
     Uhane Pohaku Na Moku O Hawai`i, which is a registered nonprofit with its founders living in Pahala, applied to help steward Kawa. However, the finance committee declined to recommend funding for any project around the island including two in Waipi’o and two in Kohala.
     According to a story in this morning’s Hawai`i Tribune Herald, some members of the County Council this week “quizzed the administration on why grants haven’t been awarded” for the stewardship programs. Reporter Nancy Cook Lauer quoted Puna council member Greggor Ilagan saying, “There’s plenty of money, and the longer we wait, the longer there’s money just sitting there. That’s not what I want to see government become.”

Kawa is a popular fishing and beach-going place for Ka`u residents, now under county stewardship with community members helping. Photo by Julia Neal

    During the meeting, Department of Parks and Recreation Director Clayton Honma presented an analysis of five applications for stewardships around the island, including the one for Kawa. However, “because no council member has sponsored a resolution awarding any money, no action was taken,” the story said. Hawai`i Tribune-Herald reported Honma saying, “We’re Parks and Recreation. We don’t give out grants to begin with. This is our first go-round. When this program fell into our laps, as far as the funding goes and overseeing the funding, there was no person in a position then to review the grants or administer and oversee the applications.”
     Council member Maile David said this morning that a process is needed to better handle the proposals and that perhaps the groups applying for stewardship will be able to reapply.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

UHANE POHAKU NA MOKU O HAWAI`I, Inc. has received a $2,300 grant from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs for its annual Ho`okupu Hula No Ka`u Cultural Festival in Pahala. The free event will be held on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 2 and 3, from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on the grounds of Pahala Plantation House.

Intercultural exchange with dancers from Lana`i, Japan and Pahala with
 music from South Side Serenaders. Photo by Julia Neal

      For opening ceremonies, Uhane invites Ho`okupu from halau, Hawaiian organizations, practitioners and the Hawaiian community in the district of Ka'u.
    Kumu Hula Debbie Ryder, who organizes the event, said, “To follow we have a lineup of great musicians featuring Keaiwa with Demetrius Oliveira, Darlene Ahuna, Wailau Ryder and friends, South Side Serenaders and many more. Halau from O`ahu, Hawai`i Island, Lana`i, Japan and Okinawa will share their styles of hula. Our mistress of ceremonies for the two day event will be Skylark Rossetti.
     “Cultural practitioners will demonstrate skills in lauhala weaving, coconut weaving, poi pounding, la`au lapa`au, lomi lomi and more, interacting with the community and with our visitors from the island and afar,” she said.
      Workshops will be scheduled on Saturday, Oct. 3 at Old Pahala Clubhouse to begin at 8 a.m. with hula, lauhala weaving, `ukulele, slack key and kalo demonstrations.
     “This cultural event will bring the Ka`u community closer and help share their mana`o with others, furthering a sense of place and pride for Pahala,” Ryder said.
     For further information, contact Debbie Ryder, founder and festival coordinator, at 808-649-9334. Festival website is hookupukau.com.
     To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

IT'S ABOUT SAVING ENERGY, NOT ABOUT THE AVIATION, Solar Impulse pilot Andre Borschberg told state officials yesterday in Hawai`i after landing the ultra-light plane that broke records flying from Nagoya, Japan only on solar power. He said that engineers working on designing the plane came up with the lightest materials possible to save fuel. He also talked about going beyond the idea of renewable energy to perpetuating clean energy. The body of the plane carries the message #futureisclean.

Bertrand Piccard will fly Solar Impulse to Phoenix after
 Andre Borschberg's successful flight to Hawai`i.
 Photo from solarimpulse.com.

     Gov. David Ige told the Solar Impulse crew from Switzerland when he met them yesterday that Hawai`i plans for 100 percent renewable energy. The next flight of Solar Impulse is from Hawai`i to Phoenix. The plane flies a maximum of 50 miles an hour and must plan to go around or jump over weather fronts. It flies high during the day to take in the most energy for its solar panels and flies lower near the surface at night as its solar batteries are depleted. Should the solar panels be unable to recharge from the sun the next day, the plane would have to land and be recovered, making ocean crossings the most risky.
      The flight to Phoenix will begin when the weather outlook is suitable. Pilot will be Bertrand Piccard. The two pilots - only one flies at a time - call Solar Impulse, "the first airplane of perpetual endurance, able to fly day and night without a drop of fuel." Its around-the-world flight began in Abu Dhabi on March 9. From Hawai`i it will fly across the U.S., over the Atlantic and Europe and back to Abu Dhabi. See more at solarimpulse.com.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

PARTICIPANTS DISCOVER HAWAIIAN GODDESSES Pele and Hi`iaka and the natural phenomena the sisters represent during a program tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s Kahuku Unit. Visitors experience the sisters coming alive through epic stories depicted in the natural landscape of Kahuku on this moderate one-mile walk.  To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_July2015.pdf.

Ka`u News Briefs Friday, July 3, 2015

A solar-powered airplane completed its flight from Japan at dawn this morning when it landed on O`ahu. Photo from Solar Impulse

RISING LAVA EQUALS RISING REVENUE for Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. Park Public Information Officer Jessica Ferracane told Chris D’Angelo, of Hawai`i Tribune-Herald, that the park collected entrance fees totaling $294,592 between April 21 and May 14, the time period when a lava lake dominated activity at Kilauea caldera. That’s compared to $287,727 for the entire month of April and $337,395 for May.

Visitor counts increased when a lava lake was visible at Kilauea. NPS Photo

      According to Ferracane, the number of visitors increased in April by 10.36 percent more than April 2014 and by 37.01 percent in May over the previous May.
      Hawai`i Tourism Authority connected a 12.6 percent increase in one-day visitors to Hawai`i Island to volcanic activity at the park.
      See hawaiitribune-herald.com.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HAWAI`I BECAME THE SITE OF AVIATION HISTORY this morning. A record-breaking solar flight from Japan reached O`ahu this morning, when Solar Impulse II completed the longest leg of its around-the-world mission. The flight’s mission is to demonstrate the potential of clean technologies.

      At the controls, André Borschberg landed safely in Kalaeloa, O`ahu at 5:55 a.m. after a perilous non-stop flight of five days and nights with speeds no greater than 50 miles per hour.

      Borschberg credited yoga and meditation for helping him during his record-breaking flight. “When I am stressed, it helps me to change my reaction,” he said. Regarding the Solar Impulse project, he said, “One side is aviation, but it is also discovery of a personal nature. It was like a retreat.”

      Borschberg said he could have gone longer and was kind of disappointed when the flight was over.

Andrea Borschberg is greeted with lei by the other Solar Impulse pilot
Bertrand Piccard and Kalaeloa Airport manager Mike Navares
at dawn in Honolulu. Photo from Solar Impulse

      “What André has achieved is extraordinary from the perspective of a pilot,” said fellow pilot Bertrand Piccard. “But furthermore, he has also led the technical team during the construction of this revolutionary prototype.
      “This oceanic flight to Hawai`i demonstrates that if technological solutions exist to fly a plane day and night without fuel, then there is potential for these same efficient technologies to be used in our daily lives and to achieve energy savings to reduce CO2 emissions.
      “We want to inspire our supporters to add their voice to the message on futureisclean.org: a website serving as a petition to convince governments around the globe to implement the necessary clean technology solutions and help ensure that the United Nations’ upcoming Conference on Climate Change is successful in renewing the Kyoto protocol this December in Paris.”
      See solarimpulse.com.
      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK has announced flight plans for July. Management of the park requires use of aircraft to monitor and research volcanic activity, conduct search-and-rescue missions and law enforcement operations, support management of natural and cultural resources and maintain backcountry facilities. 

• July 6 between 6:30 a.m. and 7 a.m. for petrel monitoring from the summit of Kilauea to Mauna Loa at about 9,000-ft. elevation; 
• July 7 and 13 between 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. for petrel monitoring from the summit of Kilauea to Mauna Loa at about 9,000-ft. elevation; 
• July 14 and 16 between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. to transport camp supplies and equipment between Hilina Pali and Kamo`oali`i for control of invasive fountain grass; 
• July 20-22 for ungulate surveys and control work in the Kamo`oali`i area near Hilina Pali, times to be determined; 
• July 24 between 6:30 a.m. and 7 a.m. for petrel monitoring from the summit of Kilauea to Mauna Loa at about 9,000-ft. elevation. 

      In a statement, the park said it regrets any noise impact to residents and park visitors. Dates and times are subject to change based on aircraft availability and weather.
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The Venusian volcano Ozza Mons is near the center of this map. Elongated
flows, many hundreds of miles long, radiate away from the volcano.
Map courtesy of HVO & Dr. Jim Head of Brown University

INSPIRATION FOR THE CURRENT ISSUE of Volcano Watch comes from the skies over Ka`u. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists discuss volcanic activity on Venus in the article. 

      “The planet Venus has been especially prominent in the evening sky these past few weeks, joining Jupiter and a waxing moon in a sparkling, slow-motion dance of celestial bodies,” the article states. “On clear nights at the summit of Kilauea, this spectacle has complemented the other-worldly glow reflected by clouds above the lava lake in Halema`uma`u Crater.
      “Scientists who study Venus have demonstrated convincingly that the planet’s surface has been shaped by active tectonics and volcanic activity for much of its history. Using radar to penetrate the dense Venusian atmosphere, spacecraft flown since the 1980s have revealed an array of volcanic landforms such as lava flows, cones, massive shields, steep-sided lava domes and large rift zones. But no strong evidence of ongoing volcanic activity was found — until recently. 

      “In May 2015, a team of scientists from Germany, Russia, Ukraine and the United States published evidence that Venus may, in fact, be a location of modern volcanism. If true, Venus would join Earth and two of Jupiter’s moons, Io and Europa, in the growing club of celestial bodies in our Solar System known to host active volcanism.
      “The evidence comes from data acquired by the European Space Agency's Venus Express mission. Examining new imagery, the team detected regions of unusually high temperatures—some reaching more than 400 degrees Celsius (752 degrees Fahrenheit) above the planet’s already toasty average surface temperature of about 800 degrees Celsius (1,472 degrees Fahrenheit). The high temperature areas extended over regions ranging from one square kilometer (250 acres) to more than 200 square kilometers (77 square miles).
      “Remarkably, these high temperatures, recorded over several days of repeated observations, mysteriously disappeared in subsequent satellite passes. Based on a careful analysis of the data, mission scientists concluded that the spikes in temperature are best explained as transient heat from active lava flows. We see similar behavior at Kilauea Volcano, where active lava flows are seen as ‘hot spots’ in images from orbiting satellites. Days later, when lava flows have cooled, these spots fade away.
      “The areas of unusually high temperature on Venus occurred in a large rift zone structure – similar to a gigantic Kilauea East Rift Zone. The Venusian rift, called Ganiki Chasma, is located near two prominent volcanoes with the delightful names of Ozza Mons and Maat Mons. This striking geologic feature was identified as a young volcanic landform in data collected by the Soviet Venera missions of the 1980s and the U.S. Magellan mission in the 1990s.
      “Despite the excitement of this new evidence, there were already earlier hints of modern volcanism on Venus. In 2010, studies of the radar properties of one lava flow complex suggested increased subsurface temperatures consistent with cooling lavas. Also, in the late 1980s, and again in 2012, scientists reported temporary increases in sulfur dioxide in Venus’ upper atmosphere (Venusian vog!), another clue that volcanoes may have been recently active.

      “Venus has long been considered an analog for Earth. So, confirming ongoing volcanism there could have exciting implications for better understanding the evolution of our own planet.
      “Imagining actively erupting volcanoes on Earth’s neighbor is exciting to many volcanologists who began their professional careers looking at volcanic features on the moon and Mars. The challenge to confirm or deny the case for active volcanism on Venus and other planetary bodies will certainly inspire a whole new generation of planetary volcanologists.”

      See hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Will dragons return to Na`alehu Park tomorrow to celebrate the Fourth of July?
Photo by Julia Neal

HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK reminds the public that fireworks are prohibited in national parks, including the Fourth of July, according to federal law. Visitors will notice Fireworks Prohibited signs posted near the entrance to the park.

KA`U PANIOLO START THEIR FOURTH OF JULY festivities tomorrow at 8 a.m. with slack roping at Na`alehu Rodeo Grounds. Ka`u Roping & Riding Association’s show begins at 12 p.m. tomorrow and Sunday.

VOLCANO VILLAGE’S FOURTH OF JULY PARADE begins tomorrow at 9 a.m. at the Post Office and travels to Cooper Center on Wright Road, where the celebration continues until 1 p.m.

FOURTH OF JULY in Na`alehu begins with a parade at 12 p.m. that travels from Na`alehu School to Na`alehu Hongwanji. At Na`alehu Park, festivities with food and fun for keiki, kupuna and `ohana begin at 12:30 p.m.

PARTICIPANTS DISCOVER HAWAIIAN GODDESSES Pele and Hi`iaka and the natural phenomena the sisters represent during a program Sunday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s Kahuku Unit. Visitors experience the sisters coming alive through epic stories depicted in the natural landscape of Kahuku on this moderate one-mile walk.

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

See kaucalendar.com/KauCalendar_July2015.pdf.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf
and kaucalenar.com/Directory2015.pdf.