Ka`u News Briefs April 23, 2011

Bull Kailiawa, who won top in Hawai`i and one of the top ten in the world at SCAA this year, checks his coffee.
Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

THE BULL KAILIAWA FAMILY, of Pahala, has won the top prize for the best coffee in all of Hawai`i and the only winner from the United States at the annual Specialty Coffee Association of America Cupping Competition. Hawai`i will be honored at the annual SCAA convention in Houston next weekend as one of the top ten coffee growing places in the world. Ka`u was rated the top region in

Bull Kailiawa  Photo by Teresa Tico

Hawai`i, and Bull Kailiawa was the top scoring coffee farmer. This is the fifth straight year that Ka`u coffee has ranked in the top dozen, and all the winning coffee is grown on coffee lands above Pahala.
     Last year’s winner was Willie Tabios, of Na`alehu.
     Kailiawa’s typica coffee ranked in the top ten worldwide alongside two coffees from Colombia, two from Honduras, two from El Salvador, two from Guatemala and one from Bolivia.

THE MISS KA`U COFFEE competition has drawn donors for scholarships to be saved for higher education of the winners. Scholarships were donated by the Edmund C. Olson Trust, `Aina Koa Pono, the Ka`u Federal Credit Union, Golden Pacific Farms, Sen. Gil Kahele, Rep. Bob Herkes, Punalu`u Bakeshop, KAHU RADIO 91.7 FM, Ka`u Coffee Mill, R&G Mini Mart, Ka`u Royal Coffee, the Ka`u Calendar newspaper and hundreds of $5 donations to Friends of Miss Ka`u Coffee Pageant.

Ulu Makuakane, 2010 Ka`u Coffee Queen, will  welcome
 the 2011 Miss Ka`u Coffee Queen tonight at the pageant.
Photo by Geneveve Fyvie

     The pageant is tonight at 5:30 p.m., with music and dance at Ka`u High School gym. Food will be offered for sale before the pageant and during intermission.

THE BOARD OF WATER SUPPLY agenda on Tuesday includes proposing new regulations to allow the testing of potable water for radiation. Groundwater from Waimea has already been sent to the mainland for testing by the state Department of Health’s Radiological Branch. If the Board of Water Supply approves such testing, the Department of Water would be able to include radiation in its testing protocol. The testing comes after the tsunami and ongoing release of radiation from broken power plants in Japan. The results from the health department should be back by May. The radiation would enter the groundwater as it drops from the sky in the rain.
     The water board is also planning a hearing for May 24 in Kona regarding hiking water bills to cover the increased cost of electricity. The power cost charged on each water bill could go from $1.89 per 1,000 gallons to as high as $2.25 per 1,000 gallons.

A CURRENT NATIONWIDE CAMPAIGN called Drunk Driving: Over the Limit, Under Arrest seeks to reduce the number of drunken drivers on the highways. On the Big Island, police will conduct DUI checkpoints and roving patrols through the Merrie Monarch festival. There have been eight traffic fatalities and more than 400 DUI arrests in the first four months of this year on the Big Island. No matter how far you are from Ka`u, the police urge you to take a taxi, hitch a ride with a friend, or stay where you are if you are over the limit.

Parishioners carried a cross through Pahala on Good Friday during
the Stations of the Cross ceremony.  Photo by Julia Neal

THE STATIONS OF THE CROSS CEREMONY, when parishioners walk through Pahala carrying a cross, has been traditional for generations. Members of the Holy Rosary Church set up stations in front of their homes on Good Friday, and the walkers arrived to sing and pray. It is commonly held on Good Friday and dates back to Jerusalem in the 1300s and spread to Europe. It is a Catholic tradition but also practiced by some Lutherans. Its purpose is to make a pilgrimage honoring the last hours of Jesus’ life before his crucifixion, meditating on his sufferings, death and rebirth. Pope John Paul II called it the “unceasing effort to stand beside the endless crosses on which the Son of God continues to be crucified.”

THY WORD MINISTRIES’ annual Easter Family Fun Day happens today from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Na`alehu Hongwanji. There will be food, games, prizes, an Easter egg hunt, music and hula.

Hwy 11 in Ka`u may become a State Scenic Byway.
Photo by Julia Neal

THE NEW SCENIC BYWAYS designation for Hwy 11 through Ka`u will be the topic of the Ka`u Chamber of Commerce meeting on Monday, April 25 at Ocean View Community Center at 6:30 p.m. Such topics as how long and where to make the scenic byway, what to name it, and what elements of Ka`u to stress in the signage will be discussed.

AS PART OF NATIONAL PARK WEEK, Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park is waiving entrances fees to the park through Sunday. Volcano Art Center Gallery hosts a program about the Art & Traditions of Hula at Kilauea today. Hula kahiko performances and talk story sessions take place from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

     Tomorrow, Kilauea Military Camp hosts an Easter egg hunt at 9 a.m., with registration starting at 7:30 a.m. KMC’s Crater Rim Café serves an Easter brunch from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Easter dinner from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.