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| The tower at Kulani Cone, with transmitters that will send two Hawai`i Public Radio station streams, HPR-1 and HPR-2 further into Ka`u, following the acquisition of the KAHU community radio license in Pahala. Photo by Don Mussell |
HPR will provide two channels. The existing is HPR-1, now transmitted to a small area of Ka`u from a KAHU radio transmitter at the historic bank and radio building on Maile Street in Pahala. Its new frequency will be 89.1 transmitted directly from Kulani Cone. The addition channel, HPR-2, with a separate schedule of programming, will be found at 91.3. Once the new transmitters are broadcasting, HPR will turn its attention to improving the transmission throughout the rest of Ka`u, said HPR's Director of Marketing Phyllis Look, speaking to The Ka`u Calendar newspaper this morning.
The estimated sign-on date is this Wednesday, October 26, after 12 noon. “This marks the completion of the nonprofit station's long-held goal of a radio network spanning the major Hawaiian islands with both of its programming streams,” said a statement from HPR.
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| Civil Defense provided funded equipment, above, installed at KAHU community radio in Pahala for emergency broadcasts throughout Ka`u. The license transferred to Hawai`i Public Radio, which promises to achieve Ka`u-wide coverage, its reach expanding next week from new transmitters on Kulani Cone. Photo by Julia Neal |
José A. Fajardo, HPRʻs new President and General Manager, who recently moved to Hawai`i from Orlando, FL, made the announcement about the broader coverage for HPR-1 and the addition of HPR-2. He gave an address to listeners on Friday, the final day of the station's statewide fall fund drive, which raised $872,162. "This is a historic moment," he said, "made possible by the community of supporters who have kept the faith and supported the station throughout its statewide expansion." The new HPR GM said, "Credit must also go to my predecessor, the visionary Michael Titterton, the networkʻs master builder.”
Titterton visited Ka`u and negotiated the purchase of the license from the KAHU community radio station, which broadcast live from Pahala, funded in part by county and state Civil Defense to provide Ka`u with emergency broadcasting. It offered local news daily from The Ka`u Calendar newspaper, live and recorded music and talk story sessions with many Ka`u celebrities and students. At the time of the purchase of the KAHU license, with all programming switching to a feed from HPR-1 in Honolulu, Titterton said that local broadcasts or shows coming from Ka`u could be possible in the long-term future of HPR.
The new “transmitter project required extensive negotiations for a suitable location, FCC licensing, and structural renovations, as well as scheduling adjustments for extreme weather delays,” said yesterday's HPR statement. A capital campaign began in November 2013, after HPR acquired the broadcast license for the Kaʻu community radio station. HPR achieved its $150,000 goal for the new Kulani transmission site in January 2015. Donations were received from 271 individual charter members, as well as lead gifts from the Atherton Family Foundation, Hawaiian Electric Light Co., KTA Super Stores (in memory of Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi, founders of KTA Super Stores and K. Taniguchi, Ltd.), McInerny Foundation, and the Schafer Philanthropic Family Fund.
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| Hawai`i International Music Festival helped raise money from Ka`u for Hawai`i Public Radio. Among the performers were Eric Silberger. Photo by Carlin Ma |
The Hawai`i International Music Festival held a concert at Pahala Plantation House in August to start raising additional funding from Ka`u supporters of HPR. Donations will soon be sent to the station, said festival co-founder Amy Shoremount-Obra, a soprano with the Metropolitan Opera in New York and family member to Ka`u Coffee farmers and marketers.
The HPR-2 programs, to be broadcast for the first time in Ka`u, include a mix of national and international news, talk, entertainment, and music. Popular programs are Fresh Air (weekdays, 3 p.m.), Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me (Saturdays, 11 a.m.), the station's talk shows The Conversation (weekdays, 8 a.m.) or The Body Show, Bytemarks Café, and Town Square (weekdays, 5 p.m.), and the locally produced jazz, Hawaiian, blues, and Latin music programs. See more at hawaiipublicradio.org
The HPR-2 programs, to be broadcast for the first time in Ka`u, include a mix of national and international news, talk, entertainment, and music. Popular programs are Fresh Air (weekdays, 3 p.m.), Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me (Saturdays, 11 a.m.), the station's talk shows The Conversation (weekdays, 8 a.m.) or The Body Show, Bytemarks Café, and Town Square (weekdays, 5 p.m.), and the locally produced jazz, Hawaiian, blues, and Latin music programs. See more at hawaiipublicradio.org
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A NEW DISPLAY HONORING JAPANESE AMERICAN WORLD WAR II heroes can be seen by Ka`u residents traveling through the Honolulu International Airport. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono commemorated the service of Japanese American World War II veterans yesterday at the Nisei Veterans Legacy Exhibit. It includes profiles of members of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Military Intelligence Service, and the 1399th Engineer Construction Battalion.
Among the Japanese American World War II heroes from Ka`u are Iwao Yonemitsu and the late Toku Nakano. Another war hero with strong Ka`u connections is the late Sen. Dan Inouye who helped kick start the Ka`u Coffee industry with federal grants when sugar workers lost their jobs 20 years ago. Inouye was also key in the doubling of the size of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, much of it in Ka`u.
During yesterday’s ceremonies, Hirono said that “Through this exhibit, millions of people who pass through Honolulu International Airport each year will have the opportunity to learn more about the heroism and service of Japanese American World War II veterans, who bravely fought for the United States even as their loyalty was questioned at home.”
In 2010, Senator Hirono championed legislation to award Japanese American World War II veterans the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the country’s highest civilian honors. Yonemitsu and Nakano were among those who received them.
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THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN CROW, extinct in the wild since 2002, will be released into the native forest, following many years of hard work to bring the ʻalalā species back from the edge of total extinction. More than 100 ʻalalā live in captivity through the Hawaiʻi Endangered Bird Conservation Program at two facilities, including the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center in Kaʻū, near Volcano Village.
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| A new display at Honolulu International Airport is open to the public, honoring Japanese American World War II heroes, including Iwao Yonemitsu and the late Toku Nakano. Photo by Julia Neal |
Among the Japanese American World War II heroes from Ka`u are Iwao Yonemitsu and the late Toku Nakano. Another war hero with strong Ka`u connections is the late Sen. Dan Inouye who helped kick start the Ka`u Coffee industry with federal grants when sugar workers lost their jobs 20 years ago. Inouye was also key in the doubling of the size of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, much of it in Ka`u.
During yesterday’s ceremonies, Hirono said that “Through this exhibit, millions of people who pass through Honolulu International Airport each year will have the opportunity to learn more about the heroism and service of Japanese American World War II veterans, who bravely fought for the United States even as their loyalty was questioned at home.”
In 2010, Senator Hirono championed legislation to award Japanese American World War II veterans the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the country’s highest civilian honors. Yonemitsu and Nakano were among those who received them.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter.
THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN CROW, extinct in the wild since 2002, will be released into the native forest, following many years of hard work to bring the ʻalalā species back from the edge of total extinction. More than 100 ʻalalā live in captivity through the Hawaiʻi Endangered Bird Conservation Program at two facilities, including the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center in Kaʻū, near Volcano Village.
ʻAlalā will be released in the Puʻu Makaʻala Natural Area Reserve, mauka of Volcano on the slopes of Mauna Loa. Owned and managed by the State of Hawaiʻi, Puʻu Makaʻa offers a dense understory with many ʻalalā food plants. providing a quality habitat for ʻalalā.
In November, five males will be released, followed by another seven ʻalalā several months later. “We are very excited to be ready to create a population of this species in its native habitat again,” said Bryce Masuda, conservation program manager for the Hawaiʻi Endangered Bird Conservation Program.
The historical range of ʻalalā extends from North Kona down into Kaʻū and Puna on the slopes of Hualālai and Mauna Loa.
To celebrate the release of ʻalalā back into the wild, the ʻAlalā Project is holding a community event on Saturday, Nov. 19 at Mokupāpapa Discovery Center in downtown Hilo. The free, family-friendly gathering runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will feature video footage of the release, keiki activities, and conservation info booths.
The restoration of ʻalalā to the wild is a partnership between state Division of Forestry and Wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and San Diego Zoo Global. To learn more, visit alalaproject.org.
The historical range of ʻalalā extends from North Kona down into Kaʻū and Puna on the slopes of Hualālai and Mauna Loa.
To celebrate the release of ʻalalā back into the wild, the ʻAlalā Project is holding a community event on Saturday, Nov. 19 at Mokupāpapa Discovery Center in downtown Hilo. The free, family-friendly gathering runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will feature video footage of the release, keiki activities, and conservation info booths.
The restoration of ʻalalā to the wild is a partnership between state Division of Forestry and Wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and San Diego Zoo Global. To learn more, visit alalaproject.org.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter.
A PALM TRAIL HIKE AT KAHUKU IN HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK is free on Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The moderately difficult, 2.6-mile, loop-trail provides one of the best panoramic views Kahuku has to offer. Along the way are relics of the ranching era, sections of remnant native forest and amazing volcanic features from the 1868 eruptive fissures. Kahuku can be hot and dry or cool and rainy. Bring sunscreen, rain gear, good walking shoes for the moderate hike, water and snacks.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
A PALM TRAIL HIKE AT KAHUKU IN HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK is free on Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The moderately difficult, 2.6-mile, loop-trail provides one of the best panoramic views Kahuku has to offer. Along the way are relics of the ranching era, sections of remnant native forest and amazing volcanic features from the 1868 eruptive fissures. Kahuku can be hot and dry or cool and rainy. Bring sunscreen, rain gear, good walking shoes for the moderate hike, water and snacks.
SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.
