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Tuesday, May 10, 2022

Ka‘ū News Briefs, Tuesday, May 10, 2022

The home on left burned to the ground, the home on right is severely damaged from a fire just before midnight Tuesday on Ohai Road in the Nāʻālehu Camp, mauka of Highway 11. Photo by Bob Martin

A FIRE BURNED DOWN ONE NĀ'ĀLEHU HOME and severely damaged the neighboring home Monday night on Ohai Road in Nāʻālehu, mauka of Highway 11 in the old sugar camp housing. Two residents of the house that burned to the ground evacuated and were unharmed, according to Hawai'i Fire Department, which responded to the blaze at 11:58 p.m. finding one house fully engulfed and the other 75 perent engulfed in flames. Firefighters squelched the blaze, as one house collapsed the other largely gutted and surrounding homes saved. The damage is estimated at $610,250 for the two houses. The collapsed home 95-1208 Ohai St. is reportedly in the Dancel family and the gutted home in the Davis family.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see www.facebook.com/kaucalendar/. See latest print edition at. www.kaucalendar.com. See upcoming events at https://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2022/04/upcoming-events-for-kau-and-volcano.html.

EAST KAʻŪ IS PART OF THE NEWLY CERTIFIED EAST HAWAI'I BLUE ZONES COMMUNITY. Blue Zones and HMSA reported Saturday on the new certification for seven communities following "a rigorous process that takes three to five years to complete and signifies a tipping point toward long-term well-being change." Blue Zones seek to increase longevity and look to those places in the world where people live well longest for inspiration and best practices.
    HMSA also released a video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXBEFRlWjtU. It describes "Hawai‘i’s positive impact and how the program is improving health and well-being across Hawai‘i."
    The statement describes Blue Zones Project as "a community-led, well-being improvement initiative designed to make healthy choices easier through permanent changes to lifestyle, environment, policy, and social networks. Since 2015, Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i has impacted more than 738,000 residents, representing 50 percent of Hawai‘i’s population through the certification of Blue Zones Communities in North Hawai‘i, East Hawai‘i, West Hawai‘i, Central Maui, Kapolei-‘Ewa, Mānoa-Makiki-McCully-Mō‘ili‘ili, and Wahiawā."
Blue Zones have promoted a healthier diet through such images
as this one, as well as recipes and cooking demonstrations.
   According to Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i, it has also helped over 1,000 businesses implement well-being best practices, such as walking groups, healthier food options and engagement activities to improve productivity, satisfaction, and retention. Statewide, Blue Zones Project participating employers, including County of Hawai'i , Hawaiian Telcom, and state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs have seen a "34 percent reduction in turnover, a 27 percent decrease in obesity among employees, and a 60 percent increase in average employee performance."
    Kathy Morimoto, HMSA vice president of Clinical Integration and Community Health said, “We’re excited to see the great progress Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i has made in improving the overall health and well-being within communities across the state. By encouraging and elevating communities as a whole to make healthier choices through permanent changes to lifestyle, environment, policy, and social networks, we are confident Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i will continue to generate meaningful impact. It is our goal for family, friends, and neighbors to live their best lives.”
KTA became Blue Zones-approved in 2016, with
various programs for healthy eating. 
    The report from Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i says it has seen dramatic positive outcomes since the baseline measurement year in 2015. Chronic disease factors such as BMI, nutrition, and life evaluation—proven to drive medical costs and productivity—have decreased by 8.8 percent. According to Sharecare’s annual state well-being rankings, Hawai‘i continues to be one of the ‘healthiest’ states in the country; however, there is much more work to be done to address health disparities across the state.
    With the help of community partners, transformations to food policy, tobacco policy, and the built environment have made significant improvements across the state, reports Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i. It helped secure more than $200 million in grant funding towards improvements in policies, programs, and infrastructure projects, such as improving access to healthy food as well as pedestrian safety across the state through quick build projects.
    Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i also reports that its volunteers provided in-kind service valued at $528,332 towards the betterment of the community and Blue Zones Project participating organization initiatives.
  To learn more about Blue Zones Project, contact the Blue Zones Project - Hawai‘i team at bluezonesprojecthawaii@sharecare.com or visit www.bzphawaii.com.

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see www.facebook.com/kaucalendar/. See latest print edition at. www.kaucalendar.com. See upcoming events at https://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2022/04/upcoming-events-for-kau-and-volcano.html.

Flyer for Kahuapono 2022 Student Enrichment Program.
Image from Three Mountain Alliance.
APPLICATIONS DUE FOR KAHUAPONO STUDENT ENRICHMENT PROGRAM by Friday, May 13. This two-week program from June 27-July 8 is based in Keauhou, Kaʻū and will engage students in hands-on activities, service projects, and observation and reflection activities grounded in mālama ʻāina. Students must be in 6th-12th grade when applying. For an application, go to:

LANDSCAPING WITH NATIVE HAWAIIAN PLANTS on Saturday, May 14 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus led by instructor Zach Mermel of Ola Design Group. In this hands-on workshop, you’ll interact first-hand with a variety of native plants found throughout Hawai’i and learn how to integrate these plant allies into your home ecosystem. Class fee is $35/$30 for VAC members. To register, call (808) 967-8222 or visit volcanoartcenter.org/events/.

KAHUKU COFFEE TALK: ʻUAʻU: THE ENDANGERED HAWAIIAN PETREL on Saturday, May 14 from 9:30 - 11 a.m. at Kahuku Unit Visitor Center. Coffee Talk at Kahuku is an opportunity to get to know your Park and your neighbors, and join an informal conversation on a wide variety of topics on the second Saturday of every month. Entrance located south of the 70.5 mile marker on the mauka side of Hwy 11.
Flyer for Coffee Talk at Kahuku: 'Ua'u, The Endangered
Hawaiian Petrel. Image from Kahuku Unit,
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

SEE MORE UPCOMING EVENTS IN KAʻŪ & VOLCANO
See The Ka'ū Calendar May edition at
www.kaucalendar.com, on newsstands and in the mail.\