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| Berta Miranda tells her story of fleeing El Salvador, toiling as a picker on the mainland and landing here to become a coffee field worker, saving money to buy land and becoming a successful coffee farmer and business owner. She is featured in the series Where Coffee Takes You. See the film on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSxFk4rZVgE. |
THE STORY OF BERTA MIRANDA'S ESCAPE FROM THE EL SALVADOR CIVIL WAR to Kaʻū and the creation of the successful Miranda's Kaʻū Coffee farms is the subject of a new film. It is called Massacres to Miracles: One Woman's Incredible Journey to Hawai‘i's Best Coffee, Where Coffee Takes You: Kaʻū.
The production is the work of Kirk Berossian, founder of Angelino's Coffee in Los Angeles, and was filmed at Miranda's Coffee farms and, in part, at Pāhala Plantation House. It is one in a series titled
Where Coffee Takes You that illustrates the personal stories of coffee farming in 48 countries.
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| Where Coffee Takes You filmmaker Kirk Berossian and Berta Miranda, star of new film on Miranda's Coffee. |
Berta and her husband Jose came to Kaʻū in 1996. In the film, she says they arrived as agricultural laborers, picking 1,000 lbs. of coffee a day for 12 years, and saved money towards their dream to own a coffee farm.
In the film, Berta explains why she left El Salvador. She says that during the Civil War, when she was 14, she witnessed bombs going off and people dying. She says four men came to her family home, asking for money and guns. She says her family had no money and the intruders killed her brother and grandpa, broke her mother's arm, and hung her father with a belt. Her mother cut him down and saved him. The family left El Salvador when she was 17 and picked fruit on the West Coast before coming to Kaʻū.
Berta describes the first harvest of her family's own coffee in Kaʻū and says that after 16 years of working to buy land they achieved "the American Dream." They purchased their farm in Moa‘ula and entered a cupping competition, earning first place for Kaʻū Coffee and first place in the state.
Mirandas now own 40 acres of Kaʻū Coffee, including their farm near South Point Road along Hwy 11 where they also serve food and operate a coffee tasting and gift store. "I love to be every day in the field.... My coffee trees are my babies," says Berta, as she teaches the filmmaker how to pick coffee.
Berta's daughter Maria Miranda is a former Miss Ka'u Coffee and an ambassador of the local industry, as well as a partner in the Miranda coffee business.
See the film on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSxFk4rZVgE.
Learn more about Miranda Farms at www.mirandasfarm.com
Learn more about Kirk Berossian, Angelino's Coffee and Where Coffee Takes You at https://angelinos.com/.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.
SIGN UP BY MONDAY, APRIL 29 TO ATTEND KAʻŪ HIGH & PĀHALA ELEMENTARY
SIGN UP BY MONDAY, APRIL 29 TO ATTEND KAʻŪ HIGH & PĀHALA ELEMENTARYSHOWCASE of students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 on Wednesday, May 1.
The event takes attendees from door to door to classrooms where students present special projects.
A statement from the school says, "Our Learning Intentions are to:
"Provide students an opportunity to practice their presentation skills and demonstrate their learning;
"Create opportunities for students to share their class projects with other students, community partners, and family;
"Build pride in our students, school, and community by showcasing various student and school projects done in collaboration with the community such as project-based learning, technology integration, and other real-world projects;
"Practice and prepare for Capstone presentations in grades 6, 8, and 12 starting in Spring SY 24-25."
Here is the schedule for the Student Showcase:
9:15 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.: Check in at the District Gym MPR (open until 12pm for any later arrivals)
10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.: Visit 7-12, Showcase Classrooms
11:25 a.m. - 12:25 p.m.: Visit K-6, Showcase Classrooms
Those interested in attending can complete this Google Form by Monday, April 29.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.
THE FIFTH ANNUAL EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL has announced its call for vendors. It will be held on Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 28, at venues throughout Volcano Village. Learn more, sign up to be a vendor or volunteer and join the Experience Volcano organization at www.experiencevolcano.com or email experiencevolcano@pb06.wixemails.com
To see more on the festival, visit www.experiencevolcano.com.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.
"Provide students an opportunity to practice their presentation skills and demonstrate their learning;
"Create opportunities for students to share their class projects with other students, community partners, and family;
"Build pride in our students, school, and community by showcasing various student and school projects done in collaboration with the community such as project-based learning, technology integration, and other real-world projects;
"Practice and prepare for Capstone presentations in grades 6, 8, and 12 starting in Spring SY 24-25."
Here is the schedule for the Student Showcase:
9:15 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.: Check in at the District Gym MPR (open until 12pm for any later arrivals)
10:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.: Visit 7-12, Showcase Classrooms
11:25 a.m. - 12:25 p.m.: Visit K-6, Showcase Classrooms
Those interested in attending can complete this Google Form by Monday, April 29.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.
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| Experience Volcano Festival is set for the weekend of July 27, and is offering opportunities for vendors and volunteers. Photo by Jesse Tunison |
THE FIFTH ANNUAL EXPERIENCE VOLCANO FESTIVAL has announced its call for vendors. It will be held on Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 28, at venues throughout Volcano Village. Learn more, sign up to be a vendor or volunteer and join the Experience Volcano organization at www.experiencevolcano.com or email experiencevolcano@pb06.wixemails.com
To see more on the festival, visit www.experiencevolcano.com.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. See 7,500 copies the mail and on stands.
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