Kaʻū News Briefs Aug. 17, 2024

NPS Photo of the exterior of the one-story Kīlauea Visitor Center and its large sign next to a four-paned window. The last After Dark in the Park until Park renovations are complete is this Tuesday. NPS photo

THE LAST AFTER DARK IN THE PARK PROGRAM until completion of renovations of Kīlauea Visitor Center will be next Tuesday at 7 p.m. Also on hold will be Nā Leo Manu and other park programs. They will be temporarily suspended as KVC is rehabilitated, new exhibits are installed, restrooms rebuilt and the lānai replaced by an expanded covered hālau (pavilion). 

    This Tuesday, Park managers will share details about the temporary relocation of visitor services and share updates about the ongoing 2018 disaster recovery projects developed after the volcanic eruption that took out buildings, roads and other infrastructure

    The session is part of Hawai‘i Volcanoes’ ongoing After Dark in the Park programs and co-sponsored by the Friends of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Free, but park entrance fees apply. It will be held at 
Kīlauea Visitor Center auditorium.

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WHO RUNS THIS PARK recently  released an episode featuring Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Superintendent Rhonda Loh, who has volunteered and worked at the park for over 30 years.
Who Runs This Park is a podcast and newsletter showcases the untold stories of people serving and protecting our national parks for over 100 years. 

    "The stories of national park superintendents have never before gotten the attention and appreciation they deserve," says a statement from Hawai' Volcanos. "How you view our National Parks and protected lands will change and you will leave more inspired. At the precipice of unprecedented challenges in the park service and in conservation in general, these conversations are crucial. Together we are building a community of park enthusiasts and stewards."
Go to https://linktr.ee/whorunsthispark

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. Support this news service with advertising at kaunews.com. 7,500 copies in the mail and on stands.

HAWAI'I COFFEE ASSOCIATION SENT OUT A MAHALO ON FRIDAY to thank those who attended its recent 29th annual Conference, Trade Show and Statewide Cupping Competition on O'ahu. The organization is led by Pres. Bill Dwyer, President and CEO of Kona Mountain Coffee. 

    The statement says, "We are thrilled with the incredible success of this year's Hawai'i Coffee Association Annual Conference. Selling out and seeing such enthusiastic participation in our diverse range of presentations was truly rewarding. We were also excited to expand our workshop offerings to six unique opportunities to learn from cherry to cup. The turnout and support from our community are a testament to the dedication of the coffee community here in Hawai'i. We look forward to continuing to support and grow this industry together."

     See Kaʻū farmers' cupping results, a new Grown with Aloha consumer guide to the Hawai'i Coffee industry, description of new legislation to ensure truth in labeling of Hawaiian coffee and approaches to treating Coffee Leaf Rust and other threats to the coffee farmers at https://hawaiicoffeeassoc.org/

To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see facebook.com/kaucalendar. See upcoming events, print edition and archive at kaunews.com. Support this news service with advertising at kaunews.com. 7,500 copies in the mail and on stands.

A HISTORY FILM ON PLANTATION DAYS WILL BE SHOWN SUNDAY AT 2 p.m. at Pāhala Community Center. The showing and discussion is open to the public and is one of the highlights of the event called Reminisce & Talk Story, presented by alumni of Kaʻū High & Pāhala Elementary School from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the same venue. The day is organized by the Class of 1970.

Kaʻū Sugar: A Town Remembers is from filmmaker Cliff Watson whose wife Audrey Teramoto Watson grew up in Pāhala. The film captures the experience of the people who lived in village during the time of the sugar company and its closure in 1996. The film includes black and white portraits of sugar workers, homes, town and the sugar mill by famed photographer Franco Salmoiraghi.
    A second film, sponsored by the Hawai'i Tourism Authority, illustrates the rise of the Kaʻū Coffee industry.

    Darlyne and Winslow Vierra, of Ka'u Multicultural Society, will display their collection of Kaʻū photos and other historical items, including Kaʻū yearbooks. 

    The alumni organization invites everyone to its reunion events, celebrated for the past 22 years, except during COVID pandemic years in 2020 and 2021.      

    

The Reunion features the screening of a PBS film Ka'u Sugar,
A Town Remembers on the history of the sugar plantation
 and the closing of the mill in 1996. It will also feature a film 
on history of the local coffee industry.