Ka`u News Briefs Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2015

A vogbow stretches across the Ka`u landscape. Claire Horwell, a researcher from the United Kingdom, asks Ka`u residents to share their experiences dealing with vog. Photo from Vog Talk on facebook

WHETHER OR NOT HAWAI`I COUNTY should accept an attorney’s offer of free representation to defend its law restricting genetically modified crops is on the County Council’s agenda today.

Earthjustice Attorney Paul Achitoff

      An Associated Press story in Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported that, according to West Hawai`i Today, Paul Achitoff, managing attorney for Earthjustice’s mid-Pacific regional office, made the offer.
      Attorneys representing groups challenging the law are urging Council members not to accept Achitoff’s offer. Margery Bronster and Rex Fuji­chaku say Achitoff has a conflict of interest because groups opposing genetically modified organisms have a different agenda from the county.
      The county ordinance bans growing GMO crops in open-air conditions, with some exceptions.
      U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren in November ruled the county's law was invalid because state law pre-empts county law on the issue.
      The County Council in December voted 5-4 to appeal Kurren’s ruling.

      See staradvertiser.com.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Ka`u's Hawai`i County Council member Maile Medeiros David
Image from Hawai`i County

HAVING PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT applications be reviewed and acted on by either the Leeward or Windward Planning Commission, depending on properties’ locations, got unanimous approval of Hawai`i County Council’s Planning Committee yesterday. Currently, only the Planning director has to approve PUDs, and public notice follows the decisions. Decisions can be overturned by the Board of Appeals and the Third Circuit Court. 

      While the initial intent of the PUD was to make for better planning by avoiding simple cookie cutter developments, PUDs are sometimes used by developers to obtain smaller, more desirable lots for estates and houses.
      “The director-approved process may have worked 30 years ago, but as we grow, I see this as an evolvement, and this is an appropriate time to bring forth a change like this,” said Ka`u’s County Council member Maile Medeiros David.
      Planning Director Duane Kanuha pointed out that in the earlier 1970s the Planning Commission reviewed PUDs, and the Charter Commission moved that responsibly to the Planning Department in the late 1970s or early 1980s. He said the process has gone “full circle.”

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Sen. Josh Green, M.D.

KA`U’S STATE SEN. JOSH GREEN, M.D., Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, has scheduled a hearing on SB 791, relating to autism spectrum disorders, which would require health insurers to provide coverage for autism diagnosis and treatment.
      The hearing will be held on Friday at 1:15 p.m. in Room 414 of the State Capitol.
      “The autism rate has soared to as high as one in 68 children,” Green said, “and families across Hawai`i are struggling with the enormous costs of the treatment they need to give their kids the best chance to lead healthy, productive lives.”
      Green fought to pass similar legislation during the 2014 legislative session and introduced SB 791 for the 2015 session on Jan. 23. Experts on autism and affected families from Hawai`i and across the country are expected to offer testimony during the hearing.
      “Over 38 states have passed legislation to ensure that treatment for autism is covered by health insurance,” Green said, “because they know the huge financial costs of leaving autism left untreated, both to families and to the state.
      “It’s time for us to do the right thing for Hawai`i’s kids and families struggling with autism.”
      Green is an Emergency Room doctor with 15 years of experience caring for Hawai`i’s families on Big Island, including at Ka`u Hospital.
      For more information, contact Green at (808) 937-0991 or sengreen@capitol.hawaii.gov.

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Sen. Russell Ruderman

COFFEE LABELING IS THE TOPIC OF ONE of several bills introduced by Ka`u’s state Sen. Russell Ruderman. SB594 would require a specific listing of the geographic origins of various Hawai`i-grown coffees and the geographic or regional origins of the various coffees not grown in Hawai`i that are included in a coffee blend to be listed on the front panel of a label. The bill also would increase the minimum percentage requirement for coffee blends to use geographic origin in labeling or advertising to 80 percent coffee by weight from that geographic origin. It would be effective Jan. 1, 2016. 

      Other bill introduced by Ruderman include SB322, which would criminalize the sale of aquatic life for aquarium use and establish penalties for first and subsequent violations. It amends existing aquarium fish permit law to conform to the ban.
      SB578 would enable the Office of Elections to implement elections by mail in any interested county, beginning with the 2016 primary election. By 2018, all federal, state and county primary, special primary, general, special general and special elections would be conducted by mail. The bill would enable absentee walk-in voting to continue prior to Election Day. The bill ensures that limited polling sites in each county would remain open on Election Day for absentee walk-in voting and to receive mail-in ballots. It appropriates funds for the implementation and administration of the election-by-mail program.
      SB586 would appropriate funds to the University of Hawai`i at Hilo for programs and studies related to rat lungworm disease.
      SB591 would make an appropriation to the Hawai`i Invasive Species Council for coordinated management of albizia trees on Hawai`i Island and throughout the state.
      See capitol.hawaii.gov for more information at to provide testimony on the bills.

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Claire Horwell, at right, during a vog focus group in Volcano Monday.
Photo by Sher Glass

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN HELP a researcher from the United Kingdom in her study of effects of vog. Claire Horwell, a senior lecturer at Durham University, runs the International Volcanic Health Hazard Network, an umbrella organization for all research and information on volcanic health hazards. IVHHN currently involves 31 expert members from 25 international institutions. Members work in diverse scientific disciplines such as volcanology, epidemiology, toxicology, public health and physical chemistry with a common aim of trying to determine the health effects of volcanic emissions, in particular the health hazard of inhaling volcanic ash and gas. 

      Horwell is living on the Big Island for three months and conducting a study on ways people protect themselves from vog and how those methods relate to official advice.
      “I am working with communities and advice-giving agencies,” Horwell said. She has set up a facebook page to let the vog-affected residents tell her how they deal with vog on a daily basis.
      See Vog Talk at https://www.facebook.com/groups/421925067973152/. “Please tell me your stories! Mahalo!” Horwell said.
      Also see www.ivhhn.org.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Chris Eldridge

CHRIS ELDRIDGE, MANAGING PARTNER of biofuels company `Aina Koa Pono, which planned to grow crops in Ka`u to produce biofuel at a refinery above Pahala, and his business partner Dustin Sellers have invested in their first Hawai`i-based company, DR Fortress.
      The two last year founded the investment firm Koa Capital Partners “to invest and to provide operational expertise to small- to medium-sized businesses with Hawai`i ties,” according to a report by Jason Ubay in Pacific Business News.
      “(Koa Capital Partners) have strong local ties, and we wanted a partner that would help us reach into the local community,” DR Fortress president Fred Rodi told Ubay. “They have good relationships with some of the top companies in Hawai`i, and they can help us.” The company operates a data center in Honolulu and provides cloud services.

      See bizjournals.com/pacific.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

VOLCANO ART CENTER’S ANNUAL FUNDRAISER Saturday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at its Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village features silent and live auctions, entertainment, gourmet food, handmade confections, fine wine and champagne. Proceeds help develop future community art education and enrichment programs. $55 members; $65 nonmembers. Tickets are available at Niaulani Campus, VAC Gallery, Banyan Gallery and The Most Irresistible Shop in Hilo. 967-8222 or volcanoartcenter.org.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

See kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.pdf and
kaucalendar.com/Directory2015.swf.

Ka`u News Briefs Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015

The International Space Station may be visible from Ka`u this evening as it passes over Hawai`i. NASA photo from wikipedia

HAWAI`I FARMERS UNION UNITED has announced bills it supports in the current state legislative session. Vice President and Legislative Committee Chairman Simon Russell asks the public to testify on the bills.

      HB 509 would create a classification of agricultural public lands entitled “taro lands.” It would appropriate funds to the Board of Land and Natural Resources to create an inventory of lands classified as such.
      HB 627 would establish the Hawai`i farm-to-school program and appropriate funds for two farm-to-school coordinator positions.
      HB 850 would appropriate moneys for critical positions in University of Hawai`i’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources Cooperative Extension Service.
      HFUU opposes HB 849, which would amend Hawai`i’s Right to Farm Act to ensure that counties cannot enact laws, ordinances or resolutions to limit rights of farmers and ranchers to engage in agricultural practices.
      More information about the legislation and how to testify is available at capitol.hawaii.gov.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Interim DLNR Chair Carty Chang

IT COSTS A LOT OF MONEY AND RISKS LIVES to rescue people, and state Department of Land & Natural Resources is sending out a warning. The agency has cited two hikers who were lost in the state Kahauale`a Natural Area Reserve overnight while returning from a hike to Pu`u `O`o Crater. Division of Conservation & Resources Enforcement officers said the hikers were rescued by Hawai`i County Fire Department after spending the night in the NAR. 

      A 23-year-old man from Maryland and a 24-year-old man from Pahoa received citations from DLNR officers for entering into a closed area. They must now appear in Hilo District Court. The violations are misdemeanor offenses punishable by a fine and/or one year in prison.
      DLNR closed Kahauale`a Natural Area July 2007 due to hazardous and unsafe conditions caused by volcanic activity. The closure was extended to July 2015 and may be continued as long as unsafe conditions persist.
      “Entering into closed areas is a serious offense that unnecessarily risks lives and places rescuers in jeopardy,” said Carty S. Chang, Interim DLNR Chairperson. “DLNR will enforce these closures and take enforcement action on violators,” Chang added. After receiving citations, the two hikers were released.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Bobby Jean Leithead Todd

HAWAI`I COUNTY’S DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT is stepping up efforts toward recycling of green waste. Revenue from a new tipping fee for businesses will help finance expansion of green waste recycling services across the island. 

      The county will begin charging the new fee on March 1 to businesses that deposit green waste at recycling facilities in Pu`uanahulu and Hilo. The fee will not affect individual residents or homeowners, who will continue to be allowed to drop off residential green waste free of charge at seven locations around the island.
      The county currently pays more than $1.6 million a year to recycle green waste into mulch that is distributed free to the community, and consumers across the island are asking for more recycling opportunities closer to home.
      The new tipping fee is expected to raise more than $500,000 a year to help finance an expansion of organics recycling services islandwide, including establishing new green waste recycling locations at additional transfer stations.
      “Adding new green waste drop-off and recycling locations at additional transfer stations will help us to divert more organics from our waste stream and will extend the life of our landfills,” said Bobby Jean Leithead Todd, director of the Department of Environmental Management. “Our residents have been asking for more recycling opportunities, and we feel the timing is right to launch this initiative.”

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Pres. Obama's budget includes increased funding for Mauna Loa Observatory.
Photo by Mary Miller from NOAA 

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA’S RECENTLY announced Fiscal Year 2016 budget contains funding for important initiatives for Hawai`i. 

• $444 million for military construction projects in Hawai`i. 
• $70.2 billion in funding for the Veterans Administration, a $5.1 billion increase from last year. 
• $33 million for Native Hawaiian Education Program, a $1 million increase from last year. 
• $12.8 million for Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions of Higher Education. 
• $3.1 million for Asian-American and Native American-Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions. 
• $12 million for Native Hawaiian Health Care. 
• $1.5 billion in funding for community health centers, including 14 in Hawai`i. 
• $14.7 million to support operations at two Tsunami Warning Centers including the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, targeted research and development and international coordination activities. 
• $10.2 million, an increase of $3 million from last year, to support and maintain 50-plus years of sustained observations and research at NOAA’s six Atmospheric Baseline Observatories, including Mauna Loa Observatory. 
• $286 million to protect plant health, including an increase of $2 million for the Agricultural Quarantine Inspection program to provide the necessary staffing, canine teams and equipment replacement needed to adequately inspect baggage bound for the continental U.S. from Hawai`i and Puerto Rico. 
• $2.5 million for Hawai`i energy programs including the State Energy Program, Weatherization Assistance and energy research programs. 
• $42 million to support the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, which includes the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center at the University of Hawai`i. 
• $4.5 million to support an inventory of life-saving and life-sustaining commodities and equipment such as cots, blankets, emergency meals, bottled water and other items for disaster response purposes at the nine distribution centers across the U.S., including one in Hawai`i. 
• $2 million for Small Business Administration outreach to Native American communities, including Native Hawaiian Organizations. 

      “Many of the priorities laid out in the President’s budget reflect a commitment to stand on the side of middle class families, with key investments in research and innovation, early and higher education, national security, military construction, veterans and infrastructure,” Sen. Mazie Hirono said. “These will help create jobs and accelerate economic growth while the reforms to our broken tax system will make sure everyone pays their fair share.

Sen. Mazie Hirono

Sen. Brian Schatz

      “As a member of armed services and intelligence, I continue to advocate for Hawai`i’s major role in the rebalance to the Asia-Pacific. The budget also includes projects and priorities to support a sustainable future in Hawai`i and across the country, like Hawai`i’s ‘Islands Forests at Risk’ Collaborative Landscape, which will provide crucial protection of native species and their habitats and is the first time Hawai`i’s application has ranked in the top three proposals to receive current and permanent funding. I look forward to working with the delegation to ensure these priorities are funded.”
      Sen. Brian Schatz said, “The President’s budget proposal lays out a clear path forward to ensure that our economy continues its recovery and that our economic priorities are focused on strengthening and expanding the middle class. I am pleased that the President has made clear that we should put an end to the automatic across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration and invest in research and development, a strong national defense, education and our nation’s infrastructure.

      “The budget proposal creates a fairer tax system by ending some tax breaks for the wealthiest one percent in order to provide more resources for middle-class workers and their families, clean energy programs, and investments in education programs like universal pre-K and affordable community college. I look forward to working with my colleagues on the appropriations committee to protect Hawai`i’s priorities and build a stronger economy for our middle class.”

Ka`u residents can sign up for Saturday's Ka`u Coast Cleanup.
Photo from HWF

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

A KA`U COAST CLEANUP TAKES PLACE Saturday. Volunteers meet Hawai`i Wildlife Fund staff members at 7:45 a.m. at Wai`ohinu Park to carpool/caravan to Pa`ula/Lepana on the Kalaemano property. Sign up with coordinator Megan Lamson at kahakai.cleanups@gmail.com or 769-7629.

THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION passes over Hawai`i this evening, rising in the southwest at 6:54 p.m. and moving to the right. It will pass above Venus and Mars at 6:56 p.m.

The theme of Volcano Art Center's annual fundraiser is
Abracadabra: The Magic of Art.

VOLCANO ART CENTER’S ANNUAL FUNDRAISER Saturday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at its Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village features silent and live auctions, entertainment, gourmet food, handmade confections, fine wine and champagne. Proceeds help develop future community art education and enrichment programs. $55 members; $65 nonmembers. Tickets are available at Niaulani Campus, VAC Gallery, Banyan Gallery and The Most Irresistible Shop in Hilo. 967-8222 or volcanoartcenter.org.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.

Ka`u News Briefs Monday, Feb. 2, 2015

This year's Miss Ka`u Coffee pageant is set for Saturday, April 25, one of many events that are part of the 10-day Ka`u Coffee Festival. Photo by Julia Neal

HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY HAS WELCOMED a new staff scientist, Ingrid Johanson, an expert in using GPS as well as satellite radar data (InSAR) to measure motion of the ground surface in response to geologic events such as earthquakes and magma movement.

Dr. Ingrid Johanson joins HVO as a geophysics expert 

studying earthquakes and lava flow.

Photo from HVO

      Growing up in California’s central valley just east of San Francisco, Johanson was no stranger to earthquakes, but it was a summer internship in geophysics that inspired her to study them. At the time, she was a UCLA undergraduate pursuing a degree in physics. Through the internship, Johanson discovered geophysics could combine her love of math and physics with an appreciation for nature to help understand the processes that shape and move Earth. Geophysics also gives her the added bonus of working outdoors.

      As part of graduate research at the University of California at Berkeley, Johanson helped develop a technique using InSAR to map surface motion. Her work led to new insights into how stress accumulates along faults, including the San Andreas Fault, and how that relates to the potential for future damaging earthquakes.
      After earning her Ph.D., Johanson completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the U.S. Geological Survey and worked at HVO, where she studied Kilauea Volcano for several months before accepting a position at UC Berkeley as a research scientist and manager of the Bay Area Regional Deformation network. BARD is an array of continuously operating GPS stations that monitor surface motion across the faults that make up the Pacific-North America plate boundary around the San Francisco Bay area.
      Johanson was responsible for processing GPS data, including high-rate and real-time GPS. Her results are incorporated in California’s earthquake early warning system.

      Real-time deformation data are not only useful in earthquake early warning (the feasibility of which is currently being studied in Hawai`i), but also invaluable in assessing volcanic hazards, reports HVO in its Volcano Watch publication.
      During quickly emerging events, such as intrusions of magma into rift zones or shallow levels beneath the summits of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, real-time tilt and GPS positioning allow tracking magma beneath the surface as it moves. “Johanson’s experience in this field will bring valuable improvements to our real-time GPS capabilities,” HVO reports.
     “The combination of GPS and InSAR expertise Johanson brings to HVO has great potential to further our understanding of volcanic and earthquake processes on Hawaiian volcanoes. With the ongoing lava flow on Kilauea and the ever-present threat of renewed activity at Mauna Loa, Johanson’s expertise is needed now more than ever.”

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Exploring Ka`u's mountain water system is another highlight of the 10-day
Ka`u Coffee Festival. Photo by Jesse Tunison

THE KA`U COFFEE FESTIVAL COMMITTEE has announced 10 days of education and celebration of the Ka`u Coffee industry, from Friday, April 24 through Sunday, May 3. The Ho`olaule`a with farm tours, music, coffee tasting, food and coffee sales takes place on Saturday, May 2 at Pahala Community Center, where a new Miss Ka`u Coffee will reign following the pageant on April 25. Buy Local, It Matters is also a feature of the festival, drawing people to local businesses ahead of the Ho`olaule`a, where prizes are given to those who support regional enterprise. 

      The ten days of events are sponsored by Hawai`i Tourism Authority, County of Hawai`i, Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative, Olson Trust, Ka`u Farm & Ranch, Pahala Plantation Cottages and many coffee farmers and businesses throughout the region. To volunteer, sponsor or donate, contact 2015 Festival Chair Chris Manfredi at 929-9550 or cmanfredi@kaufarmandranch.com. To donate to the Miss Ka`u Coffee scholarship fund, contact Scholarship Chair Julia Neal at 928-9811 or mahalo@aloha.net. To sign up for a booth to sell Ka`u Coffee, food, arts, crafts or for educational purposes, contact Brenda Moses at brenda@kaucoffeemill.com.

Triple C recipe contest invites participants to showcase Ka`u Coffee
in original recipes. Photo by Julia Neal

      Here are the dates for Ka`u Coffee Festival 2015:

• Pa`ina Open House Kickoff Celebration – Friday, April 24, 5:30 p.m. – 9 p.m. at Pahala Plantation House, Co-sponsored by Ka`u Chamber of Commerce.
• Triple C Recipe Contest – Saturday, April 25, 2 p.m. at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Enjoy culinary treats using Ka`u Coffee as an ingredient. Free entry and tasting for the public. Live entertainment. See kaucoffeemill.com or call 928-0550.
• Miss Ka`u Coffee Pageant – Sunday, April 26. Call Pageant Chair Gloria Camba at 928-8558.  
• Ka`u Mountain Water System Hike – Wednesday, April 29, 9 a.m., starting at Ka`u Coffee Mill. Reservations required. See kaucoffemill.com or call 928-0550. 
• Coffee & Cattle Day – Friday, May 1, 10 a.m. at `Aikane Plantation Coffee Farm. Call 808-927- 2252 for reservations. 
• Ka`u Star Gazing at Makanau Mountain – Friday, May 1, 5:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. See kaucoffeemill.com or call 928-0550. 
• Ka`u Coffee Festival Ho`olaule`a – Saturday, May 2, 9 a.m – 5 p.m. at Pahala Community Center. Enjoy a free, full day of music, hula, Ka`u Coffee Tasting, educational displays and demonstrations, food, arts, crafts, vendors and a keiki corner. Enjoy live entertainment. For more information, call Chris Manfredi at 929-9550. 
• Ka`u Coffee Experience – Saturday, May 2, 9:30 a.m. – noon, 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Sample Ka`u Coffees prepared using a wide variety of techniques, served by expert baristas. 
• Farm & Mill Tours – Saturday, May 2, Various times, $20. See kaucoffeefest.com for more information. 
• Ka`u Coffee College – Sunday May 3, 9 a.m. at Pahala Community Center. Educational series featuring researchers and industry professionals. Free for farmers. Call Chris Manfredi at 929-9550.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Videoconferencing of Hawai`i County Council meetings continues at Ocean View
Community Center. Meetings are also live-streamed at hawaiicounty.gov.

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN PARTICIPATE in this week’s Hawai`i County government meetings. Council committees meet tomorrow, and the full Council meets Wednesday at 9 a.m. All meetings take place at Council Chambers in Hilo. 

      The meetings will be live-streamed online at hawaiicounty.gov. Click on the Council Meetings like at left. Videoconferencing is available at Ocean View Community Center, where residents can provide testimony during the meetings.
      Governmental Relations & Economic Development Committee meets at 9 a.m., Public Works and Parks & Recreation at 10 a.m., Planning at 11 a.m., Finance at 1:30 p.m. and Environmental Management at 2:30 p.m.
      The Planning Committee considers a bill that would amend Hawai`i County’s Zoning Code relating to zoning district regulations within industrial-commercial mixed county districts.
      The Windward and Leeward Planning Commissions forwarded favorable recommendations to this amendment, which would allow double-family and multiple-family residential units within the districts.
      Hawai`i County Council on Wednesday considers a Resolution that would amend Rules of Procedure and Organization of the
Council. The resolution proposes the following rule changes: 1) Council members would not be excused from meeting attendance except “due to illness, emergency matter or court directive;” 2) Deletes the requirement that the Council Chair approve waivers of items to the Council agenda that have been approved in writing by the Committee Chairperson 3) Deletes the option of presenting public testimony in the form of prerecorded video testimony; 4) Mandates that before any Council Member can cut off debate by calling for the question, each Council Member has had the opportunity to speak at least once; 5) Provides that expenses of NACo steering committee members be drawn from the general account and expenses for attendance at Council meetings by Council members and the reasonable expense for attendance of district staff approved by the Council Clerk not also require approval of the Council Chairperson; and 6) Clarifies that the mayor’s approval is not required to transfer contingency funds to County agencies.

      To comment on or like this story, go to facebook.com/kaucalendar.

Ka`u resident Dick Hershberger takes participants on A Walk into the Past
tomorrow and every other Tuesday. Photo by Ron Johnson

KAHUKU UNIT OF HAWAI`I VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK is the site of Friends of Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park’s next Forest Restoration Project on Friday, Feb. 6 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Participants will be planting native seedling trees in a fenced enclosure where plants will be protected from grazing animals. 

      To sign up, contact Patty Kupchak at forest@fhvnp.org or 352-1402. Include first and last name, email address and a phone number.

KA`U RESIDENTS CAN TAKE A WALK INTO THE PAST tomorrow at 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 2 p.m., when Ka`u resident Dick Hershberger brings Hawaiian Volcano Observatory founder Thomas Jaggar to life. Participants meet at Kilauea Visitor Center in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park and walk to the Whitney Vault near Volcano House, where Jaggar housed equipment to research the volcano.

LOVE THE ARTS: ABRACADABRA: THE MAGIC OF ART is coming up Saturday, Feb. 7 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Volcano Art Center’s Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village. VAC’s annual fundraiser features silent and live auctions, entertainment, gourmet food, handmade confections, fine wine and champagne. Proceeds help develop future community art education and enrichment programs. $55 members; $65 nonmembers. Tickets are available at Niaulani Campus, VAC Gallery, Banyan Gallery and The Most Irresistible Shop in Hilo. 967-8222 or volcanoartcenter.org.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM. KA`U COFFEE MILL IS OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK.