KILAUEA — “You want me to ride in what?” Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. said when he realized he would be in the rumble seat of a 1929 Ford Model A, Saturday. Driven by Pete Makarewicz, the Model A was
KILAUEA — “You want me to ride in what?” Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. said when he realized he would be in the rumble seat of a 1929 Ford Model A, Saturday.
Driven by Pete Makarewicz, the Model A was the second unit in the parade that opened the Kilauea Community Picnic in the Park, coordinated through the efforts of the Kilauea Neighborhood Association.
“This is good, we have small kine events like this,” said Keli‘i Alapai, the parade leader who said he was standing in for one of the KNA leaders who could not make the event. “Every town on this island should have their little thing like this. It’s good when all the people can come together and have fun.”
The Kapa‘a High School Band under the direction of Catherine Paleka shook away the last vestiges of sleep from the quiet town with its drum cadence.
One of the leaders claimed the band couldn’t make the Friday night football game due to budget cuts, but was able to get a bus to participate in the Kilauea event.
Attempts to get confirmation on the budget cut effects on the band from Paleka were unsuccessful due to the start of the parade, but the leader said the budget cuts will prevent both Kapa‘a and Waimea high school bands from performing in “away” games due to the costs of renting buses to get the students to and from the games.
The presence of the Warrior band, complete with its drum majors, hula dancers and flag unit, made a definite impact on the parade as people streamed out of their homes along Kilauea Lighthouse Road to catch a glimpse of the event.
“As I passed along the route to get to the park, I could see people coming out of their houses in their nighties to enjoy the parade,” Carvalho said. “Having an event like the Community Picnic in the Park is what community is about, and Kilauea rocks!”
During the parade, a panel of judges comprised of members from the Kilauea Senior Center made their decisions for the Best Overall, Best Pet, Best Bicycle and Best Wagon with prizes being contributed by local businesses.
“This is the biggest one yet,” said Gwen Tamura, a coach with the Kapa‘a High School soccer program who lives along the parade route. “One year, they had a float. This year, there’s no float, but there’s an ATV. When they started, it was just a golf cart.”
Elisha Sawani Sanchez, riding a gayly decorated bicycle, caught the judges’ eyes as the Best Overall, while another bicyclist, Zylan “Ziggy” Pa-Conant, was described as a three-eared ti leaf bunny in earning the Best Bicycle award.
Pumpkin the dog became a hot dog with the aid of some pillows and yellow rope (mustard?) to earn the Best Pet award for Pumpkin’s owners Barbara and Christy Schweitzer.
“We’ve been to two Rose Bowl parades, but there is something about small town parades that can’t compare to those big parades,” said Aaron Furugen, one of the spectators in the park.
The event was coordinated by the Kilauea Neighborhood Association with support from the County of Kaua‘i.
