King Kamehameha Day celebrates the Hawaiian monarch who pulled and united the Hawaiian Islands people to form the Kingdom of Hawaii, said Wallis Punua, the host of the annual King Kamehameha Day Celebration Saturday at the Kauai Marriott Resort &Beach Club.
A small crowd jammed into the luau grounds of the Kauai Marriott Resort to celebrate Kamehameha with a ho‘olaule‘a that featured people engaging in hands-on cultural demonstarations and hula before the King’s Court that processed from the base of the cliff fronting Kalapaki Bay.
There was no parade due to the lateness of having someone step up to lead the celeration. Instead, there was a streamlined version of the King’s Court and its accompanying groups including the Royal Order of Kamehameha, its Na Wahine Nui O Kamehameha, the ‘Ahahui Ka‘ahumanu, and the Hale O Na Ali‘i O Hawaii.
The group made its appearance in the midst of hands-on cultulral demonstrations, including poi making with Josh Fukino and the Mark Rossi ohana, and fragrant floral lei making featuring the help of the Kauai Association for Family and Community Education.
A short ho‘okupu protocol ceremony and several hula numbers by the Wallis and Shana Punua halau took place in the audience of about 200 people before the King’s Court adjourned in the rapidly-rising heat of the luau garden.
King Kamehameha Day is also a state and county holiday that is celebrated on June 11, Kamehameha’s birthday.
In observance of this celebration, the County of Kauai offices will be closed on June 11, along with all refuse transfer stations as well as the Kapaa and Waimea swimming pools.
All of the county’s neighborhood centers will be closed along with the HI-5 bottle redemption center at the Kauai Resource Center, and the Puhi Metals Recycling Center.
The HI-5 redemption centers in Kilauea, Kapaa, and Kapahi will remain open on the holiday.
Residential trash pick up will remain unchanged, and the Kekaha Landfill will be open from 8 to 10:30 a.m. for commercial businesses and the public.
The Kauai Bus will be operating on a modified schedule.
Normal business hours for the county offices and services will resume on June 12.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
