Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 8, Number 10, 1 ʻOkakopa 1991 — Royal court speaks out on being Hawaiian [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Royal court speaks out on being Hawaiian

By Christina Zarobe Assistant Editor As the ali'i of the Hawaiian nation onee traveled through Waikiki centuries ago, the 1991 Aloha Festivals king and queen last month retraced their steps in a celebration of Hawaiian culture. "1 wanted to be able to experience what they went through, the Hawaiian royalty. Just to feel that inspiration with your ancestors," says Kamuela Kailianu Kealoha, who is 100 percent Hawaiian and this year's king. Televised on the Mainland and worldwide, the Aloha Festivals Floral Farade has evolved into a spectacular event of floats, marching bands, clowns, Hawaiian cowboys on horseback, and stately pa'u riders. But for the 23 members of the Royal Court and particularly its leaders, the king, queen and princess, participating in the Aloha Festival is an almost sacred opportunity to represent the Hawaiian people. "My feeling as far as portraying the queen of Aloha Week Festivals is that it is an honor," says Kanani O Napua Kapahu Painter, who also is 100 percent Hawaiian. A regal beauty, Painter works as an executive secretary for Yamano International, ine. With analmost noble air about her, Painter nevertheless radiates the warmth of the aloha spirit. Recalling the intense interview process for the selection of the Royal Court, Kealoha says the first time he saw Painter, "I thought there is the queen." In turn, when Painter caught glimpse of Kealoha in his kahiko costume she says she was reminded of Kamehameha. The comfortable relationship between the pair hasn't helped to dispel the image the public has of them as a real-life eouple. A frequent foursome in recent weeks, the king and queen along with princess, JoAnn Kalei Haae, and prince, Louis KeAli'i Vargas, a 17-year-old senior at Kamehameha Schools, resemble a close-knit family. But both Painter and Kealoha believe the public's mistaken assumption ean be used to encourage Hawaiians and other cultures to salvage the unraveling family unit, a critical issue in today's society, they say. "When I was growing up it seemed the aloha spirit eame from within, a closer 'ohana. Everybody helped eaeh other," remembers Kealoha. "(Today) families are so scattered. I think they need to see more of eaeh other." A 17-year-old senior at Nanakuli High School, Princess JoAnn Kalei Haae, whose background is Hawaiian and Chinese, says family is one of the most valued tenets of the Hawaiian culture. "When you graduate, you live with your family.

ii ar a i . 1991 Aloha Festival Royal Court They (Hawaiians) seem more secure to stay with . their family. It's like the most important thing for the family to stick together. They always eome first," says Haae whose soft speaking voice barely rises above a whisper. Painter, who is active with the Waikiki Community Center and the Miss Waikiki Scholarship Pageant, says she is troubled by the disintegration of families. She remembers vividly another time. "We were a big family but we all stuck together. There were 24 of us in this three bedroom house. But we ail helped eaeh other. We stayed close as a family." From a generational perspective of both 'opio and the makua there is a frustration about the absence of strong leaders for the Hawaiian people, role models for Hawaiian youngsters. "At times you as an individual ean only go so far. If our leaders do not listen to us, how far ean we go? You ean only push so far. What good is fighting if there is no one there to back us?" says an adamant Painter. Haae plans to attend the University of Hawai'iHilo where she will major in the Hawaiian language or Hawaiian studies. As a teen, she says her peers are concerned about how mueh of an effect they ean have on issues confronting Hawaiians. "They know that we are losing our culture. We being young . . . there is not mueh we ean do. There are some who want to get involved. But it seems Hawaiians are moving more toward the business world and tourism, like they're moving away from their culture," she says. To recapture and build pride in the Hawaiian culture and maintain strong ties to the Hawaiian legacy, the value of a role model cannot be underestimated, according to Kealoha. Working in security at Pioneer Properties, Kealoha also tutors Hawaiian families in English, while they in turn teach him Hawaiian. "It's been a long time since the Native Hawaiians have had someone they ean look to," he says. "My feeling is I am trying to send a message to the Hawaiian community. It is time to wake up, really look at what their culture is all about." Yet Painter, Kealoha and Haae believe that with strong family values, unity, education, and leadership the Hawaiian people ean face and overcome the barriers. "I keep saying this is going to be the decade of the Hawaiian. And they need good leaders to direct them," predicts Kealoha. "I think it will be a bright future for Hawaiians and for the islands and the citizens of this land." Among her fellow classmates and friends, Haae

says she sees "their pride in their heritage and their sense of security among Hawaiians." A natural magnet of sorts pulls Hawaiians together, says the teen. "They seem to gravitate to eaeh other." As the future of Hawaiians, Haae advocates activism by her generation and other age groups but she criticizes those who use violence or methods that cast Hawaiians in a "bad Iight." "I am very optimistic about it (the future) when people do something and don't take everything that is thrown at them." Yet to achieve certain goals whether as a Hawaiian or someone of another culture means approaching life with determination and a readiness to leam, according to this year's Aloha Festivals queen. A self-described "jack of all trades," Painter is a graduate of Farrington High School. Since then, her varied resume has grown to include, among other jobs, bartending, cooking, hotel maintenance and apartment management. And in less than a year, Painter worked her way up from receptionist to executive secretary at Yamano International, ine. "At age 47 I'm still learning and I'm not going to stop. There is no stopping anybody from learning if they want to. But you have to have the willingness to leam. You have to want it to get to where you want to be."

RTI U)Fll 0(O 0 'Ao'ao Umikumakahi (Page 11)

Kamuela Kailianu Kealoha, 199? King of the Aloha Festivals.

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wmwmmm a— — Kanani O Napua Kapahu Painter, 1991 Ōueen of the Aloha Festivals.