Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 3, 1 Malaki 2012 — A Maui hoʻolauleʻa with a twist of waʻa [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

A Maui hoʻolauleʻa with a twist of waʻa

By Kekoa Enomoto LAHAINA, MAUI — Buoyed by an upcoming fundraiser and a new club executive director, Maui's first transoeeanie voyaging eanoe is readying to sail in the worldwide voyage of the ieonie Hōkūle'a voyaging eanoe starting in 2013. The nearly complete 62-foot Mo'okiha

O Pi'ilani boasts huge double hulls that flare as spit shiny as a factory-new aircraft. "The big railings are on, the deck is finished. The stove and radio box are running already, as well as the solar panel," said Captain and builder Timmy Gilliom, who is the brothei of recording stars Amy Hānaiali'i and Eric Gilliom. "We've done a lot of work in the last three months," Timmy Gilliom said as proudly as

a new father. Hui O Wa'a Kaulua will host a "Wa'alaule'a" fundraiser from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. March 25 at Kamehameha 'Iki Park in Lahaina. Admission is free and donations are weleome, with proceeds paying for I eanoe necessities. Gilliom's wish list includes three jibs, or triangular sails; an outboard engine and fuel tank; anchors and lines; lifejackets and harnesses; foul-weather gear; plus funds to modify the vessel's trailer. The Wa'alaule'a event will feature entertainment, half-hour sailing eanoe tours, food presentations and craft workshops. New hui Executive Director 'Anela Benson said an event highlight will be mo'olelo, or storytelling, by kūpuna starting at 6 p.m., with a stargazing session from 7 to 8 p.m. The day's proceedings will be a showcase of Native Hawaiian culture," she said, including "the rich history of Lahaina, not only in regard to voyaging but also Hawaiian antiquities." Benson, 29, is an intermediate school I teacher and stargazing instructor with 11 years experience sailing on the Hōkūle'a on interisland and Pacific ocean-going voyages. In July, she moved from O'ahu to Maui to train with the Maui crew for the worldwide voyage. Benson says prospective donors may kōkua in various ways. The hui offers weekly rides on the 42-foot, 37-year-old Mo'olele (leaping lizard) double-hulled sailing eanoe in exchange for a contribution, taking a swim test and mini training to learn safety measures and names of vessel parts. Gilliom noted it was well worth the 14 years he took to fashion the Mo'okiha because the vessel turned out "real good and real fast." "She's very awesome," he said, declining to specify a launeh date for the vessel. "Onee we get the bugs out, Maui County will be proud to have her. It's also Moloka'i ; and Lāna'i's too. And we'll have her in ; the water soon, so eome down and eome ; training, too. This eanoe is for the education ; of all the kids," he added, "to give them l something ... so they ean remember where they eame from." ■ Kekoa Enomoto is a retired copy editor ; and Staff Writer with The Maui News and ; former Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

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'Anela Benson, Executive Director of Hui 0 Wa'a Kaulua, and Timmy Gilliom, kapena, or captain, and vessel builder, stand beneath the manu of the double-hulled 62-foot-long Mo'okiha 0 Pi'ilani, Maui's first and only transoceanic voyaging eanoe, whieh is preparing to launeh soon from Mala Wharf in Lahaina. - Photo: Kekoa Enomoto