• A Board & Stone in Every Home

    October 19, 2022
    La`i`ōpua 2020 Program for Families Aims to Perpetuate the Culture

    KONA, HAWAI`I (October 19, 2022) – La`i`ōpua 2020 is pleased to announce a new program for families interested in having a cultural experience surrounding the Hawaiian tradition of hand-carving a papa ku’i ‘ai (board for pounding kalo) and a pōhaku ku`i `ai (stone kalo pounder).
     
    The program, which commences December 3, is geared toward a family experience; at its end, each `ohana will have created a board and stone, which will last them a lifetime. The class will be taught by: Keahi Tomas, a mahiʻai kalo, educator and wood worker, who learned this concept of ʻohana building through the papa and pōhaku of Kumu Earl Kawaʻa.  Kawaʻa coined the phrase, “one board, one stone in every home.”  Keahi will be assisted by Kamuela Meheula, mahiʻai kalo and ʻāina based educator, and Kekoa Kahoʻonei, an aloha ʻāina educator and carver.

    Funded by a Hawaii Community Foundation CHANGE grant, La`i`ōpua 2020 Executive Director Kawehi Inaba describes the Board & Stone program as a way of bringing families together in a safe environment for learning and empowerment. “It's an opportunity for parents and children, kūpuna, aunties and uncles, brothers and sisters to share a culturally profound and meaningful experience,” she said, adding that one of the program goals is to assist the `ohana to “strengthen their commitment as a family and ultimately their commitment to serving their communities.”

    Cost for the program is $20. A $150 refundable deposit also applies and participants must attend each of the six half-day sessions. Sessions will be held at La`i`ōpua 2020 (74-5210 Keanalehu Dr., Kailua-Kona) and other locations related to the program.

    For more details on the program and to register, visit Laiopua.org/board-stone.


    ABOUT LA`I`ŌPUA 2020

    La`i`ōpua 2020 is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide social, recreational, vocational, economic, educational, and cultural opportunities and infrastructure to Native Hawaiians to include the communities of the Kealakehe ahupua`a. It is a place for pilina (building and supporting one another through relationships) and pu`uhonua (a place of comfort, peace, and safety). For more information about La`i`ōpua 2020, visit its website, Laiopua.org, or call 808.327.1221.

     

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