Gege Kawelo, president of the Wai`anae Hawaiian Civic Club (left), is one of the passionate leaders who organized the building of the E Ala voyaging canoe. Rep. Shimabukuro (right) is supporting the effort to bring the E Ala home to the Wai`anae Coast.
E Ala voyaging canoe captains Sam Kapoi, Kaina Holomalia, and Waimea McKeague are all young men from the Wai`anae Coast.
PROPOSAL TO USE WAI`ANAE BOAT HARBOR OR POKA`I BAY FOR E ALA VOYAGING CANOE DRY DOCK
WHO: Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS), Wai`anae Hawaiian Civic Club (WHCC), and many other individuals are making this request (See spreadsheet listing E Ala supporters and volunteers in Appendix 1). Makaha Studios is preparing a video with further information regarding this proposal.
WHAT: PVS, WHCC, and others urge the state and city to allow the use of Wai`anae Boat Harbor and/or Poka`i Bay as a location to permanently dry dock the E Ala voyaging canoe. The canoe would be stored under an energy efficient A-frame structure modeled after a halau wa`a in Laie (See model drawing of the “Halau Wa`a `O E Ala” in Appendix 2). The E Ala halau wa`a would feature photo-voltaic solar panels which would provide power for lighting and outlets. A fence, locks, and other security measures would also be constructed to prevent theft, vandalism, vagrancy, and other potential problems.
WHERE: Specifically, the fenced-off area between Wai`anae Boat Harbor and Wai`anae High School; or the old canoe storage area near the Kuilioloa Heiau. Either would be ideal locations for the E Ala halau wa`a.
WHY: The E Ala needs to be returned home to the Wai`anae Coast to fulfill its purpose, which is to train residents to sail using ancient Hawaiian navigation techniques. As background, the E Ala is currently docked at the Sand Island Maritime Education Training Center (METC). It was constructed on the Wai`anae Coast in 1981 under the leadership of WHCC. At the time, Wai`anae and Nanakuli High School had programs that used the canoe to train students to sail, and the canoe was docked at Wai`anae boat harbor. Unfortunately, funding, liability, and other concerns eventually ended the school-based programs, and the canoe was vandalized while at the boat harbor. This lead to the E Ala being moved to METC, where it has been ever since. Nevertheless, the enthusiasm for E Ala never ended, and PVS has continued to train Wai`anae Coast students to sail and maintain the E Ala (See E Ala background from WHCC website in Appendix 3).
HOW: A dedicated group of volunteers is willing to provide in-kind services to construct and maintain the halau wa`a, fence, and other necessary security measures (See spreadsheet listing E Ala supporters and volunteers in Appendix 1). A federal grant and state legislative measures are being submitted to provide supplemental funding for the E Ala halau wa`a. In February 2010, City employee Edward Freitas stated that from a maintenance perspective, he would not object to allowing the E Ala to be docked at Poka`i Bay. Wai`anae Harbormaster William Aila, Jr. has also expressed his support for bringing the E Ala back to the Wai`anae Boat Harbor.
Furthermore, as stated above, the push to return E Ala to the Wai`anae Coast has been on-going for many years; the key missing elements were captains, crew members, and a location. PVS has trained 3 captains (Sam Kapoi, Kaina Holomalia, and Waimea McKeague), and several crews, who are all young Wai`anae Coast residents. These captains and crews sailed the E Ala, along with two other canoes, Hokule`a and Kamauheheu, back to the Wai`anae Coast from April 20-May 1, 2010 (See media coverage of the Wai`anae Coast sail in Appendix 4). The greater community has also expressed its support, as over 500 people have signed petitions urging the State and City to provide the permission necessary to allow the E Ala to be docked at Wai`anae Boat Harbor or Poka`i Bay (See E Ala Petitions in Appendix 5).
WHEN: PVS, WHCC, and other supporters urge the State and City to allow E Ala to be docked at Wai`anae Boat Harbor or Poka`i Bay immediately, or as soon as possible.
APPENDICES (Click on the titles to view the documents):
Appendix 1 – Spreadsheet listing E Ala supporters and volunteers (available upon request)
Appendix 2 – Model drawing of the “Halau Wa`a `O E Ala”
Appendix 3 – E Ala background from WHCC website,http://waianaehcc.org/eala.htm
Appendix 4 – Media coverage of the E Ala canoe’s Wai`anae Coast sail (April 20-May 1, 2010)
Appendix 5 – Petitions (hand-written and online) urging the State and City to allow E Ala to be docked at Wai`anae Boat Harbor or Poka`i Bay
No comments:
Post a Comment