Honokaa Elementary School is having its Family Fun Night this Tuesday from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Honokaa School cafeteria. Join in the fun welcoming the school’s new Principal, Rory Souza, and enjoy a fun night of crafts, and games. There will be great prizes to win. Or earn “Book Bucks” to spend at the HEA Book Fair being held on Dec. 13-14.
Honokaa Elementary School is having its Family Fun Night this Tuesday from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Honokaa School cafeteria. Join in the fun welcoming the school’s new Principal, Rory Souza, and enjoy a fun night of crafts, and games. There will be great prizes to win. Or earn “Book Bucks” to spend at the HEA Book Fair being held on Dec. 13-14.
This night is sponsored by: Primary School Adjustment Project, PSAP, Honokaa Elementary Association, HEA, and Parent Community Networking Center, PCNC. Please RSVP right away to Hilda Yagong at 775-8820, ext. 225.
Honokaa Elementary Association’s Craft, Rummage and Bake Sale is this Saturday at the Honokaa School cafeteria from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Come check out the great deals, one-of-a-kind handcrafted items, and yummy goodies. Funds raised by The HEA (Honokaa Elementary Association) go back to the students by way of funds for excursions, and other fun “extras.”
For information or donations, please contact Karen Kishimoto at 775-8820, ext. 231.
It was a culinary explosion. On Oct. 29, the classes of Honokaa High &Intermediate School culinary teacher Xenia Bremseth and agriculture teacher Manuel Jadulang joined together to explore tastes, for the senses, mind and emotional spirit shared by chef olelo pa‘a Faith Ogawa.
The students heard folks being so passionate about farming and the preparation of what we do and can grow. This passion strengthens sustainability. It is an art to pass on from generation to generation. Chef said, “I prepared locally grown braised grass fed beef; braised with cinnamon leaves and other spices from Wailea Ag Farm, topped with a Nakano Farm Tomato Salsa, chimichurri sauce and Big Island Goat Cheese. Accompanied with luau hummus, polenta, a green salad, Wailea Ag hearts of palm, Bonk Farm sweet Waimea corn, sweet potatoes from the school garden and Honokaa orange vinaigrette dressing.”
Senior Gary Torres is in both the culinary and the business classes. He says these classes let students see the connection between preparation and cooking of a meal and the costs involved. According to Senior Isaiah Bettino, determining the value of the meal, “is watching proportions, define the ‘business proportions or value,’ and know that the plate holds “a little bit of everybody — manager, cook and waiter. All together it is the big picture.”
Isaiah hopes some day to have a bakery or restaurant where young people can come to work and learn. Helping prepare the food, 10th-grader Patrick Cootey said, “Yes I can taste the caraway seeds a little bit, a new taste for some.
Chef Olelo poses this wish, “that we can bring light to farming on Hawaii Island and support education in this area. Many of the students never tasted the dishes we prepared that day. The fresh ingredients such as the spices, goat cheese, hearts of palm and luau in a hummus was exciting for them to be exposed to.
“Let’s redefine farming” to being fun, enjoyable and healthy. It can be our life and a relaxing way to experience our livelihood. “I propose a garden work day with all of us coming together to prepare and plant the soil. We will decide what to plant and what to cook. Let’s make it fun! Who wants to take charge of the garden day?”
Future Farmers of America, FFA, juniors Landrick Puahala Osaki and KaMele Sanchez offered to lead. “We will hear from them on the day chosen and the request made for volunteers.” High school senior Samantha Miguel explained “that we live in a culture where the food comes from all different places. There are ‘many tastes’ that a cook can take from as they prepare a meal. Yes, I plan to go to culinary school in Kona for two years then transfer and continue.”
Chef followed, “The plate of food presented to each student was low in fat, balanced in ‘flavors, colorful and tasty’; these are comments the students made.”
The Honokaa High School Ag Program Project E Ulu Pono O Honokaa focuses on sustainability in areas of food production and the environment. Through the University of Hawaii at Manoa College of Education’s Kulia I Ka Nu‘u project, Honokaa High School’s Career Tech Educational Programs, and The Kohala Center, the program has made great strides in providing learning opportunities for students to gain exposure to the field.
The program infuses science, Hawaiian culture, and place-based learning, weaving them into the curriculum by providing student opportunities in careers that may lead to jobs in the agriculture and natural resources fields.
Faith says, “As you may know, we import about 90 percent of our foods to our Hawaiian Islands. This is sad to me. In the ancient days, the Hawaiians were living here with abundance of food. It is time to find ways that we can be sustainable. The dishes I prepared used over 90 percent of locally grown foods from Hawaii Island.”
Relating to the presentation, Kehaulani Marshall, program coordinator at Ulu Mau Puanui, relayed that “she, Chef, made herself ‘ono’ so that the students see the food is ono. The students begin to realize how the land relates to the food prepared for the table. Then there’s the flash of recognition, on their faces, as the students made this experience relevant to themselves. They hear with a different voice.”
Shereena Bird is realizing during this, her senior year, that there is a lot more out there to explore and taste. Her thought is the U.S. Marine Corps will bring her those experiences along with travel; education in many fields as well as a healthy life style with much physical activity. After this career there will be time for the opportunities presented. Isaiah’s sights are set on studying at the Le Cordon Bleu Hospitality School which, according to Wikipedia, “is the world’s largest hospitality education institution, with over 50 schools on five continents serving 20,000 students annually. Its primary education focus is on hospitality management, culinary arts and gastronomy.”
He then finishes up with, “there is no wrong way in culinary” as with life, “there is my way, there’s the customer’s way and maybe just flip it to anybody’s way.”
Carol Yurth’s column is published every Sunday and spotlights activities on the Hilo-Hamakua coast. She welcomes items for her column. Reach her by mail (46-1250 Kalehua Road, Honokaa HI 96727) at least 10 days before the requested publication date, call her at 775-7101, or e-mail waiukahenutz@gmail.com.