KAMAKAHONU — In the latter years of King Kamehameha I’s life, the Ahu‘ena Heiau was a place of government and political power. It was there, according to documents that landed the site on the National Register of Historic Places, nightly council meetings were hosted and his son, Liholiho, received his instruction.
And it was at the Hale Nana Mahina‘ai — the house to look at the farmlands — where Kamehameha, also known as Kamehameha the Great, could rest and step out to look out over the ocean and landscape.
“That was the only structure that King Kamehameha actually would reside or sleep in, so that makes it unique from the others,” said Jacqueline Awa, treasurer and director of Ahu‘ena Heiau Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and maintenance of the site.
“So each structure is unique in what it was used for,” she added later. “But that specific one is where he would reside when he was here, so he could monitor his lands and oversee his government.”
For the past 10 years though, the Hale Nana Mahina‘ai has been left unthatched, “which is not the way it should be,” Awa said.
“They should be all thatched and, because this was the king’s quarters or living area, they were normally in pristine condition,” she said.
The organization’s goal now is to completely restore and rethatch Hale Nana Mahina’ai and, last Tuesday, a dozen volunteers came out to the site to strip the bark off of waiawi — strawberry guava — branches. Those waiawi branches will be used as the hale’s aho, or purlins.
The volunteers are being led by a local kupuna, who learned traditional hale building techniques from the previous caretaker, Mauna Roy.
Among the volunteers was Lance Lesneski, who’s lived in Kona for about four months.
Lesneski, 71, said he came out to volunteer out of curiosity and said he enjoys working with the heritage of the area he’s in. Back in the San Francisco Bay area, he said, he helped with construction of a wooden historical sailing ship.
“Any chance we can have to enrich our connections is a value to us as humans, regardless of where we come from,” he said.
The volunteers also included teenagers from Ke Kama Pono, a Salvation Army program that teaches life skills to at-risk youth.
Residential specialist Cody Okino said the restoration work was a great opportunity for the kids to contribute to the community and see the result of their work.
“This is their way of giving back to the community and learning the traditional Hawaiian way of how things were done,” he said. “We see a good change in them that we can expose them to this and, like the group I have here, they grasp this concept very well. And at the same time, they’re learning.”
While the hale mana and hale pahu are thatched with ki leaves and hala leaves, respectively, the Hale Nana Mahina‘ai was thatched with leaves from sugarcane. A crucial part of the restoration project will be the collection of the sugarcane leaves needed to thatch the structure. Getting that much sugarcane in one place, however, can be tricky.
“Unfortunately, this island does not have sufficient sugarcane in one area to pick,” Awa said.
As a result, she said, the organization will send some members to Maui later this month.
“And we have two not-for-profits that will be helping us in Maui pick over 40,0000 sugarcane leaves,” she said, “which we will bring back here and Uncle will teach us the technique of weaving the leaves.”
Once the hale is restored, Awa said, it’ll be something the community can experience beyond what they could see in a book. She said while the hale are replicas since the original structures no longer exist, they still give people a window into history.
“You actually get to see different types of unique structures that were very special and a part of history that, even if you look at books, it’s not the same thing,” Awa said. “It’s that presence of awe or wonder — ‘Oh, that’s how it is’ — versus looking at it in a picture book.”
And for those volunteering to take an active role in restoring the hale, it’s a chance to keep the knowledge and skills alive to be passed on for future preservation efforts.
“Because of the type of materials, this structure, we’re going to have to go through this process in 10 years, and I might not be lucky enough to have Uncle,” Awa said. “So I’m going to need somebody else, and if you don’t learn from Uncle you’re not gonna learn the original way it should’ve been done.”
Volunteer days are scheduled for 8-11 a.m. every Tuesday and some Saturdays. Those interested can email Awa at jawa@lanihau.net
Email Cameron Miculka at cmiculka@westhawaiitoday.com.
