“Somos todos Portugueses!” ADVERTISING “Somos todos Portugueses!” “We are all Portuguese!” Sunday promises to be a special day in Hilo at Gilbert Carvalho Park as the Hawaii Island Portuguese Chamber of Commerce celebrates its 23rd annual Dennis Aguiar Portuguese Day
“Somos todos Portugueses!”
“We are all Portuguese!”
Sunday promises to be a special day in Hilo at Gilbert Carvalho Park as the Hawaii Island Portuguese Chamber of Commerce celebrates its 23rd annual Dennis Aguiar Portuguese Day in the Park, featuring music, dancing, demonstrations, games and food.
Beginning at 9 a.m., people can play the Portuguese card game bisca, compliments of the Portuguese Cultural Club of Hamakua, and learn a few words or speak Portuguese with others. People also can research their Portuguese ancestry through ship manifests and logs that brought the original Portuguese to Hawaii.
At 10 a.m., there will be Portuguese children’s dancing — traditional and modern — with the public invited to join in, and a Portuguese martial arts demonstration. Also featured will be a fashion show of historic costumes giving a flavor of life in the past, from horsemen of mainland Portugal to a wedding dress.
The Hawaii County Band joins the celebration at 11 a.m. with Portuguese music to sing, dance and tap your toes to. At noon, the chamber treats the community to freshly made Portuguese bean soup made in the park’s kitchen and milk bread from the stone oven maintained at the park.
And of course, come to buy and eat delicious Portuguese food, including fresh malasadas, sweetbread, pickled onions, homemade sausage and hot dogs. Commemorative Dennis Aguiar Portuguese Day in the Park T-shirts and tote bags also will be available for purchase.
Last year, the event launched the fundraising campaign to build a Portuguese Cultural and Educational Center in Hilo at the corner of Ponahawai and Komohana streets overlooking Hilo Bay. This effort began the collection of 1,000 signatures and 550 letters of community support sent to the state Legislature resulting in a $1 million grant in aid.
To date, the chamber has incorporated a 501(c)3 to accept tax-deductible donations for the center and land was donated by Frank DeLuz III and partially cleared by members. A rendering of the center and its surroundings donated by Fred Erskine Architects will be on display at the park.
A preliminary exhibit design telling the story of Hawaii’s Portuguese history, emigration and assimilation has been drafted by Dr. Marlene Hapai, HIPCC president and former executive director of the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center. Additionally, $200,000 of in-kind services have been pledged.
The 140th anniversary of the arrival of Hawaii’s first Portuguese immigrants will be celebrated at the center site Sept. 30, 2018.
“This is truly a community project and will be a center all the community can enjoy,” Hapai said. “However, we continue to look for founding donors, ‘angels’ and all to help with this so vitally needed project as we still have $3 million to raise.
“A special center feature will be its use of technology to facilitate family reunions for all ethnicities, bringing together those who have never met and cannot afford travel to do so.”
For more information or to donate, visit hipcc.org.
