COURTESY OF OHA
Ninth-grader Lilinoe Speed's poster won first place in the ninth- to 12th-grade and overall divisions.
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs' first Na 'Oiwi 'Olino essay, poster and debate contests held earlier this month recognized the achievements of 29 Hawaiian youths in grades 4 through 12. OHA names 29
contest winnersStudents took part in essay,
'I am proud to be Hawaiian'
poster and debate contestsStar-Bulletin staff
The agency received 361 poster and essay entries on the topic of "He Hawai'i Au" ("I am Hawaiian") from 16 Hawaiian charter and immersion schools. Hawaiian and English essays were judged in three grade categories. All Hawaii public and private high schools were invited to participate in the debate on federal recognition.
The winners are as follows:
English essay, grades 4 and 5
First: Kala'iakea Hu'eu; Kanu I Ka Pono Charter School, Kauai, grade 5
Second: Maka Viernes, Kanu I Ka Pono, grade 4
Third: Maka Pa; Kanu I Ka Pono, grade 4English essay, grades 6 to 8
First: Aniellen Kanahele; Ke Kula Ni'ihau 'O Kekaha, Kauai, grade 8
Second: Joshua Van Tavares; 'Ehunuikaimalino, Kona, grade 7
Third: Benjamin Kai deRochemont; Kanu 'o Ka 'Aina, Kona, grade 7English essay, grades 9 to 12
First: Kawehionalani Kehaulani Kaneakua; Ke Kula Kaiapuni 'o Anuenue, Oahu, grade 10
Second: Jessica Punahele Svendsen; Kanu 'o Ka 'Aina, Hilo/Kona, grade 10
Third: Joshua Lanakila Mangauil; Kanu 'o Ka 'Aina, grade 11Hawaiian essay, grades 4 and 5
First: Na Tehani K. Louis; Kula Kaiapuni 'o Pu'ohala, Oahu, grade 5
Second: Na Kamalani Dwane Allar; 'Ehunuikaimalino, grade 5
Third: Na Bianca S.K. Franco; Kula Kaiapuni 'o Pu'ohala, grade 5Hawaiian essay, grades 6 to 8
First: Na Te'nia Pohaikealoha Pau'ole; Ke Kula 'o 'Ehunuikaimalino, Kona, grade 6
Second: Na Misha Auili'i Fujimoto; Ke Kula 'o 'Ehunuikaimalino, grade 6
Third: Na Keanuenueola'akea Edward Akaka; Ke Kula 'o 'Ehunuikaimalino, grade 6Hawaiian essay, grades 9 to 12
First: Na Ilihia Nakokoamakali'i Gionson; Ke Kula 'o Nawahiokalani'opu'u, Hilo, grade 11
Second: Na Pohaikealoha Heanu Weller; Ke Kula 'o Nawahiokalani'opu'u, grade 11
Third: Na Hololapaka'ena'enaokona Dat Kong Ho'opai; Ke Kula 'o 'Nawahiokalani'opu'u, grade 12
Poster winners, grades K to 5
COURTESY OF OHA
Fourth-grade first-place winner Kawailani Kauweloa, kindergarten to fifth-grade division.
First: Kawailani Kauweloa, Kula Kaiapuni 'o Pu'ohala, Oahu, grade 4
Second: Michael Uyehara-Keli'ikoa; Paia Elementary, Maui, grade 3
Third: Kwaylen Kalawe; Kualapu'u Elementary, Molokai, grade 2Poster winners, grades 6 to 8
First: Yony States; Kanu I Ka Pono, Kauai, grade 8
Second: Michael Drake; Kanu I Ka Pono, grade 6
Third: Ka'ohulani Rawlins-Crivello; Kualapu'u Elementary, grade 6Poster winners, grades 9 to 12
First and overall poster winner: Lilinoe Speed; Kula Kaiapuni 'o Maui Ma Kekaulike, Maui, grade 9
Second: Kiani Yasak; Kula Kaiapuni 'o Maui Ma Kekaulike, grade 9
Third: Chenoa Lizarraga; Ka Nui Kapona (Ipu Haa), Kauai, grade 10The competitions were organized as part of the Na 'Oiwi 'Olino Native Rights Education Campaign to increase awareness of Hawaiian rights and entitlement issues among opio (youths) and their families.
The Kamehameha Schools team of Anderson Dun and Keoni Mahelona won the Hawaiian issues debate. Debaters argued both sides of the topic, "Is federal recognition in the best interests of the native Hawaiian people?"
Debate teams representing 16 high schools participated in this first collaboration between OHA and Kamehameha Schools. Aiea and Kamehameha emerged as finalists after three rounds held Nov. 30 at Kamehameha's annual Thanksgiving Invitational Tournament.
Mahelona and Dun are the first to have their names engraved on OHA's newly created perpetual trophy on display this year at the school.
Essay and poster cash prizes ranged from $50 to $100, while $2,000 and $1,000 went to the first- and second-place debate teams.
The overall winning poster by Lilinoe Speed will be featured on a T-shirt to be distributed Jan. 15 at the Na 'Oiwi 'Olino Native Rights rally at the state Capitol rotunda on the opening day of the Legislature.
The first-place English essay and posters are reprinted here. Other winning works can be viewed online at www.OHA.org.
COURTESY OF OHA
Eighth-grade first-place winner Yony States, sixth- to eighth-grade division, bottom.
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I am proud to be Hawaiian because it is who I am. I am not ashamed of it and have no reason to be. Being part of a culture as strong as this one is a true blessing, and for that I am truly grateful. ‘I am Proud
to Be Hawaiian’By Kawehionalani Kehaulani Kaneakua
Ke Kula Kaiapuni 'o AnuenueThe blood that once flowed in the veins of my kupuna continues to do so in mine. The language that they once spoke continues to be spoken by me. I do not consider myself to be Hawaiian because of my blood and the language I speak. I am Hawaiian by choice. I choose to speak it, learn it and live it. It is my sense of pride for my culture and my determination to help it grow and be passed down to the next generation that makes me Hawaiian.
Living in a time when everything is changing at top speed can be a little overwhelming. I am glad that I can come to school, Ke Kula Kaiapuni 'o Anuenue, and feel a great sense of relief to see others who share the same pride and strength as I do as a Hawaiian.
I have had the opportunity to leave Anuenue and enroll in a regular school, where I could meet new people and perhaps get a better education. I have considered this, but as always, I have stood by my decision to remain exactly where I am, where my friends and teachers are, and where my culture and family are.
At home, I do not speak the olelo makuahine often because my parents barely understand it. They sometimes ask me to teach them so they will be able to speak along with me, but I don't yield. I say that it is their responsibility as makua and as Hawaiians to learn on their own, just like I did when I first learned to speak. I do feel guilty for not teaching them, but those who truly want something must make the choice of achieving it. Still, they try and I praise them for it.
At times I do wish that we could return to ka wa kahiko, when things weren't so materialistic and where things were said and done with good reason. People do wonder how we could survive without entertainment and distractions, but life shouldn't be about such things. It's about the hard work and the knowledge that you can learn from your elders, just like ka po'e kahiko.
I don't need to go out on the streets and protest all day or broadcast on the 'Olelo channel to show everyone that I wish we could live as our kupuna did. I am Hawaiian because of the blood that will forever flow through my veins and because of the stories that are forever in my mind and my heart. I am Hawaiian by choice. I choose to speak it, learn it and live it.
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