Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 8, 1 August 1993 — Culture division fosters OHA's Hawaiian values [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Culture division fosters OHA's Hawaiian values

by Jeff Clark OHA's broad scope includes health and human services, land, education aod eeonomie development. These tend to be thought of as "bread-and-butter" subjects, but they all attempt to operate within the Hawaiian cultural eontext. They do so with kōkua from the culture office, whieh is staffed by officer Pīkake Pelekai and culture specialist Manu Boyd. Pelekai, who taught Hawaiian language at the University of Hawai'i-Hilo and Windward Community College, is the former assistant director of the UHMānoa Hawaiian studies program and also directed the special programs and community services office at Leeward Community College. Boyd is well known in the Hawaiian community. A member of Hālau nā Kamalei, he is an accomplished chanter, eomposer and musician and is the leader of the Hōkū-winning group Ho'okena. Before the arrival of Pelekai and Boyd, OHA's culture was combined with the education division. The new staff's tasks were to get the office up and running, review OHA's functional plan and get ma'a to OHA's operations. The culture staff have taken on many new challenges, such as planning and carrying out the formal investiture of the trustees last December, celebratiing Queen Lili'uokalani's birthday in-house, preparing and delivering legislative testimony on cultural matters, and assisting the community organization that is restoring Ahu'ena Heiau. This is in addi-

tion to preparing the culture biennium budget, supporting the trustees (primarily by providing ho'okupu) when they travel, and providing cultural expertise to the rest of the administrative staff. The two are also kept busy helping people who phone asking for Hawaiian language translations or with other questions on culture. But their support for 'ōlelo Hawai'i doesn't end there. For instance, they sought the OHA board's support of two important language conferences held in Hilo last May (see last issue), and Boyd has begun writing a Hawaiian language eolumn in Ka Wai Ola O OHA (see page 14). Pelekai said that her office is focusing on compiling a database of cultural resources. Copies of the Hawaiian Artisans, Crafters & Practitioners Survey were mailed out several months ago and continue to trickle in daily. A directory will be compiled from this information. Said Pelekai, "Our mandate is advocating and monitoring programs and services for Hawaiians and also determining Hawaiians' needs, and how ean we do that if we don't know who is out there?" "We need to get an accurate census, and this is by no means to exploit anyone, their talents or resources," explained Boyd, adding that some of those who answered the survey did so on the condition that their information not be published. "This is to fuel the strengthening in the eommunity today. Our work hinges on this information." It's easy to see that Pelekai really set her heart on seeing the

Hawaiian cultural directory become a reality. "If and when we leave OHA, we'd like to be able to point to something tangible that will not only be a help to this office, but will also be a real service to the Hawaiian eommunity. We think this database will be that product." "This is trying to make available more of what helps to inspire us, and that is our eulture," Boyd continued. "The more things that we have available to us, the stronger we'll be. If there are things that survived the great cultural genocide. then it is our job to make sure that they grow and are a part of our lives." Another big project they are working on is to develop a cultural protocol for OHA. "The office does not have cultural guidelines, so we're charged with coming up with the basics of what should be OHA protocol," said Pelekai, adding that "OHA should set the example of what is culturally appropriate." Such a protocol would provide guidelines that trustees could follow when visiting and receiving dignitaries, and it would prescribe the behavior of trustees and staff during official functions. The new protocol will also affect OHA's daily operations. Pelekai and Boyd will be working on ways to mesh standard business office procedure with more Hawaiian ways of doing things. "When there is a differenee, whieh gets preference? To me, the Hawaiian should get preference," Pelekai opined. The culture office continues to work on implementing the

Hawauan Genealogy Project. The Secondary Resources Directory (whieh includes federal census files and records found in libraries, the courts, Bishop Museum and private collections) went to print on June 30 and will be available by the end of summer. Duplication of microfilm records of births and deaths between 1841 and 1918 has also begun. OHA's culture office recently has helped organizations by providing awards: the KalihiPālama Culture & Arts Society was given two $500 awards for intermediate and high school contestants who best combined language and dance in the Hawai'i Secondary Schools Hula

Kahiko Competition, and the State Council on Hawaiian Heritage received ipu heke, 'umeke and a lei hulu to award to winners in the recent King Kamehameha Hula Competition. The culture office is clearly a unique part of OHA, and its eoncerns are the well-being of Hawaiians. Despite the differences between the Hawaiian and introduced cultures, Boyd maintains that enormous strength lies in finding things that ancient and contemporary Hawaiian life have in eommon: hula, language, genealogy, eanoe paddling, chanting, surfing, wearing lei ... "These are the things that make us strong and ir.spire us."

OHA's culture division staff: Manu Boyd, left, and Pīkake Pelekai. Photo by Jeff Clark