Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 11, Number 6, 1 June 1994 — Nā Koa: The Warriors [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Nā Koa: The Warriors

by Jeff CIark Are these guys for real? Yes. The first thing you realize when you meet Nā Koa o Pu'ukoholā Heiau is that they are not meant to be a cosmetic effect, they are not makebelieve, and they are not playing dress up. "This is not a game to us. ... We are not a parade unit," says group treasurer Hank Fergerstrom. "We're not the kind , of people that feel like being in a parade and being weekend warriors. We are real warriors."

Dressed in ti-leaf capes, kīhei, or just malo, and carrying traditional weapons like the club, spear, and pololū (battle pike), they impress most spectators at Hawaiian events where they ensure protocol is followed, ceremonies run smoothly, and photojournalists and other niele folk keep clear of the kapu areas. They have stood guard at numerous 'awa ceremonies (including the one at 'Iolani Palaee during the 'Onipa'a eommemoration), rites for

Kaho'olawe, eanoe launchings, the Dalai Lama's visit, royal court appearances, and more. They have also visited schools, and earlier this year made quite an impression on students from Wai'anae High when they served as onshore support crew for the educational voyage of the E'ala along the Kona Coast. Nā Koa, who eame together for Ho'oku'ikahi, the 1991 reunification ceremony held on Pu'ukoholā Heiau at Kawaihae on the island of Hawai'i, stand for lōkahi, for unity, for coming together.

President George Manu is a retired airline executive, Fergerstrom a computer technieian; the group includes a fisherman, a former archeologist, a helicopter meehanie, construction workers, a refuse worker, a fine arts salesman, ... but when they're together, they are Nā Koa. This is how charter member Mason Maikui describes the birth of Nā Koa: "It started off as a whisper, and a vision by an elder,

and a prayer by another elder." Having met through weapons workshops conducted by Sam Ka'ai, they became a unit in order to preside at Ho'oku'ikahi. The purpose of Ho'oku'ikahi was to heal the hurt caused in 1791 when Kamehameha invited his cousin Keoua to Pu'ukoholā Heiau, whieh he had dedicated to his war god Kūkā'ilimoku in order to fulfill a prophecy that he would unite the islands - when Keoua reached the heiau, Kamehameha had him killed. So in uniting the islands, he caused a great division on his own home island between 'ohana.

"It was hard for a lot of us because a lot had blood on both sides," Fergerstrom remembers about preparing for the ceremony. "To portray oneself as a Kamehameha warrior was hard." They needed a ka'au, or 40 men, in order to be established. The fortieth man showed up on the day of the ceremony. That day they made a commitment to the seven generations to eome that they will protect, preserve and perpetuate the Hawaiian culture. Seven generations have passed since that fateful event at Pu'ukoholā 200 years ago; Nā Koa are the first born of the next seven generations, Fergerstrom said. Since then their numbers have been cut in half, less a reflection of disinterest than a testament to the tremendous dedication Nā Koa demands of its men. They meet as often as possible, and constant meetings ean be hard on one's 'ohana. Another hardship is funding: they never travel without a contingent of at least 10 warriors, whieh equals $1,000 right off the bat for any off-island function. Nā Koa held a eouple fundraisers, but getting cash with whieh to operate continues to be a major obstacle.

Although they have shrunk in numbers, the group has undergone considerable growth in other areas — members are now involved in many of the various fields of Hawaiian cultural practice. Most members carve, some work the lo'i, they learn chants, they undergo training in the Hawaiian martial art of lua. ... "We do anything we ean possibly do that's Hawaiian," Fergerstrom says proudly. They are also involved with

community projects such as recycling. In the three years they have been together, they have pulled others into the fold. Pua Case Lapulapu belongs to three groups that participate with Nā Koa in various events and projects. These are her hālau hula, Nā Kālai Wa'a (the group that built Mau Loa), and the DOE Hawaiian Studies kupuna program. In characterizing how all the people work together, she

says, "We deal with things on a spiritual level," adding that they shift their focus from the immediate task at hand to "how we feel, how we treat eaeh other. Our whole focus is on being gracious to another, treating eaeh other the way our ancestors treated eaeh other." Nā Koa are led by kūpuna and others who act as spiritual guides: Ka'ai, Hale Makua, Papa Akau,

Mel Kalahiki, John Lake, and Kalani Meineeke. The late Parley Kanaka'ole had been their kahuna nui. To Maikui, Fergerstrom and Manu, involvement in Nā Koa is a means by whieh Hawaiian men ean reclaim their plaee in the eulture. "Too many years only the wāhine been talking," Manu asserts. "When we first started none of us were really brilliant on any of this (Hawaiian culture),"

Fergerstrom says. "But we've learned of the past, and we've become a repository for any kupuna who would like to share any information that needs to be shared and passed on." That's quite a load. He says, "It's an interesting load, but it ean be done. And we're finding out it ean be done very graciously. We ean have a whole lot of fun doing it."

Nā Koa look to their kūpuna for guidance. Punaheie Andrade, left, iearns from Hale Makua. Photos courtesy Nā Koa o Pu'ukoholā Heiau

Would you cross this man? Alwood Hooper makes a stand on the rim of Halema'uma'u.