Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 6, 1 June 2011 — A BELOVED WOVEN HAT GETS SOME TLC [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

A BELOVED WOVEN HAT GETS SOME TLC

Naomi Ponono Radtke, a reader from Kona on Hawai'i lsland, shared this picture of herself , on right, with lauhala weaver Josephine Kaukali Fergerstrom. After seeing Fergerstrom featured in our March issue, Radtke contacted Ka Wai Ola hoping to connect with the famous weaver, whose skilled hands made a pāpale (hat) that Radtke had onee received as a gift. The hat, made some four decades ago, was in need of a few repairs. We were happy to oblige, and so was Fergerstrom. She repaired the hat, seen here, and returned it to Radtke in time for her to wear it to the recent Merrie Monarch Festival.