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Local Businessman Duane Kurisu Envisions a Plantation-style Community with Plantation-era Values Gregg K. Kakesako Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Late last month, 24 prefabricated steel-framed boxes that had been manufactured by a Japanese company as emergency homes for victims of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Fukushima arrived in the Islands to become....

HIFF 37 Will Take Moviegoers to 45 Countries Through 150-Plus Films Karleen C. Chinen Attention, film lovers! Take out your calendars and start plotting your movie viewing schedule for the upcoming Hawaii International Film Festival, Presented by Halekulani. This year’s festival, the 37th, opens Thursday evening, Nov. 2, and will feature approximately 160 films from....

Four World War II Nisei Veterans Awarded French Legion of Honor Medal Gregg K. Kakesako Special to The Hawai‘i Herald It’s been nearly three-quarters of a century since the Nisei soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team were engaged in one of the most vicious battles of World War II....

“Himeyuri no Tou (Monument of Star Lilies),” 1953 drama, 2 hours and 8 minutes. Directed by Tadashi Imai. Starring Keiko Tsushima and Kyoko Kagawa. This film follows the lives of high school girls sent to the battlefield to serve as military nurses during WWII. With great courage and resolve, the girls work tirelessly to help....

Dr. Mitch Maki: “Because of You, Our Nation is What It is Today” Editor’s note: The following is the text of Dr. Mitchell Maki’s speech to the veterans of the 100th Infantry Battalion and their families and friends at the One Puka Puka’s 75th anniversary banquet. The gathering, which was attended by seven 100th Battalion....

Exemplary Service Keeps Loyal Customers Coming Back Gwen Battad Ishikawa Long before the arrival in Hawai‘i of Costco and Sam’s Club, Shimaya Shoten was the place to go for food that could be purchased in bulk, especially ethnic fare. My grandmother used to sell food at community events, so she made one or two trips....

The Okinawan Songbird’s Performance Set for Sunday, Sept. 3 Jodie Chiemi Ching Special to The Hawai‘i Herald The Japanese characters for Rimi Natsukawa’s family name mean “summer river.” How else could you describe the pure and magical flow of Natsukawa’s voice? The songbird whose recording of “Nada Sousou,” the signature tune from the heartbreaking 2006....

Colleen Uechi Special to The Hawai‘i Herald The wind was gusting fiercely as Kalä Baybayan Tanaka hunched behind the communications box to do an interview at sea. It was May 31, a sunny Wednesday afternoon, and Tanaka was sailing homeward through the South Pacific with the crew of the Polynesian voyaging canoe, Höküle‘a. The canoe....

BIG ISLAND June 10 (Sat.): Honomu Henjyoji Mission, 7 p.m.; Hatsubon and Obon service at 5 p.m. (28-1668 Old Mamalahoa Hwy., 963-6308) June 10 (Sat.): Obon Festival at Keauhou Shopping Center (Kona Hongwanji), 6 p.m.; food booths available (78-6831 Ali‘i Dr., 323-2993) June 17 (Sat.): Papaikou Hongwanji, 7 p.m., following 6 p.m. service (27-378 Old....

Richard Borreca Special to The Hawai‘i Herald For the past quarter of a century, only two men have controlled the House of Representatives in Hawai‘i. Maui Democratic Rep. Joe Souki was Speaker of the House from 1993 until 1999, when he was ousted by Pälolo Democratic Rep. Calvin Say. Then in 2013, Souki put together....