History

Maui Became Home for Several Gannenmono Melissa Tanji Special to the Hawai‘i Herald Editor’s note: The following story is a re-edited version of Maui News reporter Melissa Tanji’s story on Maui’s Gannenmono commemoration, which was published in the newspaper’s April 29, 2018, edition. Special mahalo to Melissa and Maui News managing editor Lee Imada for....

"Two Cultures, One People" Michael Chun, Ph.D. Published with Permission Aloha mai käkou! Being a part of today’s symposium commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Gannenmono’s arrival in Hawai‘i is both a great honor and deeply humbling. Mahalo nui loa. With the arrival of the Gannenmono in Hawai‘i in 1868, a new journey was launched....

Creating the Maui Nisei Veterans Memorial Center Melvin Inamasu and Violet Harada Courtesy of the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i Persistence and grit are essential attributes of leadership. Leonard Oka possesses both in spades. It took Oka over three decades to realize his vision of a center on Maui to honor Nisei veterans. In the....

How Significant is “The Japanese Vote?” Richard Borreca Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Asking about ethnic voting in Hawai‘i is like posing the question: “Is it raining in Hawai‘i?” Yes, somewhere in Hawai‘i almost every day, rain is falling and, yes, Hawai‘i voters take ethnicity into consideration when they go to the polls. But it....

Rev. Bert Sumikawa Helps Descendants Honor Ancestors at the Bellows Japanese Cemetery Gregg K. Kakesako Special to The Hawai‘i Herald This year, obon — the 500-year-old Japanese Buddhist custom honoring ancestors’ spirits — will deepen Ann Nakata’s connection with her family roots. Just two months ago, 72-year-old Nakata, a retired Kapahulu florist, discovered she had....

Dale Minami Published with Permission The following is the text of Dale Minami’s keynote speech at Denshö’s 20th anniversary gala in Seattle on Sept. 24. The Herald thanks Dale for allowing us to share his insightful...

TÖKYÖ — A former official of the Japan National Tourism Organization has released an English-language version of his research on the wartime escape of Jews from Nazi persecution via Japan. Akira Kitade, 70, published his...

How an Issei Okinawan Woman Broke the Glass Ceiling in the 1930s Lynette Teruya Special to The Hawai‘i Herald When 7-year-old Ushi Tamagusuku left Okinawa in 1910, who could have known that she would someday become the...

Nisei Veterans Memorial Center Telling Their Story Inside and Out Melissa Tanji Special to The Hawai‘i Herald Crisp, colorless images of young American soldiers of Japanese ancestry are coming to life on a concrete canvas on the windswept oceanfront campus of the Nisei Veterans Memorial Center. At the center, situated where the towns of Kahului and Wailuku meet,....

The Kona Shop Has Been Keeping a Hawaiian Tradition Alive for 105 Years Jodie Chiemi Ching “Put your hands into the soil, it’s good for your soul; you get back to where life begins,” said Renee Kimura, the fourth-generation owner and manager of Kimura Lauhala Shop in Kona. Here, the natural scent of the lauhala,....