Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 18, Number 1, 1 January 2001 — SPECIAL EVENTS FEATURE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

SPECIAL EVENTS FEATURE

A busy yectr aheadfor Master Navijjator Nainoa Thompson

By Manu Boyd T MUST HAVE been in the stars that on the heels of a "real"

new millennium, Master Navigator Nāinoa Thompson of Hōkūle'a fame would be at the forefront of community activity. With fl a quarter-century of teaching and learning WĒ the nearly-lost art of traditional wayfinding, l® Thompson is poised to guide those who have ■ eome to regard him as a role model — if not a H legend. The recently appointed trastees of the multi- 1 billion dollar Bishop Estate — a post held for years by his father, Myron "Pinky" Thompson — 1 is turning his attention to education, institutional and cultural. Starting out the year (weather permitting) is a statewide sail where the 25-year-old voyaging eanoe Hōkūle'a will ply the "eight seas" of Hawai'i as a virtual r.lassroom whpru koiki mākua anrl

kupuna will be able to tour the vessel. Call the Polynesian Voyaging Society at 536-8405 for the schedule.

On Jan. 21, you ean catch Nāinoa at the 16th Annual Ala Wai Challenge, the day-long water sports-Hawaiian games-entertain-ment-'ono food event that benefits the Waikīkī Community Cen-

ter. Event planner Jett Apaka, director ot commumty relations at the WCC, promises a fun-filled day perfect for the entire 'ohana. This year's event is sponsored by Outrigger Hotels and Resorts, and is expected to draw paddlers from the novice to the seasoned to "sprint" the I quarter-mile course. lo register or for more informaj| tion, eall the Waikīkī Community Center at 923-1 802. || Later this year, the huge, statewide Aloha Festivāls will kiek off with its theme "Ho'ohanohano i nā j|S Holokai" (honor the voyagers), announced Gil Butson, 2001 festival president. "We are honored that Nāinoa has accepted the post of 'Ambassador of 16 Aloha,' helping us pay tribute Hawai'i's voyagers, ■ past, present and future" Butson said. rt Perhaps more than any other year in the past quarter century, 2001 promises apacked schedule for Thompson, whether as a newcomer in the

board room of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate or under a canopy of intimately famihar stars over "ka moana nui ākea" (the vast Pacific Oeean). ■

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