Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 40, Number 5, 1 May 2023 — Mirafuentes Wins OHA 'Ōlelo Hawai'i Award [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Mirafuentes Wins OHA 'Ōlelo Hawai'i Award

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E ho'omaika'i to 2023 Miss Aloha Hula contestant Meleōna Kamalani Mirafuentes, who took home the Office of Hawaiian Affairs' (OHA) Hawaiian Language Award on April 13. The award was presented by OHA B0T Chair Carmen "Hulu" Lindsey. Mirafuentes was also the third-place winner of the overall Miss Aloha Hula competition. Mirafuentes dances with Hālau Nā Mamo 0 Pu'uanahulu under the direction of nā Kumu Hula William "Sonny" Ching and Lōpaka lgarta-De Vera. Mirafuentes' kahiko presentation was "He Lei No Ka'iulani," a mele inoa written in 1893 to honor Princess Ka'iulani, praise her efforts to rectify the wrong imposed on her aunt, Oueen Lili'uokalani, and assert her rights as heir to the throne. - Photo: īrocey Niimi/Merrie Monarch Festival.