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C Photo courtesy of Kona Brewers Festival - Luau Grounds / R.Thomas TM C www.MokuleleAirlines.com A message from Ron Hansen, CEO of Mokulele Airlines What’s Inside? E komo mai! Ambassador Thank you for choosing 6 of Aloha Mokulele! We’re very happy to Recording artist Uluwehi have you on board with us today. Guerrero shares his At Mokulele, we’re always passion for the Hawaiian looking for ways to better serve our customers. In December, culture we introduced Mokulele Adventure Tours to give our valued passengers a choice of four scenic day trips to some of Hawaii’s most popular destinations. We also launched our same day rush shipping service, which Greening up offers convenient, counter-to-counter service between 10 the Grid the 10 airport locations we serve for envelopes up to five pounds and boxes up to 70 pounds. And we’re pleased to JUMPSmartMaui sets announce that this spring, we are going to begin offering its sights on creating a two daily roundtrip flights between Hilo on the Big Island and Kahului, Maui. more efficient clean energy system In this issue of Island Hopper, you’ll learn about an amazing nonprofit organization, Surfers Healing, that makes it possible for children and young adults with autism to experience the joy of surfing. We also share the story of hula master and award-winning recording artist, Big Fun Uluwehi Guerrero, and his passion for the Hawaiian culture. You’ll also learn about the Kona Brewers 14 on Tap Festival, an annual event that raises funds for nonprofit Kona Brewers Festival organizations in a very fun way. And we’ll introduce you to JUMPSmartMaui, a collaborative research set to celebrate its 20th project with a goal to help create a more efficient clean anniversary with plenty of energy system in our state and increase Hawaii’s use of brews, blues, food and fun renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power. Enjoy your flight! We look forward to welcoming you back again whenever your travel plans include one of the many destinations we serve in our beautiful islands. Mahalo. Surfers 20 Healing Sincerely, Event helps Hawai‘i Ron Hansen children with autism Ron Hansen, President & CEO experience the thrill of Mokulele Airlines a lifetime MOKULELEAIRLINES.COM ISSUE 14 I 1 TM CORPORATE President/CEO Mokulele Airlines RON HANSEN Publisher/Executive VP/COO DAVE BERRY Editorial Director THOMAS GAUL Creative Director TOBY THOMPSON Editor-in-Chief KAREN BROST ACCOUNT MANAGERS Corporate Account Managers GAIL GLUSHENKO JOCELYN PALAFOX TECHNOLOGY Web Development DAN TRUJILLO Editorial Inquiries: [email protected] Advertising Inquiries: [email protected] Island Hopper Magazine Corporate Office 8241 E. Evans, Ste. 102 . Scottsdale, Arizona 85260 Toll Free: 800-439-6955 . 480-393-3013 . Fax: 480-393-3017 Office: OʻAHU Honolulu MOLOKAʻI Barbers Point Hoʻolehua Kalaupapa Kalaeloa JRF Kapalua MAUI Kahului Hana Lanaʻi City HAWAI I LANAʻI (THE BIG ISLAND)ʻ Waimea-Kohala Hilo Kona MOKULELEAIRLINES.COM REMEMBER HOW TO FLIRT Whale Watching Season is Here! Aloha, and welcome aboard your Mokulele flight! The next couple of months are peak times for whale watching. Among the many perks of flying with Mokulele Airlines are the spectacular views that you will see from your window seat. So keep an eye out over the water during your flight and hopefully you’ll be able to spot a whale or two! This February and March, we’ve got a few upcoming events that you may want to check out. Celebrate the Chinese New Year this February with festivals being held on the Big Island, Maui and O‘ahu. There are two great opportunities to check out the Waikiki Artfest which will be held February 21 – 22 and again on March 28 – 29. If you’re into craft beer, then you’ll definitely want to get your hands on some tickets to the 20th Annual Kona Brewers Festival, which is taking place from March 11th to March 14th. All of us at Mokulele Airlines would like to thank you for choosing us for your travel needs. We hope you enjoy your flight with us, whether you’re on business, leisure or vacation. Our growth is only made possible with the VOTED #1 – BEST HOTEL/RESORT FOR A ROMANTIC GETAWAY continued support of our valued passengers who have helped us become Hawaii Magazine 2014 Readers’ Choice Awards Hawaii’s number one Island Hopper! Make your next reservation online at www.mokuleleairlines.com and let us show you Hawaii’s greatest views! 1.855.TO.TRAVAASA Best rate guaranteed on travaasa.com 2 I MOKULELEAIRLINES.COM luwehi Guerrero is a man of many talents. He’s a kumu hula (master hula teacher), musician, performer and U award-winning recording artist. But above all, he’s a man who is passionate about sharing the beauty of the Hawaiian culture with others, whether he’s here in Hawai‘i or traveling around the world. It’s something he has been doing for more than three decades. MASTER HULA TEACHER AND AWARD-WINNING RECORDING ARTIST ULUWEHI GUERRERO SHARES HIS PASSION FOR THE HAWAIIAN CULTURE BY KAREN BROST It was a fortuitous ad in the Maui News back in the 70s that set Ulu, as he is known, on the path that would eventually define his life and career. “It was for a traditional hula school and it said ‘Learn ancient hula kahiko.’ Back then, you didn’t hear that,” he says. “That was something I always wanted to know about, so I went to the audition and there were maybe 20 or 30 people. We studied for five hours every day. We were so young and we were like sponges – we wanted to learn everything about our culture.” Ulu and a fellow student, Hawaiian musician Keali‘i Reichel, eventually established their own hula hālau (school) and operated it together for 20 years. Today, Ulu teaches at his own school on Maui, Hālau Hula Kauluokalā, and he operates five schools in Japan. “When I look back at who influenced the passion that I have today, a lot of them were teachers who mentored me. As a teacher myself now, I feel the same kind of responsibility for young people, being able to tap into their special qualities and to bring those out in them, especially if it helps them to gain identity in Hawaiian culture or be proud of where they come from, even if they’re not Hawaiian. We call it a hula school, but it encompasses everything of Hawaiian culture, from the language to the chanting and protocols and, most importantly, the family values.” 6 I MOKULELEAIRLINES.COM ISSUE 14 I 7 “When I look back at who influenced the passion that I have today, a lot of them were teachers who mentored me.” - Uluwehi Guerrero “Hula is not just dance,” he explains. “Each hula, or each chant or song describes a particular area or a particular incident. It was our way, back then, to take a snapshot, so to speak, of what was happening in life. That’s how we kept our history alive – through these oral histories. I was born and raised on Maui, so there is a certain kuleana, or responsibility, to keep the stories and the history of our island, of our people, of our way of life.” Ulu is also a recording artist who has won multiple Nā Hōkū Hanohano awards (Hawaii’s version of the Grammy), including “Best Male Vocalist of the Year” and “Hawaiian Album of the Year.” Known for his rich, warm vocal harmonies and falsetto styling, he has performed around the world, including at Carnegie Hall. Last year, when Maui High School was invited to represent Hawai‘i in the Rose Parade, Ulu gladly headlined a benefit dinner to help raise funds for their travel expenses. The event raised $350,000. “I was thrilled for them,” he notes, adding that he had once played in the band himself. The president of the Tournament of Roses was in the audience that night and he invited Ulu to travel to Pasadena to share his aloha spirit by performing at a black tie dinner for the tournament’s sponsors. Ulu explained why he’s so passionate about sharing the Hawaiian culture. “If we open up our hearts and use what we call mea ho‘okipa, which is to be hospitable, because it’s in our nature, we can educate people so they will understand our culture and have a greater respect for it. They will see that we’re not just a place of beauty and entertainment, that we truly have a living culture with a language, with beliefs, with values — all that makes us unique.” To learn more about Uluwehi Guerrero and his music, visit www.kaulupono.com. 8 I MOKULELEAIRLINES.COM As part of the JUMPSmartMaui launch festivities on June 15, 2013, program partners demonstrated the charging JUMPSMARTMAUI SETS IT SIGHTS of Nissan LEAF vehicles at Queen Ka`ahumanu Center’s DC Fast Charger stations. Photo by: Matt Thayer ON CREATING A MORE EFFICIENT CLEAN ENERGY SYSTEM BY KAREN BROST nyone who has ever paid an electric bill or filled a gas tank in Hawai‘i won’t be surprised to hear that our state has the highest gas A and electricity prices in the U.S. The reason is that 90 percent of our energy demand comes from imported fossil fuels, making Hawai‘i the most oil- dependent state in the country. But research is now underway to help reverse that trend, thanks, in part, to JUMPSmartMaui, a collaborative demonstration project between Japan, Hawai‘i and Maui. Neighbors and EV owners Diane Martin (with daughter Maggie) and Seung Oh (in yellow shirt) received a JUMPSmartMaui stakeholders reached out into the community to sign up volunteers for their demonstration demonstration from Hitachi’s Michinori Owada on how to use the DC Fast Charger station at Pi`ilani Village project.