Lauhala artist Joni Mae Makuakāne-Jarrell will emcee the 2024 Cultural Festival on July 20. She is seen here demonstrating how to weave a lauhala hat during the 2023 festival (NPS Photo/J.Ferracane)

(BIVN) – Performers and activities have been announced for Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park’s 40th Cultural Festival, happening in Kahuku on Saturday, July 20 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The free event will feature “a remarkable program of local musicians, hālau hula, Hawaiian games, arts and crafts plus exhibitors and food vendors”, the National Park Service says, providing details in a recent news release.

The theme of the 40th Cultural Festival is E Ho‘omau i ka Poʻohala.

From the National Park Service:

Hulō! A remarkable program of local musicians, hālau hula, Hawaiian games, arts and crafts plus exhibitors and food vendors will be featured at the Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park 40th Cultural Festival happening in Kahuku on Saturday, July 20 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., free!

The theme of the 40th Cultural Festival, E Ho‘omau i ka Poʻohala, is exemplified in the many performances and hands-on activities that carry on the virtues, arts and skills of the ‘ohana.

Sway and sing along to Hawaiian and island-inspired music by well known performers including Kenneth Makuakāne, the Pandanus Club, and Keaīwa. Enjoy hula arts performed by Kaleilaniakealiʻi and LoriLei’s Hula Studio. Lauhala artist Joni Mae Makuakāne-Jarrell, an ardent supporter of the Cultural Festival for decades, will emcee.

Pandanus Club members Alden Kaiʻaokamālie, Ken Makuakāne (middle) and Roddy Lopez (Photo courtesy of the Pandanus Club)

Everyone is invited to test their skills at nā pāʻani (Hawaiian games), makau (Hawaiian fishhook making), and weaving with lau niu (coconut palm leaves) and lau hala (pandanus leaves). Learn to make lei lāʻī (tī leaf lei) and kāhili (feather standards), and how lāʻāu lapaʻau (Hawaiian medicinal plants) can improve one’s health. Don’t forget to make your mark with ‘ohe kāpala – bamboo stamping! These activities are an integral part of Hawaiian culture and an enlightening, hands-on way to learn about the deep connection between Hawaiians and the natural environment.

In addition, the Kaʻū Multicultural Society will host a display about paniolo history, and local conservation organizations will share the latest information about Rapid ‘Ōhiʻa Death (University of Hawaiʻi), honuʻea (Hawaiʻi Island Hawksbill Project) and efforts to save native forest birds from deadly mosquito-borne illnesses (Birds Not Mosquitoes).

Entrance and the Cultural Festival are free! Food and refreshments will be available for purchase or pack a picnic. Laulima Catering and 4 Scoops of Aloha will offer Hawaiian food, and the Hawaiian Civic Club of Kaʻū will sell lunch plates. The Friends of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park will give away free ice shave minis and will sell the official 2024 festival T-shirt. The Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Assocation will sell items from the park store, and a free shuttle between the festival grounds and the parking area on the former air strip will be provided by KapohoKine Adventures.

The 40th Cultural Festival will be a fun-filled, family-friendly drug- and alcohol-free event. Sunscreen and a hat are recommended. Bring water, rain jacket, and ground mat or chair. The cultural festival is co-sponsored by Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, the Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, and the Hawai‘i Pacific Parks Association.

Kahuku is located on the mauka side of Highway 11 near mile marker 70.5 in Kaʻū, a 50-minute drive south of the park’s main entrance.