Miles For Charity; Island Concerts

Catch Brazilian storyteller Antonio Rocha at Kaua‘i public libraries July 5 and 6. Photo courtesy Paul A. Mark

A special mahalo to Scott Giarman for reminding me about the good work of Kaua’i United Way, and an idea for a unique way to support it: donating Hawaiian Airlines frequent-flier miles. KUW supports more than 80 individual social service programs here on the Garden Island (and you can deduct donated miles as a charitable donation on your income taxes). Giarman says miles help KUW assemble enticing vacation packages that can be auctioned off as an important supplement to its annual campaign for participating agencies. To donate, go the Hawaiian Airlines website, hawaiianair.com, click on the “Hawaiian Miles” tab on the top of the page and select “share now,” sign in and identify Kaua’i United Way’s HA frequent flier number: 195 261 558 …

Kaua’i Concert Association has announced an ambitious season this year, including folk-female music, jazz, and the Honolulu Youth Symphony and Broadway stars. The first is this Wednesday, with the fifth-annual Red Clay Jazz Festival from 6 to 8 p.m. June 27 at Kaua’i Marriott Aupaka Bar, with Vanessa Collier from the Berklee College of Music, while the same evening from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. across the way on the North Shore in Princeville at the St. Regis Bar, Treysara will be playing. The festivities continue at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 28, at Kaua’i Marriott Aupaka Bar, with Kaua’i Jazz Quartet. Saturday, June 30, at 4 p.m. will feature EC Scott, Venissa Santi and Collier again along with the Kirk Smart Quartet at Kaua’i Lagoons at Kalapaki Bay.

Cost is $40 in advance, $50 at the door. Mark your calendars, too, for 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14, to hear pianist Haokchen Zhang, from Shanghai. He, along with Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii, was a gold medalist/first prize winner of the 13th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009. Also upcoming: at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, is husband-wife duo Phil and Angela Benoit and their jazz team that makes up Benoit JazzWorks. Both of those concerts will be at Kaua’i Community College Performing Arts Center. For more information, go to kauaiconcert.org …

Another worthy event is a visit from Brazilian storyteller Antonio Rocha, an internationally acclaimed and award-winning storyteller, mime and actor who will be a featured performer for the Hawaii Public Libraries’ Children’s Summer Reading Program across the state, and on Kaua’i at the following times and locations: 10 a.m. July 5 at Princeville Public Library, 4343 Emmalani Drive, 826-4310; 3 p.m. July 5 at Koloa Public and School Library, 3451 Poipu Road, 742-8455; 10:30 a.m. July 6 at Waimea Public Library, 9750 Kaumuali’i Hwy., 338-6848; 3 p.m. July 6 at Kapa’a Public Library, 1464 Kuhio Hwy., 821-4422. Admission is free. For more information, call the hosting library …

Unlimited Builders

recently announced it would be constructing 15 LEED-certified homes at Kukui’ula in Po’ipu, the high-end residential development on the South Shore. The Kukui’ula Club Cottages will include insulated walls and roofs, and windows designed to keep houses cooler, as well as low-flow shower heads, faucets, toilets and landscape irrigation systems; timers on air conditioning systems and fans throughout each home, and wood floors from Forest Stewardship Council-certified forests. Landscaping around the cottages also has been designed to be sustainable, according to an Unlimited press release …

Keiki Junior Lifeguard training begins July 16. Photo courtesy Sarah Blane

Summertime means there’s a bit more of camp left, and from July 9 to 13 at YMCA Camp Naue in Ha’ena, keiki ages 6-12 are invited for five days and four nights of fun, fellowship and ono food at Camp Good News, sponsored by Anahola Baptist Church. Keepable crafts, swimming at a protected beach, sports and Bible stories are all part of the program. To learn more, email Jimmy@hiinfo.net, visit AnaholaBaptistChurch.org or call 639-9675 …

Rev. Kale Aluli, (son of the late Hawai’i composer Irmgard Farden Aluli of Puamana), artist Leslie Tribolet and photographer Kerry Oda are working on a series of three children’s books based on the three acts of a musical production written and composed by Rev. Aluli. Set in the 1830s, the 44-song musical, The Hawaiian Messiah, is the first of its kind and even includes a last luau, with a Hawaiian Jesus, an ali’i raised on Ni’ihau who begins his public ministry on Kaua’i. The trio is doing an open casting call and asking people to go to hawaiianmessiah.com and fill out the form under “The Search for Jesus.” …

The Ocean Safety Bureau has announced a new, first-ever Keiki Junior Lifeguard Program slated for July 16-20. Applications are now being accepted for the program, which is tailored to children ages 8 to 12 but shares the same goal as the Junior Lifeguard Program: to teach Kaua’i’s young people ocean safety and lifesaving skills. Applications are available at all lifeguard towers around Kaua’i and at the fire department headquarters at Lihu’e Civic Center Pi’ikoi Building, 4444 Rice St., Ste. 315. A copy of the applicant’s birth certificate must be attached to the completed registration form. Registration is limited to 50 participants.

The Keiki Junior Lifeguard Program is taught by ocean safety instructors at Kalapaki Beach, fronting Duke’s restaurant. The week-long session runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. To be eligible for the workshop, participants must be committed to the challenges it offers and be able to swim and run 50 yards nonstop without assistance. Participants bring their own lunch, sunscreen and a towel to the training daily. Program sponsors include the County of Kaua’i, Hawaiian Lifeguard Association and Kaua’i Lifeguard Association. For more information or to request special assistance or an auxiliary aid, call the Ocean Safety Bureau at 241-4984 or 241-4168 …