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ASD Staff

Hawai'i Skies

Today's Hawai'i Skies was captured by Amy Schwab. "

I took it from my backyard in Kaimukī. I was soaking in some moon beams. 

To submit your Hawai'i Skies photo, visit us 

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25 10 7 HAWAII SKIES AMY SCHWAB

<title>Hawai'i Skies: Moon beams</title>

Today's Hawai'i Skies was captured by Amy Schwab in Kaimukī.

Hawai'i Skies: Moon beams

Today&#039;s Hawai&#039;i Skies was captured by Amy Schwab. &quot;I took it from my backyard in Kaimukī. I was soaking in some moon beams. The sky whispers, the flowers listen.&quot; To submit your Hawai&#039;i Skies photo, visit us online or email: general@alohastatedaily.com For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up here for our free Daily Edition newsletter.

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Aloha Spirit

Nearly three years after wildfires destroyed much of Lahaina town, a new three-day celebration will bring more than 100 former residents back.

The inaugural Lahaina Homecoming — set for July 17 to 19 — will welcome 103 former residents home and offer a handful of community events.

It's an initiative of Maui Economic Recovery Commission's Healing Journey Team, coordinated by nonprofit Festivals of Aloha and is sponsored by the Maui County Office of Recovery, Hawaiian Council, Hawai‘i Community Foundation and Hawaiian Airlines, along with other local organizations and private donors, a recent announcement from Maui County noted.

It was created "from deep listening, lived experience and community need," the 

 states. "The idea grew from ongoing healing work with Lahaina families and a shared understanding that coming home — together — is an essential part of recovery."

 ravaged parts of the Valley Isle. One blaze destroyed much of Lahaina and killed more than 100 people.

The homecoming centers on the people, stories, culture and the future of Lahaina, the site says, and is a "space to heal together, to honor what was lost and to invest in what comes next."

“The inaugural Lahaina Homecoming represents a crucial investment in the belief that although many families have been displaced, Lahaina remains their home,” Maui Economic Recovery Commission Chairman Layne Silva said in the announcement. “The event welcomes former residents and the community at large to take part in cultural experiences, storytelling, resource sharing and community-focused programming that honors Lahaina’s rich heritage and strengthens connections among residents, families and supporters as Lahaina continues its recovery.”

Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen told Aloha State Daily last week that he thought the homecoming was a "great idea," and the event was driven by the community's interest. 

For Bissen, the residents returning, many of whom left after the fire, is the coolest part. 

"The whole idea was to let them know your town is vibrant, your town is alive, your town is coming back and come and see it. Come and see your friends and family and reconnect," he says.

According to the announcement, organizers had initially hoped to sponsor airfare for 80 individuals but, "as applications continued to arrive, they found it impossible to turn away so many people with deep roots in Lahaina." Instead, 103 former residents representing 20 families will return for the weekend.

[{"type":"text","text":"Here's what's on deck:"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Friday, July 17"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Saturday, July 18"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Sunday, July 19"}]

According to the announcement, complimentary parking will be available at the Lahaina Aquatic Center, with continuous shuttle service to and from Campbell Park each evening. Those who plan to attend are encouraged to carpool and allow extra travel time. A dedicated kūpuna drop-off and pick-up area will be available at the corner of Front and Prison streets.

Additional parking will be available at Lahaina Hongwanji Mission, Waiola Church and Lahaina Baptist Church.

Trilogy Excursions also is offering complimentary community cruises for Homecoming participants.

The homecoming also serves an opportunity for the community to reconnect with the area before Front Street reopens to the public.

County officials told ASD that the county aims to reopen Front Street to through traffic before the third anniversary of the fire.

Currently, Front Street is closed from Papalaua to Dickenson streets, while the portion from Dickenson to Shaw streets is partially open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily., a county spokesperson confirmed in a follow-up email.

Details of the reopening are still being discussed and will be announced soon.

Office of Recovery Administrator John Smith noted that the area is a "kuleana in progress place." 

"We will continue to have construction and limited road closures based on all of the work that's going down there," he told ASD. "But we just finished the railing project, we just finished a paving project on Front Street, and it's just really good timing. So when the festivities are over and after everything's cleaned up, it's going to be the right time to allow traffic on Front Street."

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Lahaina Front Street rainbow 070826

<title>Lahaina homecoming planned; Front Street to reopen in near future</title>

Nearly three years after deadly wildfires destroyed much of the West Maui community, 103 former residents are set to return this weekend  — and the public is invited to help celebrate the community's spirit.

Lahaina homecoming planned; Front Street to reopen in near future

Philamer Felicitas

Viewpoints

Nearly every weekend, Jay-R Kaawa boards a flight between Maui and Molokai. The trips are not usually for work; they are for family.

Kaawa, head of Summer and Extended Learning at Kamehameha Schools Maui, regularly travels home to Molokai to care for her father, who is living with dementia. At least once a month, she and her siblings help fly him to Maui or Oʻahu for appointments and support. Other times, she makes the trip to check on him, spend time with him and help manage his care. For Kaawa, transportation is not a convenience. “It is a necessity. We need reliable air transportation. Bottom line,” she said.

Her story is one shared by families across Maui Nui who routinely travel between Molokai, Lānaʻi, Maui and Oʻahu for health care, work and time with loved ones. That reality is why many residents are paying close attention to Lānaʻi Air’s plans to expand service to Molokai.

The airline, which began as a charter service connecting Honolulu and Lānaʻi, has evolved over the past several years. Originally created to transport visitors to Lānaʻi, the company expanded public ticket sales in 2024 and now markets itself as another option for island residents. Earlier this year, Lānaʻi Air announced plans to begin service to Molokai, adding a second commercial air carrier to an island that has spent years with limited transportation options.

The expansion marks the latest step in the company’s growth. The airline intends to operate four daily roundtrip flights between Molokai and Honolulu using their 19-seat Cessna SkyCourier aircraft. They have been promoting the aircraft’s larger cabin and accessibility features while emphasizing its goal of improving transportation options for residents traveling for healthcare, education, work and family obligations.

Kaawa flies home nearly every weekend and estimates she spends at least $220 on airfare each trip. Sometimes, she said, a one-way ticket can cost more than $200. “Just from an economic standpoint, having a competitor will hopefully bring down fares,” she said. While she considers herself fortunate to be able to afford those trips, she worries about residents who cannot.

“If one plane is out of commission, the whole schedule is messed up,” she said. Despite those challenges, Molokai residents continue to find ways to get where they need to go.

“We’re resourceful in that way, we always find ways to make things work,” Kaawa said. Some residents catch rides on boats operated by friends or family members. Others coordinate travel with fishermen making trips between islands. For many, finding transportation is simply part of daily life. “We’re going to make do with what we have, but that doesn’t mean it’s right,” she said.

Accessibility is another concern. Because of his dementia, Kaawa’s father often struggles boarding smaller commuter aircraft. While he remains physically capable, navigating the tight spaces of a small plane can be difficult. “I literally have to hold his head down and crawl him into the plane,” she said.

At least once a month, Kaawa and her siblings fly their father to Maui or Oʻahu so he can spend time with family and receive additional support. While neighbors and family friends often help transport him when needed, she worries about the burden placed on others.

“I would feel much better knowing it’s a plane that doesn’t seem so cramped,” she said. For families caring for kūpuna and loved ones with medical conditions, the size of the aircraft matters. Many residents travel with walkers, wheelchairs, oxygen equipment or other medical devices. Others simply find boarding small commuter planes difficult. Kaawa believes a larger aircraft could make a meaningful difference for those families.

Maui lifeguard Kaipo Garcia has seen firsthand how important reliable transportation can be during some of life’s most difficult moments. Inter-island travel is part of his family’s routine. His sister lives on Lānaʻi and regularly travels because her daughter is undergoing cancer treatment.

“She flies every week because my niece has cancer,” Garcia said. Like many families living on smaller islands, they rely on flights to access specialized healthcare services unavailable at home.

Garcia has also heard stories from residents whose travel plans were disrupted by delays and cancellations. “They were missing their appointments,” he said. “They’d make their doctor appointments based on the [flight’s] arrival time and then delays would happen.”

The importance of reliable transportation became personal earlier this year when Garcia’s father passed away on Lānaʻi.

Living on Maui, he immediately searched for a flight home. His father died shortly before 8:00 p.m. Garcia was able to book a last-minute flight and arrive in time to be with his family. “I made reservations last minute,” he said. “At least I got there.” The flight allowed him to help carry his father from his bed to the hearse.

For Garcia, that experience reinforced something many Molokai and Lānaʻi families already understand. Transportation is about much more than getting from one island to another. It is about being present when family needs you most.

Community members have also pointed to another reason they are optimistic about Lānaʻi Air’s expansion: familiar faces. During community outreach events, residents met airline employees who previously worked for Island Air, a carrier that served neighbor island communities for decades.

Many Molokai residents already knew them. That familiarity, Kaawa said, helped build trust. “It’s local folks that we know and have seen frequently while traveling,” she said.

Some residents also see the airline’s hiring of former Island Air employees as a sign that local knowledge and experience remain part of the company’s approach. While questions remain about how the expansion will ultimately affect the community, many residents say they are hopeful.

No airline is immune from weather disruptions, maintenance issues or operational challenges. But for residents accustomed to limited options, another carrier represents something many have wanted for years: a choice.

“We’re grateful for what we have,” Kaawa said. “But we’re ready for another option.”

This article is reprinted with permission from 

OHA's Ka Wai Ola newspaper: "Molokaʻi is Ready For Another Option" by 

, in its July 2026 issue, Vol. 43 No. 7. Read more at 

Lanai Air Sky Courier

<title>Community Voices: Molokai is ready for another option</title>

Lānaʻi Air will begin flying between Oʻahu and Molokai in September.

Community Voices: Molokai is ready for another option

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

There are multiple theater productions on stage across Oʻahu this summer and fall. Here are some of the ones currently in session or coming up soon.

Hawaiʻi Shakespeare Festival (July and August).

 Ready to hear some Shakespeare? Works of William Shakespeare will take stages across Oʻahu as part of the Hawaiʻi Shakespeare Festival, which will consist of two productions: “The Winter’s Tale,” directed by Brando Cutts, which runs July 17 through 26, at Kumu Kahua Theatre, and “Julius Caesar,” directed by Alex Munro, which runs July 31 through Aug. 9, at Mānoa Valley Theatre. General admission is $25 for most shows. “Julius Caesar” will offer $15 tickets for shows on Wednesday and Thursday. 

This show tells the story of a truck stop sandwich stop which offers its formerly incarcerated staff a shot at redemption. The play was written by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and has been nominated for four Tony Awards. The production will be on stage at Mānoa Valley Theatre. Tickets start at $25. Other productions heading for Mānoa Valley Theatre include “Jagged Little Pill,” which opens Sept. 10, “Peter Pan Goes Wrong,” which opens Nov. 12, “Purpose,” which opens Jan. 21, “The Producers,” which opens March 18, “Folks You Meet in Longs,” which opens May 13, “Shakespeare in Love, The Play,” which opens July 15, 2027, and “Once Upon One Kapakahi Time,” which opens June 24, 2027. 

“Les Misérables” (July 24- Aug. 23). 

This classic musical, based on Victor Hugo’s novel, tells the story of Jean Valjean

, who agrees to care for a factory worker’s daughter. The musical is heading to the stage at Diamond Head Theatre. Many performances are already soldout, but new shows have been added on Aug. 22 and Aug. 23. Limited tickets are available. Diamond Head Theatre's upcoming season includes: “Fiddler on the Roof,” which opens Sept. 25, “Dr. Suess’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical,” which opens  Nov. 20, “Into the Woods,” which opens Jan. 22, “Suffs,” which opens March 12, “Pirates! The Penzance Musical,” which opens May 21, and “Hairspray, The Broadway Musical,” which opens July 23, 2026. 

“The Queen’s Will” (Aug. 20 – Sept. 20).

 In the early days of the Territory of Hawai‘i, Princess Theresa Owana Ka‘ōhelelani La‘anui Wilcox Belliveau was accused of conspiracy to commit forgery of the last will and testament of Queen Lili‘uokalani. In this story, she fights for her freedom and identity. “The Queen’s Will” runs Aug. 20 through Sept. 20 at Kumu Kahua Theatre. This is the first show in Kumu Kahua Theater's 56th season. Other productions in this season include “Kupua,” which opens Oct. 29, “All Buss Up in a HI State: A Trilogy of Hawai‘i Plays,” which opens Jan. 21, “Murder Finds a Medium,” which opens March 25, and “Grumpy Old Futz,” which opens May 27. 

Tickets for “The Queen’s Will” are $28

 for general admission, with discounts for students, kūpuna, and large group orders. 

 The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's Theatre for Young Audiences program

 will hold productions of “The Hobbit,” which tells the story of Bilbo Baggins. 

Greg Banks’ stage adaptation of “The Hobbit or There and Back Again,” which was written by J.R.R. Tolkien, is the prelude to the beloved “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The story is brought to life by five actors and includes dragons, dwarves, goblins and epic landscapes. This limited-run production will be presented in the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre at the Kennedy Theatre from Aug. 21 through Sept. 6. This year marks the 55th year of Theatre for Young Audiences and in honor of the milestone, all proceeds from the show will go toward a newly established University of Hawaiʻi Foundation account that is dedicated to sustaining the program for future generations. Tickets are $15. 

“Book Two Trains Running” (Aut. 21 – Sept. 6). 

This story takes place in the ’60s, during a decade of assassinations and Black Power. It explores Memphis Lee’s coffee shop in Pittsburgh’s Hill District and all the people who hang out there. “Book Two Trains Running” was written by August Wilson and will be directed by Marc Cooper at The Actors’ Group at The Brad Powell Theatre. It is the first of six shows in the 2026-2027 season for 

The Actors’ Group. The upcoming season for this group includes 

the Hawaiʻi premiere of “Eureka Day,” which opens Oct. 23, “Anatomy of a Murder,” which opens Jan. 8, and “Tiger Style,” which opens March 5. “Jitney,” which opens May 7, and “Neil Simon’s Rumors,” which opens July 9, 2027, are also in this season of shows. General admission is about $33, with discounts for kūpuna and students. 

 This original Hawaiʻi musical premieres Oct. 16 at the Royal Hawaiian Theater in Waikīkī. The story follows a present day Marine who goes back in time to 1898, as a sovereign kingdom fights for survival. This fictional story rooted in history is set to premiere on Oct. 16, the birthdate of Princess Kaʻiulani, whose legacy inspired the musical. Shows are at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, or 7:30 p.m. on Monday. Regular admission is $95 for adults and $75 for keiki. Kamaʻāina tickets are $65. 

, is returning to Honolulu after more than a decade-long break from the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall. 

 will be on stage from Wednesday, Nov. 25 through Sunday, Dec. 6. The musical follows the adventures of mismatched missionaries who are sent halfway across the world to spread the word of God. The musical is one of two Broadway in Hawaiʻi productions set to have performances soon at the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall. Season tickets for the shows start at $137. 

Do you know of an upcoming production not on this list? Email 

"Clyde’s"

<title>Your guide to upcoming theater on Oʻahu</title>

Ready to see a production on stage? From Hawaiʻi premieres to Shakespearean classics, there are lots of shows to catch in Honolulu, Waikīkī, and more this summer and fall.

Your guide to upcoming theater on Oʻahu

Yamachika Tom IMG 1913 Large

Tom Yamachika

Government & Politics

 about one part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that could really hurt our state economically.

It’s about the federal SNAP program to help needy families with food costs. It used to be fully funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. So, Hawaiʻi citizens benefited from this federal largess to the tune of about $700 million a year.

The OBBBA changed this. Now, the USDA audits the states, who are responsible for running the program and paying out the benefits, and if a state paid out too much or too little, then the state will need to pick up an escalating share of the cost depending on our “error rate.” If our error rate is less than 6%, the USDA picks up all benefit costs as they did before. If it’s between 6% and 8%, we need to pony up 5%, which would be around $36 million.  Between 8% and 10%, we are on the hook for 10% of the benefits. And if the error rate is 10% or more, then we get socked for 15%, which would come out to about $109 million — which isn’t in our budget.

And then, of course, the feds didn’t make it easy for the states to comply. 

. The issues included federal policy changes that kicked in immediately, giving states zero time to learn about the new changes and work them in to their processing procedures before they were made accountable for errors.

Historically, we have had issues even before OBBBA. Our error rate for 2022 and 2023 exceeded 20%. The USDA was thinking about whacking us with a $11 million fine, but our folks managed to talk their way out of it with promises of new, badder, and better computer system that our Legislature had no choice but to fund.

In 2024, our error rate dropped to 6.68%. It was much better than the previous two years, but still left lots of room for improvement.

Now the 2025 error rate is out. There is good news and bad news.

The good news is that we don’t have the worst error rate, and ours was just slightly above the national average. Also, the penalties don’t take effect just yet.

. Double digits mean triple penalties, and don’t expect anyone to cut us some slack. “These payment error rates are further proof that state accountability is severely lacking in SNAP,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said in a statement. “USDA has taken historic action to help interested states curb SNAP waste, and I hope other states, regardless of political leadership, prioritize needy families and the American taxpayer over politics.”

 that our Department of Human Services is keenly aware of the problem and is working hard to fix it. DHS reported that its error rate through the end of June was 6.52%.

Again, that’s an improvement, but we are still in penalty territory. We should be able to do better. Our error rate for most of the last two decades was under 6%, so we should be able to get ourselves out of the proverbial hot water.

The Trump Administration was able to trot out J.D. Vance to make us a national laughingstock over Medicaid fraud enforcement. The last thing we all want is for the administration to set us up on another issue, this one with a massive price tag which we probably won’t be able to wiggle out of like with the proposed $11 million fine.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Let’s do this."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Related ASD coverage on SNAP"}]

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Fresh produce (SNAP)

<title>Community Voices: SNAP disaster imminent</title>

The good news is that we don’t have the worst error rate, and Hawaiʻi was just slightly above the national average. The bad news is that our error rate was 10.92% in 2025. Double digits mean triple penalties, and don’t expect anyone to cut us some slack when they take effect.

Community Voices: SNAP disaster imminent

Business & Tourism

Food & Dining

Francis and Charles Higa, the founders of Zippy's Restaurants, were really more than brothers.

"They were best friends growing up," says Francis' son Jason Higa. "It wasn't surprising, I think, to those that knew the two brothers that they would start a business together."

Zippy's, a popular and iconic institution in the Islands, was founded by the Higa brothers in 1966 and will celebrate its 60th anniversary this year. Aloha State Daily recently caught up with Jason Higa, CEO of Zippy's parent company, FCH Enterprises, to learn about the restaurant's origins, its legacy and more.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"In the beginning"}]

Higa says his dad and uncle were two of six siblings working at a family-owned meat market, which is still operated today by cousins.

"But at that time, Francis and Charlie knew that Higa Meat Market was not going to be big enough to sustain ... six siblings, so they decided to leave [and] start their own business," he told Aloha State Daily earlier this month.

It was the 1960s, and Higa says the pair began to look at different business options. Eventually, they started to talk to restaurant operators — more so drive-in operators, he says. Those operators, though, were quick to discourage the brothers because of their lack of experience — but the pair continued on anyway.

The Higa brothers opened the first Zippy's Restaurant in Honolulu's McCully neighborhood on Oct. 17, 1966.

They had no culinary background, Jason Higa says, so the duo hired Shiro Matsuo, a chef for then-Gov. John Burns. Matsuo, who went on to open his own restaurant called Shiro's Saimin Haven, helped Higa's father and uncle create the first menu for Zippy's.

"He was an excellent cook, came up with all the recipes for our original menu and that's how Zippy's got started."

The restaurant was open 24 hours at the start. Higa says that was unusual for the time and a lot of business in the early years came between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. "because there were no other options."

Zippy's, he says, became a destination for late night movie-goers, customers from the bars that were open until 2 a.m. and hotel workers coming from or headed to late night shifts in Waikīkī.

"We had a very robust customer base because of the 24 hours of operation, of course seven days a week."

In the early days, Higa says his uncle would work 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. or later, and his father would would 6 p.m. to 8 a.m.

"They always felt that one of them should be active at the restaurant to make sure they can support the team members and make sure the customer service was where they wanted it to be," he told ASD. "Growing up, my recollection was my father was always sleeping because he was sleeping during the daytime, preparing to go to work at 6 p.m."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Family traditions"}]

Not surprisingly, Higa — who was around 3 when the first Zippy's opened — says his first job was at Zippy's in Makiki when he was 14.

"My dad wanted me to experience working at an early age and so I worked as a utility dishwasher that first summer, and subsequently would work on the weekends during high school and summers between high school," he says. "I pretty much worked in almost every position in the company over that period before leaving to the Mainland for college."

Higa, though, says he had no desire to lead the company. In fact, after college he went to law school and subsequently spent five years working at a Hawai‘i law firm before returning to Zippy's in 1995. He went through the management training program and worked at various stores and Zippy's central kitchen before taking the leadership position in 2003.

"I had no desire to come back to the family business, but after five years working as an attorney, I realized that there was a special opportunity that I had in terms of coming back to the family business," he says. "The truth is that I think I was motivated from the standpoint of when I grew up, my father was always working, so I really didn't get a chance to get to know him as well as I wanted to. Coming back to the family business in '95 was probably, for me, an opportunity to get to know him better.

"I never worked directly under him at any point before his passing, but I definitely began to understand him as a person, pretty much through the company culture."

[{"type":"text","text":"When his father died, Higa says he didn't feel ready to take the reins."}]

"It eventually took me four years before I realized that, hey, I just got to do my best, and learned over the years how to navigate, how to build our leadership team, how to make decisions. [I] always led by the core values, which gives you a sense of direction in terms of decision-making and that has always helped us to make good decisions along the way."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Legacy"}]

Zippy's has long been popular with kama‘āina. Actor 

 has called it his first stop in the Islands when he visits Hawai‘i. His newest movie, '

' features select scenes filmed at Zippy's ‘Ewa Beach location, and as a tie-in with the movie, Zippy's even offered a limited-time menu item called 

. Former President Barack Obama is said to have frequented the 

 across on O‘ahu, Maui, Hawai‘i Island and in Las Vegas. And if you're wondering, it sells more than 

When asked about Zippy's legacy, Higa says it's a byproduct of the last 60 years.

"As I was in the stores, what was clear is that there was a strong connection between our team members and customers," he says. "We still today have many customers, some of them would come in every day. We had customers that would come in for breakfast and lunch and sometimes even dinner, which is just amazing. And so they, of course, got to know the team members. The team members got to know the customers."

[{"type":"text","text":"The connections are multi-generational, too."}]

Higa says there are team members who have children whose first jobs were at Zippy's, "and then you see the multi-generational evolution of our early customers now bringing in their children and then now grandchildren coming into our locations."

"I think that's just a special part of our relationship with our community," he continued. "Francis and Charlie always understood that they were only successful because of our customers and because of the community, so we have a long history of giving back to the community."

And when he's asked about things that have contributed to the chain's 60-year success, Higa cites the core values that go back to Zippy's founders. 

The company uses the acronym CHIPS: commitment, humility, integrity, passion and supportiveness.

"It's really reflective, I think, of why we have been able to stay in business," he says. "So definitely the level of commitment, but also humility, and humility translates into being willing to learn, to evolve. We certainly have done that over our history, a lot of changes that we have to do in order to adapt."

As an example, Higa cites the Covid-19 pandemic, which he says allowed Zippy's to "make a lot of changes, which are benefiting us today."

[{"type":"text","text":"Meanwhile, integrity is \"essential\" in Hawai‘i."}]

"For Francis and Charlie, the reputation of the business was so important, and there's many examples where they didn't care about profit," Higa says. "They were looking at the long-term and making sure they always did the right thing throughout their history and that, I think, created the trust with our customer base and even internally with our team members."

Supportiveness is reflected in Zippy's growth, he told ASD, "especially in the early years, they were very encouraging of team members to advance into management or other positions of greater responsibility."

"I think what they learned early on [is that] expansion created opportunities for team members to continue to progress and grow within the company. We have many team members that have been with us for decades, and started out as a utility, a counter person ... and today they're in executive leadership or management or they're a key part of our administrative positions."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"60th anniversary"}]

How does it feel to hit this milestone and lead the company across that threshold?

"At times, it feels overwhelming, but I realize that is a privilege, for not just for me, but I know for the executive team or any of our longtime team members," Higa says. "They understand the legacy of our founders and how hard the founders worked and we continue to carry on that legacy by remaining successful, figuring out what we need to figure out, and ensure that we can continue to operate because we also realize that we are providing a living for all of our team members."

Zippy's, which will celebrate the milestone throughout the year, kicked off its anniversary celebration earlier this month with the launch of a new line of 60th anniversary merch.

, includes apparel and accessories inspired by the brand's evolving logos and design history.

Zippy's also will introduce limited-time menu offerings and a series of collaborations with Hawai‘i-based businesses throughout the year, including collabs with Kahala, Hawaiian Island Creations, FITTED Hawai‘i, Keiki Kaukau and others, a recent announcement noted. More will be announced through the year.

Higa, who spoke to ASD between back-to-back Kona Low storm systems that battered the Islands this month, shared his gratitude for Zippy's team members, its customers and the community.

Waipahu1971 01

<title>Zippy's Restaurants celebrates 60th anniversary in 2026</title>

Brothers Francis and Charles Higa opened the first Zippy's Restaurant in Honolulu's McCully neighborhood on Oct. 17, 1966. Aloha State Daily recently caught up with Jason Higa, CEO of Zippy's parent company, FCH Enterprises, to learn about the restaurant's origins, its legacy and more.

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