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[{"type":"text","text":"Dog discusses what he does for a living..."}]

Smile 26 1 11

<title>Daily Smile: Sunday, January 11, 2026</title>

Dog discusses what he does for a living...

Daily Smile: Sunday, January 11, 2026

 Dog discusses what he does for a living...

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Andre Ilagan grew up in Kalihi, the youngest son of a basketball family. His parents told him upfront that he wasn't going to grow up to be tall, and he'd also have to find a way to pay for college on his own. 

The Ilagan family bought cheap rackets at a Goodwill Store. Young Andre was hooked, and he'd spent countless hours honing his craft at Kalākaua District Park in Kalihi. 

Going all-in on tennis proved to be the right choice each step of the way for Ilagan, who grew to become 5-feet-8. He was a two-time state champion at Farrington High School, then signed with the University of Hawai‘i on a tennis scholarship after graduating high school in 2018. 

Ilagan cemented himself as one of the program's all-time greats in Mānoa, earning first team All-Big West honors in singles and doubles four times each. In his senior year in 2023, he became the first UH men's player to earn ITA All-American honors. 

Ilagan, who has pursued pro tennis after graduating, is set for the next big step in his journey. On Tuesday, he'll take on Tristan Boyer at the U.S. Open qualifying tournament at the 

USTA Billie Jean King National Center in Flushing, N.Y. First serve is set for 7:20 a.m. HST. Ilagan was one of nine players to earn a wild-card invite, becoming the first former 'Bow to earn an invite to the tournament. 

"It's definitely cool," Ilagan says of the opportunity. "I've reached a level and a point where I was watching these guys on TV and now I'm playing against them, and I can beat them now. ... Playing those guys and having the chance to be on court with them and have a chance to just beat them. When I go play the Open or even these challenger events that you get these former top 100 guys or top 10 guys that are legends of the sport, you just take it all in."

Not one to lack for confidence or honesty, Ilagan mentioned money when asked what he's excited about heading into U.S. Open qualifying. 

"To be honest, all I'm thinking about is like, man, that paycheck is definitely gonna help me," Ilagan said. "That's like the biggest thing right now. I hope to qualify because it would be exciting just to see like an $100K bank transfer into my account, and as a 25-year-old, and maybe never again in my life, I might not have this in one transfer. It was going to be unreal if I can qualify, that's like 30 grand minimum, and you can't ask for much more."

While Ilagan says nerves will not be a major issues as he takes the court on Tuesday, seeing the work he put in during his childhood come to fruition promises to be another memorable moment for him.

"Coming out of Kalihi in general is cool. I mean, I love it," Ilagan said. "It just builds character for me. I take pride it in every time."

Andre Ilagan 082426

<title>Kalihi's Andre Ilagan set to make history at U.S. Open</title>

The Farrington and UH alum is the first former Rainbow Warrior to be invited to the U.S. Open.

Kalihi's Andre Ilagan set to make history at U.S. Open

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Crime & Courts

The Honolulu Police Department is continuing to investigate the death of a 50-year-old flight attendant whose body was found in a Waikīkī dumpster last week.

On Thursday, Aug. 20, HPD responded to reports of a dead body in a dumpster at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikīkī. At the time, HPD told Aloha State Daily that the case was being handled as an unattended death investigation and that foul play did not appear to be involved.

 the deceased as Moore, Oklahoma resident Jenny Lupton, a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines, who was in Hawai‘i on a layover.

[{"type":"text","text":"On Monday, HPD reiterated that the case is still under investigation."}]

“At this time, no conclusions have been made regarding the manner of death,” read the HPD statement.

Detectives of HPD’s homicide detail are reportedly working with Lupton’s family, reviewing surveillance video and more, in “a thorough investigation that will take time.”

Further information or details about the investigation will be withheld as it remains ongoing. However, HPD will notify the community “if investigators identify an immediate threat to public safety.”

On behalf of Jenny Lupton’s family, we ask for patience as detectives conduct this investigation and respectfully request that the family’s privacy be honored during this difficult time,” read HPD’s statement. “We encourage the public to rely on verified information from official sources and to avoid sharing unconfirmed information that may cause unnecessary concern or confusion.”

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<title>HPD investigating body found in Waikīkī dumpster</title>

Jenny Lupton, 50, was found dead in Waikīkī last week.

HPD investigating body found in Waikīkī dumpster

Ed Rampell

Arts & Entertainment

Columnists

At the August 22 ribbon-cutting ceremony in the 

, black belt Michelle Manu, a practitioner and teacher of lua, the ancient Hawaiian martial art, “open[ed] something that, to my knowledge, has never existed before: a permanent museum exhibit devoted to warrior women… A declaration that the warrior woman belongs in the historical record. And maybe more importantly: that she always did,” Manu said in her speech inaugurating the cultural institution’s Warrior Women exposition.

Adorned in a Hawaiian feather cape, Manu went on to tell assembled martial arts acolytes and aficionados: “I don’t believe today is simply the opening of an exhibit. Today we gather fragments of history and say: ‘We see you.’ Not because women suddenly became warriors. Not because the 21st century invented powerful women. Not because history has finally granted women permission to stand beside men. But because we are becoming capable of seeing what was there all along … The other half of warrior history.” 

The Warrior Women exhibition is mounted in an 8,000-square-foot space at Glendale, Los Angeles County. The Martial Arts History Museum claims to be the world’s only educational venue displaying and preserving the patrimony of global self-defense disciplines. It is a reliquary featuring related artifacts, ranging from samurai swords to a workout uniform worn by Elvis Presley, who studied karate in 1958 while a soldier based in Germany and became a 7th-degree black belt. Displays focus on the depiction of martial arts in anime, animation, movies and TV shows, including, naturally, a Bruce Lee section.

Following Manu’s inaugural address, her daughter, Malia, wearing a feather cape, cut the red ribbon held aloft by her sons, officially opening the Warrior Women exhibition. As Manu describes it, the display consists of “informational boards and an informative video” which “as curator, I helped put together the vision in the video, as well as all of the boards’ information.” Through photos and wall texts, female soldiers and defenders over the centuries are chronicled.

They include: Maui-born chiefess Manono, who died in the 1819 Battle of Kuamo‘o at Kona, and Mo‘o Alā, an all-women special forces regiment serving under O‘ahu’s Queen Kūkaniloko. Others showcased include France’s 15th-century patron saint Joan of Arc; the Philippines’ Gabriela Silang, who resisted Spanish colonizers in the 18th century; and the African warrior Viola Davis depicted in the 2022 film “The Woman King.” Manu says she hopes to “accumulate an armory within the exhibit” featuring traditional weapons.

The Museum’s various galleries highlight traditional martial arts from countries including Japan, China, Korea, Philippines, etc. Museum founder and president Michael Matsuda, a 10th degree black belt in monkey kung fu, called the Hawaiian exhibition “one of our most exciting sections in the entire museum. ʻŌlohe Solomon Kaihewalu, one of my dear, dear friends, donated all his weapons, made just for the museum… His expertise and uniform are here in the museum. Through one of his top students, kumu Michelle Manu, his legacy is carried on.”

Inside a glass display case, Kaihewalu’s woodwork includes: “Paddles; newa, a handheld club, some of them have nihomanō – tiger shark or great white teeth – within the actual club; pāhoa, a single edged dagger; and the maka pāhoa, a double-edged dagger,” relates Manu, the exhibit’s custodian. 

Manu explained to Aloha State Daily, “Lua is the only Indigenous warrior art for the people of Hawai‘i… It looks a lot like ceremonial hula from ancient times, just made into contact. Hula is not contact; lua looks very, very similar, utilizing the same movements, only it is contact.” 

Kaihewalu, Manu’s mentor, “hadn’t trained a woman since the early ’80s; 20 years had passed.” An athletic devotee, Manu surpassed expectations and may be today’s only publicly-known female Lua master. She earned a 10th degree black belt and the titles ‘Alihikaua (general) and “Knight Commander” of O’ahu’s chapter of the Royal Order of Kamehameha I, originally established in 1865 by 

perpetuate Hawai‘i’s ancestral culture, customs, and traditions.

Manu has authored books about lua and as a kumu, teaches the age-old Hawaiian martial art, viewing it as a pathway to female self-empowerment, in arenas from domestic abuse to the battlefield. But she teaches all genders, and one of her pupils, Kia‘i Ikaika Kūkaniloko – originally from Mākaha, now living in Orange County – attended the Warrior Women opening. He described Manu as a “phenomenal teacher” because “kumu embodies the essence of Lua, she lives it with every breath of her.” Some attendees traveled all the way from Chicago for the exhibit’s unveiling, such as Crystle Diño, who teaches Filipino martial arts at the Windy City. Janel Barlongo, who has taught traditional Filipino self-defense techniques Kali and Silat at UCLA and beyond, also attended.  

Manu, currently a Huntington Beach, California resident, traces her ancestry to her father’s homeland, the Big Island, where she’s returning September 3-6 to co-present the Koa Wāhine Retreat in Kailua-Kona at Kahalu‘u Ma Kai, which Manu calls “sacred land, where there’s a birthing stone and several temples.” Manu added the retreat is “a series of workshops; of course, Lua has to be involved, mostly geared towards women finding their inner warrior. We don’t just do lua or move in lua. We move in hula, we learn more about the warrior massage, and mostly we learn about the metaphysical aspect of how we can use our voice and mana, much as ancient women warrior did back in the day… I’m specifically focusing on our wāhine identity, in ancient times and modern times. How do we conduct ourselves? How do we move through the world? How do we deal with adversity? I’ll also be speaking about connection to the ʻāina. We’re actually going to be at an ancient heiau.”  

For more information on that retreat, click 

Ed Rampell and Luis Reyes co-authored the new book 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":" "}]

Aloha State Daily Manuwithherbooksin Warrior Women Exhibit 16x9 Large

<title>Hawaiian martial arts master inaugurates “Warrior Women” exhibit at L.A. Museum</title>

Michelle Manu presides over new exhibition paying tribute to female protectors, defenders and combatants at world’s only museum honoring international self-defense disciplines, including ancient Hawai‘i’s lua. She resides in California but returns to the Islands next month to lead a women's retreat on Hawai‘i Island.

Hawaiian martial arts master inaugurates “Warrior Women” exhibit at L.A. Museum

IMG 1445

Rick Hamada

[{"type":"text","text":"It's an amazing time in which we live."}]

We have technology that is so precise as it pertains to storms, with tracking that guides watches and warnings to the hour.

We have multiple communication platforms to apprise residents of looming disasters, startling in their accuracy and frequency.

Government leaders tasked with unenviable responsibilities for so many tirelessly perform their duties — while under an unrelenting microscope — leading the dedicated teams under their command to execute the plans designed to help every single man, woman and child under their purview.

I submit that it is a herculean task deserving of acknowledgement and appreciation. 

Although we are familiar with the names and the faces of those in front of cameras and microphones, we have to also acknowledge and appreciate the countless others that respond, volunteer, support and so thoughtfully care for others in these times of inarguable challenges. Despite the comparative lack of attention on them, I maintain that we are surrounded by heroes in so many ways.

As I perused news sites, social media, and google searches, I was gratified by even a two-sentence or 30-second reference to those who personify the ideal of gracious selflessness.

Nā‘ālehu, Ka‘ū and so much of the Big Island were devastatingly impacted by Lala and even by Moke. I had written in my previous piece that I had not personally been affected by the torrential storms over the years, from Iniki to the Kona Lows to Lala. I cannot adequately empathize with those who have lost everything and who face a rebuilding and recovery with not only obvious financial costs but also  injurious emotional impacts that in some may never recover. Buildings can be rebuilt, but a human sense of loss has its own tragic consequence.

I do not want to give a disservice to the incredible damage and negative impacts these storms have wrought.

We may not have been in Nā‘ālehu or parts of Maui or even affected areas on O‘ahu, but we're reasonably educated and engaged adults.

 literally being destroyed while families remained inside while seeking shelter. Multiple generations under one roof losing everything, facing real threats of losing their lives. Cascading water transforming stream beds which transformed from lovely neighborhood benefits into culprits responsible for inflicting such nondiscriminatory damage. 

The drone footage was Armageddon-like documenting the widespread damage. I don't think there is even one of us who didn't feel for those who were subjected to a brutal Mother Nature.

[{"type":"text","text":"Wreckage is one side of the story, but there is another side ..."}]

Search for the name of Jennifer Carter of Hawai‘i Island Child Family Services.

Include Marcia Masters, a community volunteer organizing many via help with Hongwangi Mission members.

Look for the neighbors of Wai‘anae resident Jamie Lee Troyer whose family experienced severe damage to their home. Winds toppled a large tree into her house, but it was her neighbors who heeded the call with personal chainsaws that mitigated the impact.

There is a myriad of neighbor-helping-neighbor stories connected with recent storms.

[{"type":"text","text":"These are but a few, but each one is so incredibly inspirational."}]

Along these lines, I would also urge us to recognize those that may go unnoticed — or even face criticisms — because they are on the front line working with those whose lives have changed.

For just a moment, let's walk in the shoes of those dedicated to restoring what was destroyed, and providing help to those in need.

The men and women in green or orange vests operating massive machinery to clear blocked roads and clean out tons of debris. Some are working with simply their hands in performing back breaking work. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Linemen working through the night in foul weather to restore power."}]

Helicopter pilots navigating terrain and conditions which prove dangerous while dropping and distributing supplies.

First responders who enter into wrecked buildings hoping to rescue those who may be trapped while risking their own safety.

Truck drivers hauling supplies over treacherously compromised roads to reach people in need of food, water, medicine, clothing and more.

Medical professionals offering aid with no thoughts of compensation and perhaps placing their own practices on hold during their outreach.

Producers of ice, one of the most sought after supplies which is one of the first to be lost. We don't appreciate the value of ice blocks and cubes until they're gone, the power goes out and the fridge starts to warm.

There are so many, many others in different roles that represent the ideal of what humans, neighbors, and friends are capable of. 

Please know that those of you who prioritize others over yourselves are respected and celebrated for demonstrating the aloha spirit is not just a catchphrase but a truism that exists in us all and proven by you.

[{"type":"text","text":"Thank you and aloha."}]

Vibrant Lala response Getty Images 2290519068 16x9 Large

<title>Hamada: The hands that help when disaster strikes</title>

In the wake of Hurricane Lala, we saw professionals who went above the call and neighbors who stepped up to help neighbors. Let's take a moment to appreciate the best of the aloha spirit.

Hamada: The hands that help when disaster strikes

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

 — located in luxury boutique hotel ESPACIO, The Jewel of Waikīkī — recently launched an elevated breakfast menu. Breakfast is served daily from 7 to 10 a.m.

“If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, the dishes enjoyed should be eventful,” states Executive Chef Colin Sato. “We curated this menu that delivers the assurance of comforting flavors and nutritious ingredients, but with a touch of elevation aligned with Mugen’s standard of excellence.”

The breakfast menu features lighter fare like coconut chia seed pudding ($15) and steel cut oats with honey and seasonal berries ($15), along with signature creations like lemon ricotta pancakes ($24) and wagyu short rib loco moco ($36).

“Of course we wanted to have some kind of loco moco on the menu, but we didn’t want to do the traditional hamburger patty with brown gravy,” Sato says. “We tried to elevate it, so we have truffle fried rice, smoked soy peppercorn sauce, wagyu braised short ribs, crispy shallots, crispy maitake mushrooms and an onsen egg on top of that.”

Mugen’s Japanese breakfast ($40) — comprising broiled ora King salmon, a poached egg, miso soup, assorted pickled vegetables and daikon — has been a customer favorite so far.

“The Japanese breakfast sells a lot; I’d say that’s our number one seller,” Sato says.

Other entrees include smoked salmon avocado toast ($25) — sourdough topped with smoked salmon, avocado, sea asparagus, Ho Farms tomato, pickled onion relish and Kupu Place microgreens — and coconut French toast ($24). The latter features sourdough with macadamia nuts, berries and a ginger scented haupia sauce.

“We brulee it (the housemade sourdough) with turbinado sugar,” explains Sato, who says the French toast is topped with coconut powder and candied mac nuts.

Those who enjoy sweeter breakfast entrees can opt for the lemon ricotta pancakes ($24), which are topped with lilikoʻi butter and compressed pineapple.

The eatery has several different options for its eggs Benedicts. Diners can opt for the classic Benedict with Kurobuta ham ($28), smoked salmon Florentine Benedict ($32), seafood cake Benedict ($38) or wagyu bacon Benedict ($45).

The latter features a luxe, house-cured wagyu bacon. The A5 wagyu bacon is also available as a side dish ($40).

“We wanted to do this really upscale version of bacon,” Sato explains. “We have a dry ager in house, so we cure it (the A5 Miyazaki wagyu) for two weeks and then we house smoke it downstairs, and we slice it like bacon and cook it like bacon.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Sato says the restaurant’s breakfast menu will eventually expand."}]

“To start, we wanted to provide this elevated breakfast and we try to keep it somewhat affordable,” he says. “We wanted to give the public a chance to come and see what we do in the restaurant. It’s still the same service (as dinner); we still have high standards for all the food we put out for breakfast." 

[{"type":"text","text":"Complimentary valet parking is available at the hotel entrance. "}]

Complimentary valet parking is available at the hotel entrance

Mugen chef Colin Sato 081726

<title>Mugen offers an elevated breakfast in Waikīkī</title>

The eatery — located in luxury boutique hotel ESPACIO, The Jewel of Waikīkī — is open to the public for breakfast and dinner. The new menu features an elevated twist on breakfast classics, including a wagyu short rib loco moco, smoked salmon avocado toast, Japanese breakfast and A-5 wagyu bacon.

Mugen offers an elevated breakfast in Waikīkī

De Soto 2025

DeSoto Brown

Hawai‘i History

Kaka‘ako today is, for the most part, completely cut off from the ocean that is very close by. This was not always the case, however.

The ocean connection to this neighborhood for much of the 20th century was through Kewalo Basin. The construction of this small boat harbor began in 1925 as the Hawaiian Dredging Company’s equipment chewed through the shallow coral flats just offshore to dig down to a uniform depth of 25 feet while creating a channel to reach the open ocean. A concrete pier of 25 feet in width and 460 feet in length was completed in April 1926.

The instigation for the creation of Kewalo Basin was to move the fleet of approximately 140 small fishing sampans, crewed by Japanese men, away from crowded Honolulu Harbor where they used Piers 15 and 16 near the mouth of Nu‘uanu Stream. The numerous sampans got in the way of the much larger cargo and passenger ships that had to take precedence. Although the sampans migrated at the time their new Kewalo dock was completed, conditions there were not ideal. A breakwater was needed for protection of the docked fishing boats during Kona storms, and the channel needed enlarging and deepening to prevent waves from breaking across it. These improvements would come later.

A very important adjunct to the sampans themselves was the relocation of the Hawaiian Tuna Packers fishing processing plant to Kewalo, which happened in January 1933. The company had started in 1917 and by five years later was operating a fleet of seven sampans and was producing 10,000 to 12,000 cases of canned tuna annually. By 1933 these numbers had jumped to 65 boats and over 100,000 cases each year. The cannery employed 1,000 people at its peak operating times; 25 tons of fish were caught and 65,000 individual cans of prepared fish were produced daily. Their product was mainly sold under the Coral label, and was available all over the United States.

In time, as with many other Hawai‘i-based businesses, the tuna cannery eventually ran into difficulties. In October 1984 it closed down for what was supposed to be only a few months, but in fact it never reopened.

With all this ocean-based activity happening at Kewalo, it was understandable that associated businesses would come to Kaka‘ako as well. This included fishing supply stores along with small boat builders who constructed both commercial sampans along with pleasure vessels of varying sizes.

Playing off the fishing activities that were going on at Kewalo, the Spencecliff restaurant chain in April 1952 bought the existing Felix Florentine Gardens and renamed it Fisherman’s Wharf. A second floor was added a few years later and for decades, till the entire company gradually shut down, diners could look out the windows to see real-life sampans unloading their catches that were usually bound for the nearby cannery.

Kewalo Basin still functions as a harbor for small vessels, but these are no longer the active fishing boats of the past. Today this is the site for tourist-related activities – group tours to Pearl Harbor, nighttime “booze cruises”, or charter fishing runs. And the onshore businesses that once supported the fishing industry are gone from Kaka‘ako, along with the connection it once had to the sea.

1 Tuna Mid Pacific crop 16x9

<title>Changing Kaka‘ako: The ocean connection</title>

The hundred-year-old Kewalo Basin was originally made to move fishing sampans out of busy Honolulu Harbor. At one point, 1,000 people worked in the adjacent Hawaiian Tuna Packers facility, producing up to 65,000 cans of tuna per day under the Coral brand for sale locally and on the Mainland. In time, the famous Fisherman's Wharf restaurant appeared, thrived, then shut down as well. It remains a harbor for fishing boats, but of the recreational variety, as well as for boat tours and "booze cruises."

Daily Smile: Sunday, January 11, 2026

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Daily Smile: Sunday, January 11, 2026

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