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Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"Sometimes it's hard to find a good place to sleep..."}]

Smile 26 5 13

<title>Daily Smile: Wednesday, May 13, 2026</title>

Sometimes it's hard to find a good place to sleep...

Daily Smile: Wednesday, May 13, 2026

 Sometimes it&#039;s hard to find a good place to sleep...

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros Headshot

Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros

Aloha Spirit

Lokelani ‘Ohana, a near 20-year-old biodynamic farm on Maui that offers therapeutic programs rooted in Hawaiian culture for adults with developmental disabilities, is raising monies and increasing volunteer support after being hit by recent Kona Low storms.

Farm Director Christina Chang is spearheading the nonprofit’s recovery efforts to clean up fallen trees and debris, as well as restore the nursery and greenhouse, which needs roof repairs due to harsh winds. She estimates at least $5,000 in damages including crop loss, infrastructure issues, labor and materials, and more.

“We were severely flooded and high winds took down a lot of banana trees that need to be cleaned out of the patches,” she said in an email. “The tree branches need to be piled up for mulching and mud puddles need soil to be added to get rid of stagnant water and mosquitos.”

 that volunteers, skilled professionals and specific tools are currently the biggest needs. 

For those interested in giving via GoFundMe, tips are optional and adjustable prior to completing the transaction, she said.

“Every contribution, big or small, makes a real impact,” she said, adding that those interested in giving can also do so directly on 

, an international initiative where communities live, work and care for each other based on social, spiritual, cultural and agricultural renewal. The vision of the local organization “is based in love, respect, dignity, meaningful work, being stewards of the land, and celebrating our culture and festivals,” per its website. Offerings range from farm tours, food distribution and educational workshops to therapeutic programs such as gardening, Saori weaving, creative arts and outdoor activities.

Chang, who has a background in holistic health and 

, is also the primary caretaker for her adult daughter with cerebral palsy and autism, Malia “Angel” Chang. On her dad’s side, Angel Chang is fourth generation from Waihe’e, where they mālama roughly 1.3 acres of land.

“The history of the land is in kalo; in the old days, it was wetland kalo but [the business] before us 

. When we took over the lease in the '70s, it took us 5 years to clear the land because it had become overgrown and mostly fallow; however, in the first year, we farmed 21 Indigenous species of kalo,” Christina Chang told Aloha State Daily.

Now, the farm grows ʻolena (turmeric), ginger, sweet potato, vegetables and herbs, flowering plants, and cotton to make pillows and seatbelt covers.

She says last year’s drought, which weakened root systems, coupled with recent high winds on Maui have caused a 50% loss in banana plants. Hog activity also exacerbated some of the damages.

Lokelani ‘Ohana is currently seeking to hire an organic farmer to assist with operations. Apply for the role 

“We’re looking to attract the right people,” Chang adds. “We do need assistance. We want to get back on our feet and restore our human services.”

“The heart of a farm, nonprofit or service organization, has to do with the people. It’s all humanity based. The heartbeat of our farm, or what we call in The Camphill movement is ‘torchbearers’, people who carry the lights. The torchbearers of our organization are people with developmental disabilities, who help serve the community through producing food/food education, programs and creating inclusive environments for all.”

Several organizations and churches have come alongside Lokelani ‘Ohana since the storms including 

, Royal Pacific Landscaping, members or the Church of Latter-Day Saints, among others.

MEO Youth Services will be on site helping with the cleanup in June and July, according to correspondence shared by Chang.

 “addresses issues affecting youth and community including underage drinking, cyberbullying, teen suicide prevention, and tobacco/vaping awareness.”

“We also offer after-school and school-break programs designed to support and empower emerging youth leaders. Our activities focus on community engagement, cultural connection, family strengthening, life skills, and more,” she continued. “Youth ages 11-18 are welcome to join the fun, build confidence and make friends at different schools.”

For more information about Lokelani ‘Ohana, visit its 

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Angel with tree trimmers

Aloha State Daily caught up with Cabebe, who joined the nonprofit in 2000 and took the helm nine years ago, about what she’ll miss most working alongside staff to serve its clients. Meanwhile, Executive Director Maggie Clark Batangan readies to become CEO in August.

Debbie Cabebe 16x9

Debbie Cabebe to retire from Maui Economic Opportunity after 26 years

Looking to give back to organizations continuing to aid those impacted by severe floods last month? Here are some ideas of how to help farmers, teachers and other members of the community.

Chef Hui 2026

More ways to help with storm recovery

<title>Biodynamic farm on Maui seeks support after storms</title>

Lokelani ʻOhana, a Wailuku farm that offers therapeutic programs rooted in Hawaiian culture for adults with developmental disabilities, is fundraising via GoFundMe and its website to aid in rebuilding following the back-to-back Kona Low storms in March. Donations to the nonprofit will also go toward bringing on an organic farmer, according to Farm Director Christina Chang.

Biodynamic farm on Maui seeks support after storms

Higa headshot white shirt square

Sterling Higa

Columnists

Kamohai and Tristyn Kalama owe the City and County of Honolulu 

 for two illegal short-term rentals. One is a waterfront property in Kāneʻohe, listed at $1,000 a night with a three-night minimum.

After Civil Beat called the property owner for comment, the listing was quietly changed to a 30-day minimum. The fines remain unpaid.

Readers new to the Kalamas may need a brief introduction. Alongside their rental properties, they run three businesses. The first is fixing and flipping: they buy old houses, renovate them, and sell them. The second is a television show on HGTV, "Renovation Aloha," which shows the work. The third is a learning group called Flip Tribe, where they teach their methods through workshops, mentorship, and conferences.

Kamohai handles the numbers — purchase analysis and contractor management. Tristyn handles the design. They are husband and wife, and their "Renovation Aloha" episodes make for compelling viewing.

The Kalamas say they create jobs for locals, support the skilled trades, and keep families housed. There is truth in this. Old houses need renovating. Their work creates real jobs for contractors and tradespeople. Most homeowners cannot manage routine upkeep on their own house. That is part of why these properties fall into disrepair. Renovating a home requires financing, contractor management, and a tolerance for risk. It is real work.

There is a difference between running a business and teaching others how to run one. Competence is enough for the first. The second asks for mastery, the kind that earns the right to teach.

The Le family bought one of the show’s first houses — a Kalihi home with a 

. The renovation, as televised, cost $425,000. It involved major structural work. One house was jacked up and joined to a second to create a single-level home. The permits filed with the city only covered some windows and a carport, with a value of $80,000.

After moving in, the Le family noticed mold in their son’s room. When they ripped off the drywall, they found cracks in the concrete siding wide enough for daylight to pass through.

Civil Beat reporter Christina Jedra found the same pattern on 

 in the show’s first season: Construction began before a permit was issued. The fines totaled about $20,000 across four projects. The show claimed $1.3 million in profits. Season 2 

Some business models start work before permits issue and treat the resulting fines as a budget line. The people running these businesses may not be ready to teach others. The fines, in that arrangement, are not overhead, they are the cost of not yet knowing the trade.

The Kalamas, in this, are part of something larger. A popular television show and a few hundred thousand Instagram followers do not, by themselves, demonstrate competence. They demonstrate celebrity. We have begun to confuse the two. A whole industry has grown up around the confusion. The Kalamas sell three-day workshops at 

. They also sell membership in a mentorship community, promising students their first flip in six months.

There used to be a clearer line between apprentice and master. You learned a trade by serving under someone who had practiced it. Mastery was slow and quiet, and it was the only kind of mastery there was. We have replaced it, in much of life, with a short course — three days, six months, your first flip. It promises the result without the formation.

The appetite is common to all of us. We prefer to be slightly more than we are, slightly sooner — and we prefer not to wait. The writer of Proverbs saw the pattern long ago: wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

The Kalamas do not put their faith forward on air the way Chip and Joanna Gaines do. But they do mention it often on their social media. Their company is named Stand Firm Developments. The phrase is one of Paul’s recurring themes, a call to endure, to hold one’s ground.

A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, the Proverbs say. The question is not whether renovating old homes has value. It does. The question is whether the people most visible doing the work are the right people to teach it — and what the rest of us are buying when we sign up for the course.

Tristyn and Kamohai Kalama HGT Vs Renovation Hawaii 1 lr 0

<title>Earning the right to teach</title>

Fame is not the same as mastery, says ASD opinion columnist Sterling Higa, as he contemplates the careers of Kamohai and Tristyn Kalama, stars of "Renovation Aloha." The duo was in trouble again recently, this time for having run two illegal short-term rentals.

Earning the right to teach

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

, known for its fine dining experience, recently appointed a new chef.

Internationally acclaimed chef Takayoshi Kawai is now the eatery’s master chef and executive director. Kawai is famous for his 1995 appearance on Fuji TV’s “Iron Chef.” He launched a new grand menu at the Kakaʻako restaurant in March.

Diners can currently choose from two tasting menus. The five-course Naupaka menu ($110 per person, optional $55 wine pairing) derives its name from the Native Hawaiian coastal flower; the six-course Kaui menu ($160 per person, optional $115 wine pairing), meaning “greatness” in Hawaiian, is the restaurant’s signature experience.

Both tasting menus highlight locally sourced ingredients, including ‘ulu (breadfruit), fresh seafood, and Molokai venison, to name a few.

During a recent media event, we had a preview of the recently launched Kaui menu.

The tasting menu starts with an amuse, which features a rotating bite-sized hors d’oeuvre.

It’s followed by a seafood salad, which features a medley of ‘ahi, abalone, shrimps, uni, fennel puree, champagne gelee, salmon tataki, tako and beet chips.

The next course features a seared scallop topped with a generous portion of foie gras. It’s garnished with toasted sesame and fried limu. Kawai pours a sweet potato soup into the dish as a finishing touch. He explains it’s like a vichyssoise — a puree usually made with potatoes, leeks, broth, onions and cream — but is hot instead of chilled.

The grilled fresh catch of the day is served in a Bouillabaisse sauce with charred leeks.

“There are grilled leeks underneath and fried leeks on top,” chef Takayoshi Kawai says.

For the meat entree, customers have a choice between grilled striploin and roasted rack of lamb. The grilled striploin comes with roasted root vegetables and is coated with a black pepper sauce. Meanwhile, the roasted rack of lamb is served with ratatouille, mint sauce and green beans.

The featured hand-cut noodles feature a Bolognese sauce with Parmigiano Reggiano. The meal concludes with an Olena-citrus tart with blueberry ganache and yuzu gelee.

In the upcoming months, the eatery plans to replace its Sunday brunch with a weekend lunch menu.

“My goal is to make this beautiful restaurant the most beloved restaurant in Hawaiʻi,” Kawai states. “Beyond culinary excellence, we aim to deliver the highest standards in service, ambiance and the overall guest experience.”

Open from 5 p.m. to closing Wednesdays to Sundays; brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays; closed Mondays and Tuesdays

53 By the Sea new chef 050626

<title>53 By The Sea has a new chef and tasting menu</title>

Internationally acclaimed chef Takayoshi Kawai is now at the oceanfront restaurant; he is known for his 1995 appearance on Fuji TV’s “Iron Chef.” Diners can choose from five-course and six-course tasting menus. The eatery plans to replace its former Sunday brunch with weekend lunch service in the upcoming months.

53 By The Sea has a new chef and tasting menu

Kam Napier Headshot

A. Kam Napier

Government & Politics

The rhetoric on Friday when the Legislature passed SB2471, was 

. All but one of the legislators voted for this attempt to nullify the Citizen’s United decision for Hawai‘i, and did so with bold claims. We’re standing up for Hawai‘i! We’re standing against dark money! We’re making history! We’re protecting democracy!

These people are acting like they personally threw Sauron’s ring into Mauna Kea and are just waiting for the eagles to carry them away now that Hawai‘i is free of Corporate Mordor’s dark money.

[{"type":"text","text":"But now, consider these names:"}]

Bain Capital. The United Arab Emirates. Walmart. Citigroup. Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. Silicon Valley Community Foundation. Chan Zuckerberg. Bill & Melinda Gates. Service Employees International Union. Mitsubishi. Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office.

Tens of millions of dollars in donations from corporate interests, from foreign entities, from Silicon Valley, from Wall Street, from billionaires and their foundations, from the biggest unions in America.

Am I talking about the sources of dark money that ruined America’s democracy, drowning out the voices of everyday citizens in a flood of corporate spending?

No. I’m talking some of the many donors, over the years, who have funded the Center for American Progress, according to 

The same Center for American Progress that was credited again and again by Hawai‘i state legislators as they passed SB2471 on Friday. The same Center for American Progress mentioned directly to me by lawmakers I interviewed.

“We’re the little state that could,” said Rep. Della Au Belatti on Friday as she urged the Legislature to pass the bill. She described CAP’s Tom Moore as “the legal mastermind behind this effort” and said “this state shouldn’t turn away the experts like CAP.”

This isn’t some disinterested, academic public policy institute. 

, the White House chief of Staff for Pres. Bill Clinton from 1998 to 2001, 

This is an organization described, sometimes admiringly, as Bill Clinton’s post-defeat shadow government, as Hillary Clinton’s government-in-waiting, as the brains of the Obama administration, as the adults actually in charge of the Biden administration while the 

 through his duties. Its staff and board of directors are, and always have been, a revolving door of people in and out various 21st-century Democrat administrations.

CAP, on its website, currently conceals its list of top donors, claiming this is to protect them from retribution by the Trump administration but in fact, as the 

 reported in 2015, the organization has a long and controversial history of hiding the names of its supporters.

At that time in 2015, as the Washington Post reported, Podesta was “set to run [Hillary] Clinton’s presidential campaign,” and the group’s then president 

 was “a longtime Clinton confidante and adviser.”

Just a reminder, folks: The group Citizens United won its Supreme Court case in pursuit of showing a documentary critical of Hillary Clinton. CAP has been avenging this insult to her honor ever since.

That’s the Center for American Progress. Capital Research Center calls it, “

Oh, and it has a fundraising arm, as well, the Center for American Progress Action Fund. In 2024, it donated $147,332 directly to leftwing candidates and causes, from Kamala Harris to 

With all that in mind,  think of the power plays being made here. Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole and Rep. Della Au Belatti stood out as fervent champions of this bill. And are both 

This move burnishes their credentials with the DC power players. This bill doesn’t move the needle on corruption in Hawai‘i but it does a lot for for these two. When Belatti praises CAP, she’s reminding them she did them a favor.

So now SB2471 awaits the signature of Gov. Josh Green. Do you think the heavyweights who back CAP are white-knuckled in fear that their influence will be silenced?

As far as I know, the only Legislator sounding a cautionary note on Friday was Rep. Scot Matayoshi who, while praising it, also said, “We spent an inordinate amount of time trying to pass this bill in a responsible way, in a way that would ensure that Hawai‘i interests are not harmed at the expense of Mainland interests coming in to spend money here. … My fear is that bill will work a little too well.”

You see, SB2471 restricts Hawai‘i-based corporations and other entities from spending on elections, either locally or on the Mainland. But it also says that corporations based in other states are bound by the same restrictions if they do business here. That, he says, it likely to get challenged and he seems to believe it’s a challenge we’re likely to lose.

So the bill contains what Matayoshi calls a fail-safe. Others might call it a poison pill. If a single court anywhere decides a case against any part of SB2471, its fail-safe language says that all of SB2471 self-destructs. It will be null and void, in its entirety.

Maybe that’s what will happen, if Green signs this into law and it takes effect Jan. 1, 2027. There are  other reasons it could be challenged that I 

The legislators pushing this clearly believe, for some reason, that this bill will not put them out of office or harm their ability to gain financial support. They seem pretty self-assured that they’ll remain in power after this passes, maybe win their runs for bigger and better offices. Now why might that be? 

Maybe, at heart, this bill isn’t revolutionary at all. Maybe it just preserves the status quo.

When you get right down it, SB2471 doesn’t change anything about the influence of money on politics in Hawai‘i. Note the bill’s emphasis: Electioneering. It seeks to remove a corporation’s ability to spend money in any way, for or against candidates running for office, or for or against initiatives put on ballots.

It does not otherwise remove any ability to spend money on 

Big money groups can still spend millions all year long on high-priced lobbyists who meet with legislators. They just can’t spend any money to speak directly to voters.

Big money groups, including Mainland interests, could still do what CAP has done here and simply write legislation for Hawai‘i lawmakers and hand it over to them to introduce.

 in front of politicians, promising a cushy life after office. None of that changes.

On Friday, Sen. Karl Rhoads, who introduced the bill, described the growth of so-called “dark money” spending in elections, from mere millions before Citizens United to tens of billions in the last presidential election.

 last week that bills like this do nothing to stop billionaires who simply spend their money on elections as individuals, rather than as corporations.

Hawai‘i legislators have said they needed to pass this legislation to “restore people’s trust in elections.”

But is corporate spending really the reason people in Hawai‘i don’t trust elections and 

, with no meaningful check on voter IDs, no default to the privacy and safety of the ballot booth. Legislators could fix this any time but won’t, in fact, they’re the ones who instituted this weak imitation of true elections. This session, they further weakened election integrity by passing a law that automatically opts-in to voter registration anyone who gets a Hawai‘i driver’s license.

3. Their poor results once in office. This very bill being a case in point. Think of all the time spent on this Mainland crusade — an “inordinate amount of time,” Matayoshi said —  when it could have been spent solving Hawai‘i's real problems.

[{"type":"text","text":"When the session ended, we still didn’t know who took the $35,000."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Passing SB2471 didn’t change that one bit."}]

A. Kam Napier is editor in chief of Aloha State Daily. His opinions in Pipikaula Corner are his own and not reflective of the ASD team.

pulling strings I Stock 1401030941

<title>Pipikaula Corner: How the Clinton White House just bamboozled Hawai‘i</title>

The Legislature was jubilant as it passed SB2471 on Friday, seeking to overturn the effects of the Citizens United decision in Hawai‘i and get big money and outside influences out of our elections. The irony is, Mainland power players were pulling our strings the whole time.

Pipikaula Corner: How the Clinton White House just bamboozled Hawai‘i

[{"type":"text","text":"Real-life Pavlov's dog..."}]

Smile 26 5 8

<title>Daily Smile: Friday, May 8, 2026</title>

Real-life Pavlov's dog...

Daily Smile: Friday, May 8, 2026

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

For John Condrey, the supervising project manager of the recent back-of-house capital improvements to the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall, which cost $10 million, this is just one of many projects he has completed that are in the public eye. 

Condrey works for the facilities division of the department of design and construction for the City and County of Honolulu. 

"From the design profession side, the beauty is that you’re working for your neighbors,” he said. “We're producing something that's significant, that benefits the community.”

Condrey has a background in architecture and project management for large-scale commercial projects and joined the city 12 years ago. 

The recent renovations aim to make the performing arts space safer for workers and bring it up to the level of other performing arts spaces across the nation, according to employees of the City and County of Honolulu, which operates the facility. 

The renovations included significant lighting and electrical upgrades, refurbished seats as well as upgrades to the backstage dressing rooms and the addition of a now mechanized fire curtain, which can come down between the audience and the stage in the event of a fire backstage.

The City and County of Honolulu owns and operates the 

 Neal S. Blaisdell Center, located on the corner of King Street and Kapiʻolani Boulevard, which includes a multi-purpose arena, an exhibition hall, the concert hall, meeting rooms and a parking structure. 

 capital improvement project for the Blaisdell Center. The concert hall is used by groups such as the 

, and touring Broadway productions. It includes more than 

“It feels good to have a renovated space that you can share with people who worked in the building on and off — especially sort of resident companies, like the symphony and opera and ballet,” Elizabeth Ishihara, the productions manager for the Neal S. Blaisdell Center and Waikīkī Shell, told Aloha State Daily. “They have a very specific idea of what the space looks like, and it's kind of cool every time that new group comes in for them to be like: ‘Wow! This looks great!’ ” 

More renovations are in the works. Phase 1 Project C of the upgrades will cost an 

, according to documents with filed with the Hawai’i Awards & Notices Data System. It includes irrigation, lights for the exterior of the building and the removal of a wall of mirrors in the front lobby so existing artwork on the sides of the building can be moved into that space, Condrey explained. Originally, the deadline for bids was March 31, but it was extended to April 2. Currently, there are 11 interested vendors. 

“Our next step is to improve the exterior,” Condrey said. “The biggest part of this project is a brand new irrigation system because the existing one is failing. It is totally failed on one side already.”

“It’s failing on this side,” he said, pointing to another irrigation area shown on a poster with project plans. “Hopefully, we get to redo the front plaza to make it more friendly when they need to do some kind of user event out there. And then [add lights to] the building. The buidling has lots of lights around it but no architectural lighting. This project is currently out to bid and we’re hoping that this fall we can start construction.”

Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall

<title>Behind-the-scenes of the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall’s recent renovations</title>

The Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall is home to Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra, Hawaiʻi Opera Theatre and touring Broadway productions. The next phase of renovations is currently out to bid and would include updates to the exterior of the more than 60-year-old performing arts space.

Daily Smile: Wednesday, May 13, 2026

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Daily Smile: Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Authors

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