MEDIA RELEASE

The Moku O Keawe Foundation has been awarded a $10,000 Community Event Grant from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA). Funding will be used to continue their mission of Hawaiian cultural education, and present the 5th Annual Moku O Keawe Festival.

“We are extremely grateful to OHA for their support and the confidence they show in Moku O Keawe Foundation,” President Sherron Rosenberger said.

“It is exciting and inspiring to see the living Hawaiian culture grow and expand around the world through hula and the arts of hula,” Rosenberger said. “And as that happens, it is even more important for organizations to work together — not only to reach a broader audience, but to share our messaging in the most respectful, authentic and meaningful way.”

The 5th Annual Moku O Keawe Festival concluded Nov. 7 at Waikoloa Beach Resort, with 15 participating halau from Hawaii and Japan competing in wahine halau and pakahi (solo) hula kahiko, auana and kupuna divisions.

The hula competition was coordinated by Kumu Hula Nani Lim Yap.

Other Moku O Keawe sponsors include Waikoloa Beach Resort, Louis Vuitton, Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, Creative Arts, Hawaii Tourism Authority, Waimea Music Company, Big Island Candies, Sushi Shiono, County of Hawaii, KAPA, Vitamin Water and Kintetsu International Hawaii.

The Moku O Keawe International Festival is an annual celebration of the rich Hawaiian culture, produced by the Moku O Keawe Foundation, a private nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to enhancing, enriching and educating the practice and development of hula and its associated arts to build, strengthen and inspire the living cultural traditions of Hawaii.

For more information, visit: www.MOKIF.com