Hui Holokai

As I mentioned earlier, in my opinion one of the best jobs in the visitors’ industry is that of a Hawaiian Beach Boy or Beach Girl. In our state, you will generally find two groups of individuals: those who are drawn to the farms, ranches and mountains of the upper regions of the islands, and those who are fond of the water. Sometimes they love both, but often they enjoy one or the other. No matter what their preference is, the locals love to share their knowledge and love with anyone interested, and that is how the job of the beach boy or beach girl at The Fairmont Orchid came about.

 From the turn of the century to the late 1950’s, spirited, ocean-wise local boys gathered on Hawaiian beaches on all islands to share their knowledge of the ocean and the Hawaiian culture with eager visitors from around the world. Those same eager visitors are still arriving daily and through the historic perspective and the interest of the visitors coming to our beaches, the tradition of “beach boys” came to life once again in 1995 at The Fairmont Orchid.

What does Hui Holokai, the name of this program, mean? Hui  is the Hawaiian word for a group of individuals who share the same interest. Kai is a word for the ocean, and Holo means something like enjoyment of. Therefore, Hui Holokai refers to a group of individuals who enjoy the ocean.

On the beach by 8:00am every day, Uncle Kalani, Umi, Loa, Tia, Elaine, John and EJ, all employees of our Hui Holokai Beach Club program, not only cater to the beach comforts of our guests by setting up chairs and cabanas with towels and ice water, checking out beach equipment and suggesting sunscreen, but share their knowledge of the Big Island’s rich cultural heritage as well as their own Hawaiian legacies mixed alongside. Guests enjoy weaving classes using coconut and hala (pandanus) fronds, lei making, outrigger canoe paddling in the open ocean, kayak fishing adventures and more. They are led on botanical tours, “turtle talk” sessions (the real story behind the Hawaiian green sea turtles that bask on the shores fronting the hotel), and archeological hikes on the nearby petroglyph fields, the largest in the Hawaiian islands. The resort’s rich history reveals itself through their eyes as they guide visitors to ancient lava shelter caves and man-made fishponds stocked with seafood once restricted only to the ali’i (Hawaiian royalty). They often can be seen in the early evenings leading a string of playful keiki (children) behind them as they run the resort perimeter performing the nightly sunset torchlighting ceremony and blowing the pu (conch shell) to the four winds, and they are just as often seen “talking story” (chit-chat) with guests sharing stories of Hawaiian life.

Umi Torchlighting with Keiki

What is really interesting about this is that much the above sounds like it is custom-made just for our visitors, but the reality of this job is that these beach employees live their job in everyday life. They do not need to be taught what to say or what to do when they start in their position, they already possess the knowledge, which is handed down to them from their parents and grandparents. Umi, for example, has family roots in Waipio Valley, a very deep and long valley in the northernmost part of the island. In Waipio today, the families that live there still practice the simple and sustainable life of times gone by, and very successfully continue to perpetuate the farming of kalo (taro), the ancient staple food of the early Hawaiians. So when Umi talks to our guests about Waipio, he talks about his family and what they have done and still are doing in the valley. When Uncle Kalani, our elder statesman amongst the beach boys, talks about the old days, he looks back on a life of over sixty years (yes, that is how many years he has been alive, and you would never guess it when you see him in a canoe) and jobs held on many beaches and islands in Hawai`i. When you encounter Tia, the ever-smiling and friendly beach girl, who amongst many things is a beautiful hula dancer, you will hear about the place where she grew up and still lives, in Kalapana, the end of the road on the other side of the island, in the Puna District, close to the volcano and an ocean and coast line so beautiful it would be hard to surpass.

Tia

What is most gratifying for me to see is that the newer (and younger) generation of our beach boys and girls is not able to draw from many years of personal experience yet (as they are only in their twenties), yet they possess a lot of the same knowledge and definitely the same pride in their job, their island and their culture, and that is what will assure that our culture will not disappear, but be perpetuated over many generations to come.

Me ke aloha, a hui hou,

Chris