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Free Photo ID Cards for Kids at Kahala Mall
Jun 18th
Free keiki identification cards will be offered to families at Kahala Mall on Saturday, June 19, 2010, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is being coordinated by Hawaii State Representative Lyla Berg, in conjunction with Chevron Hawaii and the Honolulu Police Department. The table will be located at Center Court and ID cards will be available to all children.
“Our goal is to provide our children 12 years and younger with identification cards for their safety and security,” Representative Berg said. “This is especially important during the summer months and holidays. We want to insure the well-being of as many children as possible.”
The Keiki ID, a free service to parents or guardians, provides a credit-card sized photo ID for children 12 years and younger. The parent or guardian supplies the information for the ID, including the child’s name, address, date of birth, gender, height, weight, hair and eye color. In addition, a photo of the child will be taken at the booth for the ID card.
Dr. Berg’s personal interest in children’s issues is well known. As Vice-Chair of the House Education Committee and Founder of Kids Voting Hawai`i, she is a stalwart advocate for an improved educational system and the civic education of youth. Before her 2004 election to the Hawai`i State legislature, she served for 15 years with the State of Hawai‘i Department of Education as a classroom teacher, student activities coordinator, vice-principal, and middle school principal. She then became an instructor of pre-service teachers in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction of the College of Education at the University of Hawai‘i, Manoa.
Ohana Music Together Comes to Libraries
Mar 18th
Ohana Music Together, an internationally-recognized early childhood music and movement program for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers, will be presented at the Hawaii State Library on Tuesday, March 30 at 10:30 a.m. in the Edna Allyn Children’s Room.
Rebecca Andrew, owner and director of Ohana Music Together of Hawaii, will conduct the free program which encourages children to experience music and emphasizes adult involvement.
The Friends of the Library of Hawaii are sponsoring this program which is suitable for ages 4 and younger. All children must be accompanied by a parent or caregiver.
In addition, other Oahu libraries are scheduled to host the Ohana Music Together program this month:
- March 22, 10:30 a.m. – Kailua Public Library (239 Kuulei Road; telephone 266-9911)
- March 25, 10:30 a.m. – Kaneohe Public Library (45-829 Kamehameha Highway; telephone 233-5676)
- March 29, 10:30 a.m. – Salt Lake-Moanalua Public Library (3225 Salt Lake Boulevard; telephone 831-6831).
Contact the Hawaii State Library two weeks in advance if a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation is needed.
Hawaii State Library is located at 478 South King Street, corner of Punchbowl and South King Streets. For more information, please call the Library’s Edna Allyn Children’s Room at 586-3510.
Snow at Sea Life Park
Dec 9th
The weather forecast for Sea Life Park is calling for snow — about 14 tons of it over the next couple of weeks.
This Friday, December 11, and again on Saturday, December 19, from 1:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m., Sea Life Park Hawaii will be offering special “Snow by the Sea†events at the Park’s Meadow where keiki can build a snowman, make snow angels, snowball fight and pose for pictures. In addition, the kids can enjoy an inflatable bounce house.
“Christmas is never quite Christmas without snow,†said Jesus Bravo, general manager of the Park. “While our snow at Sea Life Park may not come from the sky, it still offers the unique feel of playing in the snow and will help get the whole family in the holiday spirit. Make sure the kids are bundled up in hats, snow pants, and gloves!â€
“Snow by the Sea†is free with Park admission, and after playing in the snow, families can enjoy the Park’s regular attractions. For more information, call Sea Life Park at 259-7933.
Sea Life Park offers a variety of marine-life shows, exhibits and educational programs for all ages and is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Among its most popular features are the swim-with-dolphin programs.  For more information, visit the Park’s Web site at www.sealifeparkhawaii.com.
Robotics pairs fun with education at Maui County Fair
Sep 14th
The Maui County Fair is proud to again present the RoboTech Maui Expo as part of the Fair’s festivities on Saturday October 3, 2009 in the Baldwin High School Gymnasium. This year, the Expo will feature competitions, exhibits, workshops and more that will highlight this amazing new world of science, recognize our children who are involved, and introduce others to the incredible world of Robotics.
The public is invited to watch teams of middle and high school students challenge each other in the VEX Robotics Competition, as well as fourth and fifth grade students compete in the AIA Maui Lego Building Competition.
For a more hands on experience with robots, Maui students grades 3-8 and their parents can build a robot together using a toothbrush at the BrushBot Robotics Student and Parent Workshop. Preregistration is required and enrollment is limited. To register, email name of student, grade level and school as well as name of accompanying parent, phone number and email address to Art Kimura at art@higp.hawaii.edu or call 808-934-7261.
Winning projects from the Maui Science and Engineering Fair will also be displayed throughout the day at the Expo.
For the RoboTech Maui Expo’s complete schedule visit mauicountyfair.com or call Sherri Grimes at 280-6889.
The 87th Maui County Fair will be “Your Invitation to Fun” and held Thursday, October 1 through Sunday, October 4. The highly anticipated annual event brings the entire community together to enjoy an alcohol-free, smoke-free and drug-free family-oriented educational event with plenty of entertainment, delicious local food, and fun! This year especially, the Fair gives the people of Maui County a well-deserved break from the current economic times and provides priceless quality time for family and friends. The Maui County Fair is the primary source of funding for many of Maui’s nonprofit and community organizations. It relies entirely on corporate or local business sponsorships, local donations, and volunteers for support. Corporate Sponsorship packets are also available online for download.
For information about the Maui County Fair contact Managing Director Sherri Grimes at 280-6889 or visit mauicountyfair.com or twitter.com/mauicountyfair on the web.
‘Bookzilla’ Coming to Kaimuki
Aug 11th
“Bookzilla,” a gigantic sale for book lovers, will be held at Kaimuki Public Library on Saturday, September 5 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Friends of Kaimuki Library are hosting the sale which will be held in the downstairs parking lot.
Choose from an enormous selection of books priced at just $1.00 each. There will also be a large assortment of CDs, DVDs, LP records, videos and audiobooks on sale.
Come early for the best selection. Proceeds from the book sale will benefit the Library. As an added attraction, Fun Fun the Clown will offer free face paintings and balloon twists for children.
Kaimuki Public Library is located at 1041 Koko Head Avenue, corner of Koko Head and Harding Avenues. For more information, please call the library at 733-8422.
Hawaii ‘Kids Count’ statistics mixed
Jul 29th
Hawaii ranks number 18 nationally in a new state-by-state study on the well-being of America’s children. The 2009 Kids Count Data Book reveals that since 2000, Hawaii improved on six of the 10 measures affecting child well-being. Yet on four other measures, conditions worsened for Hawaii’s kids.
The 20th annual Data Book also contains the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s essay that takes stock of the country’s progress in keeping track of children’s well-being.
This year’s Data Book is complemented by the expanded Kids Count Data Center that contains hundreds of measures of child well-being covering national, state, county, and city information. To access information for Hawaii go to datacenter.kidscount.org/hi.
Hawaii ranks in the top 10 on four of 10 indicators.
Hawaii ranked among the ten best states in the nation on four of 10 indicators of child well-being. Hawaii ranked 2nd on the percent of children in poverty, 3rd on the percent of teens who are high school dropouts, and 10th on both infant mortality rate and the percent of children in single-parent families.
Teen birth rate increases for the first time since 2000.
Between 2000 and 2005, the teen birth rate in Hawaii decreased from 46 births per 1,000 females ages 15 to 19 to 36 births per 1,000. However, Hawaii’s teen birth rate climbed back to 41 per 1,000 in 2006, a 14 percent increase from 2005. In 2006, there were 1,619 births to teens ages 15 to 19 in Hawaii.
Percent of teens ages 16-19 who are high school dropouts remains low.
Hawaii ranked number 3 nationally in the percentage of 16- to 19-year-olds who were high school dropouts in 2007. The percentage of teens ages 16 to 19 in Hawaii who were high school dropouts decreased from five percent in 2000 to four percent in 2007. Nationally, seven percent of teens ages 16 to 19 were dropouts in 2007.
Percent of children in poverty remains low.
With only 10 percent of children living in poverty in 2007, Hawaii ranked 2nd among the 50 states. Between 2000 and 2007, the percentage of children in Hawaii who were poor decreased from 13 percent to 10 percent. Hawaii’s child poverty rate was well below the national average of 18 percent in 2007.
Ziggy Marley Concert to Benefit Children’s Discovery Center
Jul 20th
On Saturday, August 15, Ziggy Marley brings family time to Hawaii! In support of the non-profit organization Hawaii Children’s Discovery Center (HCDC), he will be hosting a free children’s show at the center and will be performing songs from his newest children’s albums, “Family Time†and “B Is for Bob.†Seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis, no reservations will be taken for the event.
Growing up, music was a significant part of Ziggy’s childhood. And now, he hopes to share it with Hawaii’s children. “I know how important music can be in a child’s growth and development, and in a parent’s connection with their children,” he says. “Music helps children to grow with open minds and open hearts and this is my message.â€
“We are thrilled to be hosting Ziggy’s children’s concert at the Discovery Center,†said HCDC President and CEO Loretta Yajima. “It is a wonderful way for families to connect through music, and we’re excited to be a part of this wonderful event.â€
The children’s concert at HCDC will begin at 11:30 a.m. with a performance by local ukulele master Roy Sakuma. He will be joined by a few of his students, including a child who has learned to play the instrument with one arm. Sakuma is revered as Hawaii’s foremost ukulele teacher and has been teaching for more than 30 years. He currently has 4 studios opened throughout Oahu.
Ziggy will then take the stage at noon and perform until 12:30 p.m. After the show, he will be available for autographs.
“Family Time,†Ziggy’s first children’s album, offers a collection of family-oriented reggae tunes and features the likes of Willie Nelson, Paul Simon and local Hawaii singers Jack Johnson and Paula Fuga. In this record, which was released in May, he shares with families his love of music through themes of love, unity, freedom and fun. Ziggy says that this record represents his daily family life and was inspired by his four-year-old daughter Judah and baby Gideon. Judah even lends her voice to the album’s title track. For his second children’s album, “B Is for Bob,†Ziggy re-imagines a collection of classic tunes of his legendary father, Bob Marley. This album was just released in late June.
Ziggy says, “’Family Time’ is for all families and especially the world family.” He hopes to share the message of Family Time with children and families around the world and has already performed other children’s shows at Boulder, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Santa Barbara.
Ziggy has long been involved within the children’s community. His works include: a rendition of “Give A Little Love†with the Melody Makers on the 1991 Disney compilation “For Our Children,†the theme-song for the PBS series “Arthur,†and most memorably, a role in the movie Shark Tale as the voice of the Rasta jellyfish, Ernie. He has founded the non-profit organization Unlimited Resources Giving Enlightenment (U.R.G.E.), which serves a number of charitable children’s causes in Jamaica and other developing countries. He is also an active supporter of Little Kids Rock, which provides children attending public schools with free musical instruments and lessons.
Seating for the children’s concert will be limited in a courtyard at the HCDC on the grass and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. No reservations will be taken for this event. Space is limited to about 200 people. While the concert is free, entrance to HCDC activity galleries requires paid admission.
For more information on the children’s show at the Hawaii Children’s Discovery Center, please contact Liane Usher at (808) 524-5437 ext. 23 or (808) 375-5437 or e-mail liane@discoverycenterhawaii.org.
Later that night, ‘Ziggy Marley Live in Concert’ will be held at the Waikiki Shell. Thompson’s Productions has partnered with Clear Channel Communications and Cox Radio to bring this special event to Hawaii. The concert will start at 5:00 p.m and continue until 10:00 p.m. Tickets are on sale now for $35, $45 and $55 and can be purchased at the Blaisdell Box Office, online at Ticketmaster.com and at all Ticketmaster outlets, including select Macy’s. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000. For more event information, please call Hawaii Pacific Entertainment at (808) 237-3675 or e-mail umma@hawaiipacificentertainment.com or log on to www.hawaiipacificentertainment.com.
Ziggy’s concert will bring together a list of other dynamic international artists including Mysterious, the man from Trinidad; one of Jamaica’s hottest singers, Rovleta Fraser, who will break from touring with Jr. Gong and Nas to perform in Hawaii; rock, reggae and folk musician Joseph Israel and the Jerusalem Band; the young and energetic Blak Diamon from Jamaica; and the Virgin Islands’ very own reggae musician and songwriter Zion.
Major sponsor partners of “Ziggy Marley Live in Concert†are The Waikiki Park Shore and The Hotel Wailea of The Aqua Hotels & Resorts chain, Hard Rock Café, Maui Brewing Company, Mana Foods, Land of Organica, Love Fatigues and more.
Bishop Museum cuts admission tomorrow
Jun 23rd
Bishop Museum is reducing its admission price tomorrow to $5 per adult and $3 for children ages four and under. The museum says the discount is being offered because it has temporarily closed its Hawaiian Hall Complex for maintenance work, but notes that these reduced prices can not be combined with discount coupons or other promotions.
Regular admission rates will resume on Thursday, June 25, 2009. The Museum is still closed on Tuesdays.
Exhibits that are available include:
- Backyard Monsters: The World of Insects (Castle Memorial Building)
This exhibit features six robotic insects that are between 10 and 12 feet in length, including a twelve-foot tarantula, a giant paper wasp, a Monarch butterfly, fighting beetles, and a tomato caterpillar. Backyard Monsters also includes nine insect display cases and interactive exhibits that allow visitors to explore bug sounds, insect vision, and discover the worldwide insect population. The exhibition has seven display cases of exotic insects such as longhorn beetles, butterflies, moths and arachnids. - Pauahi: A Legacy for Hawaii (Castle Memorial Building)
This exhibit features items from many of the early collections at Bishop Museum, valued treasures associated with Hawaiian ali‘i, and striking examples of Hawaiian mastery. - Richard T. Mamiya Science Adventure Center
This three-floor gallery centers on Hawai‘i’s unique natural environment and offers a number of hands-on exhibits, a lava demonstration, and more.
Also included in the admission rate are the planetarium shows and the Science on a Sphere exhibit that take place in the Jhamandas Watamull Planetarium. The popular Music and Dance of Hawai‘i hula program will take place in the Atherton HÄlau.
For more information please call (808) 847-3511 or visit www.bishopmuseum.org.
Two Maui Libraries to Host “Crossroads”
Jun 2nd
Two Maui public libraries will kick off their 2009 HSPLS Children’s Summer Reading Programs in June by hosting “Crossroads,” an original play for children. Admission is free.
“Crossroads,” written by Tom Althouse, and presented by Heart Tours, is a tale of two bumbling pirates and a talking parrot. The three set out on a quest with only a treasure map, enduring slippery jungles and mysterious mountains that lead to crossroads, where decisions must be made.
The Friends of the Library of Hawaii is sponsoring the 45-minute performances: suitable for children ages 3 and older, accompanied by a
parent or caregiver:
- June 15 (Monday), 10:30 a.m. – Wailuku Public Library (251 High St.; ph. 243-5766)
- June 19 (Friday), 10:30 a.m. – Kihei Public Library (35 Waimahaihai St.; ph. 875-6833)
Heart Tours is a local Maui full production children’s touring company. It provides original musicals with thought-provoking themes, and original songs created to inspire children.
Contact the hosting library as soon as possible if a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation is needed. For more information, please call the hosting library.
Bishop Museum Cuts Back in Economic Downturn
Apr 13th
Bishop Museum announced today it will reduce the Museum’s public hours and reduce its personnel expenses in light of the continuing adverse economic conditions facing the State, the community and especially non-profits in Hawaii. These cuts will include:
- Closing Bishop Museum to the public each Tuesday.
- Temporarily ceasing public operations at its Hawai‘i Maritime Center.
- A combination of personnel expense cuts that will include layoffs and furlough of staff in an effort to reduce the institution’s operating expenses.
These measures will take effect May 1st.
“This decision was and remains very difficult,” said Timothy Johns, President & CEO. “With recent cuts in State funding, loss of income from investments, and a continued decline in non-resident visitors, the Museum must adjust to reduce its operating expenses.
“Although the economic climate creates many uncertainties, we are committed to continuing to serve the community and provide world-class programs, research, and exhibits.â€
Bishop Museum’s mission is to study, preserve, and tell the stories of the natural and cultural history of Hawai‘i and the Pacific. It is the State Museum of Natural and Cultural History and holds 24 million cataloged objects.
