Bill Text: HI HR179 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii House Resolution 179 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Honoring the Polynesian Voyaging society on the 40th anniversary of the launch of hokUlea

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Passed) 2015-04-06 - Resolution adopted in final form. [HR179 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2015-HR179-Introduced.html

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	179
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

Honoring the Polynesian Voyaging society on the 40^th anniversary of the launch of hōkŪle�a.

WHEREAS, the vast, blue expanse of the Pacific Ocean connects thousands of islands and related cultures; and more than 6,000 years ago, the world's largest ocean became the stage for one of the greatest feats in human history; and

WHEREAS, early Pacific seafarers journeyed beyond the shores of home to explore more than 10 million square miles of ocean, well before Europeans ventured across the smaller Atlantic; and carrying on open canoes all provisions needed for the voyage and a new life, the voyagers discovered and settled on distant islands, some less than a mile in diameter; and

WHEREAS, these intrepid wayfinders used stars, winds, waves, birds, and other patterns observed in nature to chart their courses; and

WHEREAS, the last of the Polynesian voyaging canoes, or wa'a kaulua, disappeared in the 1400s, and in the 1970s, artist and author Herb Kāne dreamed of building a double-hulled sailing canoe for the first time in centuries, and through the idea brought together people of diverse backgrounds and professions to form the Polynesian Voyaging Society, founded in 1973, by Herb Kāne, Ben Finney, and Tommy Holmes; and

WHEREAS, on March 8, 1975, the Polynesian Voyaging Society launched its first wa'a kaulua � Hōkūle�a � from the sacred shores of Hakipu�u in Kāne�ohe Bay on the island of O�ahu; its design was a replica based on oral traditions, sketches, and petroglyphs of ancient canoes of the Pacific Islands; and

WHEREAS, Mau Piailug bravely shared his knowledge of wayfinding with people outside of his family, island, and Micronesia, and raised Tahiti from the sea in 1976, with a dedicated crew of first-time voyagers intent on revitalizing their culture and traditional knowledge; and

WHEREAS, the successful arrival of Hōkūle�a in Tahiti in 1976, via traditional, non-instrument navigation marked a renewal of traditional voyaging and wayfinding; and Hōkūle�a's safe return home by an equally dedicated crew has inspired generations to be proud of their Pacific heritage, and to continue to seek inclusive island values of sustainability, responsibility, and mutual respect and caring; and

WHEREAS, Hōkūle�a continues to bring people together from all walks of life; the winds of her crew's mentors and ancestors have carried the Hōkūle�a more than 150,000 nautical miles throughout the Pacific Ocean during the past 40 years; and

WHEREAS, the Hōkūle�a is more than a voyaging canoe; she represents a design shared by the people of Hawai�i, the Pacific, and the world to perpetuate and protect our most cherished values and places from disappearing; and

WHEREAS, 40 years from the Hōkūle�a's first splash into the sea, with navigators who are using the same traditional knowledge and techniques that steered their ancestors before them, Hōkūle�a will continue to voyage beyond the Pacific on her Mālama Honua voyage, to include approximately 47,000 nautical miles, 85 ports, and 26 nations; and

WHEREAS, the voyage, which began in Hawai�i in 2013, and will continue through 2017, seeks to engage all of Island Earth; demonstrating how to live sustainably, while sharing Polynesian culture, learning from the past and from each other, creating global relationships, and discovering the wonders of this precious place we call home; and

WHEREAS, Hōkūle�a continues to be a floating classroom for Hawai�i, building on the awareness and understanding generated from her historic launching in 1975, the courageous sailing of her first deep-sea crews in 1976, and the creation of future leaders and educators who have grown up with the knowledge that each crew member on our respective wa�a, islands, and planet share the honored kuleana of caring for each other and our homes; and

WHEREAS, for the past 12 years, Hōkūle�a has called Honolulu Community College's Marine Education and Training Center home; the director and staff of the Marine Education and Training Center have provided invaluable support to the Polynesian Voyaging Society and Hōkūle�a by providing space, a safe learning environment, acumen in vessel repair and maintenance, and a welcome environment for staff, students, and thousands of volunteers who have assisted with Hōkūle�a's extensive dry dock work, crew training, navigation training, and logistical support; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2015, that this body hereby recognizes and honors the Polynesian Voyaging Society on the 40^th anniversary of the launch of the Polynesian voyaging canoe, Hōkūle�a, the members of the first crews who sailed her from Hawai�i to Tahiti and back in 1976, the many volunteers and employees of the Polynesian Voyaging Society who supported the Hōkūle�a's many voyages over the past 40 years, and the University of Hawai�i's Honolulu Community College and its Marine Education and Training Center, which have helped to house and care for her.