A large crowd enjoyed hula, Tahitian dance, Samoan dance and martial arts at this past weekend’s gathering at Lorenzi Park in Las Vegas during the Ho‘olaule‘a 2000/Pacific Islands Festival. Kimo Kaleiwahea • Special to The Advertiser

LAS VEGAS — Although Las Vegas lies more than 2,700 miles from Hawai‘i, transplanted Island residents keep the aloha spirit alive through community events such as the city’s Ho‘olaule‘a, held this past weekend.

This year’s annual Ho‘olaule‘a 2000/Pacific Islands Festival was filled with song, dance, food and arts and crafts from Polynesia.

The theme of the event was “No Na Hanauna — For Our Future Generations,” reflecting the desire of organizers to perpetuate Hawai‘i’s traditions even though the cultural source of those values lies far away.

Festival helps former residents reconnect

The Las Vegas Hawaiian Civic Club joined with the city of Las Vegas to create the two-day festival 10 years ago.

Margaret Stanley and Haunani Rangiuaia, co-chairmen for this year’s Ho‘olaule‘a, said the Hawai‘i community needs to be “mindful of who we are and where we come from.”

“We have many traditions and customs that make us a special and unique people,” they said in the festival’s program. “We must share with our children, here on the Mainland, what it was like living and growing up in the Islands. We need to instill in them a sense of who they are through our song, our dance, our language, our food, our art, and most importantly, our spirit.”

While firm attendance numbers are hard to come by, Ho‘olaule‘a 2000 was expected to draw between 75,000 and 100,000 people over the weekend.

The events attracted the city’s Hawai‘i-connected Las Vegas residents, other Pacific Islanders and even those from the Islands who happened to be vacationing in the city. People from the wider community came to the festival as well, some from states outside of Nevada.

Many families set up their picnic blankets on the outskirts of the vendor booths in the city’s Lorenzi Park to enjoy the live entertainment while they ate and talked story.

Over the two days, Island Kine Band, Ale‘a, Sista Robi Kahakalau, the Bridge Boys and the Ka‘au Crater Boys & Friends entertained the crowds.

“Just being at the Ho‘olaule‘a with all the arts and crafts, food, and music keeps me in touch with my roots,” says Herbie Watson, who moved from Maui to Las Vegas 10 years. “We also go to the festival to meet up with old friends, and make new ones.”

More Hawaii-related events in Las Vegas

Over the years, Las Vegas residents have found it increasingly easier to connect to Hawai‘i in this city that bills itself as the entertainment capital of the world. More Hawai‘i entertainers are appearing at local venues and it is even possible to find a plate lunch at a Hawai‘i-kine grinds shop.

Guy Perez and Tama Silva of Island Kine Radio’s Wala‘au Brothers host a Hawaiian music talk show every Sunday, bringing local flavor to the airwaves.

“The Hawaiian music, pidgin and local jokes keep me grounded,” says Perez. “Moving away from home can be very overwhelming, but listening to Hawaiian music can make it all good.”

The Boyd Gaming Corp.’s California Hotel heavily caters to Island visitors so transplanted Las Vegas residents gather there to take in the home-away-from-home atmosphere.

“I go to the ‘Cal’ during the football season to hang with my friends, as well as family coming in from Hawai‘i,” says John “Matlock” Hiranaka.

Another ex-Hawai’i resident, Punahele Carlson, keeps the phone lines humming and takes frequent trips back home to stay connected.

“Aside from going back home three times a year and calling several times a week, I have a group of friends from Hawai‘i that live here,” she said. “We get together every couple of months to make pupus, sing Hawaiian music, and talk story.

“I also find that people who are not from Hawai‘i take an interest in me because of our unique culture and hospitality, and I really enjoy sharing that with them.”

‘Ohana, a travel and leisure magazine focusing on Islanders in Hawai‘i, Southern California, and Las Vegas, also helps to maintain the close-knit expatriate community.

But it may be events like Ho‘olaule‘a, where expatriates from Hawai‘i can come together and share their memories of the Islands in person, that may have go the farthest in keeping the community’s ties strong.

“Attending the annual Ho'olaule'a in Las Vegas is, by far, the top event," says Mel Ozeki of 'Ohana magazine. "Islanders come from throughout the city and even from Hawai'i to enjoy two great days of food, entertainment, and Island product. They bond in a way that makes us all forget that we’re not in Hawai'i.”

Kimo Kaleiwahea runs OhanaNet, a Web site created to bring family, friends, businesses and organizations from the Hawaiian Islands closer together.