At least several viewing parties are expected to break out on O'ahu when the season premiere of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," featuring a Hawai'i family, airs tomorrow night.

The biggest will likely be at the Ala Moana Hotel, where hundreds of crafts people, workers, sponsors and volunteers who took part in the marathon building of a 3,500-square-foot house for the family of Theresa "Momi" Akana and a 4,500-square-foot community center for Keiki O Ka 'Aina Preschool Inc., the nonprofit Akana runs, are expected to gather.

The party is being hosted by master builder Brookfield Homes Hawai'i. The Akana family is scheduled to attend, and staff and students at Keiki O Ka 'Aina will perform hula to end the evening. The guests also will be treated to the viewing of a half-hour behind-the scenes special that won't be shown to the mass audience.

In June, approximately 3,000 volunteers converged on the Kalihi Valley parcel to work on the project around the clock and complete the two buildings, constructed from scratch, in seven days.

All the materials, labor and equipment for the home makeover projects were donated.

Stephan Edwards, vice president of Kalihi-based Systemcenter, said the 10 people on his crew worked more than 24 hours, with barely a meal break, to install office furniture shipped in by furniture manufacturer AIS from Boston.

"Basically, we shut down our operations and went up there," Edwards said. "We got there at 9 a.m. and didn't leave until 10 or 11 the next morning. It was just a 26-hour marathon installation."

Edwards said the accelerated timeline wasn't the only challenge. "Just getting the product up there (in the back of Kalihi Valley) was horrendous. The roads are so narrow, and there were so many people."

AMBITIOUS PROJECT

At any one time, an estimated 150 to 300 people were working on the project, described as one of the most ambitious ever undertaken by "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."

Jeff Proster, Brookfield Homes president, said about 400 people are expected to attend the Ala Moana Hotel party tomorrow. "We actually invited all the companies who were involved that we could get in contact with," Proster said. "But it was a little difficult to get in touch with the volunteers. We had so many people that just came in and volunteered, and then left and we had no way of getting ahold of them."

Proster said tomorrow's party is "not only to celebrate, but a chance to relive the experience." DVDs of the behind-the-scenes show will be distributed to those in attendance.

Brookfield tried to get a copy of the two-hour episode in hopes of holding a screening party tonight but got nowhere with ABC. "They didn't want anything going out," he said, noting that even the Akanas have not yet seen it.

The strong show of support for the project "is great for Hawai'i, just for the people across the U.S. to see the aloha spirit and remind people about our Islands," Proster said. "

Brookfield's other operations were essentially shut down for three to four weeks.

PRESCHOOL OWNS LAND

Last week, The Advertiser reported that the tax division of the state attorney general's office is investigating the lease arrangement between Momi Akana and the preschool, which owns the land beneath the Akanas' new home.

Kanoe Naone, a spokeswoman for Keiki O Ka 'Aina and the family, said, "We are talking to the AG's office to make sure that the lease agreement is fair to everyone involved, but these things take time."

The projects that appear on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" are chosen by ABC-TV based on need. The Akana family had lived in a smaller structure, near the new house, that served as both living quarters and learning center for Keiki O Ka 'Aina.

Founded by Akana 11 years ago, the organization provides comprehensive early childhood and parent education programs for families with children ages prenatal to 5, Naone said. Among those served are families affected by incarceration, high-risk families including those with teenage parents and families who cannot afford preschool. It also serves families who believe that their role as their children's first teachers are important. Additionally, it operates traveling preschools and offers Native Hawaiian cultural programs to those who cannot afford them.

In July, The Advertiser also reported that Akana earned more than $100,000 a year, while her husband holds a position in a local bank that typically pays more than $125,000 annually.

Proster said that he, like others, have read "some of the things that were mentioned" but do not have regrets about the effort that was put forth.

PRESCHOOL SERVICES

Keiki O Ka 'Aina serves about 1,000 children each year and its programs reach another 1,000 parents annually. Preschool officials said that as a result of the new community center, the organization has been able to provide services for an additional 250 families and teachers over the summer, Naone said.

"Everybody feels pretty good about it," Proster said. "We know why we did it, we know what families will be helped for many, many years to come. You can't underestimate the impact this will have on Hawaiian families going forward so it's something very positive."

The experience was one he'll never forget, he said.

"Everybody put on those blue shirts — you had presidents of companies to laborers to secretaries, but everybody was the same," Proster said. "Everybody was there for one purpose and that was to build a community center and engage with each other and help each other out."

Typically, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" focuses on one family.

Naone said that when ABC chose the Akana family and Keiki O Ka 'Aina, "it was looking at the broader impact that this build would have on the entire community of Hawai'i, not just one individual or her family. It's almost as if they invested in the community and not just the single family."

She added: "That's the reason why they chose this show for the premiere. "

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.