About Town

Documentary on alcoholism on island to be screened

“Perils and Pearls in Paradise — Hawaii Island Alcohol Stories & Facts” premieres at a free town mall meeting from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Kohala Intergenerational Center. The original documentary by Holly Algood of North Kohala spotlights 29 Hawaii Island residents whose lives were in some way dramatically touched by alcohol.

“We have stories from the head of the trauma center at North Hawaii Community Hospital, from various people in recovery, more than a dozen youth talking about how they’ve stayed away from it, and parents of an adopted child with fetal alcohol syndrome,” said Algood, an independent organization development consultant who also does volunteer work with West Hawaii Mediation Center, Kona Kohala Chamber of Commerce and Recycle Hawaii.

“Perils and Pearls in Paradise” will also be part of a community town hall meeting from 4:30 to 6 p.m. July 23 at the West Hawaii Civic Center Planning conference room. The meetings include pupu, a panel discussion and facilitated talk story. Admission is free and all are welcome.

The documentary is part of an integrated awareness campaign for prevention of underage drinking, managed by Five Mountains Hawaii. For more information, visit modelsnotbottles.org.

Voter registration
drive coming to Kona

The Hawaii County Elections Division will hold voter registration drives next week in West Hawaii. The public is invited to register or re-register to vote from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday or July 12 at Kmart in Kailua-Kona.

Brain injury group meets Wednesday

The Brain Injury Support group meets from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Hawaiian Rehab Services on Hualalai Road in Kailua-Kona.

The speaker will be Dan Eubanks. Eubanks in a neuropsychologist, or brain injury specialist. He will discuss organizational and memory strategies to be incorporated into everyday life needs.

Invited are all brain injury, stroke or other neuro-trauma survivors, their families, caregivers, interested professionals and the public.

For more information, contact Hawaiian Rehab at 329-0591 or Karen Klemme at 328-9498.

Chocolate making class offered July 20, 21

Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort and Spa will host a “Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Making Class.” Participants may attend the one-day class from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. either July 20 or 21.

Nat Bletter, co-founder of Honolulu’s Madre Chocolate and self-proclaimed “Chocolate Flavormeister” will lead the class on a visit to Kuaiwi Farm to source the cacao before returning to the resort where students will make their own bar of chocolate.

Bletter has a doctorate in ethnobotany and has researched plants worldwide. Taste-modifying plants and stimulant plants, such as cacao, spurred him to start Madre Chocolate, a traditional-ingredient, artisanal chocolate company.

The class costs $65 including transportation to the cacao farm and supplies. Email mlarson@sheratonkeauhou.com or call 930-4894 to preregister.

Workshop for farmers, ranchers planned

Common Ground, a five-day workshop for ranchers, landscapers and farmers, will offer an in-depth look at the soil food web and how to use soil biology to lower costs and increase quality, including the use of beauveria to fight coffee berry borer.

Led by Elaine Ingham of Rodale Institute, it will be held at the Makapala Retreat Center in Kohala. Participants must sign up for all three sessions: Life in the Soil, Monday through Wednesday; Compost Class, July 12, and Microscope Class, July 13. All sessions are from 9 a.m until 5 p.m. The fee is $400 for the five-day workshop or $500 at the door. Ka‘u Specialty Inc. will be represented on Compost Day with its compost tea brewing machines.

For more information, call Ericka 884-5838.