Music will help fight hunger Saturday as Pahala’s Bula Akamu takes the stage for the inaugural Kohomua Music Series at The Ranch.
A benefit for The Food Basket, Hawaii Island’s lone food bank that serves more than 12,000 residents monthly via its 100 partner agencies, the performance, hosted by ChoiceMART, takes place from 4-6 p.m. at Kealakekua Ranch Center in Captain Cook. It is the first of four music events planned the second Saturday of the month through February.
“It’s a chance to do good and have fun at the same and that was really the inspiration for the music series,” said Rhonda Kavanagh, CEO of the 135-year-old Kealakekua Ranch Ltd. and ChoiceMART, which opened in 2000. Kohomua means “first choice” in Hawaiian, which Kavanagh said was selected with the hope that the benefit series will be residents’ first choice to attend.
Admission to Saturday’s concert featuring Akamu, an accomplished Hawaiian and contemporary music recording artist who specializes in ukulele, guitar, and slack key, as well as a Hawaiian cultural performance, such as a hula halau, is free with the donation of two cans of nonperishable food items for The Food Basket.
“The thought of a good concert with great artists for just two cans of food is definitely the best deal anywhere on the island,” said En Young, executive director of The Food Basket. “It will be nice and cool — it’s winter, it won’t be roasting. It’s a nice, cool place to chill out and check out some music, and that beautiful ocean view that South Kona provides.”
Concertgoers can also peruse an in-store display to not only learn more about the nonprofit but also to see what items it needs most for the island’s hungry. For example, in South Kona, many low-income families are able to grow fruits and vegetables, but are in need of nonperishable proteins, whether that be canned chicken, tuna or the Hawaii go-to, Spam, explained Young.
“It is great that they can give us the list and we can focus on the things that fulfill their mission. While they (The Food Basket) wouldn’t turn away any donation, of course, some things are more valuable to them because it helps their mission succeed the most,” said Kavanagh. “And that’s what we wanted to do — we wanted to feature the items that they have specifically requested as their top needs and we will put them in the store so that it is easy for them to find and you can pick up as much as you want.”
The Food Basket’s mission to feed the hungry in Hawaii County closely aligns with what ChoiceMART aims to do in the South Kona community, and is what drew the Captain Cook grocer to create the benefit event, said Kavanagh.
“It’s very, very important to us, we (Kealakekua Ranch Ltd.) are in the business of feeding families through our subsidiary ChoiceMART and we support The Food Basket on a weekly basis and we wanted to do something that was a little more engaging for the community,” she said. “Many in the community don’t necessarily get to participate in or help with The Food Basket and this is one way that we thought we could help The Food Basket fulfill their mission and also give people in the community an opportunity to participate in that so they too could help the food basket in fulfilling their mission.”
They also wanted to bring a fun, casual event back to South Kona, so that families don’t have to travel toward Kailua, which has become the norm as Kona’s population and businesses have moved northward over the years.
“There are many, many things to do on the Kona side, but not as much choice when you venture farther south … we wanted to provide a venue where people who live north or south — or in between — can come together in a mauka location and have a good time,” Kavanagh said.
Coolers will not be permitted at the outdoor concert, but attendees are welcome to bring chairs and blankets for laying on the grass lawn. In addition, cold tapas-style dishes and libations including water, red and white wine, and two varieties of beer and kombucha will be available for sale; cash only.
In keeping with the store’s tradition of featuring as many local items as possible, the series is also plucking its talent from nearby sources, such as Saturday’s headliner, who was born and raised in Ka’u.
“It’s truly important to us to feature local talent like it is truly important to us to feature local products in the store,” said Kavanagh. “We did not want to have headliners from the mainland or somewhere else, we wanted to feature great local talent because there is a lot of great local content here … and being part of the community is showcasing the community.”
A 2002 Ka’u High School graduate, Akamu spent a year studying at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas before realizing music — the very thing he enjoyed taking part in with his family growing up in Ka’u — was what he wanted to do in life.
“I didn’t grow up wealthy, I grew up in plantation home in Pahala with nothing much. That’s why music was my passion. It never failed me, it always kept me happy, and I wanted it to be a part of my life,” he said.
With the dream of being a professional musician, he decided to take it to the next level by attending one of the most prestigious music schools in the U.S., the Berklee College of Music in Boston. In 2007, he earned his master’s degree with specialty in vocals and guitar.
Up until the past year, he was a teacher at Kahakai Elementary School, instrumental in revitalizing the school’s ukulele ensemble in recent years. Today, he’s a full-time, professional musician who performs Sundays through Tuesdays and at least three wedding gigs each week and is looking forward to Saturday’s performance in Captain Cook.
“It’s great,” he said about coming back to Kealakekua Ranch Center, where he has performed for several community events in the past. “It’s great for people on that side because it’s fun for the people who live up there. That’s the old Kona and we got to get back to old Kona — we can’t forget old Kona, it’s where it all started.”
Though just four Saturdays are planned for the series at this time, organizers are open to continuing it beyond February, said Kavanagh. Currently on the schedule for Dec. 10 is John Keawe, followed by Alii Keanaaina on Jan. 14 and Micah DeAguiar on Feb. 11.
“If it’s a hit and the community and people are enjoying and it’s popular, then of course we would, I would personally love for it to continue on because for me that would help us fulfill that need that we see in the community for a chance for people that live in the southern part to have a place closer to home where they can have family entertainment and relaxation,” she said.