Haunani Kaanaanā Nash: “The best place to work”
Haunani Kaanaanā attended Church College of Hawaii in 1956, but didn’t join the PCC until 10 years later. She soon become one of the Center’s first female managers.
‘Aunty Val’: A PCC ‘living treasure’
Aunty Valetta Nepia Jeremiah from New Zealand devoted 50 years of her life to the Polynesian Cultural Center, and was revered as a “living treasure.”
Tivakno Ieli Sievinen: “Truly grateful”
Tivakno Ieli Sievinen was originally from the small, remote island of Rotuma, a political dependency of Fiji with its own language and culture. (She passed away in July 2020.)
Brent Malolo: Canoe dancer, night show performer
Malolo grew up in a small village on the Samoan island of Savai’i, and went to school in the capital and near Wellington, New Zealand, before attending BYU–Hawaii and working at the Polynesian Cultural Center.
PCC honors Tonga’s late queen mother
Tongans at the Polynesian Cultural Center draped the queen’s summer palace in the Tongan Village in mourning the death of Her Majesty Queen Mother Halaevalu Mata’aho, who passed away at age 90 on February 19, 2017.
Damuni looked back during 40th anniversary
The late Emosi Damuni recalled how he first came to the Polynesian Cultural Center in 1964 during the 40th anniversary in 2003.
Center, BYUH forge closer ties to Iosepa
The Polynesian Cultural Center and BYU–Hawaii have recently entered into a new agreement in which the PCC will take a bigger role with the BYUH’s 57-foot traditional sailing canoe, the Iosepa.
Tongan lashing expert brings skills to PCC
Filipe Tohi, a Tongan lashing expert, was brought in to help with the Center’s Tongan Village renovation in 2016.
Camakau gets new ‘home’ in Fijian Village
[Reprinted from a 2004 story and photo by Mike Foley] Over 20 years ago the Polynesian Cultural Center commissioned the people of Kabara in Fiji’s Lau Islands archipelago to make a traditional ocean-voyaging canoe. Using only indigenous materials, they handcrafted a 40-foot camakau [voyaging canoe — note: the letter ‘c’ in Fijian is pronounced like a voiced […]
