Keahi-Heath

LAHAINA – Lahaina Restoration Foundation will debut a new community event – the first annual Chinese Kite Festival – on May 3-5 at the Wo Hing Museum.

Festivities kick off on Friday, May 3, from 2 to 8 p.m. at the 858 Front St. museum with interactive martial arts and Chinese healing touch massage by Kiyoshi Joseph Craig.

There will also be kite displays, kite-making arts and crafts and a presentation by Dr. Busaba Yip Douglas on “Chinese Kites: Past, Present and Future.”

Silk and bamboo kites will be available for purchase along with Chinese delicacies from Fu Lin Restaurant.

These activities continue on Saturday, May 4, and Sunday, May 5, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Special performances include a Maui Chinese Martial Arts Academy lion dance, temple blessing and a kung fu/tai chi demonstration on Friday from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

A musical Guzheng performance by Loretta Lau will be held on Saturday from 1 to 2 p.m., as well as an interactive ribbon dance demonstration by Cathy Kekiwi from 2 to 2:30 p.m.

Brenda Wong of the Wo Hing Society will discuss the Chinese art of knot tying on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m.

The Chinese are credited as the originators of kites, with documentation dating back more than 2,500 years.

Learn the history, celebrate the discovery and enjoy the culture at the Wo Hing Museum’s first annual Chinese Kite Festival brought to you by Lahaina Restoration Foundation, Hawaii Tourism Authority and the Maui County Office of Economic Development.

For more information, call 661-3262 or visit www.lahainarestoration.org.

The public can also explore Lahaina’s unique history with Lahaina Restoration Foundation’s “Ha’ina Hou Let the Story be Told” at the Baldwin Home Museum lawn on Friday, May 10, from 7:30 to 8 p.m.

Malihini Keahi-Heath will present “May Day is Lei Day for Mother’s Day.” Residents and visitors can participate in an interactive demonstration of haku and huli lei-making.

Along with their fragrant beauty, flower lei have become a symbol of never-ending love and friendship. Keahi-Heath will teach participants how to create their own hair piece and/or lei in the braided (haku) or turn (huli) style.

Born and raised in Lahaina, once the capitol of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Keahi-Heath remains rooted in the ways of old Hawaii.

Full of aloha, she shares the knowledge and values passed down from her kupuna.

Polynesian arts and crafts will also be available for purchase at the event, just in time for Mother’s Day.

Popular candlelight tours of the Baldwin Home Museum will be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. The museum is located on the corner of Front and Dickenson streets.

The $7 fee includes admission to the Wo Hing Museum. Children 12 and under accompanied by a paying adult will be admitted free.

“Ha’ina Hou” is a free program held on Second Friday.