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OF <br /> , <br /> "-fSTATE OF <br /> COUNTY OF HAWAII .��---����'�*�'� HAWAI I <br /> ` <br /> ,Tff OF MF'� <br /> BILL NO. 97 <br /> ORDINANCE NO. <br /> AN ORDINANCE NAMING A BUILDING LOCATED AT THE HO`OLULU <br /> COMPLEX, COVERED BY TAX MAP KEY: 2-2-033:016, AND AMENDING CHAPTER <br /> 15,ARTICLE 8, SECTION 15-68.1 OF THE HAWAII COUNTY CODE 1983 (2016 <br /> EDITION,AS AMENDED) RELATING TO THE PARKS AND RECREATIONAL <br /> FACILITY SCHEDULE. <br /> BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE COUNTY OF HAWAII: <br /> SECTION 1. The purpose of this ordinance is to name a building located adjacent to the <br /> Aunty Sally Kaleohano's Luau Hale at the Ho`olulu Complex, situated in Hilo, District of South <br /> Hilo, County of Hawai`i, State of Hawai`i, in honor of Dorothy Thompson, affectionately known <br /> as "Aunty Dottie." <br /> "Aunty Dottie"was born Dorothy Mae Elizabeth Soares May 16, 1921, in Hilo and died <br /> March 19, 2010, in Hilo. A renowned multi-sport athlete in her youth, she was an employee with <br /> the Department of Parks and Recreation for more than 30 years, retiring in 1980 as head of the <br /> culture and arts division. <br /> Planning for the first Merrie Monarch Festival, in 1964, began in 1963 under the <br /> direction of co-founders Helene Hale, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, her Executive <br /> Assistant Gene Wilhelm, and Promoter of Activities George Na`ope. The festival was <br /> established to honor the late King David Kalakaua, and to support Hilo's recovery from a <br /> devastating tsunami in 1960. Due to a change in executive administration, from 1965 to 1968, <br /> the festival became a project of the Hawai`i Island Chamber of Commerce. Declining interest in <br /> the festival after 1968 led the Chamber of Commerce to consider discontinuing the festival, <br /> when Aunty Dottie stepped up to form and lead a nonprofit organization dedicated to the Merrie <br /> Monarch Festival. The early years of the festival featured live entertainment, a King Kalakaua <br /> beard competition, and a barbershop quartet contest. After reaching an agreement with the <br /> leading hula masters of the time, she introduced the first hula competition in 1971, which took <br /> place at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium (formerly the Hilo Civic Auditorium). <br /> The Merrie Monarch Festival grew slowly at first, but exploded in popularity following <br /> the Second Hawaiian Renaissance in the 1970s, the addition of the Kane Division in 1976, the <br /> move to the Edith Kanaka`ole Multi-purpose Stadium (formerly the Ho`olulu Tennis Stadium) in <br /> 1979, and the first live television broadcast in 1981. As the popularity of the festival spread, hula <br /> gained respect as an art form that is now practiced around the world. For the last 47 years of her <br /> exceptional life, Aunty Dottie led the festival as executive director. She was a strong leader who <br /> resisted pressure to raise ticket prices or move to a larger venue. Her wide-brim straw hat, <br /> bedecked with lei, was a constant presence at the side of the competition stage, but she always <br /> redirected attention from herself to the performances on stage. The Merrie Monarch Festival, <br /> now led by Aunty Dottie's family, continues her legacy. <br />