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this morning at the request of Mikahala Roy. And I am appearing on my own behalf as a
<br />kamaaina. IÓm not here in any way shape or form representing the Hawaii County Council,
<br />although as you all know, I am a council member. But IÓm here i
<br />morning. Thank you.
<br />GIFFIN:YouÓre welcome. Mikahala?
<br />M. ROY:Thank you. Good morning, Curtis.
<br />TYLER:Aloha kua.
<br />M. ROY:Thank you very much for being here. Aloha kua.
<br />Will you begin today by going through a, the background of your connection with Kaluaokalani,
<br />the area that weÓre talking about with regard to this application by Wayne Blasman?
<br />TYLER:IÓll do my best.
<br />I would say that maybe 50 years ago, maybe 51 years ago, somewhere around 1951 or Ó52, while
<br />I was living in Kailua on the property now occupied by the Kona Bay Hotel, I had occasion,
<br />more than one occasion, to go to Hlualoa which in those days was pretty far distance, to visit a
<br />friend of mine. His name was Tommy Siegfried. And he and his parents and his grandfather,
<br />Colonel Watson, lived in the only home that was in that Hlualoa area at the head of the bay, and
<br />that home is still there. ItÓs a two-story home. And I believe I may have spent the weekend
<br />with him on at least one occasion. The most, the most memorable part about that weekend was
<br />visiting what I now know as Keakealaniwahine complex. My friend said to me, you know, I
<br />want to show you this giant heiau up here in this whole area of all these heiaus, or whatever.
<br />And my recollection about the Ò50s in Kona was that being Hawaiian wasnÓt at the top of
<br />anyoneÓs status list. That while I tried on numerous occasions to learn to speak Hawaiian, every
<br />time I ask someone who I heard spoke, speak Hawaiian, you know,
<br />say, oh, we canÓt do that. We canÓt speak Hawaiian. And when I asked about my family roots, I
<br />was told, you donÓt have any Hawaiian and things like that, or, you know, well, bum by.
<br />So at the same time, in the Ò50s, Dr. Kenneth Emory was coming t
<br />have been here a long time will remember. And he was doing archeological work here, and I
<br />remember him coming to the house in Kailua, something I was just fascinated with, archaeology
<br />and all this. So, anyway, I remember going to Keolonhihi to the heiau there; and what
<br />happened was unforgettable, because I didnÓt want to go and climb up on the heiau. I didnÓt
<br />want to go and, I was kind of nervous because itÓs like we were always taught, you know, donÓt
<br />mahaÒoi, donÓt go into caves, and whatever you do, donÓt go and take anything out of these
<br />places.
<br />And I remember, I think I was about six or seven years old, that IÓve come to know that now,
<br />you know, some people call it HoÓokkala, you know, the chicken skin. And, I guess, I didnÓt
<br />have too much hair on my arms but I just remembered what happened, was I said, ÐI think we
<br />better get out of here.Ñ And I never visited that site again, until maybe a year or two ago, maybe,
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