Comm No 0021.140 - Testimony - CA-7 - PONC fund and Maintenance fund

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Vinnerie Conner Grade 7 Volcano School of Arts & Sciences Volcano,Hawaii 96785 February 5, 2019 Charter Commission Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Aloha Commissioners, My name is Vinnerie Conner, My parents Diwa Conner and Daniel Conner, I live in Volcano on Kilauea Road. I am grateful that I get to go to Kawa two times a month because I get to learn things like how to plant trees and learn about ancient Hawaiians that once lived there with the sacred plants. Kawa is important to the community, myself, and the people who go there to make it beautiful because it used to be a place where the ancient Hawaiians used to live in. Some local Hawaiians that were born and raised on the Big Island or live close to Kawa might have really important memories like when they first caught a fish or their ancestors lived there. When we go to Kawa, we show malama aina to the land. Kawa is a special place and we need to keep the place because it is a beautiful and sacred place. My classmates and I try to make Kawa as beautiful as it used to be. Before we came to Kawa, the place was terrible, there were sticks by the sea, trees were overgrown and a lot of trash by the shore; no one has been taking care of it. Today, thanks to Kumu James Akau, Uncle Duane, and Clarissa Pua, Kawa has grown much better than that; it has been taken care by a lot of people and looked like it has been taken care of. Hopefully in the future, it will grow even more beautiful than it is now. On the Big Island, voters want the land fund and most of them voted three times for the land and Kawa is one of them. 4,428 acres of land acquired with an additional 2,200 acres will be added soon in Waikapuna in Comm. No. 21.140