HomeMy WebLinkAboutComm No 0021.146 - Testimony - CA-7 - PONC fund and Maintenance fundTevis Peppers
8th grade
Volcano HI
February 4, 2019
Charter Commission
Hilo, Hawaii
96720
Regarding: The 2% land fund program.
Aloha Charter Commission,
My name is Tevis J. Peppers. I am a student in eighth grade at
Volcano School of Arts and Sciences (VSAS). I live in Mountain View
(Mauna Hu'ihu'i) with my parents, Aaron and Kerstin, and my two younger
siblings Juniper and Asher. Over the past two years I have been going with
my school to a place named Kawa. Kawa is a large plot of land owned by
us lucky folks. Na Mamo 0 Kawa is a non-profit organization that is
working to make Kawa a better place. They have worked with us and
multiple other schools to weed out non-native plants and plant new native
ones. I am concerned about the possibility of losing the support from the
PONC fund.
Places like Kawa that are being preserved by the PONC fund right
now can help the future generations and teach about the old Hawaiian
ways. These places, once anyone has enough experience working there,
becomes an example of how the Hawaiians took care of the land and put
together a healthy and friendly environment. These places gave so much
and create a place to let students and children in the future generations to
find out what they should follow and what the Hawaiian virtues are. One
example of this is "Aloha the Aina," otherwise known as "Malama Aina."
There is a lot put into these projects and without the funding many places
like Kawa will die out and fall into a state of disrepair.
Comm. No. 21.146
After working at Kawa for a couple years, I have become quite
attached to it. It has become special, almost sacred to me, a wahi pana.
We have put countless hours and a LOT of effort into Kawa. Last year
when we started, Kawa was a complete mess. We looked around and all
we could see were invasive plants, with a few natives here and there slowly
being choked out by the invasives. Now, anyone who goes there will say
that it is a beautiful place. Kawa is so full of nature and has given so much
to me and my class. There is a visible difference between what it was two
years ago and what it is today. Kawa has become a wahi pana to many,
many people, especially my class. If we lose funding we will lose this wahi
pana and all that will be left will be the memories of the work we put into it.
Funding is extremely important to non-profit organizations like Na
Mamo 0 Kawa. Obtaining supplies and equipment to continue upkeep can
be difficult because most good equipment is expensive. Without the
equipment that they have because of how the land is being supported with
the PONC fund they will have a much larger problem in needing financial
aid. All of the people at Kawa are already putting a lot of their own money
into the project along with using equipment they own. Even though they
aren't buying all that much equipment, they still have to buy gas or charge
their batteries. Buying gasoline costs money, so does electricity. These
may start off being small amounts, but with all the work they put in, these
costs add up to something gigantic and devastating. Without the funding
those who work there are going to lose money, possibly even go into debt,
if they can't keep up with the money they are spending because they have
to provide for the environment.
In conclusion, Kawa needs the support from the PONC fund. We
have worked so hard to get to where we are now. Losing the fund would
devastate us and hinder our work considerably. There are other things that
need work too, like roads and other government sections. But most, if not
all, of those things have money going into them already. Kawa and all
these other places that depend on the PONC funding are important to
those who take care of them. These are the people's wahi panas. Not only
will the environmental health waiver because of the loss of forestry and
plants. The people that have put hours, days, weeks, months, years or their
entire lives into these places; Giving up their mana to the place; taking up a
special relationship with the place. These are their sacred places. Without
the funding there will be no more of these places. We will have lost a
connection to the aina that we cultivated over many years.
Mahalo Nui,
Tevis J. Peppers