UH Hilo College of Business and Economics celebrates move into newly renovated building
A blessing ceremony was held in honor of the new home of the UH Hilo College of Business and Economics, now named Waiʻōlino or Sparkling Waters.
By Gail Makuakāne-Lundin/Interim Vice Chancellor/Student Affairs.
An ʻaha moku piko ceremony to rededicate and name the renovated College of Business and Economics building at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo was held last Friday.
Ceremonies were conducted by Kekoa Harman, an associate professor of Hawaiian studies and Hawaiian language at Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College of Hawaiian Language. The ceremony moku piko or the cutting of the navel string of a house or building is performed after a house or building is completed (in this case the renovated former Student Services building) and ready for habitation.
A symbolic navel string, lei piko comprised of 10 plants, each of them for a reason was made by Hālau Unukupukupu Kukuʻena cohort comprised of faculty, staff and students of UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College and tied above one of the entrances into the building.
The cutting of the lei piko was done by Juvette Kahawaii, a UH Hilo junior majoring in business administration and accounting and the president of the Accounting Club.
Larry Kimura, also an associate professor of Hawaiian studies and Hawaiian language, shared the name of the building and its meaning, Waiʻōlino or Sparkling Waters.
“Waiʻōlino is water that flows smoothly and gives off a glimmer that indicates wellbeing and prosperity,” says Kimura. “The glimmer and sheen of birds feathers also represents wealth or a state of being robust. Wai, water, is an essential element for life to exist. When we duplicate the word wai into waiwai, this equates to richness and affluence. Hawaiian culture strives to be mindful of the natural world as its guide and measure. Such worthy goals would be incorporated into the name for the building of the College of Business and Economics.”
Following the moku piko was a gathering with traditional and other foods. Taupōuri Tangarō, director of Hawaiian culture and protocols engagement for UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College, introduced the traditional foods being served:
ʻUlu (breadfruit)- Similar to the word ulu (grow, increase), we invite you to eat ʻulu so our service and the population we serve grow and increase.
ʻUala (sweet potato) – Playing on the word ala (to awaken), we invite you to eat ʻuala so we are awaken to the needs of the diversity we serve, insuring equity in the academic process.
Kalo (taro) – Kalo is the botanical body form of our eldest sibling Hāloanakalaukapalili. To eat kalo is to embody the understanding of the deep and connecting origins of those we serve.
Lūʻau (steamed taro leaves) – Lūʻau is a botanical manifestation of our starry constellations, we invite you to eat in the knowledge that meaningful education is infinite
Kālua Puaʻa (earth-oven baked pork) – Puaʻa is associated with rain and fertility, we invite you to eat in collective commitment to providing nourishment and growth to those we serve through our programs and services.
Iʻa (fish) – The ocean reminds us of our migrating nature, it is also the zone associated with dreams and intentions. We invite you to eat fish in celebration of our personal migrations and to remember the role dreams have in education.
Limu (seaweed) – Growing in the zone where ocean intersects with land, we invite you to eat limu in commitment to creating equity at this very intersections where personal dreams (ocean) merge with reality (land).
Kō (sugarcane) – We invite you to eat kō because it means to succeed, to fulfill. May your personal and collective missions and visions be successful and are fulfilled.
Drew Martin, interim dean of the college, shared brief remarks during the event thanking people who attended and assisted with the ceremony.
“Waiʻōlino provides a home for students, business practitioners, and teachers in our community to meet and learn,” says Martin in remarks he also delivered in Hawaiian. “Working together, we can build a stronger and more competitive workforce for Hawaiʻi’s future. The College of Business and Economics humbly accepts the responsibility as caretaker of this building to create opportunities for future generations.”
Editor’s note: Mahalo to Gail Makuakāne-Lundin, interim vice chancellor for student affairs, for writing and sharing this story with UH Hilo Stories. Photos by Juliann Morris from University Relations, and Jackie Sales-Iyo from the College of Business and Economics.
