NEW ZEALAND - CANOE - Master Carver Hector Busby
"Canoes and voyaging have been by consuming passions. I have sailed with all the great modern-day voyagers and crossed the vast Pacific Ocean many times. I'm never lost, for I carry a mental picture of the night sky and I always know where I am. This picture is made up of the collective memories of generations of voyagers. My people were the last of the great Polynesian voyagers and these memories still lie just below the surface. In my dreams, in the rushing silence of the night, I look to the heavens for the guiding star. I feel the wind on my face and I see the dancing trail of of phosphoresence on the ocean. Like a long, drawn out sigh these images linger and haunt me."

Respected elder and leader of the waka movement in Aotearoa, Hector is the only master carver who has participated in the Festival every year since the canoe carving began. Sponsored by Pioneer Inn and LahainaTown Action Committee

YAP ISLAND NAVIGATIONAL TEAM - CANOE - Master Navigator Sesario Sewralur and Master Canoe Builder Bruno Tharngan
Sesario Sewralur is an active member of the Polynesian Voyaging Society and son of world famous navigator Mau Piailug. His years of training under his father in the ways of traditional navigation have catapulted him on the world scene. He has given several seminars on this skill and its importance.

Bruno Tharngan is an accomplished canoe builder who apprenticed and gained Master Canoe builder status under the tutelage of Vincent Falan. Upon obtaining this status he has honed his skills by building numerous canoes. He has a strong desire to pass this knowledge onto future generations. Sponsored by Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa

LAHAINALUNA HIGH SCHOOL - CANOE - Teacher Jeremy Delos Reyes
"The festival has given me ideas and other avenues for lessons, such as voyaging on the Hokule'a and the connections of old and new technology. It has given my students an education on Hawaiian culture and values. I believe since they live in Hawai'i they need to learn about the culture. It has also given them very unique experiences, such as meeting master carvers from all over Polynesia on a personal level."

Lahainaluna has always been known for its vocational classes, and the carpentry program has been a success since it began giving students work place skills for the construction industry. The popular woods program has been in place since the 70's. Student projects from these programs have won numerous awards in statewide competitions. The school is now moving in the direction of industrial engineering and technology, further enhancing its program. Sponsored by Napili Kai Beach Resort

TAHITI - CANOE - Master Carver Marirai "Freddie" Tauotaha
"I used to accompany my Dad into the forest and he would show me what to look for to choose the right tree. He taught me everything I know. He also taught my younger brother and my sister. He taught us how to build canoes. We watched and we didn't ask questions. Our traditional way is to look, listen, and be quiet. He showed us from the very start - from choosing the tree right down to putting it into the ocean."

Second Generation racing canoe builder Freddei traveled around French Polynesia carving paddles and canoes with is father, internationallly renowned Puaniho Tauotaha. In 1979, he moved to Hawai'i and eventually became a tree trimmer by virtue of his climbing skills, but carving remains his first love. Sponsored by Royal Lahaina Resort

HAWAII - PAHU (DRUM) - Master Artisan Bill Kuamo'ohelelani Kealoha Kapuni
"I am a longtime Moloka'i resident, waterman, Hawaiian wood carver, canoe builder and pahu maker. Bobby English shared his knowledge of pahu with me, and I take the time to teach others, for it is extremely important to hand down this knowledge from generation to generation."

A pure Hawaiian and very proud of his ancestors' accomplishments, Bill learned from his kupuna (elders) and began wood carving in his teens. He has taught the art of pahu making to Napua Noe'au, Bishop Museum, the community of Moloka'i, and Maui's International Festival of Canoes. Sponsored by LahainaTown Action Committee

PAPA HE'E NALU (SURFBOARD) - Master Artisan Kenny Tilton
"I grew up in Waikiki and started surfing when I was 6. In my early teens I started experimenting shaping my own boards using balsa wood and paint. This was in the days before fiberglass. I have been working with surfboards for close to fifty years now and I have been mentored by and worked with all of the master surfboard shapers here in Hawai'i and also in California."

In the early 60's Kenny soon gained the attention of leading California surfboard manufacturers and was offered a job by Dale Velsey the leading foam/fiberglass shaper of the day. Kenny went on to own his own shop in Santa Cruz before returning to the islands. Sponsored by Westin Maui Resort & Spa

HALE WA'A - Master Artisan Francis "Palani" Sinenci and Haumana
"Every hale has specific functions and qualities: hale moe, sleeping house, hale imu, cook house, hale koa, armory. I am making a hale wa'a, a canoe house. It's shape is a triangle and it's like the symbolic triangle of Hawaiian life. It has three parts; the taro which is the land, the canoe, and the ocean; and the other part of the triangle is the hale for shelter and well being. And so we honor the shape of the building as well as the triangle of Hawaiian life.

Hana's treasured artisan, Palani is a master at the ancient art of Hawaiian thatching. He uses natural dried plant materials, such as pili grass and loulu palm fronds, for the thatching, tied over 'ohi'a wood branches for the framing. He has advocated to incorporate indigenous architecture as a recognized structural design in the Maui County building code. Sponsored by Kapalua Resort

HAWAI'I - CANOE -
Sponsored by Ka'anapali Beach Resort

HAWAIIAN KI'I -
Sponsored by Old Lahaina Luau

NA HOE (PADDLES) - Master Artisan Calisto Palos
Sponsored by Westin Maui Resort & Spa

TONGAN PADDLE -
Sponsored by Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas

POI BOWLS - NaKoa Kau I ka meheu o na Kupuna
Sponsored by Lahaina Inn