We would like to introduce the participating performers for the 15th Annual Honolulu Festival. They come from various regions of the Pacific Rim including Hawaii, Japan, Phillipines, Korea and the U.S. Mainland. The performances vary from traditional and modern dance and music to arts and crafts. There is so much to see and do.

Join in this exciting event in Honolulu.The Heart of the Pacific, Creating our Future!

	Miss Kona Coffee 2009 /The Kona Coffee & Tea Company The Kona Coffee Cultural Festival is proud to present, Miss Kona Coffee 2009 Ku`ulika Karratti. Kuulika is 22 years old. She is a graduate of the University of Hawaii at Hilo with a degree in Hawaiian Studies. She is currently a Hawaiian Language teacher at Konawaena High School. She will be responsible for promoting Kona Coffee locally as well as internationally with a promotional trip to Japan with UCC Ueshima Coffee Company. A member of the Miss Hawaii and Miss America Organization, she has qualified to compete at the Miss Hawaii Scholarship Pageant in June where she is eligible to receive scholarship money to further her education. She has spent a great deal of time doing numerous appearances at schools, festival and tourism related events. The Kona Coffee & Tea Company In 2003 the Kona coffee & Tea Company was crowned with the highest horner within the renowned Gevalia Cupping Contest during the 33rd Annual Kona Coffee Cultural Festival. URL: www.konacoffeeandtea.com

	Miss Oahu Filipina Name: Miss Bianca Luz Castillo Age: Nineteen School: Hawaii Pacific University Major: Bachelors in Nursing Hobbies: Spending quality time with family and friends; watching movies; studying, reading, singing, shopping Awards: Miss Oahu Filipins 2008; 1st runner up - Miss Teen Hawaii Filipina

	Cherry Blossom Queen & Princess This year the annual Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates its fifty-seventh anniversary. Sponsored by the Honolulu Japanese Junior Chamber of Commerce, and thanks in large part to the generosity and support of major corporate sponsors and tireless volunteers, this annual spring-time festival continues to be one of the longest running ethnic celebrations in the State of Hawai'i. URL: http://cbfhawaii.com/57/

	BIBAK Hawaii The BIBAK Hawaii marching unit is an intergenerational group of immigrants, Mainland transplants, and local-born folks. BIBAK Hawaii was founded in 1979 by U.S. Navy families and other immigrant families from the Cordillera region of Northern Philippines. Like the original BIBAK of the 1950s, it serves two main objectives. First, members provide mutual support like one big ohana or family. Second, members perpetuate cultural heritage and traditions of the Igorots, a collective term for indigenous people of the Cordillera region in the Philippines. BIBAK organizations around the world contribute to the richness of cultural diversity by presenting the cultural expressions of northern Cordillera Philippine ethnic groups like the Ibalois, Kankana-eys, Bontocs, Ifugaos, Bagos, Kalingas, Isnag, Itneg, and Tingguians. Most members are descended from these ethnic groups or affiliated through marriage or friendship. Many also trace their roots to the cosmopolitan Cordillera city of Baguio, one of the sister cities of Honolulu. Baguio was founded in 1909 by then Philippine Assembly headed by a US Governor General. URL:www.bibakhawaii.blogspot.com

	Hawaii United Okinawa Association Led by President, Mr. Ford Chinen, HUOA is committed to maintaining and promoting a strong bond with the Prefecture of Okinawa, to preserve, promote and perpetuate the culture, arts and history of Okinawa in Hawaii. Hawaii United Okinawa Association (HUOA) was established in 1951, as the umbrella organization of 48 member clubs throughout the State of Hawaii. Our colorful parade banners represent the city, town or village in Okinawa from which our issei, or first generation immigrants, traveled from. Our parade participants are dressed in outfits which represent the costume of the small, hand-held drum dance, called paranku. From the first group of 26 immigrants arriving in 1900, those of Okinawan descent in Hawaii number over 40,000 people. HUOA's Okinawan Festival is the most well known activity. It is a two-day extravaganza held at Kapiolani Park, featuring Okinawan food, arts and other cultural activities. With planning beginning a year in advance, the Festival operates with over 2,000 volunteers. You can find more information about HUOA and the Okinawan Festival at www.huoa.org. HUOA thanks the Honolulu Festival Committee for their invitation to today's festivities. URL:www.huoa.org

	UHM Katipunan Club- Tekniqlingz Dance Crew The Katipunan Club is a co-curricular organization to the University of Hawaii Filipino and Philippine Literature Program. In addition to educating students and members of the program to the Filipino language, the club seeks to promote and perpetuate the Philippine language and culture in Hawaii and the U.S. The Tekniqlingz Crew came about through the Tinikling Workshops held by the Katipunan Club of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. With its foundation based on modernizing traditional Philippine folk dances, the Tekniqlingz are a dance crew in the making which seeks to inspire and influence new innovations to the world of hip-hop and dance. URL:www.manoa.hawaii.edu/katipunan

	Jujube Oi Lan Dochu from Hawaii Oi mean BEST in Hawaiian, and Lan is Orchid in Japanese. Jujube is promoting the inner beauty and inner strength of all women. The world is full of abuse, poverty, economic crisis and war, just to name a few. The power to better and brighten the future is found in everyone's heart. It is the time to open your eyes and use your inner strength! Everyone, let's find that one thing you can do to help the environment or the person sitting next to you, or your family, the next step is to put that one thing into motion and act upon it. Together we can achieve harmony and love. Okagesama, is the energy of Love and Mahalo in its purest form. This Oi Lan dance expresses the energy of Okagesama. URL: www.jujubehawaii.com/english/index.html

	Taiwan Taiwanese in Hawaii - Doctors, professors, business people, students from University of Hawaii and Pacific University, tourists, retired. When we hear the music, we dance!

	The Vietnamese Student Association in Hawaii The Vietnamese Student Association in Hawaii (VSAH) is the Ohana of students from Vietnam in Hawaii. One of its missions is to promote community and student awareness of the Vietnamese culture, country and people. For this reason, the association has fostered and participated in various cultural exchange activities in Hawaii. URL:www2.hawaii.edu/~vsah/aboutus.html

	Tahiti Nui International - Tiare Heipua - Tiare Heipua is an award winning Tahitian Dance Troupe from Ishikawa, Japan, directed by award winning individual soloist and group leader, Minako Heikapua Sabarsah. They have been awarded First Place at Heiva I Honolulu 2008 in the Hura Ava Tau Category in the Divisions of Overall Otea and Ahupurotu. They have also taken home First Place Awards at Heiva I Japan 2008 in Aparima, Otea, Tamari'I Otea, and Tupuna Divisions and Categories. This year Tiare Heipua has returned once again to Heiva I Honolulu 2009 to participate in all group categories. Today they will be presenting you with their Overall Otea Performance. Tiare Heipua URL:http://www14.ocn.ne.jp/~tiare/hula.htm Tahiti Nui International URL:http://www.tahitinuiinternational.com/

	Alaska Native Heritage Center Dancers The Alaska Native Heritage Center Dance Group includes young Native adults trained at the Center and instructors, who work to encourage other youth to participate in sharing and learning Native Cultures. They have performed all over the United States. The Alaska Native Heritage Center's Dance Group began in 2001 as part of the Center's After-School Program for Alaska Native high school students. This program won a Presidential award in 2008. Members of the dance program include extremely dedicated and enthusiastic Alaska Native people from many of Alaska's Native cultures. The dancers, dressed in traditional regalia, perform dances that tell the stories of traditional Native legends and lifestyles. URL:www.alaskanative.net

	Rafu Mutsumi Kai Established in 1997, the Rafu Mutsumikai has participated in numerous Japanese festivals of many cities, including LA Nisei Week, SF Cherry Blossom Festival, Japan Week Las Vegas and Houston. Through carrying Mikoshi together with local people, we wish to promote cooperationand understanding between us regardless of the race gender or nationality. Mikoshi is a portable shrine traditionally carried by community, people during local festival to appreciate the year's prosperity and show their rising spirits to the God. The members enjoy carrying Mikoshi very much, and we hope to share this exciting experience with many people all around the world.

	Hempfield Spartan Marching Band This robust group of almost 200 students has been a crowd pleaser all over the nation. In 2006 they performed on national television in the Rose Bowl Parade. Other venues have seen them perform during the half-time of both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills games, as well as regular travels to Texas, California and Disney World. You are sure to find your own reason to laud their efforts. URL:www.hempfieldareaband.org

	Descendance The Descendance Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dance Theatre was born from the mighty Ngaru Aboriginal Dance Company, Sydney's first professional independent traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dance troupe, established in 1993. Ngaru had been one of the longest running professional performing Aboriginal dance troupes in Australia. In 2000 the name was changed to "Descendance" to account for the many artists from diverse tribes living in Sydney and joining the company. The motto was "One people all fighting a common cause". Descendance has become one of Australia's leading international cultural exports to the world, having toured over thirty countries and over one hundred cities, Descendance covers all three styles of Australian indigenous performance, Traditional, Torres Strait Islander and contemporary. URL:www.descendance.com.au

	Kalayaan Philippine Dance Theatre/La Salle Filipiniana Dance Company Kalayaan Philippine Dance Theatre KPDT is a folkloric dance group founded in Cavite, Philippines that features creative filipiniana and ethnic dances. It aspires to preserve the Philippine authentic dance and music artistry, furthermore to educate the Filipino people and share to foreign friends the genuine fine points of richness of the Philippine cultural heritage. Currently, the group is regularly staging the much applauded repertoire including the Banga-Salidsid, Yakan Paunjalay, the famous Tinikling, and numerous rare and unpublished Philippine dances to promote the country's historical arts. La Salle Filipiniana Dance Company The La Salle Filipiniana Dance Company was established on June 1993 under the Cultural Arts Office in De La Salle University-Dasmarinas. The LSFDC is the only group in La Salle System that features creative folk and ethnic dances of the Philippines. The group has performed in various institutional and provincial activities such as LS2K Production; a grand Lasallian celebration and Sayaw Filipininas; a showcase of dances and music held annually at De La Salle-Lipa, Lipa Batangas. It has also performed in various hotels and establishments in and around the Metro. Its mission is to prevent cultural extinction and to elevate the Art of folk and ethnic dances here in our country by educating the Filipino people with proper information of our rich and diverse Culture.

	MONTESSORI DE CAGAYAN DANCE TROUPE Beyond the usual wealth of other countries, the Philippines known as the "Pearl of the Orient Seas" is proud of its rich cultural heritage. A blend of distinct ancestral contributions, it possesses richness far more unique and colorful waiting for everyone to see. The Philippines is proudly represented by Montessori De Cagayan a private institution of learning located in the Northern part of the archipelago. The dance troupe composed of school children will showcase varied cultural dances signifying the way of life, traditions and social orientations of the Filipinos. Mabuhay Philippines!

	Chum-Sa-Rang (The Traditional Korean Dance Institute) Members of this group hope to promote the spirit of the traditional Korean arts and to perpetuate it through future generations. We bring along our friends, Rainbow Korean Music "Nong-Ak' Group, Halla Huhm Dance Studio, Myong Woo Dahn, Christ United Methodist Church Team, and Eun-Sun Jung Korean Dance Studio. URL:http://cafe.daum.net/hawaiikukak