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THE VAKA TAUMAKO PROJECT

NEWS UPDATE: August, 2008      Volume 8 Issue 3     Inside this issue: Presentations in California Mimi & Meph available for presentations News from Taumako June, 2008 August issue of Pacific Paddler magazine

Mimi and Meph's Excellent Adventures in California On 2 July, Mimi, Stephanie, and Meph formally presented "The Story of Lata", Outer Voices Project's new broadcast, to members and guests of the San Francisco Yacht Club in Tiburon, California. Since she and Carlos recorded this program in 2005, Stephanie and her crew have been hard at work editing and producing. Although it has already played on some radio stations in Hawai`i and the Solomon Islands, the yacht club premiere was the broadcast's official debut. Though many club members were busy with Independence Day weekend events and a youth sailing program, about 40 of them took the time to attend the presentation. Also in attendance were VTP supporters June and Terry Causey, Nancy Griffith and her son Rob, and several members of Meph's family. The next day, thanks to Terry's generous arrangement, Mimi, Nancy, Stephanie, her assistant Jacob, and Meph flew with June and Terry to southern California for another talk at Newport Beach's Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club. This presentation was part of the club's public outreach program, and many people besides yacht club members (and more of Meph's family) attended. It was truly standing-room only, with people crowded into the spaces around the pupu table, behind the screen, and onto the lanai! The following Tuesday, Mimi and Meph, now back in the Bay area, visited the California Maritime Academy in Vallejo. A member of the Academy staff had visited the "Sailing with Lata" exhibit at Kaua`i Museum, and this visit had led to correspondence about the possibility of a VTP display at the Academy. Mimi and Meph met with Academic Dean Steve Kreta and Head Librarian Carl Phillips, who showed them possible venues for an exhibit. The Academy is building a new ultra high tech bridge simulator, in a brand new building. This facility has some walls (see photo of Mimi measuring one of them) that would lend themselves well to a display of VTP sailing and navigational materials. Librarian Carl Phillips also offered use of display cases for another presentation at the library. Mimi and Meph are most grateful to Steve and Carl for taking the time to meet with them and show them around the Academy. They are excited about the possibility of working with members of this prestigious institution. (Anyone wanting to know more about Cal Maritime can visit the website:  www.csum.edu Here are a few pictures from their visit: Mimi talks with Academic Dean Steve Kreta and Librarian Carl Phillips. Mimi measures a wall in the new Bridge Simulator facility Mimi with Carl Phillips in the Academy library.     A Blantant Commercial: Mimi and Meph available for presentations Mimi and/or Meph will gladly give presentations to schools, museums, libraries, clubs, or other interested parties. Their talks can range in length from 30 minutes to more than 2 hours, and can cover a variety of topics. Subjects they can speak about include Polynesian navigation and sailing, canoe building, settlement of the Pacific, life on Taumako, the story of Lata, etc. They can create presentations to suit their audience's interests. For example, talks they have given to Kauai's National Tropical Botanical Garden have emphasized the plant materials used in canoe construction, while their recent yacht club lectures have dealt primarily with sailing and navigation. Presentations usually (though not necessarily) include photos, videos, and maps which require use of a projector, screen, and controlled lighting. We consider our talks gifts to our audiences, but they do demand time and effort that we could use for other work. Therefore, we think it reasonable to expect some form of compensation, such as help with our travel expenses or some type of contribution to the VTP. If you are interested in having a presentation, please use the contact information at the botton of this page.

News from Taumako 13 June, 2008 Meph returned from Solomons on 10 June. Mimi, Larry Williamson, Dr. Larry Sherrer and his daughter Chantey returned on 24 June. A highlight of this visit was the arrival of Wade Fairley and his wife Fred Olivier, Australian free-lance videographers working for BBC Bristol. In collaboration with the Discovery channel, BBC is producing a 6-part documentary on the oceanography, culture, ecology, etc. of the south Pacific. Wade and Fred, who are also experienced blue-water sailors, went to Taumako to film voyaging canoes under sail. Although bad weather curtailed their shoot, they did get some fine footage of two alo plying the waters outside Tahua's reef. We look forward to seeing the finished documentary, which may be finished sometime next year. As soon as we have any information on broadcast dates, we shall post it on this site. If any of you find out any news about it, please let us know. For more information and pictures see Larry Williamson's article:  Notes from the Solomons Now for a few pictures: This is typical of conditions on a motor canoe ride from the Reef Islands to Taumako. It can be a wet trip! Once you get there, however, things calm down. Here a young mother ferries her kids across Kahula's tranquil lagoon. Mimi and Kaveia Jr. check out locations for the BBC shoot. An alo voyaging canoe bucks the surf as it crosses the outer reef. Outside the reef, Jonas Holani (facing camera) and his crew put the canoe through its paces for the BBC camera. BBC cameraman Wade Fairley stands on the ama to film the canoe under sail. It seemed like a good idea at the time… With Jonathan holding his feet, Wade tries to shoot underwater footage of the alo's hull A fine sight indeed: two alo under sail off Taumako. Back on shore people are hard at work preparing to make a new sail. These men and women are making a sheet line from hau bark. Men sew the sail together. Fox Boda paints an alo with a traditional anti-fouling coating made from local seaweed.

August issue of Pacific Paddler magazine     has Vaka Taumako Project Photos Ropati Has Done it Again! We have just received the August issue of Pacific Paddler magazine, and are delighted to see some of our most recent photos and a short article on p. 45. `Ohana Hebenstreit, Ropati and his kinfolk, have been most generous in their support of VTP, printing our photos, and even supplying us with extra copies of the magazine to carry to Solomons so that Nga Taumako can see themselves in print. Mahalo nui, Ropati! If you are a subscriber of this fine publication, check out page 45. If you are not, we urge you to check out the website:  www.pacificpaddler.com  or try to wrest a copy away from a subscriber (you might find it easier to look up the website; the magazine's devotees are often quite possessive of it.)

Vaka Taumako Project of the Pacific Traditions Society PO Box 712 Capt. Cook, HI 96704 Phone (808) 936-8462     FAX    (808) 823-6741     Email:  george.mimi@gmail.com The Vaka Taumako Project operates under the aegis of the Pacific Traditions Society, a 501(c)3, non-profit organization. Monetary and some other donations are tax-deductible in the USA. In Germany, donations for the VTP are tax deductible if you donate to the Verein zur Frderung kultureller Traditionen (a non-profit organisation) under the key word "Vaka Taumako Project". For address and bank account information see  www.traditionen.org   Contact Dr. Mimi George, Principal Investigator Mailing address: Dr. Mimi George and Paramount Chief K. Kaveia P.O. Box 712, Capt. Cook, HI 96704 USA e-mail:  george.mimi@gmail.com Phone 001 808 936 8462 H. M. Wyeth, Permanent Secretary Phone 001 808 822 0647 FAX 001 808 823 6741 Larry Williamson, President, The Pacific Traditions Society e-mail:  larryw@hawaiian.net   To get onto our mailing list and/or to send in a contribution, please mail your name, address, e-mail address, and phone / fax to Mimi George at the address above.