KAI ‘EHITU: AN OUTRIGGER TEAM REMEMBERS ITS ROOTS AND ITS PAPA

Originally published in Ke Ola Magazine

 “Never forget your roots,” Puamaile Kimitete insists. Her mother Augustine, sister Healani, and brother Richard all nod their heads in agreement. “Even though he lived in Hawai‘i for over three decades, Papa never forgot his Tahitian roots.”

It is here, in front of Kai ‘Ehituʻs fare va‘a (canoe house), that she can best reflect on how her fatherʻs decision to move his young family from Tahiti grew into a canoe club that impacted the very culture of Hawaiian canoe racing.