COVID-19 could not hold back Wildcat pride.
Konawaena High School virtually celebrated it’s 100th anniversary on Oct. 16. The volunteer committee met for nearly three years to plan, fundraise and promote the celebration. Although they were not able to have the in person celebration that was planned, Sandra Taosaka said they were pleased to be able to present a virtual celebration for the many dedicated and supportive Konawaena ohana.
To comply with COVID restrictions, the event included video recorded performances and presentations with a limited amount of live interviews and presentations.
“We like to focus on the why we celebrate and not so much on the how (live or virtual). Since Konawaena High opened it’s doors it served as a center for the community and in addition to academics, Konawaena proudly worked to instill strength, perseverance, determination and a strong sense of community in all graduates,” said Taosaka.
Konawaena was the very first high school in Kona and can boast of other firsts including the first cafeteria and shop in the territory, the first school gym, the first chapter of the Future Homemakers of Hawaii, and the first high school in the state of Hawaii to establish a student credit union.
Part of the celebration recognized the KHS Centenarian Club, graduates who are 100-plus years old. Fumiko Komo Yoshikawa, 102 years young, Class of 1937; Kathleen Shizue Komo, Class of 1937 (Kathleen lived for 102 years and passed away on Aug. 7); and Wally Kazuto Ichishita, 106 years young, Class of 1964/GED.
“We are grateful for the stories they shared for the Centennial Souvenir book,” said Taosaka. “Many students were not able to continue their education due to transportation or economic reasons. Many left school to help on the family farm.”
Taosaka explained how Konawaena became known as the wildcats.
“Football records do not appear until 1924. At this time Konawaena was nicknamed the “Knights.” That year, 1928, was a great year for Konawaena as the team won the BIIF championship for the second time. The team traveled to Oahu and challenged St. Louis High School for the first time. It was expected that Konawaena would suffer a loss against the Oahu team, but Konawaena put up an impressive fight.
So impressive that radio announcer Ezra Crane stated, “These kids are fighting like Wildcats!” And as they say, the rest is history. Around that same time the University of Hawaii donated green and white football jerseys to Konawaena and so Konawaena adopted new school colors which replaced the previous blue and white, she said.
When asked, “What did you do during school vacation?” many students in 1932 would answer, “picked coffee.”
When the depression hit Kona the coffee industry needed help in the form of student coffee pickers. So in November 1932, Konawaena began what was known as, “the coffee schedule.” School vacation shifted to September, October and November which allowed students to pick coffee through the fall months. The new schedule helped the community’s income and it also solved the problem of student absence during the first few months of school.
Konawaena’s unique schedule was the only one driven by an agricultural need. Students were able to help their parents on the farm, but they also missed opportunities like playing high school football. This was a sacrifice made by many Konawaena High students.
In 1957, school officials were presented with information relating to how students help with the coffee harvest. This prompted officials to send out a survey to farm owners and others in the community to see if the coffee industry was positively impacted by the coffee schedule. The survey results indicated that the school vacation, which that year was between August to November, did not coincide with the peak coffee harvest season which the survey said was between November and December.
In September 1969, Konawaena saw the end of the coffee schedule as it began a new four quarter school schedule.
For more information and photos of Konawaena through the years, there is centennial souvenir for purchase along with a Konawaena Cookbook and Konawaena centennial T-shirts. Order forms can be found on the centennial’s Facebook and Instagram pages or they can be obtained via email konawaenacentennial@gmail.com.
