Nearly 60 Linfield University students performed at the 50th annual Lu’au and Ho’ike held in McMinnville, Oregon, April 29, 2023. This included the following students from your local area, including:
Grayson Cosier of Waimea, Hawaii Island (96743) – a graduate student earning a master’s degree in business with a focus on sport leadership
Mako Minoda of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Island (96740) – a senior majoring in public health
Elijah Ng of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Island (96740) – a first-year student
This beloved Linfield tradition was the result of months of work and dance practice from members of Hui O Lokahi student club and consisted of a plate lunch supplied by Ohana Hawaiian Cafe of Portland and the Ho’ike performances. This year’s theme was “Ma’ohi Nui,” celebrating multiple cultures and people of the Pacific. The dances took the crowd of nearly 1,000 to the islands of Oahu, Tahiti, New Zealand, Molokai and Lanai, among others.
Linfield students were joined by guests from Hawaii. Napunui Gabriel from Waialua, Oahu, performed a fire knife dance, and Makani Tabura, host of “Culturized” podcast and television show, served as the event emcee. Dances were taught by kumus Cruz Braun (sophomore, Kahului, HI), Taetum Lynn Kalani (sophomore, Puuloa, HI), Citlalli Cruz (senior, Gresham, OR), Kayley Dombrigues (sophomore, Waimea, HI) and Mako Minoda (senior, Kailua-Kona, HI). Additional photos of the event can be downloaded at: https://linfield.photoshelter.com/galleries/G0000n23_NgoZS50/Linfield-50th-Luau