Paniolo House Stories

Paniolo House Stories Volume 1 includes interviews with Yoshio Hara, Eva Kealamakia, Elizabeth Kimura, Hisa Kimura, Mary Bell Lindsey, Katy Lowrey. Volume 2 includes interviews with Dan Miranda, Bea Nobriga, Blanche Rapoza, Grace Shigematsu, Ichiro Yamaguchi, and Shigeko Yoshikami.

The purpose of the Paniolo House Stories project is to guide the restoration of a hundred-year-old paniolo (cowboy) family home, as a living museum of daily life, health and healing practices before World War Two in the ranching town of Waimea on the island of Hawai`i. The Paniolo House is to be a museum which perpetuates the local history of families and life in this special town of Waimea. Friends of the Futures Paniolo House Committee works in partnership with the North Hawaii Community Hospital, where the house is located. In this way, the North Hawaii Community Hospital honors its historical community roots and keeps community values central to its continuing success.

In order to gather the stories on which to base the interpretive exhibits at the Paniolo House, the Paniolo House Committee initiated a project to collect oral history interviews with twelve kupuna, or elders, from the Waimea community. These interviewees kindly shared their stories for the project.

The Paniolo House Committee continues to guide the renovation and interpretation of the Paniolo House as a living history museum to help connect the eldest and the youngest generations in the Waimea community.

The Paniolo House Committee has been blessed by the dedicated work of Wally and Marge Bright, Balbi Brooks, Jean and Gilbert Davis, Barbara and Nelson Elliott, Gordon Hills, Hisa and Elizabeth Kimura, John and Katy Lowrey, Maile Melrose, Bea Nobriga, Nancy Piianaia, Phyllis Richards and Quentin Tomich.

The Committee was founded in 1995 in conjunction with the North Hawaii Community Hospital, with Susan Pueschel helping at the start.

Assisting the Paniolo House Committee is Susan Maddox of Friends of the Future with David Tarnas as project manager and Tom Quinlan as the architect specializing in restoring historic buildings. Four members of the Committee who generously assisted the Paniolo House project, but who have passed away in recent years, are Nelson Elliott, Gordon Hills, Hisa Kimura, and John Lowrey.

Nancy Piianaia was the Humanities Scholar for Paniolo House Stories and main interviewer with the assistance of Maile Melrose. Megan Mitchell transcribed the interviews. Nancy Piianaia was chief editor with the assistance of Alexander Tarnas and David Tarnas.