Chinese Founders Day celebration highlights fascinating chapter in Hawaiian history.A Chinese Founders Day observance was held at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Kula Highway in Keokea at the end of last month. Descendants of the Chinese families who settled in Kula in the 19th century gathered from all over Hawai‘i to participate in this celebration. Hearing the stories of this period in Kula uncovers a fascinating chapter in Hawai‘i’s history.
“After arriving from China in 1900, Reverend Shim Yin Chin presented his first members to what was then known as St. John’s Mission,” said Jean Fiddes of Kula as she described how the Chinese seeds were planted. She said that Chin was the fundraising force for the construction of St. John’s Episcopal Church, raising $2,000 to build the structure, which also served as a Chinese language school. Materials for the wood frame building were floated off a boat at Makena Landing and transported by horse-drawn carts to Keokea. With much struggle and hard work, the structure that still serves St. John’s congregation today was started in 1906 and completed in 1907.
“Many members of the current congregation at St. John’s are related to the originating Chinese families,” said Fiddes.
Another reminder of the Chinese community is the Kwock Hing Society Building, constructed in the early 1900s and restored in 1987. The building is now a historical landmark above Kula Highway near Middle Road. Members of this society gathered here to worship, eat, drink and celebrate all of the year’s festivities, especially Chinese New Year.
Blanche Hew, who lives on the Keokea land that her grandparents homesteaded in the early 1900s, is currently a member of the Kwock Hing Society and serves on the board of directors.
She recalled memories of the funeral services at the Hing Society Building. “I remember after the service, the deceased was taken to the Chinese cemetery [down the road] in a horse-drawn wagon. My father and grandma are buried there.”
Visitors are welcome for an in-depth look into the Chinese history of the period through photos and artifacts of Chinese culture.
Also located on Kula Highway in Keokea is Ching’s Store and gas station, built in 1939.
“My in-laws began this business and I have been here for 50-plus years,” said Florence Ching. “I grew up two miles from the store and went to Keokea School. I love everything in Keokea—the climate, the quietness, the whole atmosphere, but mostly the people. They are like family.” Ching still proudly sells produce and flowers from local Chinese farmers.
A little further down the Kula Highway is the Henry Fong General Store. Owners Kevin Kihara and his wife, Fran Fong, have that same connection to Keokea.
“The store began in the 1920s and opened in this location around 1933 by Grandpa Henry,” they said. “Grandma Fong’s garage used to be a makeshift movie theater, but closed down in the ’50s when people started to get TVs.”
They agree that the best part of the day’s business is, “not the amount of money in the register, but all the people who come to talk story.”
Traces of the past are found on the Shim family land in Keokea. Amy Shim tells how the large parcel was acquired by her grandparents before the turn of the century.
“Chinese farmers leased land in Kula in the 1840s,” she said, “but in 1912, it was decided by the government to auction the land off only to American citizens. Through the help of the Episcopalian Bishop Henry B. Restarick and Governor Walter F. Frear, steps were taken to put the lands in the names of the farmers’ Hawai‘i-born and educated children. My family still farms the land and sells produce, vegetables, flowers and Shim’s Coffee.” Amy’s brother, Casey Shim, raises Black Angus cattle. “We are all very involved in community life and business.”
Some of the most interesting sights on the Shim land are the structures from the early 1900s: the original kitchen, the wood-burning stove, the corn house (where the corn was ground to make chicken feed) and the original chicken coops.
“Here are grandpa’s saddles, which are over 100 years old,” said Amy proudly.
Keokea is still a quiet country town, and even in today’s hustle-and-bustle world, some of the old lifestyle still remains. The clouds still come down to kiss the Earth and provide great mountain moods.
The Chinese Founders Day observance teaches us a story of pioneer struggle and accomplishment, and when added to other ethnic histories, provides us with a strong message of the “aloha and brotherhood” found in all of Hawai‘i’s history.
Those interested in the history of the area may want to read The Chinese in Kula by Diane Mei Lin Mark; The Sandalwood Mountains by Tin-Yuke Char; and Traditions for Living, a booklet of Chinese customs and folk practices in Hawai‘i, by Chung, Luke and Lau.
Information about Chinese history is available by calling St. John’s office at 878-1485. Group tours of the Kwock Hing Society Building can be arranged by calling Irene Chung at 876-1837.
In Keokea, someone is always willing to talk story.