Sharing The Shearwater Release

I was honored to once again be part of one of my favorite yearly events recently. Several critically endangered Newell’s shear-waters were released at Lydgate Beach Park with the help of kumu Sabra Kauka. Students from Wilcox Elementary School as well as Island School also were in attendance on separate days to watch and learn about the birds.

The fledglings are returned to their natural surroundings after having been grounded by modern-day distractions like bright lights, which they confuse for the moon as they make their inaugural trek to the ocean at night. A special thanks goes out to Tracy Anderson of Save Our Shearwaters and Andre Raine of Kauai Endangered Seabird Recovery Project for all that they do in trying to prevent the native species from going extinct …

If you want to hear some local tunes this weekend, make sure you stop by the 13th annual Kauai Homegrown Music Festival. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Church of the Pacific will host various musical acts including John Cruz, Jeff Caldwell Band and Medicine for the People at its outdoor amphitheater. Check out kauaimusicscene.com for more information …

Another musical performance is happening Friday night (Nov. 8) at 7 p.m. Daniel Ho is bringing his “Magical Island Style Music” tour to Island School. Partial proceeds will be donated to the school. Tickets cost $20 in advance and are available at Kauai Music & Sound, Sweet Marie’s, Mac Made Easy and Island School. Tickets cost $30 at the door. Visit danielho.com for more information …

Maya Soetoro-Ng, President Obama‘s sister, will be talking story at Kumu Camp in Anahola Sunday (Nov. 10) at 3 p.m. The event is sponsored by Yoga on Kauai, an organization committed to making yoga and meditation available to everyone, especially native Hawaiian keiki. After speaking, Soetoro-Ng will sign copies her children’s book, Ladder to the Moon …Thanks to all the dedicated community members who volunteered their time to help execute a successful National Make a Difference Day for Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park. The Eastside area is a little bit brighter now that the beach has been groomed and maintained. A special thanks also goes out to all of those businesses and organizations who helped donate to the one-day project: Safeway, Wal-Mart, Cost-U-Less, Costco, Love’s Bakery, Starbucks, Aloha Beach Resort, Shivalik Indian, Department of Parks and Recreation, Olympic Café, Beachwalk Restaurant & Grill, Hukilau Lanai, Subway, Ron’s Electric, Hawaii Life, DJ Daniel DeGracia, Ibaan Table Rentals and Zero Waste Kauai …

National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG) is hosting another lecture in its “Around the World of Plants” series. Natalia Tangalin, NTBG field botanist, will discuss her work as well as the ecological history and conservation issues of places such as Australia’s Northern Territory, Mauritius in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Islands. The free event, “Have Tabis, Will Travel,” will be held at Kauai Community College’s Campus Center Nov. 5 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Big kudos to Surfrider Foundation, Kauai chapter and the nonprofit’s diligent efforts to remove derelict fishing nets from beaches around the island. The group recently sent more than 17,000 pounds of nets to Oahu to be burned at H-Power for electricity. What an amazing job …