Talk Story - Puna Rising Ohana

What’s Swimming in Kehena: The Heartbeat of Kaimu: Saturday Open Market

Story and Photos By Ekahi Aloha Dale Michaels WELCOME! TO THE SATURDAY KAIMU OPEN MARKET! Located in Kaimu, across from Uncle Robert’s, is the Saturday morning Kaimu Open Market! It’s located up on the lava flow with a wide variety…

IN LOVING MEMORY: STEVEN ANTHONY HIRAKAMI; 7.10.46-11. 26.25

Story and Photos by Raydiance Joy Grace Additional Photo Credit to Livestream of the Event The Celebration of Life for Steve Hirakami at the HAAS Campus in Pahoa was a heartfelt event attended by over 250 well-wishing friends, associates, students,…

Around the Punaverse- April 2026

By Petra Wiesenbauer March presented us with the 43rd episode of Halemaumau Crater with tephra, Pele’s Hair, and road closures. Most impactful for many of us were the two Kona Low weather systems with high winds and heavy rains, causing…

Vipassana as Taught by S.N. Goenka in Hawaii

By Karyn Chambers “Unless we investigate the world within, we can never know reality–we will only know our beliefs about it. . .” A couple of months ago, I discovered Vipassana meditation. I had heard of it many times over…

Seeds of Innovation: A Puna Rising Entrepreneur Hub Gathering

By Maria Sherow March 21st, 2026, started with a bright, sunny Puna morning, a welcome sight just a week after a big storm rolled through the state of Hawai‘i. But as the day wore on, and with whispers of another…

Stars Over Puna: April 2026

By Norma Jean Ream Aries Season Calls for Bold, Authentic Action April 1, April Fool’s Day, a day known for jokes, spoofs, and trickery, is a Full Moon at 12 Libra. The Sun in Aries midway between the slow movers,…

Stars Over Puna March 2026

By Norma Jean Ream Spring Brings Fresh Starts, and Renewed Enthusiasm for Life March opens with mixed weather patterns common for the pre-spring period. Mercury has just turned retrograde on February 25 in Pisces, suggesting things are still wet, wild,…

Around the Punaverse, March 2026

By Petra Wiesenabuer This last month brought us Kilauea’s episodes 41 & 42 with tephra, ash, Pele’s hair, and higher SO2 levels. For most of us in Puna, this meant making sure our catchment tanks were unhooked from our gutters…

Greggor Illagan, Puna Town Hall in Seaview

Story and Photos by Raydiance Joy Grace SEAVIEW TOWN HALL MEETING AT SPACE Greggor opened with, “I want to encourage you to think about what you want to see Hawaii look like in the next 5 years, and I…

Stars Over Puna February 2026

By NormaJean Ream Major Shifts Ahead in Eclipse Season The world is getting the first influences of what it feels like to live in Aquarian energies. Leaving the old paradigm of Capricornian pragmatism will fill us with the sense that…

Imu Mea ‘Ai Food Tour

Video By Beth Block Imu Mea ‘Ai is more than just an eco-tourism initiative—it’s a social enterprise owned by the Men of PA’A, a nonprofit committed to holistic healing and reintegration for Native Hawaiian men. All profits from Imu Mea…

What’s Swimming in Kehena

Story & Photos, By Ekahi Aloha Dale Michaels Editor’s Note: We welcome our newest columnist, Dale ‘Ekahi’ Michaels, a longtime Hawaii resident living his dream in the Kehena area. He knows everything going on there and will keep us updated.…

Across the Punaverse, February 2026

By Petra Wiesenbauer I hope your New Year has been going well, and you were able to start with renewed energy and purpose. Our community of local artists, practitioners, food lovers and musicians is active and alive. The message I…

Smoke It Up 808 Festival

Video Story By Beth Block SMOKE IT UP The inaugural Smoke It Up Festival transformed Puna’s feral pig challenge into a celebration of local food innovation and community solutions. The festival explored how feral pigs can support food security and…

Puna Rising Ohana; 2025 Wrap-Up

By Dawn Hurwitz, Managing Editor for Talk Story 2025 has been a stellar year for Puna Rising Ohana. Here are our highlights in review. The year started with a bang, a new political climate to navigate, and much to look…