中国商店 Brings Tastes, Scents Of Hawaiʻi To Community

的 smell of fresh 花 being sewn into leis. 新鲜菠萝的味道. 的 sound of Hawaiian music that makes time slow down.

For many who attend Pacific University’s annual Nā Haumāna哦，夏威夷岛 (NHOH) 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛, the first experience of this spectacle for the senses is not during the hallmark show or dinner, but as part of a marketplace of island favorites in the Stoller Center’s lobby.

的 中国商店 给了夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛的参加者, 以及普通大众, a chance to take a taste of the islands home, whether in the form of fresh produce or 花, 岛工艺品, 或者一件新的阿罗哈衬衫.

Mahina LaBoy ’24 and Kalen Kobashigawa ’24, the student co-chairs for the 2024 中国商店, said the market aims to bring to the mainland items that are normally only available in the islands.

“Macadamia nuts are really popular,” LaBoy说. “很多糖果也是. 你可以在俄勒冈州买到李红梅糖果, but we bring in products that are usually better quality and brands that students prefer from home.”

“我们有很多新鲜农产品, 喜欢菠萝,Kobashigawa说, who is from Kapahulu on the island of Oʻahu. “Punalu hau面包非常受欢迎. 我们还有Aloha Shoyu酱汁, 在俄勒冈州有卖吗, but we like to price them a little cheaper so they are more affordable.”

除了食物和农产品的供品, 乡村书店也卖书, 花, household items and apparel from the islands and produced locally for NHOH, which hosts one of the largest student-organized and student-produced lūʻaus in the United States.

自1960年以来每年生产一次, the 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛 celebrates the culture of Hawaiʻi and other Polynesian islands that have become a key part of the culture at Pacific University. Between 17 to 20% of first-year undergraduate students at Pacific come from Hawaiʻi. Including students, Pacific is connected with more than 6,700 people in the state.

While the show and dinner are the focal points of 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛, students involved with the 中国商店 say it is another way to celebrate and educate people about the rich culture of Hawaiʻi and other Polynesian islands.

“With each individual snack, we share all of the different cultures that are within Hawaiʻi. It’s a very complex community,” said Mya Manzo ’24, one of NHOH’s 捐赠委员会联席主席s.

“We are not just sharing the culture of dance, but also sharing the culture of the foods and the crafts with the community,拉博伊说, who is from Kaneohe on the island of Oʻahu. “I have always been into my Hawaiian culture, 而是成为夏威夷岛和海岛的一部分, 和乡村商店, 让我更有激情了吗.”

Like nearly every part of the 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛, the process of bringing the 中国商店 together is a year-round effort. Donation chairs send letters and emails to businesses on the islands in November. 随着捐助者的回应, the donation chairs track responses and work with parent volunteers on each island to gather donations on Oʻahu to be shipped to Forest Grove.

Merchandise arrives at Portland International Airport early in the week of Lūʻau. Students arrive at the airport before daybreak for Cargo Days, when they inventory donations and load items into vehicles for transport to the Forest Grove Campus.

Manzo, who is from Waikoloa on the island of Hawaiʻi, said that solicitations for donations were sensitive to the continued efforts to help people recover from the devastating fires on Maui over the summer. “We politely asked, but we didn’t want to ask for too much,” she said. “We send thank yous and show gratitude even if they don’t decide to donate.”

一旦进入校园, student workers turn much of the preparation of the store over to an army of parents, 既来自当地，也来自夏威夷. 的 parents work to price items, stock shelves and tables, and make sure everything is ready to go.

没有父母, LaBoy说, the 中国商店 and many other aspects of 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛 couldn’t happen. With nearly every member of NHOH involved in the Lūʻau show itself, 他们的参与有助于分担负担.

“我爸爸经常在存货室里闲逛, and he and my uncle bring all of the items out,拉博伊说, who is instructing three dances for this year’s Lūʻau and dancing in a fourth. “My mom and my auntie always work the credit card booth. We do a lot, but I think the parents are what really holds the 中国商店 together.”

“Our parents are doing everything behind the scenes and making sure that it all comes together how we want it to go,26岁的Kacyn Ideue说, 捐赠委员会联席主席. “的y’re making sure all of the I’s are dotted and T’s are crossed.”

的 2024 edition of the 中国商店 will be open to the public on Saturday, April 13, from 10 a.m. 到下午4:30.m.

While the 中国商店 has been a part of 夏威夷岛和夏威夷岛 for decades, there always seems to be something new that keeps people coming back year after year.

“Last year it was One-Ton cookies,” Manzo said. “的y are cookies with little wonton crackers in them. 他们来自希洛. 的y were a new item and lots of people bought them.”

“I’m looking forward to the snacks and the Li Hung Mui candies,” Ideue said. “I am looking forward to having a sweet treat.”