Hawaii skips Great American State Fair to focus on local events

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Hawaii will not be part of the Great American State Fair when one of the largest commemorations of the nation’s 250th birthday begins June 25 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Freedom 250, which is organizing the fair, still says Hawaii will be represented. But the Hawaii America 250 Commission says funding and staffing challenges are keeping the state from participating.

Hawaii commission says it lacked funding

Peter Young, chair of the Hawaii America 250 Commission, said the commission wanted to participate but could not make the plan work.

“I personally, I wanted us to be there,” Young said. “And we tried really hard to make that happen. But then the reality set in.”

The commission was formed by the governor without government funding, Young said. He said the decision not to attend was not political.

“Again, we didn’t have any money to do anything related to it,” Young said, “and so we ultimately just said that we can’t do it, and we are moving on.”

Event expanded beyond initial plans

Less than a week before opening day, pavilions for the 56 states and territories were still being finished on the National Mall.

Local state commission members said Hawaii was invited by the president’s Freedom 250 commission, but the plan for states and territories grew from a few days to two weeks with 12-hour days.

Hawaii commission member Lynn Mariano tried to use his Washington, D.C., connections to build a volunteer group to staff the pavilion.

“We have different halau, you know, hula organizations, from all over the East Coast to come up and perform. But they could not do it,” Mariano said. “And when the event expanded from a one- to two-day event to two weeks, it was kind of a hard and challenging thing to do.”

Hawaii events planned on the islands

Instead, the Hawaii America 250 Commission has focused on events on every island, relying on volunteers and contributions.

The commission is mostly boosting existing events, including the Kailua Parade and Makawao rodeo.

The most ambitious plan is a day-long Fourth of July event at Kapiolani Park with entertainment, food and family activities, including live music and fireworks offshore Waikiki.

Organizer Mela Kealoha-Lindsey said organizers are sensitive to people who would rather celebrate Hawaiian independence.

“We cannot go back into the monarchy regime at all,” Kealoha-Lindsey said. “But I believe if we can protect our Hawaiian culture, that is a big plus.”

Arthur Tulak said the final rundown of events will depend on donations and volunteer turnout.

“I’ll just reinforce that we don’t have all the funds that we need to carry out the plan that we have,” Tulak said.

Instructions for how to donate or volunteer is on the Hawaii America 250 Commission website.

A handful of other states also declined to attend the Great American State Fair. Some nonofficial representatives will take those spaces, but there has been no word on whether that might happen for Hawaii’s stall.

People who want to visit Washington, D.C., and attend the Great American State Fair must sign up for tickets.