"It's almost like a life-long journey"

“If you’ve made it to the Hilo, to Merrie Monarch, then you’re somebody,” said Kumu Hula Kamaile Hamada. “So, being invited to Merrie Monarch is an honor, as a hula dancer, as a kumu hula and also the first out of Washington state.” On Friday and Saturday, dancers with Ke'ala 'O Kamailelauli'ili'i halau will compete at the Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, Hawaii. "It's almost like a life-long journey, so it hasn't just been a year that we've been prepping," said Leilani Kaaiwela-Pedreira. "Some of us have been prepping our whole lives, so to say, for a moment like this." Full Story: https://bit.ly/2GyPkq6