Comment on Ho’lke and Hawaiian Festival connects families old and new

Esther Short Park was full of aloha on Saturday. And, as Auntie Ella Stewart will tell you, aloha doesn’t just mean hello and goodbye, but love, family, being thankful. “This festival makes me feel like I’m home again, and I’m thankful we can share the aloha with everybody,” said Stewart, who was showcasing a wide range of Hawaiian crafts at the Ho’lke and Hawaiian Festival in the park on Saturday. Stewart moved to Oregon in 1966 after meeting her husband, who was stationed at Pearl Harbor in the Navy.