It is common knowledge that Aloha means “hello” in Hawaiian. While your knowledge of all-things Hawaiian may be limited, Creighton’s Hui O Hawaii brought the islands to the campus during the annual Hawaii club lu’au.
Held at the Kiewit Fitness Center, the theme of this year’s celebration was “Pride of Polynesia: The Voyage.” Tickets were $15 each and included a five course buffet meal and a hula show featuring members of the Hawaii club. To get everyone in the tropical mood, the basketball courts of the fitness center were transformed into an island paradise.
“We chose to use canoes for the centerpieces because the Polynesians traveled across the Pacific Ocean using canoes and stars to help them navigate,” Arts & Sciences sophomore and decorations chairperson Jessica Lozano said. “We also used flowers sent from Hawaii to decorate the stage.”
Altogether there were 807 people in attendance. 404 of them were Creighton students.
“Our priority audience are Creighton students, faculty and staff, but the public are always more than welcome to attend,” Arts & Sciences junior and Lu’au co-chair Xuchyll Roman said. “This year we had alumni who currently goes to graduate school in SLU and one from Guatemala who is in the Peace Corps fly up to join us.”
The most memorable part of the night was the delicious Hawaiian food. This year’s menu featured the cooking of world-renowned chef Roy Yamaguchi. His first restaurant “Roy’s” opened in 1988 in Hawaii Kai on the island of Oahu. He has also been seen as a contestant on Bravo Tv’s Top Chef Masters as well an Iron Chef America challenge winner.
Laid out on the tables to snack on were the appetizers “edamame” (seasoned soybeans) and “Li Hing pineapple” (pineapple cubes dusted with a unique Hawaiian seasoning). There were two salads to start the meal off with: a light and refreshing oriental salad and a Korean-Style salad of bean sprouts and spinach. The main entrees offered were Kalua pig, which is a slow smoked and shredded pork shoulder. Also on the menu was “Huli Huli Chicken,” a rotisserie chicken made Hawaiian style. The other entrees were a Hawaiian-style beef stew and fresh salmon filet baked with miso glaze. Side orders included steamed white rice and mashed Okinawa sweet potato with a baked marshmallow topping.
The food was prepared in Becker and Skutt Student Center from Tuesday to Saturday. While some of the food was purchased from Sodexo and donated by ConAgra, a few items like the Okinawan Sweet Potatoes were shipped all the way up from Hawaii.
At the end of the meal everyone couldn’t pass up the light and airy guava cupcakes topped with a fresh guava glaze as well as the layers of coconut custard (“haupia”) and chocolate pudding in a crumbled graham cracker crust. As everyone feasted on the delicious desserts, the hula performances began.
Featuring traditional dances like “Kahiko,” “Maori,” “Tahitian, “Samoan” and “Auana,” the girls of Hawaii club gracefully used the movement of their hands to describe stories from the island. The men of Hawaii Club also participated. For the “Haka,” an ancient New Zealand war chant, the shirtless men with their painted war faces got the crowd going as they shouted and stomped across the stage.
Between the performances, there were raffle prizes as well as a competitive pineapple eating contest for the kids to compete in. Audience members also had the chance to try their hand at being a hula dancer and learned from the Hawaii club dancers how to shake their hips.
Lu’au was not only a fun night of food and entertainment, but also a night of sharing the rich Hawaiian culture with the Midwest community. The annual event has become a prominent long-standing tradition here at Creighton. Without the support of the Omaha community sponsors and the Hawaii club members, the event would not have been possible.