‘A champion of tradition’: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered

News admin June 13, 2026 0 Comments

‘A champion of tradition’: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – With final preparations underway for the King Kamehameha Day Celebration on Oahu this weekend, the life of a beloved parade leader on Hawaii Island is being remembered.

Barbara Ann Kamilipua Nobriga was an icon in the pāʻū community. She was a lifelong paniolo, a staunch advocate for Hawaiian tradition, and an invaluable connection to the past.

“She was fiercely loyal and she loved tradition,” Manu Powers said.

Powers, a regent for the Daughters of Hawaii, took over as parade chairperson for Konaʻs King Kamehameha Day Celebration from Aunty Barbara, who led it for over 50 years.

Nobriga died in April at the age of 88.

A Hawaii Island native, Aunty Barbara came from a long line of paniolos who dedicated their lives to ranching on Hawaii Island.

“My family’s been ranching here since the mid 1850s. This land, a lot of it, was granted to them from Kamehameha IV. So I’m the fourth generation,” Nobriga said in a documentary previously produced about the art of pāʻū.

Ensuring traditional pāʻū and paniolo practices survived into the next generation was a life mission of hers.

“She was a champion of tradition. So she was insistent upon the fact that we only incorporate native flowers, native pua, into our process and into our lei,” Powers said.

When she led the parade, she ran a tight show with high expectations.

“You know how many people want to ride pāʻū, haven’t got a clue which end of the horse is which. Then they get out there and get into trouble,” Nobriga said in the documentary. “When I look for riders, I look for people who have a handle on the horse.”

She also recalls moments from past parades where mishaps happened, but they quickly continued, saying “the show must go on.”

It’s also been said that no one wraps 12 yards of fabric into a pāʻū like Aunty Barbara.

“She wrapped me so tight I had a broken rib for a couple of months because there was a kukui nut digging into my rib. But I’ll tell you what, my pāʻū did not fall off that day in that parade,” Powers said.

Nobriga stayed very active throughout her life with volunteerism, working with a 4H club, Kona Historical Society, and Daughters of Hawaii. She even won a volunteer award in 1991.

In 2003, she became one of the few women inducted into the Paniolo Hall of Fame, like her mother, Kapua Heuer.

While she lived a life filled with accolades, at her core was a simple connection to her land, culture, and traditions.

“You’ll meet a lot of people who say, ‘Oh, Aunty Barbara was tough, or Aunty Barbara was kind of scary.’ And my heart really aches for those people, because they really missed out on something special,” Powers said, noting she also had a great sense of humor.

Aunty Barbara also learned life lessons through her craft.

“Pāʻū has taught me discipline. Be patient. Accept the mistakes when they come. Fix ‘em,” she previously said.

If you want to witness the perpetuation of pāʻū on Oʻahu, the Kamehameha Day Parade is happening Saturday. It starts at ʻIolani Palace at 9 a.m., goes along Ala Moana Boulevard into Waikiki, and culminates at Kapiʻolani Park.