{"id":1315,"date":"2026-06-13T12:04:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T12:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=1315"},"modified":"2026-06-13T12:04:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T12:04:32","slug":"a-champion-of-tradition-legacy-of-barbara-nobriga-remembered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=1315","title":{"rendered":"\u2018A champion of tradition\u2019: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered"},"content":{"rendered":"
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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.<\/p>\n

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Barbara Ann Kamilipua Nobriga was an icon in the p\u0101\u02bb\u016b community. She was a lifelong paniolo, a staunch advocate for Hawaiian tradition, and an invaluable connection to the past.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was fiercely loyal and she loved tradition,\u201d Manu Powers said.<\/p>\n

Powers, a regent for the Daughters of Hawaii, took over as parade chairperson for Kona\u02bbs King Kamehameha Day Celebration from Aunty Barbara, who led it for over 50 years.<\/p>\n

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Nobriga died in April at the age of 88.<\/p>\n

A Hawaii Island native, Aunty Barbara came from a long line of paniolos who dedicated their lives to ranching on Hawaii Island.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy family\u2019s been ranching here since the mid 1850s. This land, a lot of it, was granted to them from Kamehameha IV. So I\u2019m the fourth generation,\u201d Nobriga said in a documentary previously produced about the art of p\u0101\u02bb\u016b.<\/p>\n

Ensuring traditional p\u0101\u02bb\u016b and paniolo practices survived into the next generation was a life mission of hers.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe 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,\u201d Powers said.<\/p>\n

When she led the parade, she ran a tight show with high expectations.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know how many people want to ride p\u0101\u02bb\u016b, haven\u2019t got a clue which end of the horse is which. Then they get out there and get into trouble,\u201d Nobriga said in the documentary. \u201cWhen I look for riders, I look for people who have a handle on the horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also recalls moments from past parades where mishaps happened, but they quickly continued, saying \u201cthe show must go on.\u201d<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s also been said that no one wraps 12 yards of fabric into a p\u0101\u02bb\u016b like Aunty Barbara.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe 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\u2019ll tell you what, my p\u0101\u02bb\u016b did not fall off that day in that parade,\u201d Powers said.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

In 2003, she became one of the few women inducted into the Paniolo Hall of Fame, like her mother, Kapua Heuer. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

While she lived a life filled with accolades, at her core was a simple connection to her land, culture, and traditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll meet a lot of people who say, \u2018Oh, Aunty Barbara was tough, or Aunty Barbara was kind of scary.\u2019 And my heart really aches for those people, because they really missed out on something special,\u201d Powers said, noting she also had a great sense of humor.<\/p>\n

Aunty Barbara also learned life lessons through her craft.<\/p>\n

\u201cP\u0101\u02bb\u016b has taught me discipline. Be patient. Accept the mistakes when they come. Fix \u2018em,\u201d she previously said.<\/p>\n

If you want to witness the perpetuation of p\u0101\u02bb\u016b on O\u02bbahu, the Kamehameha Day Parade is happening Saturday. It starts at \u02bbIolani Palace at 9 a.m., goes along Ala Moana Boulevard into Waikiki, and culminates at Kapi\u02bbolani Park.<\/p>\n

Read more Hawaii Supreme Court to hear case regarding Honolulu Zoo elephants<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

She was a respected figure in Hawaii’s p\u0101\u02bb\u016b and paniolo communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018A champion of tradition\u2019: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered - Hawaii Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=1315\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018A champion of tradition\u2019: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered - Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"She was a respected figure in Hawaii's p\u0101\u02bb\u016b and paniolo communities.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=1315\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hawaii Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-13T12:04:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/590d72f16cb0f571fd45812a3c7ea1d0\"},\"headline\":\"\u2018A champion of tradition\u2019: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-13T12:04:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315\"},\"wordCount\":595,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/fbd7509c39a49b541516a2cf3d4b7be3.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\\\/?p=1315\",\"name\":\"\u2018A champion of tradition\u2019: Legacy of Barbara Nobriga remembered - 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