Teacher to pay tribute to daughter in Kolea bird festival
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A 77-year-old Hawaii teacher is set to perform a touching tribute to her late daughter at the third annual Welcome Home Kōlea Bird Festival.
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Pat Brown, a Hawaii culture teacher at Royal School, wrote the song, “Kōlea Bird,” while processing the January 2022 death of her daughter.
“I was sitting with the ukulele, and I was looking at her picture, and it came to me that she was my kōlea bird and that she had had to fly away,” Brown said.
Brown resumed teaching seven months after her daughter’s death, following a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I just cried out. I said, I need a big purpose,” Brown said. “I can’t even really tell you the depth of the joy and the affection that these keiki give me.”
Brown brought “Kōlea Bird” to her young students, who eventually helped her develop the song and sing it in class.
Discovering the festival by chance
In 2025, Brown discovered the Welcome Home Kōlea Bird Festival by chance, when a newspaper fell open to an article about the Audubon Society, which was hosting the festival.
“I’m thinking if it’s a second, it must have been okay, because if it hadn’t been a success, they probably wouldn’t have a second,” Brown recalled.
She contacted Elena Arinaga, festival organizer, saying it was a sign she should perform her original “Kōlea Bird” song. Arinaga agreed, and she asked Brown to take the stage.
Brown performed her song alongside her neighbors Jordan Cripps, a guitarist, and his daughter Kalia, who played the violin. A young man from her church also joined in.
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The song was well-received and included a section for audience participation, said Brown.
“It’s an absolute honor and privilege,” said Brown about performing at the festival. “It coincides with everything that I love.”
The kōlea as metaphor
Brown described the kōlea as a metaphor for perseverance because it flies nonstop between the Hawaiian Islands despite fast winds.
“The kōlea starts on the top of the world and flies nonstop to these little islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean,” Brown said. “They don’t eat. They just get battered by the winds. But they persevere. They don’t stop.”
While writing the song, Brown said she felt her daughter was speaking to her.
“It was like she was looking at me saying, ‘Don’t give up, Mom. Don’t give up. Persevere,” she said.
Brown said a first-grade student added the song’s closing line. After the song ended during one class session, the boy raised his arms and shouted, “Keep flying.” Brown said she kept it.
About the festival
The Welcome Home Kōlea Festival is organized by the Hawaii Audubon Society and is set for Saturday, Sept. 19, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ala Moana Beach Park Picnic Site 31.
In addition to Brown’s performance, the event will feature partner booths, kōlea arts and crafts, and Kōlea Sparkling Hop Water giveaways.
The Audubon Society is also accepting kōlea art submissions to be displayed during the festival until Sept. 10. Entries can be emailed to [email protected].
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More information is available at hiaudubon.org/events/welcome-home-kolea-2026.
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