Despite volunteer shortages and the persistent pandemic, some bon dances drew crowds that matched pre-COVID-19 attendance numbers.
Short-handed staff had to increase their efficiency while food safety concerns led some organizers to resort to serving prepackaged food or hiring food trucks.
Despite complications, excitement from attendees who were finally able to participate in large, in-person events was apparent, some bon dance officials said.
“Just to have that bon dance again, a lot of people were appreciative,” said Mililani Hongwanji’s the Rev. David Fujimoto. “It sounded like a lot of people were happy to have some kind of normal activity again.”
The Mililani Hongwanji’s first in-person bon dance since the pandemic was held in late August, after holding a virtual event in 2020 and a drive-thru bento pickup in 2021.
Fujimoto said the excitement of resuming in-person bon dances may have contributed to attendance possibly surpassing pre- pandemic numbers. “A lot of people attended,” Fujimoto said. “You could tell a lot of people were excited for it.”
In order to minimize food prep done by volunteers, organizers opted to hire food trucks for both nights of its event. While this meant popular curry and chicken hekka dishes weren’t featured, the temple still upheld the classic tradition of selling fresh andagi, Fujimoto said.
Shingon Mission of Hawaii resorted to selling packaged foods, and like most bon dance organizers throughout the state there was a struggle to find volunteers, said Bishop Reyn Tsuru.
The lack of staff intensified the pressure to remain healthy prior to the event, and organizers were even on the verge of canceling it about a week prior to the scheduled date, Tsuru said.
“We thought, should we put everybody through that stress, where they know that they’re gonna help out at an event and they’re trying their best to stay careful and in a bubble until the event happens,” Tsuru said. “But as we got closer, the members of the temple expressed their feeling that this year, we should have the bon dance, and if people wanna show up, they’ll show up.”
Neither Tsuru nor Fujimoto has heard of outbreaks stemming from their respective bon dances. Social distancing guidelines were dropped by the CDC on Aug. 12, although mask- wearing was encouraged at both events.
Tsuru said as far as he could tell, some temples decided to continue postponing in-person bon dances this year.
For Palolo Hongwanji, the decision to postpone was made in December, said treasurer Verna Koyanagi.
Planning each bon dance usually takes a full year, Koyanagi said. Organizers decided that holding the in- person event was too risky — especially since many regular attendees are elderly, she said.
However, the in-person event will resume next year, Koyanagi said.
“I’m not a health care worker, but it seems like it would be safe,” she said. “We’ve got our fingers crossed. It’s a real big community event.”
Oahu’s next bon dance is scheduled to take place today at the Hawai‘i Convention Center from 5:30 to 9 p.m. The event will be hosted by the Hawaii United Okinawa Association, which also simultaneously hosts the 40th annual Okinawan Festival from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Like Mililani Hongwanji and Shingon Mission, this will be the association’s first in-person bon dance since the start of the pandemic.
Supply chain issues and volunteer shortages were the biggest challenges throughout the event-planning, said Lynn Miyahira, the advisor for the association. But aside from mask-wearing being strongly encouraged and the absence of canned coffee and huli huli chicken, she is confident that attendees will still be able to get an experience similar to that of pre-COVID-19 festivals.
Miyahira expects the attendance for the two-day festival to be similar to pre-pandemic attendance numbers — around 50,000 people.
For those who can’t attend this weekend’s event, Oahu’s final bon dance of the season will take place on Sept. 17 at the Hawaii Okinawa Center at 5 p.m., also hosted by the association.
“There’s a lot of things that COVID has made a little bit more difficult,” Miyahira said. “But it’s definitely a rebuilding year and we are excited to be back in person.”
