The Living Treasures of Hawaii program was created in 1976 by the Buddhist temple

Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii The Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii (, ''Honpa Honganji Hawai Betsuin'') is a district of the Nishi (West) Hongwanji branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, a school of Mahayana Pure Land Buddhism. History Jodo Shinshu Buddhism was established in H ...

to honor residents of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. It was inspired by the

Living National Treasures of Japan is a Japanese popular term for those individuals certified as by the MEXT, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology as based on Japan's . The term "Living National Treasure" is not formally mentioned in the law, but is an in ...

award, and is awarded annually. The criteria for selection are, "First, the designee must demonstrate continuous growth in his or her field; second, the potential Living Treasure must have made significant contributions toward a more humane and fraternal society (and this perhaps is the most important criteria); and finally, he or she must have shown an on-going striving for excellence and a high level of accomplishment." Honorees are nominated by members of the general public by August 1 of each year, and chosen by a committee designated by the temple. These are the people who have been so honored.

1970s

1976

* Charles Kenn

1977

1978

Theodore Kelsey Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory, Australia * Theodore, Queensland, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore Reservoir, in Saskatchewan People * Theodore (give ...

1979

1980s

1980

1981

* Solomon Kekipi Bright Sr. * Oswald Bushnell *

Leo Ohai Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually masc ...

* Leon J. Edel * William H. Meinecke *

Isamu Noguchi was an American artist, furniture designer and Landscape architecture, landscape architect whose career spanned six decades from the 1920s. Known for his sculpture and public artworks, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Grah ...

* Juliet Rice Wichman

1982

Juliette May Fraser Juliette May Fraser (January 27, 1887 – July 31, 1983) was an American painter, muralist and printmaker. She was born in Honolulu, which was then the capital city of the Kingdom of Hawaii. After graduating from Wellesley College with a de ...

* Annie Lehua Asam Kanahele * Richard Lyman Jr. *

Silver Kiniohi Piliwale Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

* James Ka'upena Wong Jr.

1983

* Homer Ahu'ula Hayes *

Rubellite Kawena Kinney Johnson Rubellite "Ruby" Kawena Kinney Johnson is a Historian of Hawaii. Life Her father was Ernest Kaipoleimanu Kinney (1906–1987) and mother was Esther Kauikeaulani Kaulili (1913–1979). Her maternal grandparents were Solomon Kamaha Kaulili and Kawen ...

* Zaneta Ho'oululahui Cambra Richards * Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona * Emily Kau'i Zuttermeister

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990s

1990

Richard Kekuni Blaisdell Richard Kekuni Akana Blaisdell (March 11, 1925 – February 12, 2016), was an American Hawaiian professor emeritus of medicine at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in Honolulu, and a longtime organizer in the Hawaiian Sovereignty Movement. Bla ...

Edmond Lee Browning Edmond Lee Browning (March 11, 1929 – July 11, 2016) was an American bishop. He was the 24th presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Education, ordination, early ministry Browning received his se ...

* Frances Patches McKinnon Damon Holt *

Kyo Kawabata Kyo or KYO can refer to: People *, Japanese actress *, Japanese actor *, Japanese former professional boxer *, Japanese kickboxer *, Japanese educator and politician *, Japanese-American poet *, Japanese rugby union player *Kyo Maclear, Canadian ...

1991

1992

* Helen Hoakalei Kamau'u * David Nu'uhiwa Enoka Kaohelauli'i * Marie Emilia Leilehua McDonald * Harry Seisho Nakasone * Matsuno Yasui

1993

1994

1995

Don Ho Donald Tai Loy Ho (; August 13, 1930 – April 14, 2007) was a Hawaiian traditional pop musician, singer, and entertainer. He is best known for the song "Tiny Bubbles" from the 1966 album of the same name. Early life, family and education Ho ...

Sally Fletcher Murchison Sally Fletcher–Murchison (born 1933) is an American ceramic artist and teacher. Early life and education She was born in 1933, in Sacramento, California, where she grew up. She received a Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) degree in advertisi ...

* Leone Kamana Okamura

1996

* Wallace F. Froiseth *

Hiroki Morinoue Hiroki Morinoue (born 1947, ) is an American Hawaiian visual artist, of Japanese descent. His artwork fuses western Impressionism with modern Japanese design. Morinoue lives in Holualoa, on the Big Island of Hawaii. Early life and education Morin ...

Shinichi Suzuki was a Japanese violinist, philosopher, composer, and educator and the founder of the international Suzuki method of music education and developed a philosophy for educating people of all ages and abilities. An influential pedagogue in music ed ...

1997

1998

1999

2000s

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010s

2010

* S. Stanley Okamoto * Elizabeth Kawohiokalani Ellis Jenkins * Paul Weissich * Rev. Toshihide Numata *

Patti Lyons Patti Catalano Dillon (née Lyons, April 6, 1953) is a former long-distance runner from the United States who is recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations as having set world bests in the half marathon, 30 kilometers, and ...

2011

* Josephine Kaukali Fergerstrom * Dr. Claire Ku’uleilani Hughes * Masaru Oshiro * Dr. Jack H. Scaff Jr., * Dr. Livingston M.F. Wong, MD, FACS

2012

* Barbara Kawakami * Ben Finney * Goro Arakawa * Gordon Mark * Lynette Paglinawan

2013

2014

* Ida Keliʻiokalani Chun * Samuel ʻOhukaniʻohiʻa Gon III * Robert Mitsuru Hamada * Arthur and Rene Kimura * Chikai Yosemori

2015

2016

* Paul Leland Breese * Sooriya Kumar * Puakea M. Nogelmeier * Dennis Masaaki Ogawa * Lillian Noda Yajima

2017

* Ryokan Ara * Beatrice Kanahele Dawson * Nobuko Kida * Roy Sakuma * George Yokoyama

2018

2019

2020s

2020

2021

Not awarded in 2021, during

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

2022

2023

2024

{{Columns-list, colwidth=20em, * Davianna Pomaikai McGregor{{Cite news , date=February 5, 2024 , title=Living Treasures luncheon to fete Hawaii residents , url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/honolulu-star-advertiser-living-treasure/170551676/ , access-date=2025-04-18 , work=

Honolulu Star-Advertiser The ''Honolulu Star-Advertiser'' is the largest daily newspaper in Hawaii, formed in 2010 with the merger of '' The Honolulu Advertiser'' and the '' Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' after the acquisition of the former by Black Press, which already owned ...

, pages=A8 , via=

Newspapers.com Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. It is owned by The ...

* Douglas D.L. Chong * Sarah Ilialoha Ayat Keahi * Julian Keikilani Ako * Ricardo D. Trimillos

References

Lists of people from Hawaii People from Hawaii Orders, decorations, and medals of Hawaii 1976 establishments in Hawaii Awards established in 1976