This Monday, many will honor our military members who died while serving in the armed forces during Memorial Day. Lantern Floating Hawaii will also give many local families a chance to honor their loved ones lost.
It hits close to home for Oahu resident Valerie Mar, who recently lost her mother, Ethel Hanzawa, who played a foundational role in the ceremony in a variety of ways.
Ethel Hanzawa joined Shinnyo-en in 1975, soon after the temple opened in Hawaii. She was thought of as kind, an avid crafter, and a traveler. Hanzawa was a coordinator of one of the earlier lantern floating ceremonies, when it was a small affair held at Keehi Lagoon…