Kāneʻohe resident Zoe Green remembers the joy the iconic manapua man brought to neighborhoods, selling local comfort food like pork hash and noodles.
Much like an ice cream truck, the manapua man would roam throughout neighborhoods and was the epitome of street food.
"It was just very nostalgic and a big relief to my generation and those with children because it's timeless," she said.
Green said the manapua man, or even an ice cream truck, became a rare sighting. Instead, she was motivated by Hawai‘i's history of the manapua man to create homemade ice cream to deliver throughout her neighborhood.
All she needed was a bike, a cooler chest full of ice cream and other frozen treats, and a generator.
Green is now one of five finalists for the Good Humor Grant Program, an initiative that seeks to keep ice cream vendors on the road. The grand prize is $25,000.
"It still feels surreal that we made it this far," she said.
Good Humor is an ice cream brand that has been selling frozen treats for almost a century. Green's favorite ice cream bar, which she sells in her own cart, is the Good Humor strawberry shortcake ice cream bar.
"There's just nothing like it," she said. "It's like cereal and ice cream put together."
Green also sells other brands such as Nestle and Popsicle. But she also gives out local favorites like ice cakes with li hing mui powder and seeds.
Green is a teacher at King Intermediate School, with a background in pharmacy.
"In some way, shape, or form, I was brought to teaching, and the ice cream vending just happened organically," she said. "In Hawai'i, it's summer all year long here. So there's no real good or bad season for ice cream."
Voting for the Good Humor Grant finalists ends on April 14. To vote, click here.
