WASHINGTON — For perhaps the last time, Hawaiians joined friends and family members Sunday in the U.S. Capitol's Statuary Hall to celebrate the birthday of King Kamehameha, praising him as the unifier of the Hawaiian people.

Many of the event's organizers said they hope the 12-foot, 12,000-pound statue will be moved during the summer from the hall to a more spacious and prominent location in the new Capitol Visitor Center. The statue is in its current location because other sites in the Capitol building cannot support its weight.

The theme of Sunday's celebration was E Ho'okanaka Ke Pa Mai Kamakani Kuakino, which means, "Stand courageously even as the winds of transformation blow."

The theme "foretells the changes to come," Sarah Ulis, president of the Hawaii State Society, told the crowd of about 300. "It is our hope that later this year, Kamehameha will make his way to the Capitol Visitor Center."

Kamehameha is known as a warrior-king who, by 1810, had unified the warring Hawaiian islands under his rule.

Final approval for a plan to move the statue and other state-sponsored statues from the Capitol to the center is expected soon. The center is scheduled to open in November.

"The ceremony next year will be magnificent because you will be able to see the statue and there will be plenty of room," said Terri Rouse, executive director of the visitor center.

Sunday's two-and-a-half hour observance of Kamehameha's June 11 birthday - the event is celebrated on that date but the king's true birthday isn't known - began with the draping of leis on the black and gold statue and included traditional hula and Hawaiian chants and songs.

Speakers noted how the "winds of transformation" are blowing today.

"Kamehameha united what was separated," Sen. Dan Akaka, D-Hawaii, said. "By bringing governance to his people, he transformed a fledging nation into a unified society."

Akaka, sponsor of a bill to create a process for Native Hawaiians to gain federal recognition, said Kamehameha recognized that some changes confronting Hawaii could not be reversed and sought to make things right "by building new upon the foundations of the old."

"Like Kamehameha, let us prepare to embrace challenges as opportunities to excel in the face of adversity," Akaka said.

Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, said the nation is on the verge of transformation as Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and a native of Hawaii, campaigns with a message of unity through diversity.

"We're on the verge of a true son of this diversity, the legacy of aloha, assuming the presidency," said Abercrombie, a staunch Obama supporter. "The message that is coming from Hawaii to the world is of diversity and unity. It could not be more appropriate."

Rep. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, said the nation is undergoing "an historic presidential election and challenging times."

"These are times that have pressed our challengers for high office to acknowledge that when they have finished competing against one another, they must come together and unite for the common good," she said.

Hirono said that was the message Saturday when Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York stood "courageously amidst the winds of transformation" and called for unity while conceding the presidential primary campaign to Obama.

"Setting aside any partisanship, we all acknowledge her historic campaign," Hirono said.

Haunani Apoliona, chairwoman of the board of trustees of the state Office of Hawaiian Affairs, said the statue of Kamehameha, placed in the Capitol in 1969, has remained "a silent but assertive presence" for Hawaii, educating people about Hawaii's unique history as a sovereign nation, governed by indigenous native leaders, that is also the 50th state.

"Today's simple collective act of lei-draping in respect and tribute to our Kamehameha ... serves to renew the spirit and vision of indigenous Hawaiian leaders," Apoliona said.

Contact Dennis Camire at dcamire@gns.gannett.com