Strategy Management Analyst
Office of Strategy Management
12 years at OHA

What is your kuleana at OHA?

As a strategy management analyst, I assess the conditions of Native Hawaiians though evaluation of programs to assist in aligning OHA activities to OHA strategy.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

As a Native Hawaiian, I wanted to assist in helping other Native Hawaiians to flourish.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

Working with amazing people.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I earned a scholarship to play softball at the University of Hawaiʻi, Mānoa, and I was able to purchase my first apartment, by myself, at the age of 28.

Who has been your role model?

My father has always been my role model.

What is your best OHA memory?

Being able to travel to Molokaʻi to assist with a community event.

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Board of Trustees
10 years at OHA

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I serve the lāhui behind the scenes. Some of my kuleana at work includes scheduling and coordinating regular Board of Trustee meetings and meetings with our community. I record meetings and take minutes. I like to tell myself that these small acts of kuleana are helping to preserve history and can be used as a reference point in the future.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

I started my adventure with OHA when Trustee Hulu Lindsey offered me an opportunity to join her staff. It was soon after that I realized the magnitude of kuleana OHA has for its beneficiaries. I am thankful to have the opportunity to have resources available to share with others and humbled to serve our lāhui.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

The best thing about working at OHA has definitely been the people I have worked with and met in our community. They are the individuals who advocate and champion for our lāhui daily.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

Something interesting that people may not know about me is that I have traveled to over 33 countries and have volunteered to work on flights that assisted refugees out of Lebanon.

Another thing is that I hope to one day complete my college degree in public administration.

Who has been your role model?

My parents are my role models. Throughout my life they have exemplified that working hard is the only option, taking care of your kuleana is expected, and following through on your word is one of the most important qualities to have. I am thankful for the home they provided for me that was always filled with love.

What is your best OHA memory?

Too many memories to mention but just a few that stand out are the funny skits that our different paia (departments) would perform during our holiday gatherings, our rallies at the capitol, and the Board staff serenading our offices on May Day.

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Operations Support Coordinator

Operations Department
5 months at OHA

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I serve our lāhui by providing administrative support to the executive office (the CEO, COO and other leaders) as well as to all other OHA staff. I am part of an amazing team that provides a wide range of support services. I process payments, assist in coordinating and setting up for events, help with staff travel arrangements and much more. Being able to provide these services within OHA helps our staff better serve our Native Hawaiian community.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

I felt this was my calling. Volunteering in my Native Hawaiian community in Waimānalo for over 10 years, I have always wanted to serve more Native Hawaiian communities. Working at OHA gives me an opportunity to do just that.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

The best thing is the people that I get to work with. Being able to share a common interest, mission and vision to align with is just an amazing feeling. Being able to learn about all the benefits that OHA provides to our people is unbelievable.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I was adopted by my grandmother. My mother and father were very young when they had me and chose different paths in life that did not include me or any of my siblings. I was put into the CPS system because of those choices. Growing up with no parent figures was rough. Overcoming that feeling, and becoming the parent that I am today, is everything to me.

Another thing is that I hope to one day complete my college degree in public administration.

Who has been your role model?

My grandmother, my mama, Moana Akana, is my role model. She was an educated Native Hawaiian woman who taught me values and unconditional love. She is the reason why I fell in love with serving my Native Hawaiian community in Waimānalo. She taught me to be a leader and to serve with a purpose.

What is your best OHA memory?

My most memorable moment so far was posing for the cover of Ka Wai Ola newspaper. My expression was very serious and that made it memorable for me. I am very new to OHA, so to be a part of this was an honor.

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Community Engagement
9 years at OHA (Includes 4 years as a student worker)

What is your kuleana at OHA?

My kuleana to our lāhui is public policy through community engagement. As a public policy advocate, I advocate for Native Hawaiians through coordination and partnerships with community stakeholders. I assist in monitoring Hawaiʻi County and state governmental processes to ensure accountability and collaboration for the lāhui.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

The work aligns with my values of social justice and desire to empower our community.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

Serving and learning from my community and co-workers in all capacities. OHA has brought me many opportunities and experiences that helped me to grow and learn as a kanaka and in my profession.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I was a teen mom. It was the hardest decision and my proudest accomplishment. I know what it is to struggle and rise through adversity. Anything is possible with the love and support of your family and community. Always believe in yourself.

Who has been your role model?

My Grandmother, Judith Puluole (Byous), for her strength and unconditional love for her family. All my kūpuna and ancestors who laid the foundation for me and for the generations to come.

What is your best OHA memory?

There are many, but the funniest was doing an Escape Room game with my co-workers. It was fun, challenging, and exhilarating. Everyone had to work together under pressure. We got to see everyone’s personality shine. Lol. The most memorable are all the huakaʻi with my co-workers to different places and communities to learn and build pilina between us, the community, and the ʻāina.

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Multimedia Designer (Communications)

5 years at OHA

What is your kuleana at OHA?

My kuleana is mostly storytelling on behalf of OHA and the lāhui through video and photography. It is such an honor to be in a place where I can go out into the community, capture people’s stories, and then share them with OHA’s large audience on social media, at events, and even on TV. Our videos have been viewed millions of times on social media alone. Our goal is to inform and inspire the lāhui and to mahalo those who are doing amazing work in communities across the pae ‘āina.

Why did you choose to work for OHA?

I have always loved videography – ever since I was a kid. Combining my passion for creating videos with advocating for Native Hawaiians is like two lifelong dreams coming together.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

For me, it’s going out and capturing the stories about what is happening in the lāhui. Some of those stories are, of course, tragic and sad. But many are uplifting and inspiring! Seeing how OHA’s work really does help is also rewarding. I’ve had interviewees cry on camera thanking OHA for its kōkua. I’ve also seen our storytelling efforts help make real change in the community – even at the legislature.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I lived on the continent until I was 15, but I have always been drawn to the plight of Indigenous peoples. I remember being in the fourth grade and quietly crying into my textbook after seeing a painting of the “Trail of Tears.” Learning about the cruelty imposed on Indigenous people by the government had a profound impact on me.

When I moved to Hawaiʻi in 1992, I saw the struggle front and center. Just a few months after moving, I witnessed the march by Kānaka Maoli to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

In my work for OHA I am now in a position similar to that of the painter who depicted the Trail of Tears so horrifically in my textbook. That painting changed me. It opened my eyes. I hope my work will help to do the same for others.

Who has been your role model?

The many videographers and photographers who tell Native Hawaiian stories. In particular, Puhipau and Joan Lander of Nā Maka o Ka ʻĀina, Naʻalehu Anthony, ʻĀina Paikai, Keliʻi Grace, and the rest of the local filmmaking hui. In the area of photography, I admire the work of Ed Greevy and Kai Markell. I also love non-Native Hawaiian films and storytelling – in particular, the great pieces produced by Disney/Pixar and Universal, as well as foreign place-based stories like City of God and Once Were Warriors.

What is your best OHA memory?

There are a few that come to mind. Working on the Mana i Mauli Ola film with our small crew that included Mākaha Filmmaker Pākē Salmon. That film has won numerous awards. Another is the Jam4MaunaKea Worldwide Sing-Along video that I worked on with Mana Maoli. Another powerful memory was going with Kumu Hina into Hālawa Prison to document her work. This was in 2019 when she was working at OHA and providing educational classes at the prison to help Native Hawaiian paʻahao reconnect to their culture.

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From: Kalamaʻula (ahupuaʻa), Kona (moku), Molokaʻi (mokupuni)

Education:

• Roosevelt High School
• Maui Community College – Molokaʻi

What is your kuleana at OHA?

My kuleana is to serve our lāhui spiritually and culturally, and to uplift our Native Hawaiian people in any way possible, from directing them to OHA’s services to building partnerships with other agencies and outside resources. The struggle is real for our people, and we have to be their voice. When someone has walked two miles from town to apply for emergency financial help with no slippers on their feet, my job is to first give them a pair of slippers…and then help them get the services they need. Sometimes, people come in with homestead issues, needing kūpuna services, or just wanting to talk story about their struggles and I connect them to the correct resources. I mean business when it comes to our people. I am humbled and blessed that God’s plan was for me to be here. I am honored to serve my community.

Why did you choose to work for OHA?

Before I joined OHA, I worked at Alu Like for 15 years. At Alu Like my service to our lāhui was limited and I always felt I belonged to something bigger. When Alu Like reduced my hours, an opening became available at the Molokaʻi OHA office. I took a chance and I am thankful that Kūhiō Lewis hired me. It felt like coming home, I am now able to help all Native Hawaiians seeking kōkua without limitation. This is my passion.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

The best thing about working for OHA are my co-workers. We have aloha for one another, and we always have each other’s backs. We have gone through trials together and celebrated victories together; that’s why we work well as a team.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I live on homestead land in Kalamaʻula, Molokaʻi. Kalamaʻula was the first Hawaiian homestead and my great-grandfather was awarded “Lot 6” – one of the first Hawaiians awarded land in the 1920s through a pilot project with DHHL. Fast forward to 1987: when we were awarded homestead land in 1987, in the newer, ma uka part of Kalamaʻula, I was also blessed to receive “Lot 6!” I also have 20 grandchildren, a dog named Coco, and I am about to become a great-grandmother.

Who has been your role model?

My tūtū, Hannah Kaʻapuni Pali-Pahupu Machado. She taught me unconditional love, that family is your everything, and to have compassion in spiritual work. My mother, Barbara J. Haliniak, taught me community service and to give from the heart.

What is your best OHA memory?

My best memory was when all OHA staff and their families were invited to spend the day together at Secret Beach at Kualoa. It was a time of rejuvenation after months of hard work. It was awesome. I even tried to get Chair Machado to paddleboard that day, but to no avail – she kept falling off – that was a “kodak moment!”

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Beneficiary Service Agent
Hui Huliāmahi (Beneficiary Services)
25 years at OHA

From: Haʻikū and Kīpū (ahupuaʻa), Puna (moku), Kauaʻi (mokupuni)
Education:

• Kauaʻi High School
• Kauaʻi Community College

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I am currently a Beneficiary Services Agent. I serve as a liaison/conduit for my community to the services and programs that OHA provides – like the Hawaiian Registry Program, Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund and our Grants Program – as well as with other resources in our community that can help our beneficiaries in their particular situations. I also help OHA to connect with Kauaʻi community issues.

Why did you choose to work for OHA?

I came to OHA at the request of Carmen “Boots” Panui who needed help in the Kauaʻi office as a temp-hire and that turned into a full-time position.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

The fun people I work with, of course! I enjoy learning from them.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I have worked with every OHA Kauaʻi community liaison (although that title has changed throughout the years) and I have worked with every OHA Kauaʻi/Niʻihau trustee since the organization was formed.

Who has been your role model?

There are many: Carmen Panui, the Kauaʻi community liaisons Iʻve worked with over the years, the OHA trustees representing Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, and all the kūpuna who have poured into me their ʻike, moʻolelo and passion. Iʻve been paying it forward ever since.

What is your best OHA memory?

I had been with OHA for some time and at a community meeting I was attending I realized that the meeting facilitator looked so familiar. During the first break, I went over to introduce myself – only to realize that it was the former OHA administrator who actually hired me! We have laughed about that ever since – and now I never forget her face!

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Beneficiary Service Agent
Hui Huliamahi (Beneficiary Services)
25 years at OHA

From:
Waiheʻe (ahupuaʻa), Wailuku (moku), Maui (mokupuni)
Education:

• Baldwin High School
• Kapiʻolani Community College
• Maui Community College (Associate of Arts degree)

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I am the first line of contact for inquiries about OHA, whether in-person at our Maui office or on the phone. I listen to requests, answer questions and determine appropriate referrals. In my position, I know a little bit about all of OHA’s programs so I can share that information with our beneficiaries, kōkua them through the process, and connect them to the right people. Should they need assistance that is not currently offered by OHA, I direct callers to other “sister” agencies that may be able to kōkua.

Why did you choose to work for OHA?

I was in the process of looking for a job. I didn’t know anything about OHA until I met Thelma Shimaoka through church. At the time, Thelma was the community resource liaison at Maui’s OHA office, and she suggested that I apply. And the rest, as they say, is history.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

I’ve been blessed to meet and rub elbows with such wonderful and valued co-workers in the office. I’ve been doubly blessed to have met and been in the company of extraordinary, truly caring, full of aloha persons in our Maui community. I’ve been exposed to sister agencies and organizations and services that I knew nothing about.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I am the Kahu Kīhāpai of Maluhia Church in Lower Waiʻehu and at Pāʻia Hawaiian Protestant Church in Pāʻia Town.

Who has been your role model?

Thelma Shimaoka. She took me under her wing and mentored me. I am eternally grateful!

What is your best OHA memory?

The privilege of singing Iesū No Ke Kahuhipa at the Trustees’ Investiture at Washington Place. Washington Place was on my bucket list of places to visit. To be in the personal space of our Queen was amazing!

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Loan Processor
OHA Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund
14 years at OHA

From: Lāʻie (ahupuaʻa), Koʻolauloa (moku), Oʻahu (mokupuni)

Education:

• Kahuku High School
• BYU-Hawaiʻi (B.S. Information Technology)

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I review incoming loan applications and help beneficiaries start the loan application process. I also share information about OHA’s loan fund program with our lāhui at community events (this was paused during the pandemic), and respond to inquiries about OHA’s various loan products. In terms of current projects, I am involved in seeking and developing innovative ways to improve our loan fund program and operations.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

I wanted to work for an organization that makes a big difference in the community. OHA supports our Native Hawaiian community with support and services.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

I enjoy the daily interaction with our lāhui and I get really excited when a beneficiary’s loan application is approved.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

I was raised to put the needs of our ʻohana and my community first – this is my priority – a value passed down to me by my parents. I also enjoy Hawaiian music and my all-time favorite group is the Mākaha Sons of Niʻihau.

Who has been your role model?

My parents were my role models. They taught me, through their daily examples, the many ways to show aloha.

What is your best OHA memory?

I really enjoy it when the entire OHA ʻohana comes together for all-day work activities that build pilina and increase our understanding of moʻomeheu and ʻāina.

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IT Solution Delivery Technician
Information Technology
10 years at OHA

From: Kailua (ahupuaʻa), Koʻolaupoko (moku), Oʻahu (mokupuni)
Education:

• Kalaheo High School
• Windward Community College (AA Hawaiian studies focus)
• UH West Oʻahu (currently pursuing a degree in public administration)

What is your kuleana at OHA?

I started at OHA in reception, but four years ago moved to IT where I am a solution delivery technician. I review work tickets created by our internal customers (OHA staff members) who require IT assistance, determine the issues reported as well as other user requests, and then relay that information to our IT engineers. I also assist with the department’s budget, keep a repository of licenses and software for the entire organization, and assist with computer equipment deployment.

Why did you choose to work at OHA?

One day I had to pick up supplies from OHA (I was helping with the “Kau Inoa” project) and when I entered OHA’s reception [the old office at 711 Kapiʻolani Blvd.] the vision of the reception area, for me, was amazing. I instantly fell in love with the agency. I knew OHA would be my next home.

What is the best thing about working at OHA?

Witnessing the help that OHA can provide is priceless. When I served as a receptionist, working face-to-face with our lāhui, I met people of all ages desperate for kōkua – and was able to help connect them to the right people and resources.

What is something interesting for people to know about you?

When my day job at OHA ends I work part-time as a cook, three nights a week. I also have my own cleaning business on weekends, and Iʻm attending college. This keeps me pretty busy.

Who has been your role model?

My Aunty Lovey and my husband, Kale, have always been my cheerleaders, for college and for my work at OHA. They are my role models.

What is your best OHA memory?

My fondest memories are of meeting different people wherever I go, especially at OHA. Before the pandemic, OHA had an annual costume contest, and twice a year there were all-staff participation work events at the various sites for which OHA has kuleana.

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