During this season of giving, we take time to offer grateful acknowledgement of the oldest women’s service organization in Hawai‘i, ‘Ahahui Kaʻahumanu. Its founding in 1864 was motivated by the social concerns of Victoria Kamāmalu (1838-1866), Lydia Kamaka‘eha Dominis (1838-1917; later Queen Lili‘uokalani in 1891), and Bernice Pauahi Paki (1831-1884), who were worried about the poor health and grim social conditions facing native Hawaiians at the time. They believed an organization for Hawaiian women was needed to address these social issues and created ‘Ahahui Kaʻahumanu, or the Kaʻahumanu Society, named after Queen Kaʻahumanu (1768-1832) in honor of her work championing the rights of Hawaiian women.
Maui resident Sarah Shim, recently initiated into the ‘Ahahui Kaʻahumanu Wailuku Chapter IV, explained, “We honor and uphold the Queen’s legacy. The organization’s original mission was nursing the sick and the elderly, aiding in proper burial for the deceased, and fundraising for charitable causes. Giving back and being a blessing to others is still the vision of our ‘Ahahui.”
The original group disbanded after Princess Victoria’s death in 1866, but in 1905, under the leadership of Lucy Kaheiheimālie Kaopaulu Peabody, the group was rechartered. Today, ‘Ahahui Kaʻahumanu thrives with nine chapters throughout the islands and enjoys a growing membership. Women of the society are easily recognizable at community events thanks to their black muʻumuʻu dresses, yellow lei hulu, and black gloves and hat, all symbolizing Queen Kaʻahumanu.
Member Leihuanani Bissen explained, “Our ‘Ahahui provides official representation at royal Ali‘i events and church functions, promotes the language and culture of the Hawaiian people, and supports the elderly through contributions to Lunalilo Home. We also provide involvement in adult and youth educational programs and encourage education that focuses on the health and well-being of our members and the community.”
Shim concluded, “It’s a great honor to be invited into this Society. Paying tribute to Queen Ka‘ahumanu, I hope to do service to benefit all aspects of life in the community. The Queen was a woman ahead of her time. She changed the social and political life of Hawai‘i and has inspired me to focus on what I want to do with the rest of my life.”
Caring for others is a blessing for us as well.
Sarah Shim, Wailuku Member, ‘Ahahui Ka’ahumanu Royal Society
Happy Thanksgiving from Maui Economic Development Board – we are grateful for the strength, resilience, and spirit of our community, and we wish you and your ‘ohana a safe and joyful holiday season!
As the gift-giving season begins, Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) encourages the community to participate in Small Business Saturday (SBS), a nationwide initiative that aims to support small local businesses. Also called the “Shop Small” movement, it was founded by American Express in 2010 to promote small businesses during the holiday season and is observed annually on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
“We know that Maui small businesses need our support more than ever as they navigate the effects of the August 2023 Lahaina and Kula wildfires,” said Leslie Wilkins, MEDB President and CEO. “SBS reminds us of the prime shopping opportunities right in our own backyards.”
Maui’s arts industry in particular has suffered significant losses due to the wildfires. Local artist and Wailuku studio owner Taryn Alessandro shared, “Once supported by Front Street’s thriving, world-wide art market, local artists are now finding ourselves having to figure out new ways to get our work out there. Many of us also lost years, even decades worth of original work – so we are simultaneously re-building our collections along with our business models.”
Many of these local creators are now relocating to Wailuku. Alessandro explained, “I am right in the heart of downtown Wailuku, where many other artists are establishing themselves, as we collectively grow into ‘Maui’s Arts District.’ It is both a humbling and exciting time.” In addition to the Wailuku Arts District, weekly markets such as the Maui Swap Meet and the Upcountry Farmers Market offer additional opportunities for shopping small. “This is the place to find the real bargains on Maui,” said Cary, one of the Swap Meet vendors.
For those who prefer to shop from home, Pop-Up Mākeke is a virtual marketplace designed to support Hawaiian small businesses. Created by the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA), Pop-Up Mākeke features Hawaiʻi-based small business owners, artisans, and vendors. Kūhiō Lewis, President and CEO of CNHA, emphasized, “This mākeke helps keep that spirit of community that makes Hawaiʻi unique. In order for our community to succeed, we need to empower those businesses rooted here in Hawaiʻi.”
Even more local businesses can be found online using Shop Small Hawaiʻi’s directory of small businesses, available at shopsmallhawaii.com. Hawaiian Airlines’ Made on Maui Festival also maintains an online directory of all vendors who participated in the festival, available at https://www.madeinmauicountyfestival.com/our-vendors.
The support of the local community is crucial to us artists and small businesses. As recovery continues, we are here and we are open for business!
Taryn Alessandro, Artist and Studio Owner, Taryn Alessandro Fine Art LLC
Maui Economic Development Board’s (MEDB) recent Ke Alahele Education Benefit event successfully raised funds for local STEM education programs. During the event, the Daniel K. Inouye Innovation (DKII) Award winners were announced. The DKII Award honors students who use their STEM skills in service of their community. This year, Jennifer Goto Sabas, the late Senator Inouye’s former Chief of Staff and director of the Daniel K. Inouye Insitute, presented the award.
The winners were Maui High School students Janette White and Keani Kina, who completed a project for a child with mobility restrictions. They adapted a motorized toy car, rewiring it to replace the pedal with a button and redesigning the car seat. Their goal was to ensure that the car kept its original functionality while optimizing safety and accessibility. White commented, “the car helped a local neighbor in Maui, allowing a disabled child the freedom of directing herself in a safe and fun structure.”
Honorable mention went to Kahakaʻiwa Williams, representing Kalama Intermediate School, for his Hawaiian video game project. He combined his ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi knowledge with his interest in game design to create a game that walks users through the legend of the goddesses Pele and Nāmakaokahaʻi. “My motivation…is that there are no video games in the Hawaiian language that I am aware of,” Kaha commented. “This project is designed to inspire community members to learn more about Hawaiian culture and language through a fun activity.”
Chelsey Miguel, a King Kekaulike High School student, also received honorable mention. With her computer science skills, Miguel used AI to create a coral monitoring system, which allows users to upload photos of coral and receive a health assessment. Miguel shared, “I stumbled on a documentary about coral bleaching and its implications…I wanted to intersect my passion of programming and machine learning to help solve this problem.”
Thanks to the generosity of donors during the event, MEDB is able to present monetary prizes to the winners as well as those who received honorable mention and their teachers. Donations will also support the Ke Alahele Education Fund grant program, which helps educators and students access STEM tools, participate in extracurriculars, travel to competitions, and engage in professional development that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive.
It’s wonderful to be back after all these years. These were really happy times for the Senator. He loved this event and to see it come back as strong as it is, especially with the students, is actually very exciting.
Jennifer Goto Sabas,
Director of the Daniel K. Inouye Institute
As National STEM Day approaches on November 8, Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) reflects on and celebrates how far Maui Nui’s STEM community has come in recent decades. In 1999, Senator Daniel K. Inouye encouraged MEDB to strengthen Hawaiʻi’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education-to-workforce pipeline. In a 2004 statement to the U.S. Senate about expanding the role of women in STEM, Sen. Inouye observed, “Not only is it a strategy that will ensure our global competitiveness and national security, but it is the right thing to do to ensure that all our citizens have equal access to the education and training needed to succeed.”
MEDB took the message to heart and developed the Women in Technology (WIT) Project, now STEMworks™, to motivate underrepresented groups such as women and Native Hawaiians to pursue technology-related careers. Leslie Wilkins, former WIT program director and MEDB’s current president and CEO, commented, “Virtually every field in every sector of the economy needs STEM professionals, people who are fluent in various technology skills.”
Maui resident Lisa Thompson, Operations Unit Director for KBR, Inc., recalled the hurdles women faced when she began her STEM career. “Back in the 80’s, it was very difficult for women to balance a career with being a mom. Plus, there were so many new technological skills to learn.” Currently, she is optimistic, and observed, “I see a lot more women going into technology, but we are still the minority. MEDB’s educational outreach programs inspire and empower students and educators to have the confidence that they can succeed.”
Katlynn Vicuña, a UH Mānoa alumna and mechanical engineer for Lockheed Martin, also shared, “From a female standpoint, I still find myself in meetings with mostly men, but now they tend to listen to what I have to say. I love that there are many female as well as young professional engineer groups, as in some of MEDB’s programs, where people get together, support, and lift each other up. In fact, through an MEDB event, I was inspired to take an internship at Lockheed Martin where I was offered a permanent position.”
MEDB is excited to continue offering STEM learning opportunities to students all across the state this school year. STEMworks’ biggest event of the year, the 16th Annual Hawaiʻi STEM Conference, will be held at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center in Honolulu on March 24 and 25, 2025. For more information, visit https://www.hawaiistemconference.org/.
There is a diverse set of career paths in technology…the last 30+ years in my career included programming, data administration, information security, and much more. Currently, I’m a director managing a large team of technical individuals.
Lisa Thompson, Operations Unit Director, KBR, Inc.
