During this festive time of year when many families look forward to school breaks, it is important to remember that for some students, time off from school means lack of access to free and reduced-price school lunches. The Maui Food Bank’s Aloha BackPack Buddies program is working to address this issue by providing students in need with healthy to-go meals for times when school is not in session, including weekends. The program operates in 34 schools on Maui, Molokaʻi, and Lānaʻi and provides over 90,000 meals throughout the school year.
To support this program, the Fairmont Kea Lani Hotel in Wailea is celebrating the holidays while fundraising through its Tree of Hope campaign. Guests, staff, and locals are invited to adorn the hotel’s Tree of Hope with donations to benefit the Aloha Backpack Buddies Program. The funds raised will help provide meals to keiki in need, and donors will have their names featured on ornaments on the Tree of Hope. Every $25 donated to Tree of Hope allows the Maui Food Bank to provide 100 meals to the community.
Children of all ages can also enjoy Santa and Mrs. Claus’ arrival by canoe at Polo Beach near the Fairmont on Christmas Eve at noon. Chelsea Livit, Director of Marketing and Public Relations at the Fairmont Kea Lani, shared, “The festive season at the hotel is a magical time filled with vibrant cultural experiences and heartwarming events. We are thankful to celebrate with our community, ‘ohana, guests, and friends of Maui from around the world. Besides the treasured tradition of Santa and Mrs. Claus arriving aboard an outrigger canoe, our beautiful Christmas tree lighting marked the commencement of our 11th Annual Tree of Hope campaign…Launching in early December, the Tree of Hope project runs through early January.”
Michael Pye, Regional Vice President of Fairmont Hawaiʻi and General Manager of Fairmont Kea Lani, added, “Locals and guests are also invited to Hale Kukuna, the hotel’s newly opened Hawaiian cultural center. It proudly represents a sharing of the origins, practices, and beliefs of the Hawaiian culture. Most importantly, it provides a place for our community and guests to join together for generations to come.”
In addition to the Aloha BackPack Buddies program, the Maui Food Bank offers services for all age groups, including their Senior Mobile Pantry and their Go Fresh “‘ohana drops,” with multiple drop-off sites across the county to provide easy access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Community members can support the Maui Food Bank by donating food at any of their locations across the island (listed online at https://mauifoodbank.org/food-drop-off-locations/) or by making a monetary donation at mauifoodbank.org/donate/.
Together, let’s spread hope and joy to those in need in our community!
Chelsea Livit, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Fairmont Kea Lani
Remembering Lahaina, a touching, nostalgic, and beautiful coffee table art book compiled by the Maui Arts League, is a collection of high resolution photographs of original artwork from the Maui Plein Air Painting Invitational events from 2006 to 2020 and 2023. It is a tribute to the places, people, and culture of the historic town as well as to the galleries that lost thousands of pieces of artwork due to the August 2023 wildfire.
“Measuring 10 by 12 inches, this 208-page full-color hardcover book contains 251 images of paintings created by acclaimed professional plein air artists,” said Lois Reising, President of the Maui Arts League, art collector, community volunteer, and publisher of Remembering Lahaina. “Plein air artists paint outside, not in their studios, creating works that document a point in time under natural atmospheric conditions. The book also shares messages from the artists, which include what neighborhood their scene is from, why they were drawn to the scene they painted, as well as the Hawaiian names of the locations.”
The collection offered in Remembering Lahaina documents not only Lahaina’s historic architecture, but also its rich multicultural community and endearing charm. Some of the 87 plein air artists who contributed to this book lost their homes, studios, and art inventories in the fire that destroyed Lahaina town. The dust cover features “Lahainaluna View” by Ronaldo Macedo. A prolific local artist, Macedo also recently won the 2024 Lahaina poster contest with his artwork, “I will always remember you this way,” a piece featuring Lahaina’s iconic harbor.
“Each section of the book – Places, Harbor, Culture, Lifestyle, ʻOhana, and Around the Island – offers readers a look back at the historical town of Lahaina, memorializing the town we once knew,” Reising added. “Net proceeds from sales of the first release of Remembering Lahaina will be used to benefit Maui artists, their families, and staff who were impacted by the Lahaina fires. This limited-run, first-edition, and one-of-a-kind commemoration of the Lahaina we love enriches lives and supports artists in need.” The book can be preordered at mauiartsleague.org/book.
Founded in 1975, the Maui Arts League is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Lahaina that showcases and builds appreciation for visual fine arts through a variety of community activities. They are most well-known for their Maui Plein Air Painting Invitational, first organized in 2006, which brings both local and visiting painters together on Maui to produce artworks that feature the unique landscapes and communities of the island.
We hope to encourage these artists to regroup and reshape their careers as they are faced with many daunting challenges.
Lois Reising, President, Maui Arts League
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
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.
Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream non-profit organization, with the support of the Hawaiʻi Department of Education, has brought its Always Reading program to two elementary schools in Lahaina this school year – King Kamehameha III and Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary – expanding its Maui County presence. The Always Reading program provides families of pre-K and kindergarten students with tablets, a digital children’s library, and local book coaches who teach families how to use the tablet and provide ongoing encouragement, strategies, and accountability. These efforts broaden children’s access to books, increase at-home reading time, and engage family members in their children’s learning journeys.
Olympic gold medalist, author, and philanthropist Kristi Yamaguchi founded Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream in 1996, with the Always Reading program launching in 2012. Today, in addition to the two Lahaina schools, the organization is partnered with three elementary schools on Molokaʻi, four on Hawaiʻi island, and 10 on Oʻahu. This year, Always Dream expects to serve over 2,400 children and their families across the state. “We are honored to be welcomed by Complex Area Superintendent Winkie to provide students and families of Lahaina with the tools and support to build strong reading routines at home,” Kristi commented.
Ian Haskins, the principal of King Kamehameha III Elementary, shared, “We are pleased to have the Always Dream reading program in our school for our kindergarten and preschool students and families. The program will be beneficial by providing access and relevance for the importance of reading to children at a young age.” He added that “the purpose is to build language, literacy, and social skills that promote a healthy brain development, leading to success in school.”
This year marks Always Dream’s 10th anniversary of serving keiki in Hawaiʻi. For over 30 years, Kristi has considered Hawaiʻi a second home, with people across the state offering her support during her skating career. When it came time to expand the Always Reading program outside of California, Hawaiʻi was first on the list. Kristi wanted to make an impact in the communities that have shown her so much aloha. Outside of Hawaiʻi, Always Dream partners with 17 schools in the California Bay Area, with plans to serve 10,000 individuals in California and Hawaiʻi annually by 2027. For more information, visit alwaysdream.org.
Our hope is that our Always Reading program offers a sense of stability for families during this school year as a small part of the community’s journey toward healing.
Kristi Yamaguchi,
Founder and Board Chair
Kristi Yamaguchi’s Always Dream
After moving from Texas to Hilo at age thirteen, Jill Engledow arrived on Maui in 1968 already in love with Hawaiʻi—its land, people, and culture. As an award-winning author and journalist, for years she has written nonfiction about Maui, from news stories to books. After working as a reporter for the Maui News from 1980 to 1998, Engledow turned to freelance writing, mainly about historical Maui events and the local culture.
Engledow’s nonfiction books include Haleakalā: A History of the Maui Mountain, for which she was awarded a 2013 Independent Book Publisher Award. In addition, her book Sugarcane Days: Remembering Maui’s Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Company won a Preservation Honor Award from the Historic Hawaiʻi Foundation.
Another of Engledow’s books, The Story of Lahaina, has been in great demand again. “People have been sending me notes of appreciation for writing it because they want to remember the Lahaina they loved so much,” she said. “I have recently added a chapter at the end about the 2023 wildfires. It was such a tragic event and such a huge loss. My heart and prayers go out to all those affected as I, along with many, look forward to Lahaina’s restoration.”
Currently, Engledow is working on novels, using what she has learned about this “world’s best island” to tell tales about women making lives for themselves on Maui in years gone by. “I love to tell a story,” she emphasized, “and Maui is an amazing place with an incredible history. Fiction is new for me. It takes a long time to come up with a plot. However, through my knowledge and local experiences, the Women on Maui trilogy was born.”
The trilogy begins with The Island Decides, a 1971 story about single-mom Carrie Ann Emerson’s search for her lost daughter and how they end up on Maui. In the sequel, A Dollar and Love, the story continues with Carrie and her daughter, Rorie, living in rural Makawao. Finally, in Rose’s War, an Upcountry Maui woman’s friend and farm manager is unjustly suspected of being a Japanese spy during WWII. All of Engledow’s books are available on Amazon.
Maui resident and 2002 St. Anthony High School graduate Keith DeVey is the founder of Maui Walking Tours. The company, launched in early 2024, offers free guided walks through Kīhei and historic Wailuku town. The tours highlight each area’s origins and new developments, including details about local history, important landmarks, and street art. DeVey has done extensive research to uncover the best local stories, and his walks showcase the island through the eyes of a long-time resident who truly believes Maui is the best place on earth.
“Guided walking tours are a wonderful way to really get to know the place you live or are visiting,” said DeVey. “People get to hear stories that I collected firsthand through one-on-one meetings with historians, authors, local kupuna, historical practitioners, city officials, residents, educational outlets, and local architects. My sources include George Rixey, community architect and former president of the Kīhei Community Association; Lucienne De Naie, published Maui author and historian; Vernon Kalanikau, Maui County cultural advisor and lead organizer of the ahupuaʻa sign project; and Elan Vital, the artist who sculpted the Kalama Park whale.”
DeVey has assembled walking routes that allow participants to take a step back in time to better understand the present. He explains how land was divided and cared for by the early Hawaiians, the influence of the first missionary families, the formation of large plantations, the impact of the US military during WWII, and the transition to a tourism-based economy in the 1960s and 1970s. The Wailuku tour pays special attention to the revitalization of the town as a center for artists and the town’s numerous murals.
DeVey added, “I also want people to become more familiar with the colorful flora and fauna seen throughout the Hawaiian Islands, which are unlike anywhere else in the world. After each tour, participants routinely come up to me to personally share how much they enjoyed it. Some even tell me their unique history of living in or visiting Kīhei and Wailuku through the decades.”
Each tour is capped at 25 participants to ensure an enjoyable walking and learning experience. To sign up for one of the free upcoming tours, visit www.mauiwalkingtours.com.
Through my own travels, I discovered some of the most memorable takeaways were experienced through free walking tours guided by locals that lived in each community.
Keith DeVey
Founder and Tour Guide
Maui Walking Tours LLC
