Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 15, Number 10, 1 October 1998 — ʻ98 candidates in focus [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ʻ98 candidates in focus

i— 4 g f ĒēBi 1 AS The views and opinions expressed in '98 candidates infocus are of the individual candidates and do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. £ i * 5

I bring with me more than 20 years as a proactive member of the Hawaiian community, of whieh 15 have been on Maui. Ten of those years have been with the State Council of Hawaiian Homestead Associations, currently as the vicechair and chair of the Government Affairs and Education Committee. Eight of those years have been in creating two non-profit organizations to do eommunity building and eeonomie development on Hawaiian Home Lands. My most recent initiative is the establishment of a Native Hawaiian bank or community development financial institution for the purpose of creating more flexibility in lending on Hawaiian Home Lands and making revenue that was not previously available. I want to be Maui trustee because OHA's mandate "to better the conditions of Native Hawaiians" must be fulfilled to a greater degree, on a broader base and in a more timely fashion. I want to empower our people to go the distance and make the difference for themselves and their generations to eome. I want to

be at OHA to ensure the mandate is carried out on behalf of the Native Hawaiians. The most critical issue confronting OHA today is with the political powers-that-be who "are not" willing to do what is right, "do not" want to risk losing their poliūeal power and "will not" subject themselves to go against the current leadership. In the meantime, decisions are being made and laws being passed with nary a thought of how these will impact the native people and culture. Native entitlements, ceded lands and ceded land revenues are consistently being threatened by the state through the legislature. As long as these threats are at bay, OHA will be spending precious money, time and energy responding to these issues yet be unable to meet its mandate. The most critical issue confronting our people today is their quest for sovereignty. Sovereignty is seen as the ability of a people to control their assets, their govemanee structure and their relationship with other actions. The illegal overthrow . ) r ' Iv. 'C

. « i - , • B of Queen Lili'uokalani strippcd her ol herpower. Sovereignty ean. will and must be restored through political aeipn. As a trustee, I want to be able to - resolve these critical issues that are eonfronting us by implementing strategies and programs that wouId educate, train _• and infiuence policy makers' decisions. The voices of 1 58,000 politically organized, registered, native voters will be heard loud and clear in the houses of the state legislature. If 1 could only accomplish one goal as trustee, it would be to put every person on the Hawaiian Homes waiting list on the land and allow home ownership for Hawaiians using the ceded lands. The bank is here, the land is here, the money is here; all we need is people to do it. I would like to be one of those people. I ask for all 158,000 registered Native Hawaiians to vote for me, KAMA, Natalie (Kamai) Tasha this November. Questions or comments ean be sent to KAMA, NATALIE (KAMAI) TASHA Campaign, 715 Kilihau Street, Wailuku, Maui, HI 96793. ■ Wl;: mm ^ t «S§

i I am Rose Kaloke Kia-Kirland, OHA Trustee, Maui candidate. My personal history (more information at www.maui.net/-kirland) follows: • One of 15 children to the late Robert Ukuula "Blue Rock" Kia and Charlotte Kananiokuuhome Kakina Werner Kia. • Mother, two sons, Kelii (19 years, attending college), Koa (3 years). • Raised on Nānākuli Homestead, resides in Wailuku. • Native Hawaiian, named after Aunty Rose Lono Wemer. • Hula and Tahitian dancer with halaus of the late John Pi'ilani Watkins, Cousins Bella Richards of Kailua, Dennis and Denise Kia of leeward O'ahu. • Sacred Hearts Academy, 1972. University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Maui Community College (associate of arts degree/honors), University of Hawai'i West O'ahu Business Administration. • Kia family in Waipi'o, Big Island, Naeole Kia family on Maui. • Wemer family from Kaua'i, kalo farmers in Wainiha. Grandfather William Wemer was first sheriff from the island. • Tūtū Elizabeth Kakina spoke fluent Hawaiian, member of O'ahu Ka'ahumanu Society in the 1920s. Financially, we grew up very poor. However, we persevered to attain an excellent education because of faith in ourselves, the tenacity of a "strong will" and a "ean do" attitude. Our high "self-

esteem" gave us the strength as young children to elean the entire school and scrab toilets, barring any "peer pressure" shame, to pay for Sacred Hearts Academy's tuition. "Knowledge is power" and education a top priority! I support educational grants to further programs like Pūnana Leo as well as programs that benefit all Hawaiian beneficiaries. Additionally, I will advocate to help our part time "kupuna" educators in our public schools get better medical insurance benefits. I have been the real estate and mortgage banking industry over 20 years. Presently, I am vice president/branch manager for Irwin Mortgage (Maui). Recently, I was globally rccognized for my dedication and consistent level of service, "putting people first" as this year's 1998-'99 Kaleo PubIication, "Who's Who Among Executives in the World." Helping thousands of families attain home financing on the Hawaiian homesteads and elsewhere in the state is a passionate task for me! Quoted about my business qualities, in the Homes & Lands magazine was Realtor Scott Sherley: "I refer to Rose ... as my 'miracle wofker.' When my clients think a home is out of their reach, Rose and her staff make my clients' dreams a reality." Meg Moore, Realtor, is quoted: "Rose's outstanding service goes the extra mile! Her availability during 'non-traditionaT business

«« K vBk m ■ ■ a-l S >>S- >>2 . €li MM "■ l A %■ hours, ... consistent closing record are benefits to both buyers and sellers." I attribute my ability to work well with people, to our parcnts who raised us with muhiple faiths: dad a Catholic, mom a Protestant Christian. We learned to ■ value and respect differing opinions without prejudice! Thus, we contributed to one another the best of eaeh other, reaching a "meeting of the minds" in our pursuit of a eommon goal! When you ean speak your mind without fear of ridicule or sarcasm, you reap better results from the benefit to "brain storm." 1 will bring to OHA, this innale trait, a quality of "pono" passed on generations from our kupunas. You will be more than just listened to; I will hear your eoncerns and act on them swiftly! I support efforts to protect Hawaiian fishing rights, water rights and attentive negotiations of revenues due us! High on my priority list are the blood quantum issues and the commitment to help Hawaiians with land ownership, Hawaiian owned businesses, better heahh, housing, cducation and jobs. For an educated trustee with a "ean do" attitude. an strong "work ethics" backed with years of business experience to get the job done; please vote for me, Rose Kaloke Kia-Kirland! Mahalo! ■ !#, l

Natalie Kamai Tasha Kama Maui

Rose Kaloke Kia Kirland Maui