Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 34, Number 4, 1 April 2017 — Persistence Results in Progress [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Persistence Results in Progress

A loha mai from Kaua 'i and Ē \ Ni'ihau,

AI am very pleased to extend a huge ho'omaika'i to a very talented musician and entertainer, Kalani Pe'a, whose debut alhum, "E Walea" won a Grammy award this vearl Kalani

briefly visited OHA's office on Kaua'i last month and helow is a picture of Mr. Pe'a, with our Kaua'i Island staff, Noalani Nakasone, and beneficiary Roland DeFries of Anahola.

Kalani Pe'a is a graduate of Ke Kula 'O Nāwahīkalani'ōpu'u Hawaiian Charter School on Hawai'i Island. And I was very pleased to learn that he continues to serve as an educator of Hawaiian youth with Kamehameha Schools. I was also very moved to hear him quote Joseph Nāwahl, an esteemed Hawaiian leader, educator, lawmaker, artist, and organizer in the 19th eentury, in his acceptance speech at the Grammy's. To use a platform such as the Grammy's to lift up a name like Nāwahl is incredible and shows how far Hawaiian education has eome. Nāwahī's work and aeeomplishments are deserving of mueh recognition as is Mr. Pe'a's, who is a product of Nāwahī's legacy. I would like to make menhon of another feat of Hawaiian education that is currently taking plaee on Kaua'i. On the weekend of March llth, students of Waimea High School led an effort to remove silt build-up in the Waimea river that has resulted in the formation of massive silt islands that are clogging the river How and are ultimately the result of outdated water diversions up mauka. The Mauka2Makai class is a proj-ect-based learning curriculum led by teachers Bernadine Souza and Shelby Erdmann and they have partnered with Kaina Makua, a farmer in neighboring Makaweli Valley, to tackle the problem. Over the course of the weekend, more than 300 people showed up and moved 15,000 buckets and

nearly 450,000 pounds of silt from one of the largest islands in the river.

Some kūpuna said that was the most people they have seen in the river since Hurricane Iniki hit and the community had no water for weeks and everyone was using the river to bathe, wash clothes, dishes eto Tt's aetnfl11v

a very good reminder of how important the heahh of the river is to that eommunity. The students are also following the matter of the river's heahh at the State

and County levels. The Waimea students are learning the process from a grassroots level and are advocating for the changes they want to see. Kasen Castro, a Waimea High School senior said, "We know it's a problem, and this is our community, so it's our turn to step up and do the work." This is an amazing project and I applaud all those involved, including the Waimea High School Principal, Mahina Anguay, for taking a hands-on approach to this matter and incorporating a very Hawaiian education-based model into their daily curriculum at the school. Please follow the students' effort on social media @whsMauka2Makai. The next Mālama Waimea River workday will be on April 29th, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., please head out and support. ■

<LEO 'ELELE V www.oha.org/kwo | kwo@OHA.org TRUSTEE MESSSAGES ' NATIVE HAWAIIAN » NEWS l FEATURES I EVENT S

Dan Ahuna VicE Chair, TrustEE, Kaua'i and Ni'ihau

Photos : Twstee OanAhuna