Mālama Nā Pua

Care For and Serve The Children

Mālama Nā Pua

Growing Indigenous Wellness from the Ground Up

Kumukahi Ke Aloha is proud to announce the launch of its pilot program Mālama Nā Pua, an intergenerational, ʻāina-based youth development program rooted in Hawaiian Soulfulness™. Starting Fall 2025 at He Lei O Kumukahi Farm on the Waiohuli Hawaiian Homestead, this initiative invites Native Hawaiian youth (14–26) to help build a healing and learning center from the ground up—while deepening their identity, pilina (relationships), and kuleana (responsibility) through the land.

Not a new idea, but a return to ancient ways. Mālama Nā Pua honors the wisdom of our ancestors and the ʻōlelo noʻeau: "‘O ke kahua ma mua, ma hope ke kūkulu." — "The foundation comes first, then the building." In the traditions of old, youth learned by working alongside elders. This program reconnects that generational learning model where ʻāina is chief and kanaka is servant.

What youth will do:

  • Build raised grow beds, irrigate fields, and cultivate traditional plants for food, lei, and medicine.

  • Learn lei-making, laʻaulapaʻau (plant medicine), and self-care practices.

  • Explore cultural protocols, mindfulness, and community storytelling.

  • Gain skills in entrepreneurship, CSA marketing, and regenerative agriculture.

Guided by elders and cultural practitioners, our ʻōpio will not only reconnect to their roots, but shape a future of healing and sustainability for the next generation.

Program Highlights:

  • Stipends for participating youth

  • Hands-on workshops and healing days

  • Seasonal CSA distributions to wildfire-impacted ʻohana

  • Starter kits for home and homestead gardens

A Word from Our Team “We convey our deepest gratitude to our partners for your investment in our work of Aloha. This living classroom arrives at a golden moment—where youth can experience the sacred act of building not just a farm, but a center of healing, knowledge, and community from the soil up.” — Paulo Faleafine Jr., Director & Program Manager

Mahalo to the Maui Economic Opportunity & County of Maui for providing the micro-agriculture grant to break ground on the He Lei O Kumukahi farm, to the First Nations Development Institute, and the Winifred Stevens Foundation for providing capacity building funds which helped plant these seeds, and for all the donors and volunteers who give in support of our mission.

Ready to Mālama?

Eligibility

Mālama Nā Pua is open to:

  • Priority selection - Native Hawaiian youth and young adults ages 14–26

  • Individuals who demonstrate a willingness to mālama ʻāina (care for the land) and participate in Hawaiian cultural learning

  • Youth connected to Living Way Church or other community organizations aligned in the spirit of Aloha

  • ʻŌpio who are:

    • Living on Maui, with preference for residents of Waiohuli Hawaiian Homestead or wildfire-impacted areas

    • Open to mentorship, cultural practice, and building pilina (relationship) with kūpuna and ʻāina

    • Committed to showing up with integrity, respect, and a heart to serve

No prior farm or cultural experience required. Just come with aloha and readiness to grow.