A letter from our Executive Director:

April 2023

Mai ke Ahamanu o Kahuku a i ka Ulumano o Kāne’ohe, aloha nui iā kākou,

I hope this letter brings sunny skies as we move into Kauwela (Summer). This Friends of KEY letter is a bit different, as we are focusing on a few campaigns that help us to meet our mission of nurturing and promoting the cultural, environmental, social, economic, and recreational well-being of our service area by providing a vital grassroots civic resource that effectively serves the needs of our diverse multicultural community. I also wanted to provide you with an update since our last Friends of KEY.

We have been working hard to begin transforming our māla (garden) to include a new hale! Mahalo to Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority who supported the construction of a hale that can provide shade and serve as a learning space to our keiki and kūpuna who work in the māla. To further encourage Hawaiian Culture-based knowledge, we have also started hosting Papa ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, or Hawaiian language classes here at KEY, and hope to solidify funding to continue doing so. These classes, along with many others, will be hosted in Rooms 102 & 103, which we are hoping to renovate this year through this campaign.

Our Kūpuna Program has been very busy! Keilee, our Kūpuna Program Coordinator now has a new assistant, Mark Murphy. They have been scheming so many activities for the kupuna within our service area,  from animal sanctuary visits to car maintenance classes. Transportation is critical for our kūpuna and youth programs to allow us to take our program participants on huakaʻi (field trips). We are also hoping to purchase a new van so we can have more participants! If you or someone you know is over the age of 50 and living between Kahuku and Kāneʻohe, please visit keyproject.org to get registered.

The Hoʻopilina Youth Program students have also learned an immense amount of cultural knowledge as they visited multiple fishponds and attended a limu talk over Spring Break! Kimberley, our Youth Program Coordinator, was hard at work planning field trips and engaging activities for our youth. They were able to meet many cultural practitioners along the way, and we hope to continue to stipend these practitioners in the future through this Friends of KEY! You can also expect to see an increase in youth programs from KEY Project this upcoming school year as we are working to reach even further into our communities.

In addition, our Living Library has started to take off with our Koʻolaupoko Book Writers Cohort and Speaker Series! A total of 16 members from our community have been actively engaged in the beginning stages of writing and crafting their very own children’s books that tell stories related to their home & place. The Living Library continues to grow as we are planning out podcasts, movie screenings, panels, and art installations over the next two years in collaboration with our IMLS grant.

This April, we hope that you would consider helping us maintain our programs and community outreach by selecting a campaign that relates to the foundation of our success; our place, our people, and our kuleana. Consider one of the three options below:

Facilities Renovation - We want to mālama our most utilized facilities and classrooms with some renovations. Help breathe life back into Rooms 102/103 and 105; Support the installation of new water fountains with bottle filling stations; Contribute to arbor care of our campus!

New 15-Passenger Van - A new van will increase our capacity for both our Hoʻopilina Youth and Nā Pua O Koʻolau Kūpuna Programs!

Cultural Practitioner Stipends - Our practitioners bring our programming to life! Help us continue to support and sustain cultural programming at KEY.

We know that without the support of our Friends of KEY, nothing would be possible, so we look forward to continuing our work with your gracious donations! Next month, we will update you on our plans for the Koʻolau ʻOhana Festival.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or are interested in becoming a volunteer. 

Me ka mahalo nui,

Rainbow