H O‘O KE L E A w a rd s
A Celebration of Hawai‘i’s Nonprofit Leaders
2002– 2015
Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation Hawai‘i Community Foundation
The Ho‘okele Award The Ho‘okele Award pays tribute to leaders from the nonprofit sector—the guiding forces in our community who strive to make Hawai‘i a better place. For many nonprofit leaders, commitment to their jobs and their causes far outweighs the challenges of working long hours with limited resources and support. Just as a steersman, ho‘okele, is key to guiding a canoe successfully to its destination, this award recognizes the significant role that a nonprofit leader plays in improving the quality of life for Hawai‘i’s people. The Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation and the Hawai‘i Community Foundation created this annual program in 2002. Nonprofit leaders in Hawai‘i who are chosen each receive $10,000 to be used for their professional development and personal renewal. Recipients are selected based on nominations from the community and assessed on the following leadership characteristics: • Thinks strategically and gets results • Brings different groups of people together • Inspires others • Makes a difference in Hawai‘i • Enthusiastically shares knowledge
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Funding Partners Wallace Alexander
Gerbode Foundation The San Francisco-based Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation was established in 1961 by Martha Alexander Gerbode, a descendant of one of the original five New England missionary families who came to Hawai‘i. The Gerbode Foundation makes grants of approximately $4 million a year with its activities focused in the San Francisco Bay Area and Hawai‘i. Areas of interest include civic affairs, reproductive rights and health, conservation and the environment, and the arts.
Hawai‘i Community Foundation Established in 1916, the Hawai‘i Community Foundation (HCF) is the leading philanthropic institution in the state, helping donors amplify the power of their giving. HCF is steward of over 700 funds, including more than 200 scholarship funds created by donors who want to transform lives and improve communities. In 2014, HCF distributed more than $46.6 million in grants, scholarships and contracts statewide. HCF also serves as a resource on community issues and trends in the nonprofit sector.
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Congratulations!
2015 Recipients
We are proud to congratulate the following 2015 recipients of the Ho‘okele Award:
KEPĀ MALY Executive Director Lāna‘i Culture & Heritage Center
Kepā Maly is the founding executive director of the Lāna‘i Culture & Heritage Center (CHC). Raised on Lāna‘i, he learned Hawaiian language, traditions and history from Hawaiian families and elders who cared for him. Kepā graduated from Lāna‘i High and Elementary School, and since then has extensively researched and documented cultural-historical sites and traditions of Lāna‘i and the entire Hawaiian Archipelago. In 1975, he walked around Lāna‘i with the late, distinguished anthropologist, Kenneth Emory. Kepā has worked for the National Park Service and served as curator for the Kaua‘i Museum. He was also the executive director of the Hoakalei Cultural Foundation with Haseko, Inc. With his wife Onaona, Kepā conducted extensive ethnographic research and oral history interviews with elder kama‘āina across the Hawaiian Islands. He has been recognized by the American Planning Association (Hawai‘i Chapter) and Historic Hawai‘i Foundation for his contributions.
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In addition to his role with Lāna‘i CHC, Kepā now serves as vice president of culture and historic preservation with Pūlama Lāna‘i, where he works to ensure the history and culture of Lāna‘i are preserved and passed down. Much of the stewardship work initiated through Lāna‘i CHC now has a strong partner
RICHARD TAAFFE President and CEO West Hawaii Community Health Center
Richard Taaffe moved to Hawai‘i in 2005 to run the West Hawaii Community Health Center. As its first executive director, he helped grow the organization from a single site with three exam rooms and six staff to five sites and 120 staff serving 20% of the population of West Hawai‘i. Richard has made a lifelong commitment to empowering communities and he believes that building community is a process founded on the principles of “maximum feasible participation” and social action. He started his journey as a VISTA volunteer and community organizer in the early 1970s, followed by work with the Pueblo Indians and with elders in New Mexico. His master’s degree is from the University of New Mexico.
Richard’s passion for community service is reflected throughout his professional and personal life and is driven by the belief that we must promote a culture of caring throughout our organizations if we are to be successful healers and community builders. In addition to being president and CEO of the West Hawaii Community Health Center, Richard serves on several nonprofit boards of directors including the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation, Hawai‘i Primary Care Association, AlohaCare Health Plan, and Health Choice Network Inc. (Florida).
MARIAN E. TSUJI President and CEO Lanakila Pacific
Marian E. Tsuji has been the president and CEO of Lanakila Pacific for nearly 12 years. The organization’s programs — Lanakila Meals on Wheels, Teaching and Learning Centers, and Workforce Resources — build and support the independence of more than 2,300 people with disabilities each year.
A Celebration of Hawai‘i’s Nonprofit Leaders
Marian is committed to creating awareness about the different faces of disability, and motivating change through collaborative efforts to solve complex social problems. She has extensive experience with disenfranchised populations, having worked within the criminal justice systems in Hawai‘i and in New York City for 20 years. She left New York City in 1992 to work for Hawai‘i’s Department of Public Safety, where she was ultimately responsible for the operation of the state’s eight jails and prisons, and the contract administration of three private prisons on the mainland. Marian Tsuji developed her policy skills as chief of staff to then-Lieutenant Governor Mazie Hirono, and her teaching skills at Long Island University, University of Hawai‘i, and as a consultant with the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Institute of Corrections. She currently serves on the University of Hawai‘i Rehabilitation Counseling Program Advisory Council and Charles Kendall Scholarship Foundation, and previously served on the State Workforce Development Council and Salvation Army Addiction Treatment Advisory Council.
HARRY WONG III Artistic Director Kumu Kahua Theatre
A Kumu Kahua Theatre board member from 1989 to 1997, Harry Wong III earned a Master in Fine Arts in Direction from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. In 1990, he stage-managed the theater’s International Tour to Edinburgh, Washington, D.C., and the Los Angeles International Festival of the Arts. His subsequent theater activity has centered around his artistic directorship of Kumu Kahua Theatre, though he has also served as guest director for the Honolulu Theatre for Youth and The Actors Group.
Numerous awards and honors he has earned include a Po‘okela for directing Topdog/Underdog, 2010; Outstanding Alumni Award, Honolulu Community College, 2010; co-founder and director of the Hawai‘i Shakespeare Festival; and prestigious honors from the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts; Lincoln Center Theatre, New York; Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.; and Kennedy Theatre at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
Directing credits at Kumu Kahua include the world premiere of ‘Alani Apio’s Kamau in 1994 and Kamau A‘e in 1997, as well as acclaimed productions such as Sean T.C. O’Malley’s To The Last Hawaiian Soldier, Edward Sakamoto’s Fishing For Wives, and a revival of Kamau which toured to the 2008 Pacific Arts Festival in American Samoa. Most recently, Harry directed Eric Yokomori’s Cockadoodledoo and Lee Cataluna’s Flowers of Hawai‘i.
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2014 RECIPIENTS
The Ho‘okele Experience : Reflections Suzanne Case Chair, Department of Land and Natural Resources State of Hawai‘i Former Executive Director, Hawai’i Program The Nature Conservancy
I have no doubt my Ho‘okele year gave me the fresh perspective, the energy and groundedness, literally, to step up. It worked. My Ho‘okele gift of professional development and personal renewal took form in my Journey of a Thousand Miles – from Lao Tze, “A Journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” I renewed myself in the outdoors that I love and work to protect, with walks, hikes, paddling, and peddling. I mowed miles of Tantalus roadside. I walked to work. I hiked Koko Head Steps, MaunawiliWaimānalo, Maunawili Falls, Wiliwilinui, Ka‘ena Point, and even Jeju, Korea, plus my all-time conditioning favorite, Maunalaha Ridge up Tantalus. I enjoyed magnificent 15-20 mile day hikes: Volcanoes’ Hilina Pali-Halapē, the Bay Area’s Ohlone Wilderness, Amicalola Falls to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail in Georgia, and New York City. I biked around Tantalus and NYC’s Central Park; I paddleboarded in Ala Moana and south Kona; I kayaked around Palmyra Atoll. I backpacked three days in Tahoe’s Desolation Wilderness. I trekked for 65 miles on the Tasmanian Overland Track in Australia. In April, my focus took a radical turn when I took on the job of Department of Land and Natural Resources Chair, and my odyssey quickly transformed into a Journey of a Thousand Days and a Thousand Meetings! But I have no doubt my Ho‘okele year gave me the fresh perspective, the energy and groundedness, literally, to step up. My deepest appreciation for this wonderful opportunity.
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The Ho‘okele Experience : Reflections
Howard S. Garval, M.S.W. President and CEO Child & Family Service
Receiving this award has led to my reflecting on what it has meant to be a leader and how I can give back to others in this field that produces such meaningful social good. A big mahalo to the Gerbode Foundation and Hawai‘i Community Foundation for selecting me for the 2014 Ho‘okele leadership award! I was humbled and honored to receive such recognition. It meant a great deal to have my work at Child & Family Service, Hawai‘i’s oldest and most comprehensive human service organization, recognized in this fashion. Since I am nearing the completion of my highly rewarding career in social work, the award was extra special for its timing in my life. Receiving this award has led to my reflecting on what it has meant to be a leader and how I can give back to others in this field that produces such meaningful social good. While the challenges of nonprofit leadership can dampen one’s passion for the mission work we do, we must continue to renew that passion if we are to be effective leaders in the nonprofit sector. In fact, I find I have an even stronger commitment to nonprofit work because of this passion and hope to inspire other emerging leaders to be passionate in leading their organizations and others.
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The Ho‘okele Experience : Reflections
Nanci Kreidman, M.A. CEO and Co-Founder Domestic Violence Action Center
I am reminded to carry the light of hope I feel as a result of all the little triumphs along the way and will always savor the appreciation expressed for what I do. The arduous unending effort I invest in my work is softened, always, by the grace of appreciation from my community. The Ho‘okele Award brought life and dimension to the responsibility I accept daily. The difference I make alone and in the good company of my colleagues and peers is not always clear. Recognition brings into sharp focus the fact that someone notices what is underway. The rigor I am called upon to muster in the resistance to the status quo takes on new meaning when it is acknowledged. With the hurried and overwhelming number of things requiring attention, the opportunity to reflect is often lost. Despite mindfulness about the importance of staying tuned to the large picture while living the smaller parts of my landscape, it is not always possible. With your acknowledgement I experienced cognizance at a deeper level. The added dimension of receiving a cash award, which I have never experienced before, was an incredible gift. I was able to relax and enjoy relief in the purchase of a few tangible items and time. Necessary trips to visit family were enhanced without the worry about cost. I joyfully noticed the pleasure of leaving that anxiety behind for a time during this past year. I am reminded to carry the light of hope I feel as a result of all the little triumphs along the way and will always savor the appreciation expressed for what I do. The Ho‘okele Award sharpened my resolve and boosted my spirits! Both keep the fire alive within. Thank you!
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The Ho‘okele Experience : Reflections
Nola Nahulu Artistic Director Hawai‘i Youth Opera Chorus
As a child, we do not know how impactful our family, community and the spirit of the land around us will affect our lives. “Okagesama de” . . . simply, “Thank-you!” I was fortunate enough to have grown up in a plantation village here in Hawai‘i. As a child, we do not know how impactful our family, community and the spirit of the land around us will affect our lives. It takes a village to nurture a child. At the Hawai‘i Youth Opera Chorus (HYOC), we strive to create a sense of community through our programs. This past year I was able to attend the American Choral Directors National Conference in Salt Lake City to reconnect with my national colleagues and watch my current students (elementary through high school) in rehearsals with their own Honor Choirs. I was reminded of why we have such passion for this field. I was able to reconnect with two alum of HYOC in Santa Fe, New Mexico: Quinn Kelsey at Santa Fe Opera and Joanna Takagi at the Santa Fe Desert Chorale. Through this age of technology, the community continues; 20 years ago, these alumni sang together in choir and opera. It is exciting to see that though we live thousands of miles apart (Chicago, Dallas, Honolulu), the community still exists and is flourishing . . . IMUA!. . . Okagesama de!
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Past Recipients
2013
Nancy Aleck
M. Nalani Fujimori Kaina
Carol Kouchi Yotsuda
Kenneth L. Zeri, R.N., M.S.
Jud Cunningham
David Fuertes
Connie Mitchell
Marjorie Ziegler
Lea Hong
Tony Krieg
Robert G. Peters, Ed.D.
Leslie Wilcox
Jeanne Unemori Skog
Patricia Tummons
Matthews Hamabata, Ph.D.
Laura Smith
Stacy Sproat-Beck
David Derauf, M.D., M.P.H.
Ku- Kahakalau
Executive Director The People’s Fund
2012
CEO Aloha House, Inc.
2011
Hawaiian Islands State Director The Trust for Public Land
2010
2009
2008
Selena Ching
Drew Astolfi
Marilyn Cristofori
CEO Hawai‘i Arts Alliance
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Executive Director Legal Aid Society of Hawai‘i
Program Director Ka Hana No‘eau
CEO Hale Makua Health Services
Gregory Dunn
President and CEO Better Business Bureau of Hawaii
Executive Director and Family Physician Kokua Kalihi Valley
Executive Director Garden Island Arts Council
Executive Director The Institute for Human Services (IHS)
President Samuel N. and Mary Castle Foundation
President and CEO Maui Economic Development Board, Inc.
President and CEO Goodwill Industries of Hawaii, Inc.
Basic Hawaiian Program Director INPEACE
President and CPO Hospice Hawai‘i
Executive Director Conservation Council for Hawai‘i
President and CEO PBS Hawaii
Editor Environment Hawai‘i
Executive Director Waipā Foundation
Chipper Wichman President and CEO National Tropical Botanical Garden
2007
Dale B. Bonar, Ph.D.
Mike Gleason
Advocate Affordable Farming Hawai‘i
2006
2004
Founders MA‘O Farms
Roy Katsuda
Robert Agres Jr. Islander Institute
Vanessa Y. Chong
Janice Kalanihuia
Darrell H. Y. Lum
Carol R. Ignacio
Lynn C. Z. Maunakea
Patricia A. McManaman
Robert M. Witt
2003
Executive Director Hale Mahaolu
Executive Director American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii
Walt Dulaney* and George Kon
Andrew Aoki
Co-Founder and Principal 3Point Consulting
Tin Myaing Thein, Ph.D.
Wally Lau
Managing Director County of Hawai‘i
Executive Director Pacific Gateway Center
Co-Founder, Co-Editor Bamboo Ridge Press
President Moloka‘i General Hospital
Marsha Erickson
Hardy Spoehr
B. Puni Kekauoha
Co-Founders Alliance for Drama Education and T-Shirt Theatre
2002
Administrator Project Dana
Christina Cox, M.S.Ed. President KCAA Preschools of Hawai‘i
2005
Rose Nakamura
Gary and Kukui MaunakeaForth
Community Director PILI ‘Ohana
Eric Enos
Executive Director Ka‘ala Farms
David Nakada
Jo-Ann Ridao
Director Department of Housing and Human Concerns County of Maui
*deceased 11
For more information contact: Hawai‘i Community Foundation 827 Fort Street Mall Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96813 Phone: 808-537-6333 Toll-free: 1-888-731-3863 HawaiiCommunityFoundation.org