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The Maui News
Three Molokai organizations have received grants that will help them hold workshops on business planning, expand a shared farm equipment project and prioritize roads for improvement on local homesteads.
The state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands announced Wednesday that 14 recipients of its Community Development Program will each receive a portion of $859,375 in grants.
DHHL makes annual grant funding available to nonprofits that demonstrate a purpose to benefit Native Hawaiians. In June, the Hawaiian Homes Commission approved a total of $1 million from the Native Hawaiian Rehabilitation Fund for the current fiscal year. The funds were administratively allocated as $900,000 for regional plan priority projects and $100,000 for capacity building.
A total of 14 applications were received. Grant recipients in Maui County are:
• Kalama'ula Homesteaders Association, which will receive $100,000 to inventory, assess conditions and prioritize the needs for road improvements in and around Kalama'ula and Ho'olehua homesteads.
• Ho'opili Farmers Association, which will receive $100,000 to build on Napualei o Hina's earlier work by using the organization's data to expand the shared farm equipment project and provide equipment to assist farmers to expand their farms without substantial capital investment. This is a joint project with Napualei o Hina and the Ahupua'a o Moloka'i.
• Moloka'i Homestead Farmers Alliance, which will receive $5,000 to conduct community workshops on business planning and the IRS federal tax-exemption application for charitable organizations.
Future grant solicitations are anticipated in fiscal year 2023, subject to the commission's approval of funding.