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Nine grants totaling $450,000 have been awarded by the Maui County Department of ʻŌiwi Resources to promote cultural and traditional practices.
The community grant awards coincide with Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month this May. The May 2025 awards include:
• $49,999 -- The Kīpuka Kamalō Restoration Project of the Ka Ipu Makani Cultural Heritage Center aims to restore the ecological and cultural health of the Kamalō Ahupuaʻa on the island of Molokaʻi.
• $50,000 -- The Ka Wai Ola: Indigenous Community Water Hydrology Project of KAʻEHU aims to lead a community-based, cross organizational study of our watershed with the intention of collecting stories, gathering data, and using this information to better the lands, waters and people of Kaʻehu Bay.
• $50,000 -- Ola Hāloa, Ola Ka ʻOhana of Kīpahulu ʻOhana aims to maintain and expand Kapahu Living Farm, a regenerative farming and cultural education program located in East Maui.
• $50,000 -- The Hawaiian Crops Cultivars Program of Maui Nui Botanical Gardens will focus on growing, displaying, propagating, distributing and hosting education and interpretation for the remaining historic heritage Hawaiian varieties of kalo, kō, maiʻa, ʻawa and ʻuala.
• $50,000 -- MālamaʻI O Mūʻolea of Nā Mamo O Mūʻolea will restore native and culturally important plants, to plant food-producing crops, remove invasive species, expand water infrastructure and enhance the community's usage of the Mūʻolea shoreline.
• $50,000 -- The Waiehu Chinese Cemetery Restoration Project of the Waiehu Chinese Cemetery Association aims to restore the historic Kwong Fook Tong Chinese Cemetery.
• $49,000 -- Roots of Resilience: Keiki, Kumu, and Community in The Maile Grove of the Archive for Health, Arts and Spirit will provide a three-part initiative offering arts and ʻāina-based field trips, in-school residencies with community showcases and a teacher wellness institute.
• $50,000 -- Hana Noʻeau: ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi Support Through Creative Afterschool and Summer Program of Hāna Arts aims to strengthen ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi proficiency among East Maui's Kula Kaiapuni haumāna by providing engaging, culturally rooted learning opportunities beyond the school day.
• $50,000 -- I Ka ʻŌlelo Nō Ke Ola of Ke Kula ʻo Piʻilani aims to hire and train members of our lāhui who have the language skills to work in a language immersion program yet need mentorship and skill development to instruct an elementary school class.
Department director Kaponoʻai Molitau said awarding the community grants is one of the major achievements of the department during its inaugural year.
May is officially designated as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month by Congress, and Hawaiʻi Sens. Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga played key roles in establishing the month, which raises awareness of the contributions and histories of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.
For more, visit www.mauicounty.gov/2810/Department-of-Oiwi-Resources. For information about department grants, call (808) 270-1719 or email oiwigrants@co.maui.hi.us.