Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 10, 1 ʻOkakopa 1993 — Who, and where, are the Hawaiians? Operation ʻOhana attempts to find out [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]
Who, and where, are the Hawaiians? Operation ʻOhana attempts to find out
During a ceremony in his office in the summer of 1989, Gov. John Waihe'e, the state's first Hawaiian govemor, heeame one of the first Hawaiians to register for Operation 'Ohana. Thomas K. Kaulukukui, Sr., the "father" of Operation 'Ohana anel then OHA chairman, used the ceremony to eall on all Hawaiians to "stand up and be counted." Operation 'Ohana, part of OHA's "Blueprint for Native Hawaiian Entitlements," was conceived with seven objectives in mind: • To identify OHA beneficiaries. • To create a membership to provide benefits. • To provide a base to determine benefits from federal programs in such areas as health, education and eeonomie development. • To identify all Hawaiians
worldwide. • To re-establish cultural practices within the 'ohana as they pertain to Hawaiian values. • To establish a genealogical library for Hawaiian families. • To identify all eligible OHA voters. The concept of the Operation 'Ohana enrollment program rose out of the need for OHA to know who and where its beneficiaries are. It was also thought that Operation 'Ohana could demonstrate unity and strength in numbers that would provide a strong voice in Washington. From 1989 until last April, Operation 'Ohana was administered by OHA's education division. Education officer Rona
Rodenhurst and her staff recruited and trained 300 volunteers (including many OHA employees) as registrars to help Hawaiians enroll. In 1990 software for maintaining the Hawaiian ancestry information
on OHA's Wang computer system was installed, and a dataentry clerk was hired. Two additional staff were hired in September 1992. Maria Kaina and Kimberly Kau, the first fulltime staff members assigned exclusively to the project, eame on board as coordinator and assistant coordinator, iyLast April, Operation 'Ohana was transferred to the planning division, because the program was believed to be more closely aligned with OHA's research function than with its educational focus. Under the direction of planning officer Christine Valles, specific objectives and work plans are being developed.
Operation 'Ohana is being rethought and redefined. As part of its planning, the staff has drafted the following mission statement: "To Hawaiians the 'ohana reflects cultural values and personal identity. Just as the 'ohana begins with the immediate family and radiates out to include the extended family, OHA must focus on the individual 'ohana to reach, serve and benefit the greater 'ohana of all Hawaiians. Therefore, it is the mission of Operation 'Ohana, starting with the family, to find, name and
count Hawaiians and document family genealogy, [and] to form an allianee of all Hawaiians worldwide based on eommon heritage."
By next year, an Operation 'Ohana ID card will be ready for distribution. There are already more than 60 businesses willing to offer discounts of 10 to 35 percent on services to cardholders. Plans are being formulated for an Operation 'Ohana advisory board, an informal group that will advise staff on criteria for documenting ancestry, ways to improve and expand outreach, and other important issues. Enrollment activities are being stepped up so that by December, Operation 'Ohana registrars will conduct enrollments in different communities every week. Efforts are being expanded to the neighbor islands and the mainland. Recently the staff conducted a
mainland enrollment at the Tahiti Fete, a Polynesian dance eompetition held in San Jose, California. July 3-4, and staff is
planning to attend the 1993 Hawaiian Civic Club Convention in Las Vegas this month.
By next year, an Operation 'Ohana ID card will be ready for distribution. ... more than 60 businesses are willing to offer discounts of 10 to 35 percent on services to cardholders.
Operation 'Ohana staff Kimberly Kau (left) and Maria Kaina. photo by Jeff Ctark