Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 20, Number 1, 1 January 2003 — We celebrate of the life of community leader, educator and role model Judy Naumu Stewart [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

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We celebrate of the life of community leader, educator and role model Judy Naumu Stewart

Colette Machado Trustee, Moloka'i and Lāna'i

Agreat woman and Haw liian leader joins the ranks of our kūpuna looking over us from the Kingdom of Heaven. Judy Naumu Stewart, or Aunty Judy as most know her, passed away last month. A retired DOE teacher and educator, Judy is best known here at OHA for her strong will and tenacity to work for tbose Hawaiians whose voices are ignored by the system. Aunty Judy was a proud Hawaiian woman, a native of Hanapēpē, Kaua'i. She received a Bachelor's and Master's in education at a time when Hawaiians were more the exception to the highereducation system rather than the

norm. She made a career in educating our Hawaiian keiki and continued her work well after retirement by helping the Ni'ihau children and "schooling" many of us in leadership roles throughout the state. Her last years were spent on her Hawaiian homestead in Kekaha, Kaua'i, on the Pu'u 'Ōpae Ranch. Aunty Judy worked diligently in the past few years to advocate for the Ni'ihau children and their families who were seeking educational parity and a unique bilingual charter school that teaches Hawaiian and English. We recall her standing up for those children at every OHA and DOE meeting seeking fairness and never taking "no" for an

answer. Her ways were a combination of warrior and stateswoman and was motivated with a mother's love for her people and the education of the keiki o ka 'āina. At times, when Trustees and staff seemed off track, Aunty Judy would "matter-of-fact-ly" remind us of our trust duties and pull us back into focus. In fact, I looked forward to our OHA visits to Kaua'i because I knew Judy would be there with her smile and a list of issues that required our attention. Her voice and presence will always be remembered and sorely missed. As we begin this new year of "change" it will be good to remember Aunty Judy and the things she

stood for: a very deep and abiding aloha, no-nonsense, and the will to do whatever it takes to make things pono. Her passion for our Hawaiian people and culture and her desire to find a just solution in the most ehaohe of situations is a life's lesson for all of us to work toward. I believe Aunty Judy now watches over all of us with the same love and perseverance she possessed while on her earthly journey. We at OHA have been truly blessed to know her. The challenge now is to carry on her work for the good of our Hawaiian people. Aloha 'oe Aunty Judy Naumu Stewart, until we meet again. ■