Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 8, 1 August 2005 — Remembering Debbie [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Remembering Debbie

£ £ W hope that all of the struggles I I have had in my life, ean be _M_turned into lessons that I ean share with others. I hope by sharing my life lessons I am able to instill hope to individuals who felt that there was none. I hope the pain, fear and hurt I felt ean be channeled into a direction of inspiration, fearlessness and independence. I hope my story of struggle will prove there is a future if we have courage to change. Hope to me is future, a new beginning, a dawning of a new day, a reason to be, a mission to fulfill, the driving force that tells me the challenges of life are just lessons to be learned. Hope gives me desire, passion, determination, it guides me through my everyday, it embodies my spirit, soul and mind. Hope is the light at the end of a lunnel." - Debbie Kamali 'i work journal

On May 23, 2005, a great Hawaiian story eame to a close. Debbie Kamali'i, the daughter of Hawaiian cultural specialist Unele Charles Kauluwehi Maxwell Sr. and Kumu Hula Nina Maxwell, passed away at Maui Memorial Medical Center. She was 47. Her story is one that is empowering. A survivor and an inspiration, she was a strong woman who had been through a lot. She was a breast cancer survivor. She was the survivor of domestic violence. She was a mother. These sometimes uphill experiences, however, allowed her to look through a different lens — a lens that wasn't hazed by judgment of others, a lens that viewed life situations with unconditional care. She never took things for granted and always made sure that her children were appreciative of everything. Her eldest son Adrian recalls, "Having a mother with this perspective, shaped me as a young

Hawaiian, to notice what needs care and that judging others, no matter what their situation in life, never results in progress." Kamali'i would eventually find her passion as a training coordinator and kumu hula with Maui Eeonomie Opportunity's B.E.S.T. (Being Empowered and Safe Together) Reintegration Program. When developing MEO's approach, Kamali'i argued that there needed to be some "out of the box" ideas to reduce recidivism rates in Maui County. While there were existing programs that sought to reconnect native Hawaiian inmates with their lineal and cultural history, her program would also address the systemic ties of the loeal drug scene, domestic violence and every other socio-economic issue in Hawai'i. Recognizing her demographic as loeal men and women, Kamali'i felt that something Hawaiian would be beneficial. Drawing on her early years as a professional world-traveled hula

dancer, she concluded that nothing transcended racial, eeonomieal, social or criminal lines like the hula — an expression of team and unity, of working as one. She taught her inmates how to share leadership roles, and to connect with other individuals. Hula's poetry helped sharpen the depth of her inmates, and the ability to perform before others restored self-confidence and pride in them. At her funeral, a few inmates tearfully declared their love for Kamali'i, saying that "Debbie was like a mother to me, she made me feel safe. She was a great friend to have." "To be her biological son, and to have had her raise me," said Adrian, "I couldn't be more proud to have a mother that could make others, whose lives were stricken with troubles, feel 'safe'." Mother, daughter, teacher, friend, karaoke partner — She was a great lady, and I'll miss her terribly. U

John D. Waihe'e IV Vice Chair, Trustee, At-large