Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 10, 1 October 2006 — BLOSSOM FEITEIRA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

BLOSSOM FEITEIRA

Iwant to be an OHA Trustee because I am committed to my people. About 20 years ago. I had the realization that I

could make a difference. Since then, I've been working in the Hawaiian community addressing issues such as heahh, housing, native rights and eeonomie development. I have a tremendous capacity for dealing with difficult issues, the tenacity to see projects through to completion, a knaek for finding solutions and a recognition that community participation is the key to success. I am big on forging partnerships to resolve complex challenges. My activities over the past 20 years include: • Helping to establish Hui No Ke Ola Pono, a Native Hawaiian heahh care system on the island of Maui; • Assisting in the establishment of a resettlement plan for Kahikinui, now a homesteading program of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands; • Helping to establish Hawaiian Community Assets, a nonprofit organization offering free workshops in homeownership and l'inaneial management to more than 2,000 families, resulting in over 300 families moving into their own homes; • Participated in a protest against Bank of America that resulted in a $150 million commitment for mortgage lending on Hawaiian Home Lands; • Assisted Nā Kūpuna O Maui in establishing an eeonomie venue for native artists in Lahaina; He U'i Cultural Arts Festival, generating $400,000 in revenues; • Coordinated the "Acts of Aloha" demonstration at Kahului Airport in response to the Barrett v. Cayetano lawsuit; over 10,000 people (native and non-native) participated. The most important issues confronting our people are: • Housing. Too many people are doing without. Housing is a fundamental need. It is essential that our people have this most basic need met as quickly as possible. • Higher Education. This ties directly into eeonomie well-being, whether you're working in the taro patch or working in medicine. A college degree means better opportunities and a brighter future. • Heahh Care. Our families are sacrificing their heahh because they cannot afford heahh care and medicine. Our kūpuna go without the medication needed to control their diabetes, high blood pressure and heart problems. As a result.

MAUI ( 1 SEAT)

we are losing our foundation of knowledge at a faster rate and at a younger age. • Illegal Drugs. We are losing the war on drugs. Our families are broken, our children are addicted at birth and our prisons are overcrowded because of this bane on our community. Current treatment options are unable to meet the demand in our community. • Native Rights. As we move forward toward self-governance and self-sufficiency. we must continue to preserve our native rights and our natural resources. Without stewardship of our natural resources, there will be nothing left to govern. While the issues may be complex, part of the solution is right in front of us: OHA's mandate is to better the conditions of our people. OHA needs to manage its resources, and, just as importantly, it needs to use those resources to serve the community. If resources go unused, they might as well not be there. As an OHA trustee, my main goal would be to put OHA's resources to good use. But good use also means wise use; resources must never be squandered. We are at a critical juncture, and we must follow the tradition of our ancestors by bringing innovative solutions to the table. I ka wā ma mua, I ka wā ma hope. (Look to the past for the answers to the future.)

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