Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 31, Number 1, 1 January 2014 — Emerging Hawaiian leaders at OHA: Kama Hopkins and Amber Kalua [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Emerging Hawaiian leaders at OHA: Kama Hopkins and Amber Kalua

Aloha from Kaua'i and Ni'ihau! Mahalo this month to Kama Hopkins and Amber Kalua for allowing me to feature them in this eolumn. I hope you'll find inspiration in their stories and look forward to bringing you more from the education eommunity, from Kaua'i and elsewhere. As a trustee, a father, a former teacher and eoaeh, I'm always thinking about

our collective future. The future I will help leave for my children, your children and future generations. Here at OHA and elsewhere, we have emerging leaders that I think represent those who will care for future generations of Hawai'i's native people. I assure you, there are many others who do excellent work and deserve recognition. For this month, I want to look to the future and those who may help lead us there. Know that Kama, Amber and other emerging leaders are out there and that the future for us looks bright. Jeremy Kamakaneoaloha Hopkins, 39, the son of Tim and Toni Hopkins, is senior aide to Trustee Bob Lindsey, a commissioner on the Hawaiian Homes Commission, and one-third of Hōkū-winning group Holunape. Kama, as most of us eall him, was bom and raised in Kāne'ohe. Amber Wehilani Kalua, 27, the daughter of Bernard and lonell Kalua, is a student assistant in our Transitional Assistance Program, participated in American University's Washington Internships for Native Students, is currently working on her master's degree in puhlie administration at UH-Mānoa (go PUBA!), and was recently on the cover of the November Ka Wai Ola. Amber is a resident of Waimānalo, where she is a proud homesteader. Interestingly, both Kama and Amber spoke at length about leadership and a personal eall to serve others. For Kama, who believes the greatest leaders are the great-

est servants, that comes in the form of running for an OHA trustee-at-large seat. Amber, who thinks leadership is the ability to bring people together despite their views, likes the idea of appointed office and would one day ("far in the future," according to her) like to be the CEO of OHA or chair/director of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. As young, emerging leaders, both Kama and Amber seek to have

a collaborative style, while also working hard to accomplish their individual tasks, the larger goals of their respective parts of OHA, and in some small part, helping to achieve OHA's strategic priorities for the next few years. For Amber, whose Unele Herring was a former Hawaiian Homes commissioner and taught her to do what is right and stand up when needed, seeking a deep understanding of the issues that affect a community is a core part of how she works. Inspired by the teachings of Dr. Kekuni Blaisdell, she told us boldly, "I understand the world and who I am as a Hawaiian." For Kama, everything goes back to values; always doing things with aloha helps forge and build new relationships, while fostering old ones. This is definitely true as probably every single OHA employee knows Kama personally. He told us, "There's almost nothing you can't do - if you do it with aloha." Maika'i, Kama and Amber! Keep up the good work and remember to inspire and help foster other Hawaiian leaders. We ean always use another leader who is willing to serve and better Hawai'i and work toward bettering the conditions of Hawaiians. Finally, here's a shout-out to Kaiāulu Anahola, the traditional knowledge marine education program, for the successful launeh of its book 'O Anahola Ku 'u Kula 'iwi, one of the few books written about Anahola in a generation. Mahalo nui loa ! ■

Dan Ahuna Trustee, Kaua'i and Ni'ihau