Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 3, 1 March 2022 — Creating a Welcoming Office on Moloka'i [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Creating a Welcoming Office on Moloka'i

V LEO 'ELELE V ^ TRUSTEE MESSAGES *

According to the Lili'uokalani Trust, 62% of the population on Moloka'i is Native Hawaiian - OHA beneficiaries! We must have a Moloka'i OHA ofhce that is an inviting plaee to gather and provides efficient internet connection and other support resources. It will benefit the majority of the island! It is time to bring light and

brightness to the ofhce - whieh also includes care for the exterior spaces as well as the ofhce itself.

Here are photos of our Moloka'i OHA Office in Kalama'ula at Kulana 'Ōiwi Center. As your new trustee, I want to create an ofhce that respects beneficiaries, encourages kūkā, and supports working on issues in a plaee as inviting as those on O'ahu. I hope that our Maui County COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted soon so that I ean have opportunities to meet more of you and learn more about important concerns for our islands. Keeping You Informed My ongoing goal is to report back to our community. I, personally, get frustrated when ofhcials appear and then we never hear from them again. I want to be accessible and will do my best to keep

you updated and informed. Update on our Issues "Doing better with what we have." OHA has been reorganizing its stafīing and operations. Trustees are currently reviewing the budget for OHA administration, as recommended by the CEO. I am making every effort to get my arms around how the dollars are being spent. I'm especially concerned with where is there redundancy? Are

we overstaffed? Are we understaffed in certain areas? If you have any insights about this, let me knowl

"Supporting Moloka'i." I am dedicated to having OHA's projects, such as refurbishing our ofhce, serviced and aecomplished by our on-island labor force. Our community has a solid, skilled and knowledgeable work force to engage with OHA to meet its improved vision as we move into a new era of service. OHA wants to pay fairly and reasonably and avoid inflated costs that take dollars away from beneficiary funds. ■ Let me know about your experiences. Have you tried to access the procurement process for goods and services and been discouraged? Contact my Trustee Aide (pohair@oha.org) and let me know if you want to share your manao.

Luana Alapa Trustee, Moloka'i and Lāna'i

Exterior and interior views of OHA's Moloka'i office at the Kolana 'Oiwi Center. - Photos: Courtesy