In Hawai’i, the ocean is our playground, a source of food, and a place we go to cleanse and heal. It’s upon all of us to be stewards of the ocean and to treat it with respect. Kahalu’u Bay Education Center (KBEC), established in 2011, serves to educate visitors on “reef etiquette” and our responsibility as kama’aina. This effort helps protect the bay’s fragile ecosystem and helps develop a long-term plan to ensure the bay remains a clean, safe and welcoming place for all.

KBEC, a program of The Kohala Center, is an independent, community-based center for research, conservation, and education. KBEC’s main areas of focus are food, water, place, and people. They turn research and ancestral knowledge into action, so that communities in Hawai‘i and around the world can thrive…ecologically, economically, culturally, and socially.

Join us on Thursday, June 21, from 9 am – 12 pm for a morning of education, physical activity, and more! We will learn proper reef etiquette, the cultural history of the bay and, if the tide is agreeable, we will investigate the marine life in some tide pools. You will also have the option to snorkel for those that are comfortable.

We will host an optional brown-bag lunch talk-story from 12 pm – 1 pm to discuss what we’ve learned as well as learn about KBEC’s Youth Leadership program and the healthy recipe booklet they created.

We hope you will join us!

Join us for a screening of three public service announcement videos created by the Maui Nui Youth Council through their participation in the AKAKU YBEAM: Mobile Journalism for Youth program.

This event is a family style potluck, so please bring a dish to share and come support our youth and our community prevention education efforts!

Here in Hawai’i, we are blessed with fertile lands that provide us with nourishing vegetables, sweet fruits, and fragrant flowers. Eating local means accessing our sustainable, fresh and healthy foods as well as supporting the numerous farmers cultivating our precious land.

Join us on Saturday, July 7, from 9 am-12 pm as we take a tour of Maui’s Upcountry Agriculture. The morning begins at the Upcountry Farmers Market where you can explore locally grown, organic produce and meet the farmers that grow them.

Next, we are off to the Ali’i Kula Lavender Farm for a tour and sampling of fresh lavender. We will end our morning at Kula Country Farms where you can check out their produce and grab a snack. As a group, we will enjoy the gardens and talk story on the experiences of the day and the importance of eating local.

Registration will open soon – watch your inbox if you are on our email list.

Free Zoom Webinar and/or In-person training at Queens Conference Center (QCC).

Helping Hands Hawai‘i administers numerous programs that benefit Hawai‘i’s people especially those programs that help people who are dealing with multiple problems of homelessness, substance abuse and mental illness. Within Helping Hands Hawai‘i are several Behavioral Health Programs including a Housing First Project called Hawai‘i Pathways Project, funded through Hawai‘i Department of Health’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division (ADAD). Helping Hands Hawai‘i uses the housing first model to provide housing first, then implement wrap-around support, treatment, and life skill services that are necessary to help individuals to stabilize, improve their quality of life and maintain housing.

Learning Objectives:

1. Examine the approaches and services use to offer housing first for homeless people in Hawai‘i .
2. Discuss support services, treatments, and life skill services available through Helping Hands Hawai‘i and their partners to help stabilized high-risk individuals.
3. Share resources, tips and success stories from Helping Hands Hawai‘i’s Behavioral Health Programs.

Presenter is Heather Pierucki, MA, LMHC, QMHP
Director of Behavioral Health at Helping Hands Hawai‘i