Category: Waiʻanae Moku

On May 1st, Waiʻanae Moku celebrated its second annual Lā Lei (May Day) lei making event—a vibrant and joyful gathering that lasted for seven hours. The space overflowed with generous donations of flowers and ti leaf, allowing students and staff to craft countless varieties of beautiful lei.

More than 40 lei were made for the graduates of Waiʻanae Moku, who were honored at Waiʻanae Moku graduation ceremony taking place the next week. Throughout the day, everyone enjoyed talking story, creating lei, eating ʻono food, and listening to Hawaiian music together.

Lā Lei at Waiʻanae Moku was first started last year by the immediate past Hawaiian and Pacific Resource Librarian, Annemarie Paikai, and the campus extends heartfelt gratitude to her for beginning what they hope will continue as a cherished annual tradition.

Hoʻomaikaʻi to the 2025 Graduates of Waiʻanae Moku Campus!

This year marks the largest graduating class in Waiʻanae Moku’s history, a milestone that fills the campus with immense pride. We are incredibly proud of our graduates and can’t wait to see all the wonderful things they will accomplish in this next chapter of their journeys.

Leeward Library joined the PaCoN Food Biosecurity Program to celebrate Earth Day 2025 on ʻApelila (April) 21st, 2025.

Nā Akua a me Nā Kino Lau Kapu:

At our library table for Earth Day, we highlighted the deep cultural and spiritual connections between Native Hawaiians and the natural world by showcasing akua (Hawaiian gods) and their kino lau, the plant body forms they manifest as in nature. The table featured visual depictions of different deities and plants, such as kalo as a kino lau of Lono, emphasizing the sacred nature of eating in Hawaiian tradition, where consuming a plant means partaking in the body form of a god and ingesting their mana (spiritual life force).

Students and staff were also invited to engage in the Kino Lau Identification Game, where they were challenged to name four different Hawaiian plants that are considered kino lau of Kāne, the akua associated with fresh water, sunlight, forests, and life-giving energy.

Here is a student with their prize for winning the Kino Lau Identification Game.

Mahalo for stopping by our booth!

Mahalo to the PaCoN Food Biosecurity Program for inviting Leeward Library to be part of this meaningful event. It was a wonderful day filled with learning, connection, and celebration of our ʻāina and ancestral knowledge.

Waiʻanae Moku Campus joined the library for the launch of the 50th Anniversary Edition of Historic Waiʻanae: A Place of Kings on Malaki (March) 27th, 2025.

About This Book:

“Historic Waiʻanae: A Place of Kings is more than a history book. Thirty-six months of dedicated work went into the research. Family scrapbooks and the State Archives and museums were searched and researched for every thread that might be used to reweave the fabric of the Waiʻanae story. Hundreds of people gave freely of their time and their memories. The result? A warm personal living history of a very special place.”

Students and Faculty were invited to learn more about the book, which is now available to Leeward Community College through the library catalog. The event highlight different moʻolelo (traditional stories) about Waiʻanae Moku that the book touches upon. Some of those kaleka ʻike (knowledge cards) are included below.

Participants were invited to play a variety of ʻIke Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Knowledge) games about Waiʻanae Moku including "ʻIke ʻOe I Kāu Ahupuaʻa?" (Do You Know Your Ahupuaʻa) where they were challenged to see if they knew the traditional ahupuaʻa within Waiʻanae Moku that they reside and "Aia I Ka Iʻa ʻo ʻAnae?" (Where Is the ʻAnae Fish?) where they were asked to identity the ʻanae fish for which Waiʻanae is named from a variety of native Hawaiian fish images. All were given educational magnets highlighting the ʻike they engaged with pictured below.

To access the Historic Waiʻanae: A Place of Kingʻs 50th Anniversary Edition, both as an audio book and ebook, please scan the QR code below or access it at: https://go.hawaii.edu/Ch8 (Leeward CC Login Required)