According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Native Hawaiians account for 0.1 percent of
the U.S. population. You can thus imagine the challenge of preserving Hawaiian traditions
and practices – a challenge that nonprofit organization Hui Mauli Ola has
gladly accepted.
“It’s all about keeping Hawaiian traditions alive,” says Keola
Chan, Hui Mauli Ola’s founder. The organization focuses on approaching Hawai‘i’s
health and wellness issues from a Native Hawaiian perspective. “It’s
about doing something for our island and our people – and not just Hawaiians,
but our community as a whole. We want to empower people by giving them the tools
to be healthy.”
Hui Mauli Ola teaches health practitioners and community leaders ways to integrate
Hawaiian cultural values and medicinal practices into modern lifestyles. “We’ve
worked with nurses to teach them Hawaiian ways to make patients more comfortable
– like working with more aloha,” says Chan. “We’ve helped
develop school physical education programs and are about to implement Hawaiian
sports therapy with a local football team using Hawaiian methods like lomi lomi
massage.”
Hui Mauli Ola isn’t just for Hawaiians. “We want anyone to come,”
says Chan. “We want to be like a family and just learn from each other, then
go out and help the community.”
Interested volunteers can email Chan
or call him at (808) 255-6200 on ‘Oahu.