Aloha mai kākou,
As the year draws to a close, most resonant is how our OHA ʻohana has moved through a period of transition with clarity, urgency, and a steadfast commitment to our beneficiaries.
Times of change test any organization, yet they reveal who we are at our core. This past quarter, a shared determination emerged to navigate this moment with integrity and accountability. Every accomplishment reflects that kākou spirit: staff rising to meet new demands, leaders working in alignment, and community anchoring us in our purpose.
We are delving in the work of educating and consulting around expiring military leases; not to decide for our people, but to provide beneficiaries with historical grounding, legal context, and space to engage in honest dialogue.
OHA is entrusted to steward and advocate for these crown and government lands. Safeguarding them is a duty we discharge with vigilance. What encourages me is the depth and courage of our community’s engagement, bringing manaʻo that is informed and rooted in aloha ʻāina.
Concurrently, OHA rapidly mobilized $6.1 million in emergency relief for an anticipated 14,000 beneficiaries. Many households would have otherwise fallen through state program gaps. Our teams worked with intention, ensuring families had support when they needed it, not after the crisis passed.
This quarter also brought our staff onto OHA’s legacy lands, guided by community stewards whose labor protects wahi pana many of us only read about. These huakaʻi offer more than team building; they remind us that our work is never abstract. It lives in place, in lineages, and in responsibilities that transcend job titles and span generations, connecting us to something larger than ourselves.
Agency-wide professional development remains a priority, strengthening and unifying those called to serve. OHA continues to cultivate a workplace where people can flourish by securing living wages, advancing income equity, expanding paid family leave, broadening telework, and establishing mobile satellite offices.
Updates to bylaws, governance policies, and delegations of authority reflect transparency, fiduciary integrity, and our ongoing embrace of the Mana i Mauli Ola values we champion.
Perhaps most visible was OHA’s presence in the community, from conventions here and on the continent to week-long roundtables across Moku o Keawe. Everywhere we went we listened for truth, not confirmation. We showed up grounded in our mission, understanding that abundance means nothing unless shared, and that focus, discipline, and selfless service allow our work to thrive amid noise and challenges.
There is still much work ahead: educating our people; protecting our lands and waters; expanding access to resources; strengthening civic engagement; and building pilina across generations and communities.
If our kūpuna could see the resilience, growing capacity, and aloha carrying us through this quarter I believe they’d be proud – not because our work is finished, but because we have not abandoned the path they cleared for us. Wherever we are, whatever titles we hold, we will continue to walk that path together into 2026 and beyond.
Mahalo nui,
Summer Lee Haunani Sylva
Ka Pouhana Kūikawā
Interim Chief Executive Officer
