For more than three centuries, Native Hawaiians have cultivated enduring relationships with the Indigenous lands and peoples of Turtle Island. Today, Native Hawaiians and Native American communities continue to assert visibility, kinship, and kuleana  (stewardship) to the lands now governed as the United States of America. "As Pacific Islanders, our connection to the ocean (kai) travels with us, shaping our identities, responsibilities, and ways of being no matter where we reside." - Leialoha Ka'ula, KALO executive director. 

This panel discussion in partnership with KALO brings together Native Hawaiians who, though displaced from Hawaii, now call Oregon home. Across generations, this lahui (community) has rooted itself in the Pacific Northwest, sustaining culture, community, and 'ike (knowing) despite limited access to Hawaiian cultural resources. Through this gathering, KALO members will talk story, honor the voices of kupuna (ancestors), reflect on lived realities of the present, and envision pathways forward for future generations. Join us for a discussion to make meaning and create new narratives of belonging, resilience, and continuity.

Leialoha Ka'ula is a Native Hawaiian community leader, cultural practitioner, and organizer based in the Pacific Northwest. She is an active member of Ka 'Aha Lahui O 'Olekona (KALO), where her work centers on 'ike kupuna, cultural continuity, and building pathways for Native Hawaiian families living away from Hawaii. Rooted in values of kuleana, pilina, and malama 'aina, Leialoha is deeply committed to intergenerational education and community-based cultural programming. She has played a key role in developing initiatives that uplift 'ike Hawaii, support youth leadership, and strengthen relationships between Native Hawaiian and Indigenous communities of Turtle Island. Her work often bridges past, present, and future, honoring ancestral knowledge while creating space for new stories and leadership to emerge. Through program development, storytelling, and strategic planning, Leialoha works to ensure that Native Hawaiians in the diaspora remain connected to culture, community, and one another, fostering resilience and belonging across generations.

Louise Wilmes is a Native Hawaiian and a proud member of the Otoe-Missouria Indian Tribe, born and raised on O'ahu and a graduate of Kamehameha Schools. For more than forty years, she carried the spirit of aloha into Oregon classrooms, dedicating her career to nurturing young learners and advocating for Indigenous students and families. Louise served the Beaverton School District as an elementary educator teaching grades K-6 and later as the Title VI Indian Education Coordinator, where she worked tirelessly to uplift Native students, strengthen cultural identity, and advance educational equity. Her leadership and advocacy created lasting impacts for Indigenous communities within the school system. After retiring from public education, Wilmes continues her lifelong commitment to culture and community. In 2019, she joined Ka 'Aha Lahui O 'Olekona (KALO), remaining deeply connected to her Native Hawaiian heritage while fostering intergenerational relationships in the Pacific Northwest. She holds degrees from Pacific University and George Fox University, and remains a respected educator, mentor, and cultural bearer whose life's work reflects service, aloha, and kuleana.

Toni Iwalani Fujiwara is a first-generation Native Hawaiian born on Moku Honu, with ancestral roots in He'eia, O'ahu, and multigenerational ties to Southeast Portland. She was born in Charlotte, North Carolina and later raised in Oregon, where she attended Sandy High School after her family relocated to Sandy. Growing up on Indigenous lands once stewarded by the Clackamas people, near Wy'east and the Sandy River, deeply shaped her understanding of place and responsibility. She was raised largely disconnected from her Native Hawaiian culture, language, and 'ohana, Fujiwara carried a lifelong sense of longing that later informed her commitment to community, belonging, and cultural reconnection. She spent nearly two decades working in education, supporting youth and communities of higher promise, with a focus on empowering Pacific Islander and Indigenous students through relationship-centered and youth-led approaches. In January 2025, Fujiwara was introduced to Ka 'Aha Lahui O 'Olekona (KALO), where she began reconnecting with her culture through Papa 'Olelo Hawaii, foundational cultural practices, and working in the mala tending kalo and caring for kupuna. As she enters this new chapter, Fujiwara is committed to deepening her relationship with 'aina and lahui, leading with aloha, and sharing 'ike with others seeking healing, connection, and a sense of belonging.

Nohea'ililani Waiwai'ole (she/they/'oia) is the hiapo of the third generation of her 'ohana born into the Hawaiian diaspora and settled along the west coast of Moku Honu. She is mixed Kanaka Maoli and white; her paternal great-grandfather was born and raised in Pearl City and was displaced from Hawaii during World War II. Raised primarily in rural Oregon, with parts of her childhood spent in Hilo, Waiwai'ole has, since 2019, lived on the occupied lands of the Multnomah, Chinook, Clackamas, Cowlitz, and Kalapuya peoples in what is now known as Portland, Oregon. Most important to Waiwai'ole is spending time with her daughter and 'ohana, engaging in cultural reclamation through practices such as hula and 'olelo Hawaii, and organizing and strategizing toward collective liberation and Kanaka sovereignty.

Enjoy 15% off your hotel stay on History Pub nights! Show your ticket at check-in.

These events are open to everyone interested in Pacific Northwest history, and beyond! Often co-sponsored by local or state historical and civic organizations, we bring you experts, scholars, first-person experiencers, historians and documentaries expounding on topics from indigenous history to the birth of Portland, early explorers to hop growing, and on and on! It's like being back in the classroom - except this time you get to settle into comfortable seats and enjoy a drink or two with dinner while you listen and learn.

This event is eligible for a History Pub Stamp