Miss Aloha Hula, Faith Kealohapauʻole Paredes of Maui, recognized by Council Resolution
Hula: Faith Kealohapauʻole Paredes. VC: Wendy Osher (7.7.26)
The Maui County Council has passed Resolution No. 26-112 today in honor of Faith Lynn Kealohapauʻole “Aloha” Paredes for her historic achievement as Miss Aloha Hula 2026.
“To be honest, every time someone calls me Miss Aloha Hula, I’m still a little bit shocked… I can’t believe this is real… It’s been such a long dream of mine. So for me to finally be able to be recognized by that title is really something that obviously I don’t take for granted,” said Aloha.
In reflecting on the accomplishment, Aloha said, “This title is just a title. Whether I had it or not, I would still be in hālau, be in hula, and dedicate my life to the continuation of hula. This title just gives it a little bit more of a pizzazz… and gives me a way to be like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I did this… one of my biggest goals in my life,’ but how can I use this title to push forward?'”
On April 9, 2026, the 21-year-old Maui native earned the title at the 63rd Annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo. Competing under the direction of her parents, Nā Kumu Hula Joy Haunani and Brandon ʻIliahi Paredes of Hālau Kekuaokalāʻauʻalaʻiliahi, Aloha also received the prestigious Hawaiian Language Award for her excellence in ʻOlelo Hawaiʻi.
Aloha, a former Miss Keiki Hula (2015) and Kamehameha Schools Maui (2023) graduate, is currently a senior at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire where she is studying cultural anthropology and government.
Aloha took two terms off from college between August and April to prepare for the Merrie Monarch soloist competition. The preparation involved countless nights studying who she is dancing about and for, “and really setting myself up for success, and how I adapt to the challenges of anxiety.”
“I’m very honored and privileged to be recognized,” said Aloha, who thanked her parents for providing guidance and allowing her to showcase their hula lineage. She also extended thanks to her hula brothers and sisters who have provided support along the way; and to the families that provided their time, money and efforts.
“This journey is not easy, and it’s also not cheap. So for a lot of ways, Maui has supported us in giving us the opportunity to go to these competitions and to do well in them. So I’d like to thank all of Maui for that. Maui nō ka ʻoi. (Maui is the best).”
The Council extended its congratulations to Aloha and her family for bringing pride to Maui and continuing the legacy of Hawaiian culture.
Council Chair Alice Lee, who introduced the resolution, expressed gratitude for the Paredes family, acknowledging their generosity, kindness and accomplishments. In addition to the demands of running a hālau, Alohaʻs dad, ʻIliahi is a deputy prosecuting attorney, and Haunani is a longtime employee of the Planning Department.
“I think the crowning glory of this is when your own ʻohana can achieve this level of recognition,” said Council Vice Chair Yuki Lei Sugimura. “I met another Miss Aloha Hula and she said once you become Miss Aloha Hula, you live that for a lifetime.”
ʻIliahi and Haunani share with Aloha and all of their haumana a style of hula that has blossomed from a weaving of two hula traditions. ʻIliahi brings forth the hula traditions of renowned Kumu Hula OBrian Eselu and Thaddius Wilson of Waiʻanae, Oʻahu, while Haunani offers the hula traditions of Kumu Hula Kealiʻi Reichel and Uluwehi Guerrero of Maui. Both ʻIliahi and Haunani were also mentored by Aunty Pat Namaka Bacon and Uncle Nathan Napoka, masters and proponents of traditional hula.
“Iʻm overcome with emotion, standing before you,” said ʻIliahi. “Maui is our home, and our ʻohana feel so blessed to be able to share our talents and our hula with our community. To stand here and to share this moment with our daughter, really does bring us full circle,” he said.
“She comes from a place of love,” Kumu ʻIliahi said of his daughter. “Her name is Kealohapauʻole, which means everlasting love, and that has been the theme of her journey.”
“Kealohapauʻole’s upbringing was shaped by the values of aloha, discipline and deep cultural responsibility,” said her dad, ʻIliahi. “She dances for her parents (us), and Hālau Kekuaokalāʻauʻalaʻiliahi, where she continues to learn that hula is both a sacred inheritance and a lifetime commitment—one rooted in love that endures across generations.”
In 2015, Aloha won the title of Miss Keiki Hula at the Queen Liliʻuokalani Keiki Keiki Competition. At that event, she paid tribute to her great-great grandmother, described by her family as “a kind and gentle soul whose legacy of love continues to guide Kealohapauʻole’s journey.”
With a strong desire to serve and return home, Aloha plans to follow in her father’s footsteps by attending law school. “She aspires to return home to Maui, where she hopes to serve her lāhui (nation), her people with the same everlasting love that defines her name,” said ʻIliahi.
Future plans for Aloha are to first return to school after her hula break. “I want to become a lawyer in the future—get my, JD (Juris Doctor) at a law school, hopefully the one at Mānoa. But I also have plans to become a kumu hula as well. That’s always been a long dream of mine. So that’s my next step on the road,” said Aloha.
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD“We are extremely proud of her in balancing her culture, and yet stepping into the East Coast and being herself,” said her mom, Haunani. “Through all the adversity and all the challenges of attending an Ivy League school… every time she comes home, she’s so grateful for the warmth—not just of the sun—but the warmth of the people and the comfort of being home.”
“Faith carries forward our full lineages with humility and gratitude. Grounded in her roots and guided by her kuleana, she dances to honor the past, uplift the present, and prepare for the future. One day, Kealohapauʻole will assume the responsibilities of leading Hālau Kekuaokalāʻauʻalaʻiliahi, continuing a lineage of hula, ʻike (knowledge) and kealohapauʻole (everlasting love), for generations to come—to serve her community here, her lāhui ma Maui nei (here on Maui),” said ʻIliahi.
Certified copies of this resolution were transmitted to the Paredes family, the Governor, the Mayor of Maui, and leadership at both Kamehameha Schools and Dartmouth College.
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