Maui News

Catholic Charities Hawai‘i has named Denise Iseri-Matsubara as executive director of Catholic Charities Housing Development Corp.

The Sierra Club Maui Group will host an evening of community support and environmental stewardship at The Flatbread Company in Pāʻia on Tuesday, Nov. 26 from 5 to 9 p.m.

The Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunset announced Monday that it successfully secured a $96,000 grant from the Rotary D5000 Foundation’s Maui Fires Relief Fund, which they have used to aid the Spirit Horse Ranch, located in Kula.

AAA Hawaiʻi is projecting 14.2 million residents of Hawaiʻi, Alaska, California, Oregon and Washington will head 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday travel period, a 2.8% increase over last year’s record number of travelers.

Krank Cycles Maui, in partnership with Jim Falk Motors, invites the community to join the Jim Falk Keiki Christmas Bike Build, Saturday, Nov. 23, at Calvary Central (behind the old sugarcane mill) in Puʻunēnē. Starting at 9 a.m., volunteers will assemble and distribute nearly 500 bicycles to Maui children, focusing on those affected by the Lahaina and Maui wildfires.

According to Hawaiian Community Assets, the Maui unit benefiting from the Ua Hale Aʻaela program has been successfully renovated and is currently in escrow, and will soon be sold to a deserving family. HCA says it is also in escrow to purchase two additional properties in Wailuku, which will become part of the Ua Hale Aʻaela program. It has submitted funding applications to the Maui Strong Fund and Maui County Affordable Housing programs to further the program on Maui.

The Folaumoeloa family became the first tenants of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Kilohana Group Housing on Friday, a long-awaited milestone for Ane, Lafaele and their three children. It marked the end of a nearly 15-month wait since the wildfires of Aug. 8, 2023, destroyed their Lahaina home, along with about 4,000 housing units.

The County of Maui Department of Environmental Management’s Wastewater Reclamation Division announced that it has amended the Sewer Service Status from “red,” which indicates a property does not currently have active sewer service, to “green,” meaning the sewer service is active, for 28 properties in Lahaina including: 25 lots in Kuhua Camp area; and three lots on Lahainaluna Road.

On the next stop of its seven-month journey around the Hawaiian Islands, Hōkūleʻa expects to arrive in Lāʻie tomorrow morning, where it will begin its series of Oʻahu public engagements on the Statewide Pae ʻĀina Voyage.

The Maui Arts & Cultural Center presents a first-time appearance on Maui for Piff The Magic Dragon, a headliner of a successful Las Vegas show for nearly 10 years. As seen on America’s Got Talent and numerous other shows, Piff and his co-star Chihuahua, Mr. Piffles, will bring their one-of-a-kind act to Castle Theater Saturday, March 22, 2025. Tickets go on sale online only at MauiArts.org at 10 a.m. to MACC members Tuesday, Nov. 26 and to the general public Wednesday, Nov. 27.

Kula Elementary School fourth grader, Lacey LaʻIku O Ka La Virginia Mollie Caires, was announced on Nov. 16, as the elementary school level winner of the King Kalākaua Essay Contest organized by The Friends of ʻIolani Palace.

Komar Maui Properties officials are applauding Maui County’s decision to abandon its eminent domain case for its 20-acre property next to the Central Maui Landfill as a final disposal site for wildfire debris.

Night operations and a water service outage are scheduled in Wailuku beginning at 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 22 through 5 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. Work will start at the intersection of Central Avenue and Nani Street, and continue to Mahalani Street, including Lunalilo and Liholiho streets.

Rotarians and their supporters set up collection stations at four Safeway locations across the island on Saturday, Nov. 16, successfully gathering nearly 1,700 pounds of food and raising over $3,900 in donations, which combined will provide 17,006 meals to island residents in need.

Hale Kau Kau welcomes anyone in need of a meal for Thanksgiving to a distribution event from noon to 2 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 28 at St. Theresa Church in Kīhei. Organizers say all are welcome, no questions asked. Meals will be available at the church’s Stawasz Hall. For more information, call 808-875-8754.

In the first round of the Lahaina HERO Awards program, 300 Lahaina teachers, staff members and administrators will receive a monetary award ranging from $2,500 for eligible full time salaried employees to around $1,000 for part time staff and casual employees. The governor also announced a $20M Lahaina workforce housing project to build a 47 unit rental complex at Lahainaluna High School.

Motorists on Maui are advised of potential traffic delays beginning Monday, Nov. 25, as crews check pavement quality on 13 state highways on the island. The data will allow HDOT to be proactive in repairing roads before they show signs of distress.

The Kīhei Aquatic Center training pool and Kōkua Pool in Kahului will be closed for deep cleaning of the pools’ surfaces from Nov. 24, 2024 to Dec.1, 2024. Coach Soichi Sakamoto Pool in Wailuku will be closed from 9 a.m. to noon on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, for physical swim testing for the recruitment of pool guard trainees.

As the country celebrates National Rural Health Month this week, US Rep. Jill Tokuda (HI-02), co-chair of the Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus, led several bipartisan efforts to recognize the importance of rural health care, medical providers, and the communities they serve. 

Queen Kaʻahumanu Center invites the public to gear up for the holidays on Black Friday, Nov. 29, with giveaways, performances, and exclusive shopping opportunities.