Please share one example of an initiative or contribution you have made to improve our community.

Since returning from university, I have engaged in many community issues and organizing projects. This work includes amplifying local organizations and community needs, fighting for the safety of our residents, the protection of our natural and cultural resources and access rights and protecting our home from inappropriate and negatively impactful developments.

Who is the most influential female figure in your life who is not in your family, and why?

It is really difficult to choose a single most influential female figure, as I have been and continue to be surrounded by them. I work for and alongside amazing women, and all three of my “bosses” for my three jobs I have worked in recent years are all inspirational women that have influenced and encouraged me. Since moving home from University I would have to say that Teresa Tico would be one of the most influential women figures in my life. Ms Tico, because her dedication to service and community, her law mind and experience and her commitment to justice has been hugely influential.

What is your vision for Kauaʻi?

My vision for Kauaʻi includes a future where local families can stay and thrive on Kauaʻi rather than struggle to make ends meet. It is one where generational families can stay and those that leave to go to school, are able to return home. I see a better future for Kauaʻi that honors our unique history and culture, while keeping the county country, but still modernizing our infrastructure, housing needs and advancing us in important ways. I see a future with a robust local diversified agriculture sector & strong food security. I see a place that is well cared for, where balanced and thoughtful environmental protection has returned important ecosystem services that increase our health, our resources and communities' resilience. My vision for Kauaʻi is one of thriving small businesses where we have prioritized housing, created solutions to address the systemic drug crisis and strengthened & diversified our economy through lucrative eco based tourism opportunities.

What will be your top three policy priorities if you are elected to Kauaʻi County Council?

Housing & Affordability

Landfill, Solid Waste & Infrastructure Needs

Drug Rehabilitation, Education and Prevention

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, Hawaiʻi is designated as a Health Professional Shortage Area. Only 14.2% of the Mental Health Care need has been met as of September 2021 (HRSA, 2021).

What concrete steps will you take to ensure the mental health of our community is addressed? What can the County do to ensure individuals seeking substance abuse treatment are able to access the care they need?

As a Councilmember I will prioritize finding and allocating funding for programs that exist and partnerships with community organizations doing this work to provide support. I can work with the state representatives to help prioritize funding for mental health providers and substance abuse programs. We need funding and to prioritize creating more availability for detox facilities here in Hawaiʻi, along with long term rehabilitation and reentry programs that support people living in sobriety.

Kauaʻi and other rural areas have elevated rates of youth suicide. 16.6% of our high school students report having attempted suicide. The risk is significantly higher for LGBT teens on Kauaʻi, with 46.9% reporting suicidal thoughts (YRBS, 2021).

A key factor in youth suicide prevention is making sure that every kid has a positive relationship with a caring adult in their life. After-school programs and activities are key strategies to tackling this youth mental health crisis; however, we don’t have nearly enough after-school programs on Kauaʻi to meet the need and few safe spaces where our kids can go.

What can the County do to support the increase of after-school programs, community activities, and safe spaces for our youth?

We need to invest in our children and their future through programs that build platforms for them to build confidence and positive passions. Like many of the issues in our community, we need to prioritize funding for, and partnership with, existing after-school programs, sports and activities that need help to continue and expand. It's critical we support these programs to invest in our future by keeping our kids busy, supported and inspired.

In 2023, there were 488 unhoused people on Kauaʻi, many of whom (27%) are houseless families (PIT, 2023).

What action will you take to address Kauaʻi’s housing crisis for families? 

I will continue to support housing supply increases with complete support for permanently affordable living options across the board. I will continue to support efforts to bring down property taxes for local residents and long term rentals and support subsidies and exemptions to decrease property taxes and keep residents and renters in their homes. In addition to supporting housing first solutions for the houseless community, I will also support an immediate safety solution to allow for a safe place to park and use basic facilities, particularly for families with children living out of their car. This is something that could be done today. I will continue to throw support behind the efforts of Kauai Economic Opportunity and Mana`olana Transitional Shelter Project, the County’s Kealaula Supportive Housing Project located on Pua Loke Street in Līhu‘e and the now Lima Ola Supportive Housing Project which began construction last year in ʻEleʻele.

We’ve talked about housing, childcare, and healthcare as separate topics. If we take a wider view, we can see these issues as interrelated and disproportionately impacting women and girls in our community.

How would you use your role as a community leader to address the impact of systemic injustices so women and keiki can have equal opportunities to live to their fullest potential?

Being a Councilmember and community leader places me in a unique position to help inspire other women to be more politically involved. I intend to encourage and uplift women and youth voices on our Council and work to foster more community outreach and engagement. I want to help encourage and inspire all my many nieces and nephews and these next generations to involve themselves in positively shaping the future. I will be an active part of empowering local communities and raising voices that sometimes go unheard.