Hui Mo'olelo: Hui Makua
Our Legacy of Storytelling
A brief summary of the trends and values driving our work.
Since our inception, Maui Public Art Corps has focused on Deep Listening as a form of community service. Our work began with a realization that public art is only successful when it acts as a mirror for the community’s own stories. By partnering with the County of Maui, cultural consultant Sissy Lake-Farm and hundreds of additional partners in recent years, we have transitioned from "making art" to safeguarding moʻolelo. We do this through a program entitled Hui Mo‘olelo.
The trend in our collaborative work has moved steadily toward intergenerational healing. From our initial project with Leilehua Yuen, the Lei Pua ʻAla project’s focus on inclusion to the Hui Moʻolelo: Lahaina efforts following the wildfires, we have seen that the act of telling a story is a path to resilience. This latest cohort continues that trajectory, honoring the Hawaiian cultural value of Hoʻoilina (Legacy), the understanding that we are the bridge between the wisdom of our ancestors and the potential of our descendants.
A brief summary of the trends and values driving our work.
Since our inception, Maui Public Art Corps has focused on Deep Listening as a form of community service. Our work began with a realization that public art is only successful when it acts as a mirror for the community’s own stories. By partnering with the County of Maui, cultural consultant Sissy Lake-Farm and hundreds of additional partners in recent years, we have transitioned from "making art" to safeguarding moʻolelo. We do this through a program entitled Hui Mo‘olelo.
The trend in our collaborative work has moved steadily toward intergenerational healing. From our initial project with Leilehua Yuen, the Lei Pua ʻAla project’s focus on inclusion to the Hui Moʻolelo: Lahaina efforts following the wildfires, we have seen that the act of telling a story is a path to resilience. This latest cohort continues that trajectory, honoring the Hawaiian cultural value of Hoʻoilina (Legacy), the understanding that we are the bridge between the wisdom of our ancestors and the potential of our descendants.
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A) About
Stories of Place and Promise: Our 8th Hui Moʻolelo ("gathering of stories") cohort is in collaboration with Hui Makua, a community of parents, grandparents, and families dedicated to the gift of the Hawaiian language. This cohort is an invitation to celebrate the beauty and the kuleana of raising our children within a rich cultural legacy. Our focus is twofold: we seek stories deeply rooted in a Maui County sense of place, and we invite you to "Phone the Future." In addition to honoring where we have been, we want to speak faith into our future; telling our keiki exactly what we hope for them and the world they will inherit.
Our Core Intentions: This partnership serves three primary goals rooted in the spirit of community service:
The Moʻolelo is the Treasure: In public art work, we often focus on the physical installation. However, for this cohort, we are grounding ourselves in a core principle: the story is the treasure. By recording your talk-story, you are contributing to a living archive that safeguards local knowledge. While these recordings often provide inspiration for future public art projects, the story itself is the primary outcome. These voices ensure that any future celebrations of place through our work are guided by the authentic experiences of our families. We welcome stories rooted anywhere across Maui County, including Lānaʻi, Moloka‘i, and Kahoʻolawe, and are particularly focused on Wailuku, Hana, Lahaina and Pāʻia for 2026 project work.
Our Core Intentions: This partnership serves three primary goals rooted in the spirit of community service:
- Intergenerational Connection: To capture authentic moments of connection between generations.
- Cultural Stewardship: To ensure local narratives and cultural heritage are recorded and passed down, fostering a deep sense of identity and belonging for all who call Maui home.
- Educational Depth: To connect residents and visitors more deeply with accurate, place-based accounts of Maui County history and culture.
The Moʻolelo is the Treasure: In public art work, we often focus on the physical installation. However, for this cohort, we are grounding ourselves in a core principle: the story is the treasure. By recording your talk-story, you are contributing to a living archive that safeguards local knowledge. While these recordings often provide inspiration for future public art projects, the story itself is the primary outcome. These voices ensure that any future celebrations of place through our work are guided by the authentic experiences of our families. We welcome stories rooted anywhere across Maui County, including Lānaʻi, Moloka‘i, and Kahoʻolawe, and are particularly focused on Wailuku, Hana, Lahaina and Pāʻia for 2026 project work.
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What's Ahead
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Why It Matters
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B) Hui Makua Cohort
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Name and preferred title
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Name and preferred title
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Name and preferred title
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Name and preferred title ... we are aiming for a total of 12'ish cohort members here
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Self-Video Story Submissions
Haʻawina will be assigned in Session #2; DIY's are encouraged to participate as well!
C) Talk-Story Format
Our process was designed with the help of StoryCorps DIY best practices and further guided by long-standing cultural practitioners, historians, and community leaders including oral historians Kepā and Onaona Maly, artist Leilehua Yuen, and past Hui Mo‘olelo facilitators Kalapana Kollars, Anuhea Yagi, Sissy Lake-Farm and Kaliko Storer.
NOTES:
If you opt to work with Maui Public Art Corps as recording technician, you only need to show up with your questions/ prompts and perhaps a small makana for your partner, if you feel compelled to bring one. If you opt to DIY, you'll additionally need to follow each step listed in the "interview day" pdf below (READ). Let us know how you and your partner feel most comfortable!
Through our collaboration with StoryCorps, all talk-story recordings are published to our StoryCorps Archive and preserved at the American Folklife Center (AFC) of the Library of Congress, ensuring their availability to future generations. These recordings are processed and securely stored by StoryCorps before being transferred to the Library of Congress for long-term preservation. You can access these interviews through archive.storycorps.org/user/mauipublicart and archive.storycorps.org/user/stba. By participating, we are contributing to a growing national archive that reflects our diverse voices and experiences.
TIPS
How to Participate: DIY Storytelling
We understand that life as a parent is a balancing act. If you cannot join our formal cohort sessions, we invite you to participate through our DIY Storytelling track. This is an open invitation for families to record their own connective moments at home.
To ensure your voice is preserved clearly in our public archive, please follow these simple steps:
- Complete Hui Mo‘olelo workshop series led by Sissy Lake-Farm, through which participants create their own micro-storytelling presentation (Past samples)
- Work with Maui Public Art Corps to schedule the best date & time to meet with your intergenerational talk-story partner at Lokahi Pacific, located at 1935 Main Street in Wailuku on the second floor (elevator on site/ guest parking in the rear), which is available Tues - Fri between 10 AM - 4 PM through March 6, 2026. If you prefer to record elsewhere, we can lend you our sound equipment.
- Each talk-story partner should pre-select 4-5 of the "Sample Questions & Prompts" below, or create your own prior to your scheduled recording. Feel free to go “off-script” and ask follow-up questions. Our goal is to gather, honor, and amplify stories rooted in Maui sense of place — connecting past, present, and future through deep listening, intergenerational dialogue, and community trust.
- Once settled into the recording space, note your starting time. In consideration of "bio breaks" and continuity, we have learned that 40-minutes is an ideal length of time to aim for. Please silence all phones. Now we'll/ you'll click record. Start by stating your name, age, the date, and the place where you are - and let your match do the same. Then begin with your list of prompts.
- When pau, sign the consent forms & be sure to capture a photo of the two of you together to send to us with your recording.
NOTES:
If you opt to work with Maui Public Art Corps as recording technician, you only need to show up with your questions/ prompts and perhaps a small makana for your partner, if you feel compelled to bring one. If you opt to DIY, you'll additionally need to follow each step listed in the "interview day" pdf below (READ). Let us know how you and your partner feel most comfortable!
Through our collaboration with StoryCorps, all talk-story recordings are published to our StoryCorps Archive and preserved at the American Folklife Center (AFC) of the Library of Congress, ensuring their availability to future generations. These recordings are processed and securely stored by StoryCorps before being transferred to the Library of Congress for long-term preservation. You can access these interviews through archive.storycorps.org/user/mauipublicart and archive.storycorps.org/user/stba. By participating, we are contributing to a growing national archive that reflects our diverse voices and experiences.
TIPS
- Let silence work—give time for reflection.
- Ask follow-up questions when something sparks curiosity.
- Keep focus on place + person + cultural context.
- Thank your partner sincerely at the end, and share how their story will be preserved.
- Engaging participants with respect (READ)
- The interview day (READ)
How to Participate: DIY Storytelling
We understand that life as a parent is a balancing act. If you cannot join our formal cohort sessions, we invite you to participate through our DIY Storytelling track. This is an open invitation for families to record their own connective moments at home.
To ensure your voice is preserved clearly in our public archive, please follow these simple steps:
- Format: We accept .mp3 or .m4a files.
- Environment: Find a quiet, "soft" room (with rugs or curtains) to minimize echoes. Avoid wind, background noise or interruptions. (We like to use a hand written "recording in progress" sign, where useful)!
- Consent: Every voice on the recording must have a signed Maui Public Art Corps Release Form.
- Borrow Gear: You can borrow our professional Movo PM20-S smartphone mic system for a "plug-and-play" experience. Simply plug the connector into your smartphone's audio port and clip the microphones to the speakers. Open your "Voice Memos" or "Voice Recorder" app. Always perform a test recording first: Record 10 seconds of "testing, 1, 2, 3," then unplug the mic and play it back to ensure the audio is crisp and clear. When pau, send Release Form + a photo of the two of you together + your audio recording to Kelly White to include in our public archive.
Sample Questions & Prompts
- When you close your eyes and think of home on Maui, what are the first sounds or smells you encounter?
- Is there a specific tree, rock, or stretch of water that feels like a family member to you?
- What is a "hidden gem" of your town that tourists never see, but defines the place for you?
- How has your favorite Maui County place changed since you were a child?
- If this land could speak, what story would it tell about your family?
- What was the moment you decided to choose a Hawaiian immersion path for your family?
- What is your favorite word or phrase in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi that doesn't have a perfect English translation?
- How does speaking the language of this land change the way you move through it?
- What has been the most challenging part of this journey, and what keeps you committed?
- Describe a moment where you heard your child speak or chant and felt a deep sense of "rightness."
- What is one value that you hope is "bone-deep" for your grandchildren?
- If you could send a "voice message" to your family 100 years from now, what would you say?
- What is a struggle we face today that you hope is a distant memory for the next generation?
- What do you hope the coastline (or other area of your choice) of Maui looks like when your keiki are elders?
- What "old way" of doing things do you hope your children never forget?
- How has the Hui Makua community supported you during the "wackadoodles" seasons of life? ;)
- Who is a person in your community who represents the "heart" of your place?
- What does "success" look like for the next generation of Maui families?
- How do we take care of one another when times are hard?
- What is a story of hope you want to plant today so it can grow for the future?
D) Project Timeline
- 11/26/25: Sissy, Anu and Kelly meet (in-person) to brainstorm on Hui Mo‘olelo next steps, evolution, and cohort #8 recommendations
- 12/22/25: Sissy, Anu and Kelly meet (via Zoom) to review cohort #8 (Hui Makua) values, connection to Ho‘omau (before/ during/ after), needs from a public art program (public funding + grants) standpoint, and prospective Hui Mo‘olelo Zoom schedule
- Jan 2026: Anu proposes Hui Mo‘olelo: Hui Makua to Ho‘omau chairs and makua; Kelly & Sissy to support with any Q&A/ context requirements
- Feb 2026: Three 2-hour Zoom sessions led by kumu Sissy Lake-Farm (Maui Public Art Corps' Hui Mo‘olelo program) + supported by Anu Yahi (Hui Makua) + hosted by Kelly White (Maui Public Art Corps + County of Maui Public Art Program)
- Immediately following: Intergenerational recordings submissions (Goal: 10-12 by March 6)
- March - April: Call for Artist Proposals (recordings period may continue; this is not a deadline but rather a benchmark that Kelly & Sissy need to hit for other project commitments).
- 10/31/26: Installation deadline for Art of Play installations at Hana, Lahaina and Wailuku public parks (NOTE: these may be inspired by the work completed through Hui Mo‘olelo: Hui Makua, if the stars align).