The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Budget and Finance Committee on Oct. 15, 2025 approved a series of event sponsorship requests from Hawaiian cultural and community organizations for events scheduled in early 2026, while deferring one application for additional vetting.

Committee members heard in-person and virtual testimony from representatives of community organizations and considered staff recommendations before voting. Trustees repeatedly emphasized cultural value and community impact when supporting requests and asked administration to track the outreach and in-kind benefits OHA receives for its sponsorships.

The committee approved sponsorship requests that included cultural festivals, Makahiki events, a Brighter Futures Gala fundraiser and a 5K language event. Testimony described events as intergenerational cultural gatherings, school partnerships and fundraisers for homelessness services and local stewardship. Several testifiers described programming that involved schools, kupuna and cultural practitioners and emphasized the role of the events in language and cultural continuity.

The committee deferred one application — a local Makahiki event that had scored just below thresholds for higher funding — asking staff to bring updated scoring and administrative recommendations to the Oct. 29 committee meeting so trustees could consider a larger award. Trustees also requested staff produce a simple tracking spreadsheet listing each sponsored event, the in-kind benefits (tables, speaking slots, logo placement), and recommended OHA representatives so the agency can better realize the outreach value tied to each sponsorship.

Votes at a glance
- BF25-86: Kamalakai Makahiki Inc., “Ka Molokai Makahiki 2026,” Jan. 22–24, 2026 — requested $11,250; approved after testimony from Dr. Pula Malima, board president of Kamalakai Makahiki.
- BF25-87: Learning Center / Makahiki Makapole, Jan. 31, 2026 — requested $5,500; deferred to Oct. 29, 2025 for re-scoring and additional justification (trustees asked staff for updated evaluation forms).
- BF25-88: The Kohala Center Inc., “La Kalo” (Molokai), Jan. 31, 2026 — requested $11,250; approved following testimony describing native food-forest and cultural stewardship activities.
- BF25-89: Family Promise of Hawai‘i, “Brighter Futures Gala,” Feb. 12, 2026 — requested $10,000; approved. Family Promise clarified the gala is a donor fundraiser; the organization agreed to add an opportunity for an OHA speaker.
- BF25-90: Pacific Whale Foundation, “Mālama I Nā Kohala” (Feb. 2026) — requested $7,000; approved. The foundation described research, education and community engagement components.
- BF25-91: OLA (Ola 5K), Feb. 22, 2026 — requested $10,000; approved after testimony on language-normalization goals and community immersion activities for Hawaiian Language Month.
- BF25-92: Nurture Cultivate Inc., “Panina Makahiki,” Feb. 28, 2026 — requested $15,000; approved. Testimony described Hawaiian-language immersion activities and cultural practitioners participating at Turtle Bay.
- BF25-93: Friends of King Kaumuali‘i, “Honoring Ancestors and Planting the Future,” Mar. 6–1?, 2026 — requested $14,400; approved. Testimony described community healing, resource tables and native plant restoration at Pa‘ula‘ula (Fort Elizabeth) sites on Kaua‘i.
- BF25-94: Hoʻʻolehua Homesteaders Association, Prince Kūhiō play and lu‘au (Moloka‘i), Mar. 14, 2026 — requested $5,000; approved.
- BF25-95: Wai‘anae Coast Community Foundation, Prince Kūhiō Kalani‘ōpu‘u Festival, Mar. 21, 2026 — requested $15,000; approved.

Why it matters
The sponsorships fund gatherings that trustees and presenters said support cultural continuity, community cohesion and locally rooted services (such as homelessness prevention and environmental education). Trustees asked staff to document the specific public-facing deliverables (speaking slots, tables, logo usage, registration tables) so OHA can track the agency’s visibility and outreach benefits tied to each monetary award.

What trustees asked staff to do next
Trustees requested that grants and community-engagement staff: (1) deliver updated scoring sheets for any deferred items by Oct. 29, (2) prepare a living spreadsheet that lists each sponsored event, the exact in-kind deliverables requested and promised by recipients and (3) propose a plan to allocate trustee or staff representation at selected events so OHA’s presence is consistent with sponsorship commitments.

Evidence supporting this report
Committee discussion and the reader for BF25-86 opened the sponsorship series; multiple community testifiers provided testimony across the subsequent agenda items, and the final trustee remarks summarized the sponsorship package before the committee moved on to other agenda items.