Tony Chance
Founder & CEO |
Retired United States Navy Seabee Senior Chief
Currently serving as a social worker serving homeless veterans Masterʻs of Social Work, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa "As a resident of `Ewa, I walk my dogs along the shoreline of Pu`uloa every morning. When I see rubbish, weeds and brown water I knew I had been called to do something about it. As a Navy veteran, I believe my mission continues - to heal traumatized land and traumatized people." |
Sandy Ward
Co-Founder & Executive Director Mālama Pu'uloa Program |
Retired public teacher with 38 years of experience connecting students to place-based, project-based, inquiry-based learning.
Masterʻs of Science Education, Lewis and Clark College "As someone who was a teacher in Mililani 25 years, and now loving the opportunity to work with youth all over `Ewa, I want to create pathways to a better future for them! I believe with all my heart in a future of restored abundance for Pu`uloa and the surrounding `Ewa Moku and itʻs an honor to help grow the next generation of empowered change-makers!" |
Kyleena Simeona
Community Relations Coordinator |
" E lawe i ke aʻo a mālama, a e ʻoi mau ka naʻauao” He who takes his teaching and applies them increases his knowledge
-Mary Kawena Pukui, ʻŌlelo Noʻeau No. 328 "Born and raised in majestic Kāne‘ohe, in the beautiful ‘ili of ‘Āhuimanu. I have had the privilege of participating in hana from mauka to makai by engaging kupuna and community groups who are actively preserving and restoring these sustainable systems that have been here for generations. I strongly believe that I was made by lāhui, with lāhui, FOR lāhui. Newly residing in Mānana, I wanted to give back to the ‘āina of that which will sustain future generations. When Sandy put out the kahea for my position, I felt in my na‘au that my kuleana would be found in Kaihuopala‘ai. Mālama Pu‘uloa, has made it evident to me that with the power of kākou and our ability to bridge ‘ike kupuna to our keiki we can heal the land, the sea and the people of this special place. I look forward to serving our community and amplifying the ideas and voices of all who envision the beauty, sustainability and abundance of Ke Awalau o Pu‘uloa." |
Evan Uiagalelei
Lead Restoration Field Tech |
Graduate Waipahu High School, Academy of Natural Resources
"I was drawn to working on restoring `āina right down the street from where I grew up in Waipahu and I love learning new things about this place (Honouliuli, Pu`uloa and `Ewa) every day. I didnʻt grow up with stories of Pu`uloa - especially before it was a place known for the military and am grateful to Kumu Sanborn (of Waipahu HS) for sharing mo`olelo - like that of Ka`ahupahau our guardian shark. Iʻm especially motivated by the history of Pu`uloa, its former abundance and exploring how we can bring that back...how we can merge knowledge from the past and present to make things better for the future." |
Stephen Sheeter
Restoration Field Tech |
Wildlife photographer and wilderness man.
Currently enrolled at UH West Oʻahu for Emergency Management and Disaster Preparedness Army Infantry Veteran Stephen grew up on a ranch in central California. He has a passion for restoring the natural balance and spent a lot of time doing invasive species removal in San Joaquin River. "I think it is important to help reverse the traumas of the past. I believe that you have to change things for the better with the little time you have. I got involved with Mālama Puʻuloa by fate. Sandy and Ati did a presentation at my biology class that caught my interest. I came the following Saturday to volunteer and got hooked. I just kept coming back… they couldn’t get rid of me so they just had to give me a job." And weʻre grateful to have him on board! |
Nick Rothstein
Restoration Field Tech |
Currently enrolled as a Biology major at HPU and proud graduate of James Campbell High School
Born and raised in `Ewa, Nick grew up just down the street from Kapapapuhi Point Park. As a child, he was not allowed to go to that park because it was too dangerous and water was filthy. "I have always volunteered with similar projects around the island since I was little...I think itʻs a shame that many of our youth are more busy posting on social media talking about taking care of the `āina but not doing anything about it. Everyone is fast to point out the problems, but offer no solutions. I believe in taking initiative, taking action and working on solutions. I want to be a doer, not a talker. I enjoy being out in the field doing work, collecting data and educating volunteers." |
Garrett Dejesus
Restoration Field Tech |
"I am a Koa Aloha ‘Āina, artist, and dog lover originally from Virginia. As I grew, I fell in love with volunteer work, learning about nature, and deepening my connection to the Earth and these passions have followed me into adulthood.
I moved to O’ahu to study environmental science and found joy in tending to ‘Āina through Kupu Hawaiian Youth Conservation Corp. There, I learned about Mālama Pu’uloa and was incredibly inspired by the community involvement, hard work, and vast amount of hope at Kapapapuhi. I look forward to serving the ‘Āina while engaging our community to join me in deepening our connection to O’ahu/ Earth. With time and effort, I envision Pu’uloa’s return to abundance through art, mālama, and food." |
Brailey Hirose-Hulbert
Restoration Field Crew Lead |
"I was born and raised in Ewa Beach, went to Punahou School and attended the University of California Los Angeles studying both History and Art History. I came to this restoration work through time with my family's tree trimming company. It is through that lens of relationship and constancy that I've come to deeply respect the importance of where one works. I hope to learn the trails of Ka`ahupāhau and see where the tide goes."
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Kaikaina Kenike Allen
Restoration Field Crew |
"I first was introduced to Mālama Pu'uloa through a community work day at the site near Lehua elementary in Mānana. I spent a large part of my childhood growing up alongside the trail in the Pu'uloa area and always felt disheartened by the large amount of invasive plants that overgrew and obstructed the path and made it difficult to connect fully to the 'āina. I felt a call to restore and work with the land that raised me and supported me through difficult times in my life. Now my hope is to learn how to work with community where the work we do together can be reflected in the land that we steward to restore harmony to all parties involved."
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Megan Riddle
Restoration Field Crew |
Student, University of Hawai`i, Leeward Community College
"Born and raised in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains (North Carolina), I witnessed the final chapters of what was a flourishing generational farm & tractor supply / repair business. My earliest memories are climbing Massey Fergusons in my great-grandparents shop and being outside, ecstatic to pick strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, muscudines, apples, peaches and more. I also recall a lot of unpaid child labor. (Joking!) When my great-grandparents passed, the farmlands and business were sold and divided; the family scattered. By adulthood I was disconnected with practice and purpose. In 2020, I moved to Oahu and expererienced trauma. My children and I recieved shelter in 'Ewa and from there, I began a radical journey of hoʻōla & ho'oponopono. I was rebuilding my relationship with my self and with The Spirit; but something was missing. My relationship with ʻāina! [cue the drums for Malama Pu'uloa!] 'Ewa was that safe space for me. I never thought I would be in the position to boldly share this with you, but one day, I was outside with my young daughter and newborn son; I prayed and I made a promise to the land in 'Ewa that I would care for it, for protecting us. This is me keeping that promise." |
KianaRose Kuʻualoha Dulan
Restoration Field Crew |
Graduate of Kamehameha High School - Kapālama, LCC (Liberal Arts), now currently going to UHWO for a Bachelorʻs in Sustainable Community Food Systems and a certificate in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi.
"Aloha mai kākou! ʻO KianaRose Kuʻualoha Dulan koʻu inoa. No Honouliuli mai au ma ke kūlanakauhale ʻo Kapolei. I am here to provide my eventual keiki and mo’opuna a better future. I wish for a place of demilitarized ʻāina momona, where the people upland care for those below them, where we work with the land and not against it, and where we donʻt have to worry about what contaminants are in the fish. I am concerned about the effects of climate change and wonder if mangroves actually do hold a type of mana here that my Filipino ancestors have already recognized." |
Uluwehi Chung
Restoration Field Tech |
Bachelor of Arts, Ethnic Studies, Sociology, University of San Diego
No Kailua i Oʻahualua mai koʻu mau mākua. Ua hānau ʻia au i Kūkanono ma Kailua. Eia naʻe, no Hilo i Hawaiʻinuikuauli mai au. Noho au ma Puʻuloa i Honouliuli. "Nurturing relationships with people, land, and the spiritual realm are necessities to establishing pono (balance, duty, prosperity, goodness). I’ve grown to see how much of a privilege it is to be of Hawai’i. My tether to this pae ‘āina reflects vast abundance, resilience, rooted cultural identity, as well as, colonialism, capitalism and militarized occupation. Like the generations before me, I too, feel the urgency to learn, teach, engage and practice so Hawai’i stays Hawaiian, steered by Hawaiians. Whether on the shores of Kawainui or Keawalauopu’uloa, I hope my presence leaves the soil a little richer, the waters a little cleaner and clearer, and I earn the lessons of our natural resources. E ʻauamo kākou i ke kuleana." |
Jeffrey Pantaleo
Advisory Board |
Archaeologist, U.S. Navy
Masterʻs of Archeology, San Diego State University "I committed to HOH808 and Mālama Pu`uloa because I wish to share my experience in restoring and protecting cultural resources in Pearl Harbor including the restoration of Loko I`a Pa`aiau" (Hawaiian Fishpond)." |
Bert Weeks
Advisory Board |
Scientific Diver and Team Member, Stantec Hawai`i
Masterʻs of Advanced Studies, Marine Biodiversity & Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego "I grew up in Waiau, Pu`uloa but only recently realized its history - how important it was as a resource to the whole island of O`ahu. As a member of the 'Ewa community, I feel a kuleana to take care of a highly damaged ecosytem and return it back to `āina momona." |
Crystal Dombrow
Advisory Board |
Fisheries Economic Specialist, NOAA-SOEST
Masterʻs of Advanced Studies, Marine Biodiversity & Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego "Growing up, I felt deeply connected to the land I live on and to the ocean. I believe we can live in balance with our natural world and thrive. I love that I get to share my values with my community here in Hawai`i and help restore Pu`uloa to her abundant beauty." |
Jonathan Durrett
Advisory Board |
Jonathan S. Durrett is a senior partner of Durrett, Ma & Lang, LLLP, and a lifetime Island resident.
His practice concentrates in real estate transactions, environmental counseling, land use entitlements and exempt organizations. He represents a variety of developers and landowners, as well as financial institutions with interests in Hawaii. He also acts as general counsel to Brigham Young University’s Hawaii campus situated on Oahu’s North Shore. Durrett sits on national committees of the American Bar Association’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section and has served as a court appointed arbitrator since 1987. He is also the Hawaii chapter chair of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society. Jonathan lives in `Ewa on the shore of Pu`uloa and is providing invaluable advice on the development of a regional education center. |