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Uplifting the Hawaiian Community for over eight decades of civic engagement
About
90 Years of Empowerment
The Wai‘anae Hawaiian Civic Club (WHCC) is a Native Hawaiian non-profit 501(c) (3) organization, founded on June 15, 1935. Our founders were residents of the Wai‘anae community who dedicated themselves to the advancement of Native Hawaiians through education and the preservation of our native culture.
ʻŌlelo Waiʻanae
Uplifting the Next Generation
This program supports non-profit organizations and groups in fundraising while promoting ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi within the Waiʻanae moku.
Groups will learn mele, ʻoli, and basic Hawaiian language skills, then submit a video to showcase what they’ve learned.
*Organizations have 4 months from sign-up to complete learning.*
Scholarship
Uplifting the Next Generation
Our civic club maintains a scholarship fund for native Hawaiian high school graduates entering college as well as for other opportunities to uplift the native community.
See our Scholarships page for more information or donate today to make a difference in our lāhui.
Stewardship
Healthy ʻāina means healthy ʻohana
Among our many projects, the Waiʻanae Hawaiian Civic Club stewards the wahi pana, Kūʻilioloa Heiau, at Kaneʻilio. We host regular cleanups and community workdays. Though in the western world, this is called being stewards of the land, we simply think of this as being ʻohana, descendants of it. For kānaka, the land and the people have always been one and we have a kuleana to it as it is a living ancestor.
Maile lau liʻi o Koʻiahi
Fine-leaved maile of Koʻiahi
One of the many mea our community was celebrated for was its fine maile, found in Koʻiahi, the mountains of Waiʻanae. This maile does not grow abundantly or cannot be found at all in other wahi, but it grew profusely in Koʻiahi. The above phrase was often used in songs or chants and is sourced from tutu Pukui's ʻōlelo noʻeau #2075.