Programs
It started in 1979, on 5 acres of abandoned land owned by the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu. The Wai‘anae RAP Center was developed for high school students that struggled to function in a regular classroom setting. The youth would come to Hoa ‘Āina O Mākaha from Wai‘anae and Nānākuli High School and care for the land with traditional Hawaiian values. Through this initial project, students learned how to nourish themselves by planting seeds of hope and watching their seedlings grow into the programs serving our community today.
Hoa ‘Āina O Mākaha Community Scholarship Fund
We’re excited to announce that we have started a scholarship fund that will be administered through the Hawai'i Community Foundation!
Our Hoa 'Āina O Mākaha Community Scholarship Fund was created to support students from West O‘ahu (Kapolei to Wai'anae) who are pursuing post-secondary education degrees or vocational programs related to health of people, health of ‘āina, and health of community. This scholarship used initial funds from various sources (donations, fundraising, funders) to set up an endowment so that this scholarship can provide funding to eligible West O‘ahu students in perpetuity (forever!). We’re ecstatic to have this scholarship be an integral part of Hoa 'Āina O Mākaha’s work supporting our beloved community! Check out Hawai'i Community Foundation's Scholarship Page for more information about their array of available scholarships (in search bar, type in, Hoa 'Āina O Mākaha, for additional scholarship requirements).
Our Kitchen
During the 2014-2015 school year, through a partnership with our FoodCorps service member, we offered nutrition curriculum and healthy snacks to the Mākaha Elementary students as well as visiting schools.
Below are recipes made with the children from produce grown and harvested at the farm. Come to a U-Pick event or purchase these ingredients at your local super market. Child-approved, healthy, and delicious. Enjoy!
Our daughters absorbed so much knowledge with their experience at Hoa ′Āina O Mākaha. Not every day do you have a kid upset that it’s Friday and it’s going to be three days before they get to go back to the farm to malama the plants and animals. They developed a sense of kuleana when it comes to preservation of the ′āina and moreso, self care with not only healthy diets but also cultivating fruits and vegetables. At the end, they prepared a meal for our Ohana from scratch which was the culmination of a session of learning. We can’t wait to have our girls devote time next summer to share their experiences with the next cohort of keiki mahi′ai. I know the lessons Hoa ′Āina taught our daughters will forever be ingrained in their conscience as they continue to grow.”
– Lorena Magno, Parent
Reflection from the Na Keiki Mahi′ai summer program for grades 3 - 5 (August 2021)