The Filipino community organization Kaibigan ng Lāhaina is working to develop a community space for healing, education and agriculture. The 7-acre parcel, leased in a partnership with Maui Land & Pineapple Company, is located just above Honoapiʻilani Highway in Lahaina.
Kaibigan ng Lāhaina Executive Director Eric Arquero said the space will be for West Maui residents to rebuild connection and grow food.
“Our work has always been centered on holistic recovery, holistic well-being for our community,” he told HPR. “So when this opportunity arose for us to be able to open the communal farm space, this is really a way for us to extend our vision of the way that we design our programming so that it would give our people an opportunity to address immediate needs, like food security, means to mental health that's outside of Western practices, in a space that is really our own.
"When I say ours, I mean the community as a whole, for the ability of community members to come, to give and but also to receive whatever knowledge and whatever fruit or harvest that the space will be able to provide.”
Arquero said while the space will be rooted in Filipino values, culture and language, it is open to the entire Lahaina community.
The project is called Kawili, which in Hawaiian means to mix or blend together, and in Ilocano, it means to center or bring home, according to Arquero.
Maui Land & Pineapple Company said in a statement that the agreement aligns with its continued commitment to being a responsible local steward and a partner in Maui’s long-term recovery.
“MLP is honored to partner with Kaibigan as they expand their work to serve all of West Maui,” the company said in a press release. “We recognize that recovery is not linear, and we hope that access to this space provides residents with a supportive environment to heal and rebuild at a pace that feels right for them.”
Kaibigan ng Lāhaina, which was founded in the wake of the wildfire, plans to receive public input on plans for the space before opening it next summer.
