In 2018, up to 300 houseless people were camping at Waiʻanae Boat Harbor on Oʻahu. That’s the year they were threatened with eviction, and in a sudden turn, the state agreed to let the people stay and figure out a community solution. In fact, though the encampment is sprawling and brushy, it has operated a lot like a ramshackle village for the last 10 years.
Everybody got to see it because, in a radical move, the encampment started offering tours. We could see the place was a pretty tight ship run by one Twinkle Borge. And the group that came up with the tour idea was the tiny nonprofit Hui Aloha.
The tours and public support turned the tide, and today we’re looking at the results. James Koshiba is a volunteer with Hui Aloha, he’s on a first-name basis with unsheltered people across Oʻahu. He offered to take HPR through what has become a true Puʻuhonua o Waiʻanae — a refuge on the Waiʻanae Coast. At the edge of the harbor parking lot, Koshiba led HPR on a dirt path toward the kiawe shaded entrance and caught up with Murray, one of four village overseers.
This interview aired on The Aloha Friday Conversation on Oct. 15, 2021.
