My first interaction with philanthropy started at the YMCA of Honolulu as a volunteer for its Annual Support Campaign to raise money for program scholarships. Later through the YMCA Teen Program, I was able to engage in the Youth Participatory Action Research Grant (YPAR). YPAR guided our team through the entire life cycle of a grant. We identified issues […]
The Hawaiʻi Youth Apprenticeship Network (HYAN)
The pageantry of Hawaii’s high school graduation season–better than anywhere else in the country–is upon us. For many, this is a culminating moment to celebrate the accomplishments of young people and their ‘ohana. But once all the lei are given out and the graduations parties end, what comes next for nearly 12,000 public school graduates? […]
20-Year Windward Oʻahu Lookback
August 1, 2003 was my first day on the job as Executive Director of the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation. I wanted to start by properly grounding myself in this place, so on my lunch hour I went to the area just below Ulupō Heiau in Kailua, just behind the Windward YMCA, looking for Doc Burrows. […]
Windward Community College Enrollment
Nestled at the base of the Ko’olau mountain range lies the emerald campus of Windward Community College. Celebrating its 50th birthday, this institution serves as the gateway to higher education for residents of Ko’olauloa and Ko’olaupoko. Early in the pandemic, though, troublingly low student enrollment rates plummeted even further. We sought to meet the challenge […]
Aloha Ko’olau: Fostering Pilina in Windward O’ahu Communities
While we look ahead to the relaunch of the Pilina Fund Grant to build community resiliency in Windward Oʻahu, it seems an appropriate time to look back and celebrate the good work achieved by committed groups throughout the region during the first-year pilot of the fund. The Castle Foundation, like many other similar organizations, grappled […]