Kainani Kahaunaele is a multiple Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award-winning Hawaiian haku mele (composer of Hawaiian poetry), recording artist and Hawaiian language and music lecturer at Ka Haka ‘Ula O Ke‘elikōlani College of Hawaiian Language at UH Hilo. She and her children were fixtures on the mauna before, during, and after the arrest of kūpuna. In addition, Kahaunaele and her children supported the kia‘i encampment by working in its kitchen, picking up rubbish, and fulfilling any task necessary.
