The Kihei Youth Center is a community-based non-profit organization established in 1983 to help address the critical need for positive, healthy supervised activities and programs for the youth of Kihei, Maui. Over the last 26 years, as the community has grown from a quiet little South Maui town to the island’s fastest growing resort/residential population center, the Kihei Youth Center has expanded from a small recreational drop-in program to an established community hub that provides a comprehensive range of structured recreational activities, educational programs, cultural enrichment/appreciation programs, leadership development projects and family-oriented community events. With the organizational mission

of “strengthening the community through positive youth and family development by providing educational, recreational, vocational, cultural, social and prevention programs in a safe, healthy, nurturing environment embodied by Native Hawaiian values”, the Kihei Youth Center currently serves as many as 500 Kihei youth per year between the ages of 8 and 17 years old.

The Kihei Youth Center organization consists of an active, involved Board of Directors that meets regularly to monitor, oversee and provide direction to the Executive Director, who is responsible for managing and coordinating the daily operation of the Center. The current Executive Director, Lehua Huddleston-Hafoka, has an extensive background in youth activities and programs on Maui, having worked with the Maui County Summer Pals program for over 15 years as a coordinator and counselor. As one of the original Kihei Youth Center members, when she was just 13 years old, Lehua has a deep, long-standing commitment to supporting KYC and advocating for expanded programs that address the ever-growing needs of Kihei’s youth. In addition to managing a staff of 3 full-time and as many as 9 part-time program specialists, Lehua accomplishes extensive community networking on an ongoing basis to foster cooperative partnerships that direct additional resources into supporting KYC activities and programs.

Principal support for KYC activities, programs and projects is derived through a partnership with the County of Maui, which provides a “no-cost” lease to KYC for the large, specially-designed youth center facility located at the North end of Kihei and grant funds to support basic operational expenses and various program costs. To facilitate program enhancements, expansions and special projects, KYC pursues additional grant funds from local private Foundations and actively coordinates donation-drives and fundraising events in the community.