Kalena De Lima

Name KALENA DE LIMA

Age 30

Town/Moku Kaneohe

Island Oʻahu

Social Media Handle @thekalenaku, @kapenaschoolofmusic

Nominated by Max Mukai

Leadership Category Education

Share with us a little about yourself and what you do.

I am Kalena DeLima. I’m the founder of the Kapena School of Music where we offer weekly private and group music lessons to students of all ages as well as monthly workshops and masterclasses taught by industry professionals.

Why is the work that you do important to you? The community?

The Kapena School of Music is located in Kaneohe at the Windward Mall. Our vision and goal is to use our knowledge and presence in the music industry to give back to our community. Our hope is that the passion and purpose you gain here will help to inspire mental and emotional wellness. We believe that this wellness is the foundation that grows, inspires and keeps our communities healthy and thriving. We hope to not only give our students memories, the camaraderie of their peers, confidence and pride in music but also a second ‘ohana and a place where they belong with teachers who are always ready to welcome them in.

Share with us the qualities of leadership you admire and how you express those in your life.

Our mission is “Inspiring the growth and the leadership of the youth in Hawai’i, and ensuring the well-being of our community through creative expression”. The leadership quality I admire the most is to lead by serving. My name is Kalena DeLima and the vision for the Kapena School of Music came to me in 2017. As part of the Hawaii Island Reggae music group Kapena, I perform often at countless events. In the early part of 2017, I performed at a particular fundraiser that left me wondering how we can be more a part of our community as the fundraiser was for a little boy who was dying of cancer. The family, unfortunately, had never planned an event like this before and had a difficult time putting together something that would even help them with the funds they would need to support this child in his treatments. Being a part of this event made me realize how big of an impact music can have on a community. Our vision and goal is to do everything we can with our knowledge and presence in the music industry for over 35 years to SERVE our community through music to be sure that our people are healthy and thriving. Our program helps to address inequities in the community by inspiring passion and purpose with music and performing arts. Our hope is that the passion and purpose you gain while learning and performing music and the arts brings mental and emotional wellness to the people who come to our classes. We believe that this mental and emotional wellness is the foundation that grows, inspires and keeps our community healthy. The opportunities we hope to serve our students are the memories and camaraderie of their peers, confidance and pride in music, art forms and in their personal lives and at the very forefront, an education of music, the music industry here in Hawaii, and the importance of giving back to their own communities.

Who has inspired you to do the work that you are doing?

My mentor and another nonprofit president, Mandi Scott (President of Na Maka o Puuwai Aloha).

What is one word that describes something you are excited about for the lāhui?

Collaboration

What is one word that describes a pressing issue that is facing our lāhui?

Purpose