Kamaui Aiona

Name Kamaui Aiona

Age 46

Town/Moku Waimea

Island Hawaiʻi Island

Social Media Handle none

Nominated by Ileana Ruelas

Leadership Category Mālama ʻĀina - Environmental Sustainability

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

I’m a father of 3 that works for the County of Maui, Department of Fire and Public Safety as a firefighter. In my spare time, I grow food for my family and friends, volunteer as a board member for a local non-profit here in Hana, Maui, help with olelo Hawaii efforts, and try to be useful to my family, friends, and community.

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

Enjoying the things I do what brings me the most value. As for external value, I like to think that my family, friends, and community feel that I make collective better. I believe that’s a fundamental question we should all hope to emphatically answer; “Is the collective better because of me?”

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

I admire the tremendous diversity in styles that successful leadership can take. It’s amazing to me that depending on the situation, a particular style can be more effective than another, but they would flip-flop under different circumstances. I am very comfortable in my leadership style, which leans towards a quiet, lead-by-example, collaborative methodology that encourages harmony. It has served me well in many leadership roles, but not all. There are times when a decisive, top-down leadership style is called for, especially in emergent situations where time is of the essence. While it goes against my grain, I am learning how to add different styles of leadership to my tool chest so I can be effective in lots of different situations.

Some of my growing pains that I still struggle with as a leader, is applying leadership consistently at home, work, and out in the community. What I mean by this is my style of leadership in my family, especially towards my kids, is very different than the one I choose outside of my home. This is something that I hope to understand and improve on.

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

My family, specifically my wife and kids, my parents, and my two brothers.

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

Altruism

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

Surrender