Samuel Kepoo

Name Samuel Kepoo

Age 51

Town/Moku North Kohala

Island Hawaiʻi Island

Social Media Handle @KamuelaKepoo

Nominated by Danielle De Lima

Leadership Category Culture

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

Born and raised in North Kohala. When I graduated I moved to Kamuela, Hawai'i then made my way to O'ahu when I was 30 years old. I felt O'ahu was my final destination to settle down. The opportunities here on O'ahu are endless. I enjoy helping others be creative whether it's a ribbon to make a bow or a memorable event. The talent I've been blessed with is to share with others. It's my Kuleana to do so.

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

My work is important to me because it all started with my dad and his way of teaching and making sure I was satisfied with the final product. My dad would always say to teach what you learned otherwise you lose the tradition of what was meant to be taught and passed on. Of course, things evolve, and my creativity and imagination got bolder. I'm always thinking outside of the box. The community will always be important to me. It's like family. We need to Malama each other to be great neighbors and offer help when needed. Not only through flowers and arrangements. But, showing gratitude and love. Like every flower arrangement, centerpiece, and lei po'o. You need to have gratitude and love to create a beautiful thing.

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

I admire the learning agility, integrity, influence, self-awareness, critical thinking, and empathy. These qualities are applied daily but more so when I'm doing an event or creating a piece for someone or a group, I find myself expressing their thoughts and feelings through my work of creativity.

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

My dad. I was helping him with a Christmas project and as I looked at it, I felt it was incomplete or it needed more of a wow factor. When I told him. He looked at me and said you do it then. In his angry voice. So, I did. It came out awesome. He was happy, I was happy he liked it and the rest is history.

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

Invigorating

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

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