Our Mission
Our mission is to build the capacity of low- and moderate-income communities to achieve and sustain economic self-sufficiency with a particular focus on Native Hawaiians.
We operate offices throughout the State of Hawai‘i, providing financial counseling, income supports, and employment and entrepreneurship coaching to low- and moderate-income households and communities.
Kahua Waiwai
Our philosophy of Kahua Waiwai supports affordable housing, culturally-relevant financial education, and asset building programs to achieve our mission.
Kahua Waiwai espouses the basic philosophy of “A Sense of Place.” The home is viewed as a foundation (kahua). Upon this foundation is built the family’s spiritual values and teachings (waiwai). It is the spiritual value of the home and its surroundings that provides stability and the opportunity for families to build a secure future. Opportunities that help stabilize family life help to create a more stable community. A strong foundation, if built properly, will serve generations to come.
Our History
HCA opened its doors in 2000, in Wailuku on the island of Maui, with the charge to create a community development financial institution (CDFI) that would address the organization’s mission. That mission is to build the capacity of low- and moderate-income communities to achieve and sustain economic self-sufficiency, with a particular focus on Native Hawaiians. In 2002, HCA took a major step forward by establishing Hawai‘i’s first nonprofit mortgage broker operation – Hawai’i Community Lending (HCL). While developing lending programs for construction and long-term mortgages for use on Hawaiian Home Lands, HCA staff also developed a HUD-approved homeownership and financial education curriculum – Kahua Waiwai: Building a Foundation of Wealth© – adapted from standard homebuyer and Native American curriculum to reflect local culture and values.
Today, HCA utilizes its Kahua Waiwai curricula series to conduct housing and financial literacy workshops and deliver training/technical assistance to transitional housing and community-based organizations, education and financial institutions, and government entities and veterans centers to serve their target populations. Through its Native CDFI – Hawai‘i Community Lending – HCA is active in developing and implementing innovative, micro-loan products and asset building programs that best serve the housing and credit needs of all low- and moderate-income Hawai‘i individuals and families.
Chelsie Evans
HCA Executive Director
Chelsie Evans is the former Executive Director of Maui Hui Malama, an organization that focuses on eliminating barriers for at-risk youth. She also founded and headed Wrapped in Wings, which supports critically ill children and their families. With her roots in Makawao on Maui, Chelsie has traveled among the islands and worked with organizations that helped her to grow as a native Hawaiian leader and provided her the opportunity to serve survivors of domestic violence, keiki displaced from their homes, and youth with barriers to their educational and career goals. With a master’s degree in human services and bachelor’s in psychology, Chelsie has a deep empathy for Hawai‘i’s people and does her utmost to ensure they reach their goals.