HCAP WEEKLY April 20, 2026

Kumuhonua Participant’s Solo Triumph in Gaining a New Home

Kumuhonua Transitional Living Center (KTLC) would like to congratulate program participant, Megan, in securing permanent housing earlier this month. Megan started her journey at Kumuhonua back in November 2022. Since then, Megan has been working hard to stay on track toward self-sufficiency by attending all her meetings with Case Manager, Carolyn, while tackling the barriers that have held her back from being successful in moving forward. 

Megan has faced many challenges in the last ten years of homelessness, but refused to give up. She continued to put one foot in front of the other and remained consistent. Through all her efforts, Megan was able to secure employment, increase her income and save money by creating monthly budgets. She successfully saved enough to allocate towards the first month of rent. Obtaining a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher provided additional help to allow her to be independent and now has a place to call her own. Working closely with HCAP partner, Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi, she was assisted in securing a security deposit for her home. Megan shared that she is incredibly thankful for all the assistance that she has received from Kumuhonua’s staff and deems it was a blessing to her. Her case manager provided continued encouragement and pieces of advice for Megan to carry on in her journey.

Carolyn and the staff at Kumuhonua are all so proud of all the hard work that went into making this a successful and a positive transition for Megan. HCAP wishes her the best of luck in this new chapter of her life.

Click here to learn more about Kumuhonua.

Head Start Keiki Build Natural Animal Habitats

Exploration and real-life connections encourage social-emotional development and reinforce cognitive and physical development through various sensory-based learning activities. Head Start children learned about the various essential components in animal homes and habitats like water, food, shelter and space. Child-led discussions were had about the differences in environments and the reasons why certain animals live in different geographic areas around the world. 

Through song, stories, activities and nature walks, children developed a deeper understanding of the world around them. A highlight of their learning was the children’s sharing of the habitat dioramas created with their families. From the forest, ocean to the desert, children proudly shared about the animal habitat they created with their families. The at-home activity extended learning and increased family engagement through supporting children’s continued development and fostered deeper parent-child relationships.

Click here to learn more about Head Start.

Central STEM Students Participate in Science Buddies Engineering Challenge

Recently at Hā Initiative’s Central STEM Exploration Center, the young engineers combined brain power and resources with the Parents and Children Together (PACT) program. As a team, STEM and PACT participated in the 2026 Science Buddies Engineering Challenge, where this year’s task was to design and build a ball run using only paper and tape.

Students worked in teams to plan, design, and construct their own creative ball run systems using a variety of materials. They experimented with angles, speed, and structure to guide their ball from start to finish as smoothly as possible. Along the way, they practiced problem-solving, teamwork, and perseverance—adjusting their designs when things didn’t go as planned and celebrating their successes when their ball runs worked!

This collaboration with PACT gave students a great opportunity to share ideas, build new friendships, and learn from one another. It was exciting to see their creativity and engineering skills come to life through their unique designs.

After all the hard work, students had the chance to relax and enjoy some fun together by playing homemade carnival games. From simple toss games to creative challenges, the students showed just as much enthusiasm and teamwork during play as they did during engineering. To wrap up the day, everyone gathered to share a meal, giving students time to connect, laugh, and celebrate their accomplishments as a community.

Next week at Central STEM Exploration Center, students will continue to build on these engineering skills with new hands-on challenges that encourage creativity, critical thinking, and teamwork!

Click here to learn more about Hā Initiative.