Nā limahana
ZACHARY ALAKAʻI LUMCO-FOUNDER,
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 
KRISHa ZaneDirector of operations
Sheldon AbrilGrants and Software Development Manager
UʻILANI TANIGAWA LUMCO-FOUNDER,
DIRECTOR OF CULTURE AND ADVOCACY 
Hulali ʻŌpiopioProgram manager
Kaʻōnohi LopesPROJECT COORDINATOR
THERESIA HOWEDIGITAL OPERATIONS MANAGER,
KLL PARTNER |
Zachary Alakaʻi Lum of Haʻikū, Heʻeia, Koʻolaupoko, Oʻahu, is a lifetime student, educator, and practitioner of mele Hawaiʻi. A graduate of Kamehameha Schools Kapālama and a current Ph.D. student in Political Science at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Zachary is the executive director of Kāhuli Leo Leʻa, a Hawaiʻi 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to catalyzing aloha ʻāina through mele and other cultural practices. He is the former director of choral music at the Kamehameha Schools Kapālama campus, where he promoted the value of mele in education and as a powerful tool for self-efficacy. He is a Grammy-nominated, 24-time Nā Hōkū Hanohano award winning producer, musician, and mele practitioner. In addition to his work with the group Keauhou, he has produced albums––including Kūhaʻo Maunakea (2019), Lei Nāhonoapiʻilani: Nā Mele Hou (2020), Huliāmahi, Vol. 1 (2020), Kāwili (2021), Mele Hoʻopulapula Vol. 1 (2021)––as well as live and virtual events aimed at education through mele, including Hawaiian Airlines May Day and Mele Huliāmahi. He belongs to Hālau Nā Kamalei o Līlīlehua, a hula school under the direction of Kumu Hula Robert Uluwehionāpuaikawēkiuokalani Cazimero. Zachary is driven by his passion to promote mele and aloha ʻāina as a means of composing lāhui.
Krisha Mitsue Kananiokapuʻuwai Zane is the hiapo of Davelyn Makua and Eric Zane of Hilo. Born and raised in Waipiʻo (Mililani), Oʻahu, she graduated from Mililani High School and earned degrees in Business Finance and Hawaiian Studies from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. She has since contributed her expertise to Hawaiian culture-based organizations through data analysis, fund development, fiscal management, and educational program design. Krisha is deeply committed to improving Native Hawaiian health in her community, drawing on her foundations and passions for hula, traditional weaving, and plant cultivation. Currently pursuing graduate studies in Nutrition at the National University of Natural Medicine, she is focused on analyzing the nutritional, mental, and physical demands of Hula ʻAihaʻa practitioners to support endurance, balance, and recovery. She resides in Waiākea, Hilo, with her kāne, Kāʻeo, and their two pups, Honey and Huli.
Born and raised in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, Sheldon Abril is a graduate of Hilo High School and attended Seattle University where he earned a bachelor's degree in E-Commerce and Information Systems and Computer Science. Prior to joining Kāhuli Leo Leʻa in 2024, Sheldon was a Software Engineer at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center and a Senior Software Engineer at Hawaiʻi Medical Service Association. Transitioning his career path in 2021, he joined the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation as the I.T. / Litigation Support Manager and served as the Director of Operations in his last 3 years with the organization. In his spare time, Sheldon enjoys the ocean (surfing & fishing), playing golf and volleyball, and spending time with his wife and 3 daughters. Sheldon currently resides in Kealakehe, Kona, Hawaiʻi, where he and his ʻohana are passionate supporters of the revitalization and perpetuation of ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi in their community.
Originally from Makawao, Maui, U‘ilani Tanigawa Lum is a licensed attorney and graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law with certificates in Native Hawaiian Law and Environmental Law. She is a graduate of Kamehameha Schools Maui and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Hawaiʻinuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge where she earned a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in Hawaiian Studies. Her thesis examined hula’s role in society and in particular, its performance in Japan as a cultural, social, economic, and political mechanism. Uʻi first began law school as an Evening Part-Time student while working as a Trustee Aide at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. During her time as a law student, she was a Research Assistant for the Environmental Law Program, a Staff Editor for the Asian-Pacific Law and Policy Journal, and an extern with the U.S. Department of Interior’s Office of Native Hawaiian Relations. Uʻi is a hula practitioner and is currently an Assistant Professor of Law at Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law at the William S. Richardson School of Law. She serves on various boards including Hawaiʻi Land Trust (HILT) and ʻIhikapalaumaewa Foundation. Uʻi now resides in ʻĀhuimanu, Koʻolaupoko, Oʻahu, with her ʻohana.
Hulali ʻŌpiopio is a kupa of Waimānalo, Oʻahu and a graduate of Kamehameha Schools Kapālama. She earned degrees in Hawaiian Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi and a teaching certificate in early childhood education. For Hulali, mele Hawaiʻi is welo ʻohana and an integral part of her identity. Because of this upbringing, she is passionate about promoting and perpetuating Hawaiian music – a common thread throughout her life and career. Hulali is also driven by her experience as a hula practitioner with Ka Pā Hula O Ka Lei Lehua and Kumu Hula Snowbird Bento, having accomplished ʻūniki rites as a hoʻopaʻa in 2024. She worked at Kamehameha Schools for over a decade in a variety of positions and departments, including Hoʻokahua, Kealakūlia, and at Heʻeia Preschool. In parternship with her ʻohana, Hulali facilitates and advances ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and ʻāina restoration through various papahana. Hulali resides in Waimānalo, Oʻahu with her ʻohana.
Kaʻōnohikaumakaakeawe Lopes, a resident of Pūʻahuʻula, Koʻolaupoko, Oʻahu, is the second daughter of Robert Keawe Lopes Jr. and Tracie Kaʻōnohilani (Farias) Lopes. With the impression of both her parents in learning ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and her education in Hawaiian immersion schooling, she became fluent (well-acclimated) in the language. In the same manner, the importance of mele and hula were impressed on Kaʻōnohi and her sisters from a very young age. She is an ʻōlapa of Ka Lā ʻŌnohi mai o Haʻehaʻe under the direction of both her parents. After training for many competitions both as a keiki and wahine, she now holds the prestigious title of Miss Aloha Hula 2024. Kaʻōnohi is a proud graduate of Kamehameha Schools Kapālama class of 2020. After which, Lopes attended the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa where she earned her Bachelorʻs Degree in Hawaiian language under Kawaihuelani: Center for Hawaiian Language in Spring of 2023 and her Masterʻs Degree in Communication in Spring of 2025.
Theresia Howe was raised and resides in Mililani, Hawai‘i. With degrees in Business Administration and Marketing, she brings decades of experience in digital strategy, e-commerce, and music administration. Passionate about supporting all of Hawai‘i’s creative community, and assists Kāhuli Leo Leʻa in developing MELE - a streaming platform that showcases local content, and provides royalty administration services to creators statewide.
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