When youth are given the space to lead, extraordinary things can happen. This truth came alive at Kawailoa Youth and Family Wellness Center (KYFWC) during the second annual Youth JAM event, where young people didn’t just participate—they orchestrated an afternoon of cultural connection and community building.
The first Youth JAM at Kawailoa was held in 2024 to celebrate national Youth Justice Action Month (YJAM), which is observed in October to raise awareness about the unique challenges young individuals face within the justice system. This year, local organizers decided to move the annual event earlier to coincide with the start of the new school year, to raise greater awareness of growing cross-program coordination on campus. A unique collaboration of nonprofit agencies (Kinai ‘Eha, Kupa ‘Aina, and RYSE) have been co-located on the Kawailoa campus since 2018. The hui formed Opportunity for Youth Action Hawaiʻi (OYAH) in 2020 and has been working in close partnership with State partners to develop alternatives to youth incarceration by creating an ecosystem of healing, culturally-rooted programs and services for youth in Hawai‘i.
Under the leadership of the Pilina Builders, a hui with representatives from each program at Kawailoa, the campus buzzed with the rhythmic sounds as participants pounded taro, the gentle taps of kapa (traditional Hawaiian fabric made of bark) making, and voices rising together in oli (chants). Event attendees also practiced stamping and crafted lei and earrings from fresh flowers, while others learned the powerful movements of haʻakoa warrior dance.
This event wasn’t just about preserving culture; it was about building pilina (connections) with one another. Youth JAM 2025 brought together community partners, youth and staff from both OYAH and State partners programs, creating new relationships that will continue beyond the event’s activities. Feedback from participants was overwhelmingly positive, emphasizing that this event offered the opportunity to “enjoy getting to know new people” and “see people from our other hale” (houses – or in this context, organizations) in a relaxed, welcoming environment.
The day’s fun concluded with music and unity with a performance by local artist Sidney Spencer, followed by everyone joining voices in “Hawaiʻi Aloha.” It was a moment that embodied the very pilina the event was designed to foster.
For many attendees, the most powerful outcome wasn’t any single workshop or activity—it was the friendships formed, and the sense of belonging discovered. As OYAH continues to cultivate a safe place for our young people, the youth proved a fundamental truth: when young people impacted by the justice system are supported and trusted to lead, they don’t just survive, they create spaces where others can thrive.
