HAWAIʻI VOICES

A Living Story Experience

October 22, 2026 · Bishop Museum, Honolulu

An experience so resonant that guests leave feeling like they are part of Hawaiʻi's story.

— Anthony Amador, Director of Development

Why This Matters

Every bill we've ever passed started as a person.

Kealohilani Hokoana, counting pedestrians after school until her Waipahu neighborhood finally got a crosswalk. The parents who stood on the floor of the State Capitol and testified for their own kids. The families who learned this year that their food assistance and health coverage were no longer a given. For twenty years, we've carried these stories into hearing rooms and budget meetings — rooms most of Hawaiʻi never gets invited into.

The future of Hawaiʻi is already here. It just needs to be heard.

Hawaiʻi Voices is us doing something we've never done before: opening that room to you. We're asking now because the need is not hypothetical — federal cuts are already reaching into Medicaid and food assistance for neighbors with no cushion left. Your seat in the room is what lets us tell the next twenty years of these stories.

Community members holding Hawaiian flags at a gathering in front of ʻIolani Palace

The Evening

An evening you don't watch. One you help write.

Hawaiʻi Voices isn't a stage-and-podium gala. It's an immersive room, built around the real stories of the people housing, food, transportation, and tax policy touch every day. You'll walk through it, respond to it, and leave having added something to it.

Hands wrapping food in ti leaves beside a traditional Hawaiian stone pounder
01

Live Storytelling

Four community members, rehearsed and supported, share their own stories across Appleseed's issue areas — intimate, unpolished in the best way, and unforgettable.

02

Portrait Gallery

Large-format portraits of real neighbors line the room, each paired with a name, a quote, and a QR code that opens into their fuller story.

03

Story Tree

Throughout the night, guests respond to community prompts and add their own reflections — growing a living archive that fills the space by evening's end.

04

Resonance Cards

When a story moves you, you place a card in a vessel. The evening closes with a collective reveal of just how much moved through the room together.

Date

Thursday, October 22, 2026

Doors at 5:30 PM

Venue

Bishop Museum

1525 Bernice Street, Honolulu, HI 96817

Attire

Aloha Attire

Come as yourself, dressed for a warm evening

Tickets

Your seat is the start of the story.

Every ticket helps fund the research, coalitions, and community leaders behind Appleseed's work — from the Earned Income Tax Credit to Safe Routes to School. Bring a friend, bring your team, or sponsor a table for the people you'd like to see in the room.

Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. A portion of your ticket may be tax-deductible.

Fresh mangoes, bananas, and produce at a local Hawaiʻi farmers market

General Admission

$125 / guest
  • Reception, program, and dinner
  • Full Hawaiʻi Voices storytelling experience
  • Access to the Portrait Gallery and Story Tree
  • A Resonance Card of your own to place

Tickets are processed securely through Bloomerang. Prefer to pay by check, DAF, or another method? Email Anthony Amador.

Palm trees against a Honolulu high-rise and blue sky
Waves breaking over volcanic rock along the Hawaiʻi coastline

Mahalo nui loa.