Deep within nature's embrace lies a majestic island that rests amongst the Pacific Ocean, with a precious ancient native culture and history.
(Leilani with a family Kupuna
{Elder} Kawika Kahananui.)
from the Garden
island of Kaua`i, Hawai`i
Pomaika`i
a me kealoha.
{blessings
of love}
For nearly 11 years Kahu (Rev.) Leilani Kaleiohi has provided ceremonies from the heart (pu`uwai) of her native culture on the island of Kaua`i to locals (na kama`aina) and visitors (na malihini kipa). She is an ordained nondenominational Minister
with a Bachelor of Divinity degree. She previously served as a board member of the Kaua`i Wedding Professionals Association, American Cancer Society, and Kauai Hospice..
In addition to her ministerial and community services, she continues to perpetuate her family's Native Hawaiian lineage as a cultural practictioner, storyteller, lecturer and educator. She serves as a Hawaiian Studies Resource Kumu (teacher) in Hawai`i's DOE/Hawaiian Language & Culture program, and she teaches Hawaiian History as a part-time faculty member of Kula High & Intermediate.
(Leilani demonstrating Hawaiian Puppetry while storytelling about ancient Hawaii.)
Throughout her childhood she has studied various religions, secular philosophies, and theological perspectives as well as Native cultural religious/spiritual perspectives. She chose to be a universal Minister on account of many aspects in her family background. Her father (Native Hawaiian) was an ordained Deacon/Elder of the Mormon faith and her mother (European/American Indian) was a member of the Baptist faith when they first met and fell in love. After they married, they decided to raise their children to respect the beauty of the many different faiths in the world, and appreciate what each had to offer in common with each other as well as in their uniqueness. They encouraged Kahu Leilani and her sister Wendy to find what is most comfortable to their spiritual venture while maintaining strong family/human values.
Kahu Leilani has provided a blend of religious/spiritual perspectives to perform weddings and blessing ceremonies for couples of numerous denominations, and continues to work together on a global scale with many secular ministers and native spiritualists.
She offers ceremonies with Hawaiian Spiritual traditions in combination with non-secular service or non-denominational Christian service. She is open to work with couples who wish a special customized ceremony. Included in her services is her ancient family tradition of prayerful Native Hawaiian chants {mele oli pule} for ceremonies, as well as consultation. Special cultural "talk story" lectures and ceremonial blessings for family or wedding groups are also available.
A mele oli pule {prayerful chant} is a powerfully spiritual and poetic form of deep connecting chanted verse, which was deeply a reverent part of Ancient Hawaiian family/community life. She practices the art of her great great grandmother, Kawahinehelekeoulilani Milika`a Pa-Kaho`ohanohano, who was a Master Chanter from the Kalalau Valley and whose lineage extends into 400-600 A.D. in the Napali Coast of Kaua`i. Her "Tutu Wahine's" chants can be found in the archives of the Bishop Museum.
In
keeping with family tradition, she has written numerous chants of ho`opomaika`i a me lokomaika`i (to offer blessings of goodwill). Concurrent to native beliefs, she emotes her chanting to give thanks for the nurturing elements/energies of heaven & earth, to honor all present, and encourage joining together in the blessings of the ceremony. She is often called upon to provide mele oli/pule at special gatherings and to provide opening blessings at various workshops and cultural events. A sample of her chanting can be found at the Go Kaua`i real audio/video. For more information about chants, you can find a wonderful article at this lovely website called "Coffee
Times"
An excerpt from Kahu Leilani's ceremony:
"May your marriage flourish and blossom with each and every moment. May the blossoms you emote together and the bridges you will need to build along the way together reflect the love and respect you hold for yourselves and each other, and continue to represent to those around you a loving unity." ~~© mlkk
"He pûnâwai kahe wale kealoha."
(Love is a spring that flows freely.)
 couples
comments "We thank you for a blessing of grace on our wedding day. Through your being sounded a very clear, powerful invocation truly healing and uniting everyone present and 'beyond' in a circle of love. It called forth the beauty and promise of us all and was a true affirmation. You are a precious being."
""Thank
you so much for officiating our wedding. We feel very blessed to
have such a beautiful, meaningful ceremony, rich in tradition."
"Thank
you from the bottom of our hearts for everything that you have done to
help us make our life a happy and beautiful occassion. Thanks for being
in our life and pray that you'll always be with us in love and in spirit.
God bless you!"
"Thank you for making our 25th anniversary vow renewal
so beautiful and spiritual. From the moment we met you we felt the
tremendous life force in you. You radiate love, humor and concern.
You were exactly the right person to bless our renewal of love and commitment
to each other!"
"Thank
you for guiding us into this new wonderful part of our lives! The
magical ceremony you gave us will always stay with us, providing a powerful
picture for reflection."
"How
can I express how blessed we feel for the ceremony you provided for us.
It was an incredibly moving and beautiful experience for all of us.
My most sincere thanks for everything you did for us. I will never
forget the experience of our vow renewal."
"It
was an honor to have you preside over our wedding ceremony. It proved
to be a magical day for everyone involved. Thank you for being such
a gracious host in the land of your ancestors. P.S. All our guest
were very impressed with your chant, too!"
"You are a special gift in our lives. The ceremony was amazing, and everyone commented on the beauty behind your words and presence. And thank you for our "first gift"! We will treasure them forever!
"Thank
you so much for making our wedding day so special. You did a wonderful
job. Your ceremony and beautiful voice were just perfect. It
had so much meaning for us."
"One
month after our wedding ~ Seattle has and earthquake! But our memories
of our marriage are strong and powerful and outlast any tremors from the
earth. Thank you for doing the service ~ we were thrilled with the
event and our memories will continue to make us want to return to Hawaii."
"We
love being married! Thank you always for being such a beautiful part
of our lives~what a magical time that was. I feel more than honored to
have a great woman like you touch our lives, and for the beauty and history
you brought into our family."
"Many
mahalos for your services at our wedding. We feel so blessed that
you were able to carry on the Hawaiian traditions and spread the Aloha
spirit to all of our loved ones who live here and to those who traveled
here from far away. Thank you so much~we will always remember this
day and the beauty of your voice as it traveled across the ocean and up
into the mountains."
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Contact information:
Email
M. Leilani
K. Kaleiohi, Kahu
P.O. Box
736
Kilauea,
HI 96754
To leave a message: 808 634-4754
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