screen grab from the OHA livestream of the emotional Board meeting held today on Oʻahu

(BIVN) – Starting on July 1, Dr. Kamana‘opono Crabbe will no longer be the Chief Executive Officer / Ka Pouhana for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

The OHA trustees and Dr. Crabbe “came to a mutual understanding that his last official day as OHA CEO will be June 30, 2019, the day his contract expires,” an OHA news release stated.

“I want to take this opportunity to extend a warm and heart-felt mahalo to Dr. Kamana‘opono Crabbe for his leadership and commitment to serving our people and the mission of the agency since becoming the Chief Executive Officer of OHA in 2012,” said OHA Chair Colette Machado. “During his tenure, he has had many notable achievements, including further instilling Hawaiian culture into the operations of the office, and strengthening OHA’s relationships with the community and our partner organizations, while providing steady guidance to our Administration.”

“I am incredibly proud of my accomplishments at OHA,” Dr. Crabbe said, “from returning the mana of Kalaniōpu‘u’s ʻahu‘ula and mahiole to Hawai‘i; to the naming of OHA as a co-trustee of Papahānaumokuākea; to elevating OHA as a repository of Native Hawaiian knowledge, data and research through our online databases and research reports. It has been a great voyage and I enjoyed every minute of sailing with all of you.”

According to OHA:

The Board has authorized the procurement of a professional consultant to assist the Board in an executive search and recruitment of a new CEO. The Board will continue its discussion and make a decision to transition to an interim CEO at a Board meeting on June 20. The Chair and Dr. Crabbe are committed to working together to develop a succession plan that will provide for a smooth transition process to ensure that services to our beneficiaries continue uninterrupted.

“As Ka Pouhana, I ask the OHA staff to kūlike, e alu mai, a ‘onipa‘a ē: to stand beside one another as a source of strength and pride, to cooperatively work together as a true ‘ohana should, and to remain steadfast despite the winds of change, remain forever resilient and staunch for each other, in spite of each other,” Dr. Crabbe said.