Kepā’s speech 
Aloha mai kākou e nā makamaka o Maui nui a Kama. Eia nō mākou me ke aloha no ka ho‘omau ‘ana o ka ‘ōlelo makuahine. No ka po‘e kānaka, he ‘ōlelo makuahine, no ka po‘e ē, he ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i. 

Ke kāko‘o nei mākou—‘o Ledcor, Honua Consulting a me nā hoa—i ka hana nui a Kiliwehi me nā hoa pū o ka Pūnana Leo. He waiwai maoli nō kēia hana. 

Na Kupuna Pukui i a‘o mai ia‘u i kekāhi oli e pili ‘ana ka waiwai nui ‘o ka ‘ōlelo a me nā mo‘olelo Hawai‘i. Penei nō ka mana‘o —

Ke akua uwalo i ka la‘i ē,
E hea wale ‘ana i luna o Pua‘ahulunui
Ke akua pe‘e i lau kiele ē
O‘u mākua i kui e lei
E kui nō ‘oe he lei nō mākou ā!
Eia ka makana…

Kepā’s speech translated
Aloha to our friends here on Great Maui of the chief Kama. We are here with love for perpetuation of the mother language. That’s what it is for native Hawaiians, while for others it is the Hawaiian language.

We—Ledcor, Honua Consulting and our partners—support the great work done by Kiliwehi and the friends of Pūnana Leo (Nest for the Voice, a place that nurtures the Hawaiian language). This is a truly valuable undertaking.

Kupuna Puku‘i taught me a chant that describes the great value of the language and history of Hawai‘i. It is thus—

The god calling out in the calm,
Calling from the heights of Pua‘ahulunui.
This god, hidden in amongst the forest verdure
Has woven a lei (spoken words and history) for our ancestors,
Might you also add us to the lei (history)
Here is the gift…