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LEDCOR 10
Throughout the year one of our hard-working team members sits down to answer the 10 big questions about work, fun, life, Maui, life on Maui, and of course, food!
We are pleased to bring you this Q&A with Clifford Naeʻole, Cultural Advisor to Ledcor Maui.
1
If you had one free, perfect day on Maui, how would you spend it? (give us all the details!)
I would enjoy the mountains by the ocean like in Hana, Maui. No place better than having a day off to do absolutely nothing. Breathe and relax!!!
2
What is your all-time favorite comfort food? (secret family recipes encouraged : )
Portuguese soup without a doubt. Ham hocks, Portuguese sausage, potato, carrot, macaroni, beans and tomato sauce. Boiled until soft and tender to eat. Don’t forget the rolls.
3
If you could sit down for a cup of Maui-grown coffee with one person, who would that be? (they don’t have to be alive)
Muhammed Ali. He talked the talk and walked the walk. He earned a heavy weight championship and gave it all to stay straight with his beliefs. Then he went forth and earned it again. Even when he was ill…he was a leader.
4
What is your favorite travel story? (it might be your best travel moment, or it might be your worst!)
My best was when I went with my wife April to the Cooke Islands. It was as if we had traveled back to Maui 60 years ago. We did not have to search for culture…it came to us!
Religion, music, food and personalities. Not knowing before we left on the trip, our time there coincided with the launching of the Hokulea and Hikianalia voyaging canoes to New Zealand and I got to say the prayers for the crew members before they officially launched.
5
What three adjectives would your best friend use to describe you? (yes, you can ask them!)
Patient, quiet and observant. To listen, learn and share are huge qualities of lifestyle. They are very Hawiian attitudes.
6
What is one thing about yourself that you would like to improve? (just don’t say you’re a perfectionist)
Self-Drive. I need to push harder.
7
What has been your proudest career moment so far? (maybe an award received, a promotion merited, or just a moment when you felt fulfilled)
Many awards but perhaps coodinating the preservatiion site and burial site of Honokahua is something I could sink all of my energy into. It is the first of its kind and unfortunately not the last since the desecration of burial places continue today.
8
If you weren’t building communities, what would you be doing? (think early aspirations, designing rocketships, etc.)
Fishing and diving!!!
9
What is your favorite Hawaiian word? (why is it meaningful to you?)
“Kuleana” which translates to responsibilities, duty, action. As I came to know it, sometimes kuleana chooses you rather than you choosing kuleana. A person has no choice but to move forward on it but once accepted, the individual will be enriched.
10
What is something Maui has taught you? (yep, Mother Maui teaches all of us in one way or another)
That we indeed live in a very special place. Maui is but a pinpoint on a global scale but the entire world wants to live here. We only have so much to give and sadly it is common to see the Hawaiian getting “priced out of paradise.” This is why it is important that all newcomers must show respect and love for our people, place and culture.