Hawaiian Generational Homes Lost in Lahaina Fire

On August 8th, unimaginable tragedy struck our small coastal town of Lahaina, Maui. In an instant, every single one of the Smith & Sequiera seven family homes on the West Side were completely destroyed and Lucas Sequiera, the grandson of beloved Kupuna Keola Sequiera, barely survived with his life, after staying and trying to defend the family home against the fire which quickly surrounded him.

Thank God Lucas was located two days later, alive but shaken, having had to drive through fences in his Papa's truck, he got a nail in tire and it went flat, so he could only make it as far as two valleys over. That valley ignited as well, forcing him to flee yet again. He's 16... The trauma from this is beyond devastating & he was one of the lucky ones who actually escaped.

So many people we know personally & their beloved animals all lost their lives that day due to lack of warning & high winds that fueled such a fast moving fire. There were No emergency sirens. The very water they were using to defend against encroaching fire was shut off.

So many unanswered questions. At the same time this was happening, Lucas’s father, Keone Smith, rushed from our Kipahulu Ranch & did over 20 runs with our 6-horse trailer, saving over 100 horses & shuttling every type of animal he could between Kula Ranch to Ulupalakua Ranch. That night Keone slept in an arena with the horses, praying that his son had escaped. The last call he got from his son, was him frantically driving away from the fire.

These were the local heroes that were on the ground, alongside the emergency responders…

The Smith & Sequiera families trace their Hawaiian Bloodlines all the way back to the Mo'iha & Mo'ikeha people who were the original canoe building families of Hawai'i. In an instant hundreds of years of Hawaiian artifacts, Koa canoes, Koa paddles, Awa bowls, Aumakua Ki'is were all lost in fire. The very home itself on Waine'e street located next to Hongwanji Mission & famous Wai'ola Church was a Hawaiian Cultural Relic of Lahaina in that its very design was that of a Polynesian Voyaging Canoe. From the Old Growth Mango & Plumeria trees to Native Hawaiian plants that filled the yard, this whole homesite was one of legacy.

We seek to restore balance and security to these families as well as the other families we are sheltering on our Hana farm who lost everything.

Not only will your donations restore homes, vehicles, heirloom valuables, & art it will also restore legacy, as we hope to rebuild the woodworking shop and rebuild Koa canoes for Lahaina Community that were stored on site and lost as well.

Your donations will help build temporary structures to house displaced family & community members in need while the long process of rebuilding begins. It is paramount to our community that our Native Hawaiians stay on Hawaiian lands & continue to perpetuate Hawaiian Culture. Keola Sequiera was directly involved in the building of Mo'olele & Mo'okiha Hawaiian sailing canoes with Kupuna Herb Kane. He is survived by his grandson, who has learned these ancient arts of woodworking & canoe building.

This go fund me will help Smith & Sequira families to rebuild not only their homes it will help to regenerate their Deep Hawaiian Cultural Roots.

Please Kokua or Share if you are able to. If we all help who we can, everyone will get the help they need.. and we can all start rebuilding together. All of Maui is hurting right now. There were 5 different fires that night. This is just the beginning of what's needed to rebuild all of Maui. Insurance doesn't cover Art & Legacy & Koa…

It's up to us to replant Koa trees & recreate the Art in order to continue to perpetuate and Malama Hawaiian Culture.

Aloha & Mahalo - Uakoko Farms & Ranch

Below are photos of Lucas and his grandfather Keola, and some of the artifacts that were lost.