A Hui Hou John Lind

East Maui mourns the loss of one of our community’s greatest pillars of strength, aloha, and ‘ike. Uncle John Lind was a loving son, husband, father, grandfather, brother, and friend; a steadfast community advocate and leader; an aloha ‘āina warrior and Hawaiian rights activist; a profound man, wise kupuna, and great teacher that touched, and often shaped, the lives of so many of us who were blessed to know him.

John Lind returned home to Ke Akua on June 22, 2022, leaving a profound and lasting legacy—both tangible and intangible—within his ‘ohana, ‘āina, community, and lāhui. Although Uncle John will long be remembered and honored for his impactful work, perhaps our most lasting memories will be of his generosity of spirit; the light in his eyes; his hands turned ever toward the earth; his smile, laughter, and perpetual kindness.

Uncle John made pa‘a so many of the maka that form the beautiful ‘upena of our community life here in East Maui. He helped to found, alongside his wife Tweetie, the Hāna District Pohaku, Hāna Canoe Club, Hāna Surf Club, East Maui Taro Festival, Kauiki Council, Nā Mamo o Mu‘olea, Kīpahulu ‘Ohana, Kalena Triangle and Kīpahulu Commercial Kitchen, and Kapahu Living Farm. He also served on the Hāna Community Advisory Committee for the Hāna Community Plan update.

John Lind at Kapahu Living Farm

Kim Moa

As the Konohiki of the Kīpahulu moku, Uncle John worked tirelessly to care for the ‘āina, wai, and kai of his ancestral homeland while protecting the precious natural resources that are critical to the well-being of honua and kānaka, and to generations present and those yet to come. Most recently, Uncle John and the Kīpahulu ‘Ohana had been working to establish the Kīphaulu Moku Community Based Subsistence Fishing Area (CBSFA), a designation that will safeguard ocean resources by adopting place-based limits and rules in keeping with traditional 'ahupua'a management practices.

Uncle John, along with aloha ‘āina colleague and close friend Mike Minn, were driving forces in the movement to reclaim native water rights and ancestral lands throughout East Maui by helping ‘ohana reopen and steward ancient lo‘i kalo. This effort was part of a larger movement across ka pae ‘āina o Hawai‘i, led by a grassroots consortium of native kalo farmers called ‘Onipa‘a Nā Hui Kalo (ONHK). Started in the mid-90s and continuing on through the present day, ONHK ushered in the second wave of the Hawaiian renaissance and helped kānaka maoli to reclaim traditional food systems and water rights.

Uncle John was also a key player in the first wave of the Hawaiian renaissance that started in the mid-70s and continued through the 80s and 90s. He supported the Protect Kahoʻolawe ‘Ohana and the movement to end the US Navy Occupation of Kahoʻolawe as a military bombing target. Through these efforts, the bombing was stopped in 1990, and Kaho‘olawe was returned to the State of Hawaiʻi in 1994 as a cultural reserve held in trust for the sovereign native Hawaiian entity when it is reestablished.

Uncle John helped ‘ohana of Kīpahulu, Hāna, and Kaupō protect their ancestral land from condemnation during the Haleakalā National Park expansion in the early 80s. He was later instrumental in the creation of a cooperative agreement between The National Park and the Kīpahulu 'Ohana (1995) to support cultural education and practices—including hale building, kalo production, and native plant restoration.

John "Jackie Boy" Crichton Kauiki Lind Jr. was born in Paia, Hamakuapoko, to parents John “Jack” Lind Sr. and Daisy Ka‘eka Mailou, and raised at Wānānālua, and Papahawahawa in Hāna, Maui. He grew up hunting, fishing, and farming from Ko‘olau to Kaupō, mauka to makai.

Graduating from the Old Hāna High School in 1966, John married his high school sweetheart Tweetie and moved to O‘ahu, where he became a meat cutter for Parker Ranch's Hawaii Meat Company on Middle Street in Kalihi, O‘ahu. He left Hawaii Meat Company in 1975 and relocated to Makawao, Maui, to work for Maui Meat Company.

Several years later, he joined his parents at their home in Kīpahulu. Tweetie and John raised a beautiful family of ten children, and 17 grandchildren, in Kīkoʻo, Kīpahulu.

Uncle John’s character and contributions to community were of the highest caliber. A humble man, Uncle John did not seek recognition or praise for his efforts, however, through the years, he received many awards and honors. In 2008, the Hawaii Tourism Authority recognized him with the "Keep It Hawai‘i" award. In 2018, he and Tweetie were the Grand Marshals of Hāna’s Aloha Week parade with a special remembrance of the members of the Ka'uiki Council. In 2019, John and Tweetie were awarded the prestigious Tiny Malaikini Mea Kōkua Award for extraordinary leadership and service to the Hāna community.

As Uncle John joins the lei of generations, let us carry together— and lift on high—the torch of aloha that shone so brightly within him, illuminating a future of abundance for the generations to come.

John Lind was predeceased by his father, Jack Lind Sr.; and sons, John James Lind and Kimokeo Lind. He is survived by his beloved wife of 55 years, “Tweetie” Lind; mother, Daisy Ka'eka Mailou Lind; 8 children, Leimamo (Paul) Lind-Strauss, Keoni (Trisha) Lind, Ka'uiki Lind, Wailua (Henry) Lind, Wahineholani (Kaniela) Lind-Hapakuka, Kaneholani Lind, Akaneki (Nick) Lind, Pekelo (Kamalei) Lind; his siblings, Jody “Haole” Mailou Jean, Bruce (Veronica) Lind, Greg (Eunice) Lind, Duffy (Doria) Lind, Terry (Anita) Lind; and 17 grandchildren. Visitation will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 23, 2022, at St. Mary’s Church in Hāna; mass will begin at 11:00 a.m.; burial will follow at St. Peter’s Church Cemetery in Pu'uiki and then Pā'ina in Kīpahulu at Kalena Triangle. Aloha Attire.