Dorothy Kauionamauna Keliikoa Brewster

Dorothy Kauionamauna Keliikoa Brewster resides in Kaupō with her daughter and son-in-law, Alohalani and Alika Smith. She was born in Honolulu and raised in the communities of Kaka‘ako, Wai‘anae, and Moloka‘i. Her dad, George Keliikoa, was a steel guitar musician and worked at Honolulu Ironworks, and her mom, Dorothy Koleka Kauilani Naoo, was very active with their church, Ka Makua Mau Loa.

When Aunty Kaui was young, she moved to Wai‘anae and lived near Pōka‘i Bay. Her childhood home was often filled with music, and she quickly learned to play the ukulele and sing by ear. Her parents were pure Hawaiian and her mother spoke fluent ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i. Her life was not always easy, and she shares that, “where I came from, we had to fight.”

During her childhood years, she spent time on Moloka‘i with her grandparents, Sarah Wahinekaapuni Kaai and David Kauilani Naoo, at their family home in Honouliwai. They lived on the beach and Aunty Kaui fondly recalls how they would “go right out the kitchen and dive into the ocean.”

She was married in the 11th grade to Jerome Brewster, of Hāna—whose father was Reverend Brewster of Wananalua Church—and she graduated from Wai‘anae High School. From there she went to college with the intention to study law and follow in the footsteps of her grand uncle, Samuel “Webster” William Kaai who was a judge in Hāna in the early 1900s. Aunty Kaui left college after two years with a sense that she had a different calling on her life, or as she says, “I had something spiritual to do.”

When reflecting on her younger years, Aunty says, “I was bad, I would always fight; eh you start ‘um, I end ‘um, that is our style in Waianae.” She recalls with gratitude the clean slate she received when her boss at Wailea petitioned to have her record expunged and admonished her to “behave!” Aunty shares with a laugh that, “ever since then I have behaved.”

She found her spiritual purpose and was ordained a deacon with her church where she dedicates her time in service to others. Now she is retired, after nearly 30 years of working in Wailea, and enjoys a peaceful life in Kaupō helping with the animals and spending time with her ‘ohana of 4 living children (she lost two sons), 21 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren.

Aunty Kaui’s life reflects the deeper values and themes of forgiveness, resiliency, change, finding one’s true purpose, and aloha. She shares, “in my younger days, I put off certain things for my ‘old days.’ Now my old days are here and there is so much I want to do. I praise the Lord. He took me away from the things I am not supposed to do and helped me to grow. I want to do what I can while I am still here to do it. I am almost 80 and I just want to help others.”