‘Keeper of the Bay’: The Kohala Center, Kahilu Theatre partner for screening of film featuring Aunty Cindi Punihaole

The Kohala Center and Kahilu Theatre are partnering together to present the Emmy-nominated documentary “Keeper of the Bay,” a film directed by Ashley LoFaso that traces the work of treasured kupuna Aunty Cindi Punihaole.

Punihaole’s stewardship and education efforts at Kahalu‘u Bay preserved one of the Big Island’s most vibrant marine sanctuaries and inspired a community movement to protect it for future generations.

“Keeper of the Bay” will screen at 2 p.m. Jan. 11, 2026, at Kahilu Theatre in Waimea, with a VIP pre-show reception beginning at 12:30 p.m.

The Waimea screening follows a sold-out red-carpet premiere in Kona and will feature a post-film question-and-answer session with Punihaole, who is The Kohala Center’s director of ʻĀina Advocacy, and a pre-show VIP reception celebrating the center’s restoration, agriculture and education programs throughout Kohala and North Hawai‘i.

The event is sponsored in part by the Deviants from the Norm Fund.

Punihaole — throughout her nearly 20 years with The Kohala Center — has worked to reduce ecological stressors and increase resilience at Kahalu‘u through Hawaiian cultural practices, scientific research, strategic partnerships and an enduring educational program powered by community volunteers.

“My hope is that people who see the film are inspired to get involved in caring for ‘āina that takes care of us,” said Punihaole in an announcement about the upcoming Waimea screening. “Our grassroots stewardship efforts at Kahalu‘u prove that when community comes together, the collective impact is huge. The vision is to ensure that these places our kūpuna lovingly cared for will sustain future generations and provide meaningful opportunities for our keiki to thrive.”

VIP guests prior to the screening can meet Punihaole and The Kohala Center ʻohana, enjoy pupus featuring rare kalo varieties grown on The Kohala Center’s Nāmoku learning farm, smoked meat from pigs removed from the Kohala Cloud Forest and other locally inspired fare.

Tables will showcase The Kohala Center’s broader initiatives and volunteer opportunities.

Guests can also talk story with the organization’s forest restoration crew, explore native plants and weave fish with materials from land the center stewards in Niuli‘i.

Tickets and additional information about the screening event and film are available on The Kohala Center website.

The Kohala Center — founded in 2000 and based in Waimea — is a community-based nonprofit organization of practitioners dedicated to strengthening connections between people and ʻāina.

Contact The Kohala Center at 808-887-6411 for additional information.