Pūpūkea - Kalua o Maua – Waimea

In 1983, the State of Hawai‘i designated the nearshore areas off two of our most popular North Shore beaches — Kalua o Maua (Three Tables) and Kapoʻo (Sharks Cove) — as a marine protected area, called the Pūpūkea Marine Life Conservation District (MLCD). In 2002-2003, the State substantially expanded the MLCD to include Waimea Bay, increasing the marine reserve to over 180 marine acres along about a mile of coastline. The North Shore community strongly advocated for the protection and preservation of the cultural and natural resources in this larger area while striving to balance the popular recreational use of this area by residents and visitors. The Pūpūkea MLCD – one of only eleven in the entire state and one of only three on Oʻahu — is important to the entire North Shore of Oʻahu because it provides a refuge for marine life that supports the ecological replenishment of the entire coastline.

No Mall at Sharks Cove

In August 2004, a group of North Shore residents formed a group called Friends of Sharks Cove in response to a proposed shopping mall complex proposed for parcels right across Kamehameha Highway from Sharks Cove. The slogan “No Mall at Sharks Cove” became the group’s rally cry. Hundreds of community members united against the developer’s proposal. Spearheading the efforts for enhanced conservation in the area, residents Cora Sanchez, Larry McElheny, and Blake McElheny joined forces to educate the community about inappropriate development and to prevent future impacts to our unique rural North Shore environment. After the proposed mall project was withdrawn, the community began planning how to become more proactive in protecting and enhancing Sharks Cove and the MLCD. The popular area was showing signs of overuse, deterioration, and was not been receiving adequate management oversight and support from the city or state despite having an increasingly large number of visitors and recreational users.

Hui Mālama o Pūpūkea-Waimea

The birth of Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea dates back to an informal meeting at Sharks Cove Grill on January 14, 2005, when Scott Atkinson, Jason Philibotte, and Mike Guilbeaux of the non-profit Community Conservation Network (CCN) invited Friends of Sharks Cove, other North Shore community leaders, and State Department of Land & Natural Resources (DLNR) representatives to consider options for community based stewardship of the area’s marine resources.

CCN, which later changed to Hawai‘i Community Stewardship Network (HCSN) under the leadership of Debbie Gowensmith, who joined the Pūpūkea effort in April 2005, had broad experience helping coastal communities in Hawai‘i and the Asia-Pacific region with community-based marine conservation and management projects.

Participants at the Sharks Cove Grill meeting included: Blake McElheny (Friends of Sharks Cove, North Shore Community Land Trust & Pūpūkea resident), Denise Antolini (NSCLT co-founder & Pūpūkea resident), Cora Sanchez (Friends of Sharks Cove & Sunset Beach resident), Bob Leinau (NSCLT & Pūpūkea resident), Kaliko Amona (Kōkua Hawai’i Foundation & Pūpūkea resident) and (from DLNR) Athline Clark, Alton Miyasaka, and Melissa Bos.

The group discussed the need and opportunities for community stewardship programs and agreed to form a partnership between the community and DLNR. Cora, Denise, and Bob later became the founding advisory board members of Hui Mālama o Pūpūkea-Waimea, a name chosen by a diverse community group including kupuna Butch Helemano to honor the adjoining ahupuaʻa of this area and to emphasize the “ridges to reefs” scope of the group’s vision and stewardship work.

After meetings with interested community members, the group adopted the following vision and mission statement: “Replenish and sustain the natural and cultural resources of both the Pūpūkea and Waimea ahupua‘a for present and future generations through active community stewardship, education, and public and private partnerships.” In 2025, after twenty years of progress, MPW still embraces the same mission statement.

Later in 2005, Hui Mālama o Pūpūkea-Waimea became the first Makai Watch (eyes on the ocean) program on O‘ahu in partnership with DLNR’s Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) and Division of Conservation and Resource Enforcement (DOCARE). In 2006, through CCN/HCSN, the organization hired Butch Helemano as its first “kahu” or program director, initiated its biological and human use monitoring programs, and began weekly outreach tent operations on Saturdays at Sharks Cove with a dedicated core of community volunteers and a volunteer advisory board.

In 2009, the organization shortened its name to Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea (MPW) and became a state-recognized non-profit organization, led by President Denise Antolini and co-founder Roberts “Bob” Leinau In 2010, after years of generous support through grants and donations through HCSN/Debbie Gowensmith and others, MPW began hiring its own staff and consultants. In 2011, MPW became a tax-exempt federal 501(c)(3).

Today, MPW still operates without a formal office (we work from our homes and consider the MLCD as our workspace and classroom) and operates with a small tight budget. Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2025, MPW is thriving and growing with broad community support, a large array of programs, a hearty volunteer network, strong partnerships, and dedicated board, staff, and consultants. MPW is very grateful for the many grantors, businesses, and invididual donors who have supported the organization over many years (see our “Donors & Supporters” page).