{"id":218682,"date":"2025-07-15T13:29:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T23:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=218682"},"modified":"2025-07-15T14:49:58","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T00:49:58","slug":"dementia-children-book-in-olelo-hawaii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/07\/15\/dementia-children-book-in-olelo-hawaii\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping keiki understand kupuna: dementia support book now in \u02bb\u014clelo Hawai\u02bbi"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"two
K\u016bpuna holding their copy of P\u014dmai and Her Papa<\/em> in both English and \u02bb\u014clelo Hawai\u02bbi. (Photo courtesy: Jena Funakoshi)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A children\u2019s storybook developed through the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa is now available in ʻŌlelo<\/span> Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, offering Hawaiian-speaking families a new resource to support loved ones with dementia.<\/p>\n

P\u014dmai L\u0101ua ʻo<\/span> Papa: Ka Wā Kamaliʻi<\/span> a me ka Makua Poina Wale: Pehea e M\u0101lama ai i n\u0101 Mea Koʻikoʻi<\/span> loa<\/em> is the Hawaiian-language version of P\u014dmai and Her Papa: Growing Up Around Memory Loss<\/em> and Holding on to What Matters Most<\/em>, originally published in English<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Expanding access<\/h2>\n

The translation, led by H\u0101 K\u016bpuna: National Resource Center for Native Hawaiian Elders<\/a> at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health<\/a>, helps meet a growing need for culturally and linguistically relevant resources for Hawaiian-speaking families caring for loved ones with Alzheimer\u2019s disease and dementia.<\/p>\n

Related UH<\/abbr> News<\/em> story: ʻŌlelo<\/span> Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> for elder care<\/a>, February 2025<\/span><\/p>\n

Translating medical concepts such as “geriatrician” and “social worker” into ʻŌlelo<\/span> Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> required the thoughtful creation of new terms. It reflects the commitment to improving access for the increasing number of Hawaiian language speakers.<\/p>\n

“We wanted to contribute to increasing language access for Hawaiian speakers by having P\u014dmai L\u0101ua ʻo<\/span> Papa<\/em> available everywhere P\u014dmai and Her Papa<\/em> is already available,” said H\u0101 K\u016bpuna graduate assistant Kepo ʻo<\/span> Keliʻipaʻakaua<\/span>, who led the project.<\/p>\n

Understanding dementia together<\/h2>\n

The initiative was prompted by H\u0101 K\u016bpuna\u2019s joint advisory committee, which identified a pressing need for Hawaiian-language eldercare materials. Both versions of the storybook help families recognize the signs of dementia, understand the difference between memory loss and normal aging, and connect with support services.<\/p>\n

\"stack
(Photo courtesy: Jena Funakoshi)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Initially, partners at the Waiʻanae<\/span> Coast Comprehensive Health Center requested a small number of ʻŌlelo<\/span> Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> copies for outreach kits to houseless families. <\/p>\n

“There was such an interest, even among volunteers, that they requested more Hawaiian language books,” said Shelley Muneoka of H\u0101 K\u016bpuna. “It\u2019s so exciting to see the enthusiasm for this resource!”<\/p>\n

By the end of 2025, more than 1,500 copies of the English book will have been distributed, and nearly 350 Hawaiian language copies will join them in public and school libraries statewide.<\/p>\n

In Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, where multigenerational homes are common, and dementia rates are rising, P\u014dmai L\u0101ua ʻo<\/span> Papa<\/em> offers families a child-friendly way to talk about memory loss and support k\u016bpuna with care and compassion.<\/p>\n

To download the books or request printed copies, visit H\u0101 K\u016bpuna\u2019s website or email Shelley Muneoka at muneokas@hawaii.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Hawaiian-language children\u2019s book developed at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa helps families talk about dementia and support k\u016bpuna with care and compassion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":218693,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[972,1622,158,596,9],"class_list":["post-218682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-alzheimers-disease","tag-olelo-hawaii","tag-publication","tag-myron-b-thompson-school-of-social-work","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/manoa-public-health-pomai-papa-book.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218682"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218682\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":218735,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218682\/revisions\/218735"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/218693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}