Staff

Executive Director – Roxanne Bolden

Roxanne is the Executive Director and one of the original founders of AILH. She is a sibling to two brothers who were born with an intellectual disability and two other brothers who became disabled as a result of serving in the military.  Additionally, her late father had many age related disabilities.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

Executive Assistant – Zee Cruz-Stanley

Zinnan has worked for AILH periodically as a volunteer since 2009 and briefly as one of their office clerks in 2013.  She obtained her license in phlebotomy and also holds a state license as a Certified Nursing Assistant. View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deputy Director –  Sam Nagasawa

Sam Nagasawa originally from Germany came to live in Hawaii in 1983 when she married a “local boy” from the Big Island. Her family settled in Pahoa in the Puna District. When her husband became disabled in a 1985 car accident she learned firsthand about the challenges of living with a disability. She became a skills trainer and worked with children with autism, along with behavioral challenged youth.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

Advocacy Coordinator – Brian Hauser

Brian Hauser designed the TeleConnect Program and has been managing it since its inception in 2020. He has been the Systems Change Advocacy Coordinator at Aloha Independent Living Hawaii (AILH) since 2014 and previously served on the AILH Board of Directors. View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

Maui IL Specialist (for the Maui Wildfire Recovery) – Lehua Chang

Lehua Chang is a Maui Independent Living Specialist (for the Maui Wildfire Recovery).  She was born and raised on the island of Molokai by my maternal grandparents. I am a Molokai High alumnus graduating in 1998 and later graduating with an Associate’s degree in Liberal Arts and ASC in Hawaiian Studies from The University of Maui Molokai Campus.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

East Hawaii Clerical Assistant – Pomai Nosaka

As a resident of Hilo for over 40 years, Pomai enjoys the opportunity to assist her fellow community members in sharing the programs and services available at AILH. In 2012, she initially came to AILH Hilo as a consumer looking for assistance with housing and social recreational needs.  She began attending support group meetings and soon after, became one of AILH’s most valuable volunteers.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

East Hawaii Clerical Assistant – Colleen Nakamura

My name is Colleen Nakamura and I was born and raised in Hilo where my mother a nurse shared her experiences caring for patients at Hilo Hospital (Hilo Benioff Medical Center).   Her empathy, compassion and patience as a nurse affected me early in life and continues to this day as an adult. Upon my retirement after 36 years employed as a Clerk to Senior Account Clerk at the Dept. of Water Supply. View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

East Hawaii IL Specialist – Karin Riedel

Karin Riedel grew up in Germany where she graduated from the University of Heidelberg at the Faculty for Sociological and Behavioral Sciences with a Master’s degree in Pedagogics, Criminology, and Germanistics.  Raised in a family deeply rooted in social work and advocacy, Karin has worked in the social services field in the U.S. for the past 14 years.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

Van Driver –  Beatrice Sextimo “Bea”

Beatrice “Bea”  has for the 27 years worked as a driver first and then as the Transportation Coordinator for a local nonprofit agency here on the Big Island.

Due to COVID 19, I found myself recently unemployed and feel very fortunate to have been hired by Aloha Independent Living Hawaii.View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oahu IL Specialist – Thomas Lum

Tom has worked for over eight years at Lanakila Rehabilitation Center Inc. During his time there, he was responsible for training and monitoring peoples with disabilities, along with coordinating with different social workers, parents and guardians in making plans to prepare and train them to gain work experience and social skills.  View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

 

Kauai IL Specialist – Holly Pickens

Holly is originally from California. She attended the University of Phoenix and Rancho Santiago Community College.  In the 90’s she obtained her Paralegal Certificate and in 2019 received a Medical Billing & Coding Certificate.    View Full Bio

 

 

 

 

 

Molokai IL Specialist – Tina He-Lindsey

Tina He-Lindsey is a compassionate and dedicated individual, with over thirty years of experience as a homemaker, mother, wife, and volunteer at her church. She has a passion for helping others and has dedicated countless hours to various volunteer projects. Tina is a proud mother of three adult children and grandmother to three amazing grandchildren.  View Full Bio