A 29-year-old Bank of Hawaii vice president and Kamehameha Schools graduate has been named trustee of the King William Charles Lunalilo Trust, which operates the Lunalilo Home in Hawaii Kai.

Kamani Kualaau, who will be one of three trustees of the poorest of the Hawaiian alii trusts, figured in community action that led to reform of the richest trust, formerly the Bishop Estate, a decade ago.

Kualaau, a graduate of Princeton University, joined Bank of Hawaii in 2003 as a financial analyst and is now senior trust officer. He was promoted in September to vice president of institutional client services.

“;We were looking for leaders for the future,”; said Stanley Hong, Lunalilo Trust chairman. “;He is very young but bright and mature, very experienced for such a short working career. The trust will benefit from his experience in the financial field.”;

Kualaau was one of 42 applicants for the trustee position vacated by the death of R.M. Keahi Allen. The position brings about $1,200 in monthly compensation.

Probate Judge Colleen Hirai approved his appointment to a five-year term.

Kualaau was the Princeton-bound student body president in 1997 when Bishop Estate trustee Lokelani Lindsey acted to usurp the authority of popular school President Michael Chun. Kualaau and senior class President James Moniz wrote a letter supporting Chun. Lindsey threatened to tell Princeton that he was a troublemaker, a conversation that Kualaau described in a court hearing that led to Lindsey's dismissal as trustee.

A groundswell of opposition by Kamehameha students, parents and alumni eventually led the other trustees to resign under fire and the state courts to reform the way trustees were named and compensated.

Kualaau doesn't introduce the subject of his teenage activism but “;people point me out as that guy. We were just kids, we sensed that something was wrong and we wanted to do something about it. We did what we thought we should do, we didn't see it from the big-picture perspective.”;

In contrast to Kamehameha Schools, the richest estate endowed by one of Hawaii's alii, the Lunalilo Trust is probably the poorest. Hawaii's sixth king died in 1874, leaving a trust of more than 70,000 acres to provide for “;poor, aged and infirm people of Hawaiian ancestry.”; Trustees gradually sold off the land to maintain the charitable mission.

“;By design, we run in a deficit,”; Kualaau said. “;The trust directly subsidizes those who cannot afford to take care of themselves. The service will cost more in the future and will be more in demand.”;

The residential nursing home has been expanded; families may now leave elderly and infirm people in a day-care center. Food for an area meals-on-wheels program is prepared at the home.

“;We will be looking at ways we can expand from where we are today, writing grants, building partners in the community, Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian,”; Kualaau said.