Who We Are
Pūlama i nā mea ola mai uka a i kai.
Protecting all creatures from mauka to makai.
HAKA supports Hawai‘i’s communities before, during, and after disasters through programs that protect the whole ‘ohana, people and animals together.
HAKA’s mission began in 2018 during the Kīlauea eruption, when lava threatened homes, communities, and the lives of countless animals. In response, Alessandra and a friend quickly organized the Hawaiʻi Lava Flow Animal Rescue Network on Facebook to coordinate help for animals in danger. What started as a grassroots response soon grew as Syndi and other volunteers joined forces, forming a dedicated team committed to protecting animals and supporting the people who loved them.
By the end of the eruption, this volunteer-led effort had helped rescue, care for, and coordinate support for more than 1,000 animals. That experience revealed a critical need in Hawaiʻi: organized, community-based disaster response that includes animals, families, and the people often left without clear support during emergencies.
In 2021, HAKA became an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit to continue that work. Today, HAKA remains committed to aiding Hawaiʻi’s communities and animals before, during, and after emergencies and disasters through rescue coordination, intake, resource connection, education, advocacy, and compassionate community response.
Our Team
Syndi
Halualani-Texeira
Executive Director
Syndi Halualani-Texeira is the Executive Director of Hawaiʻi Animal Kuleana Alliance (HAKA), where she leads disaster preparedness, emergency response coordination, public education, and direct support for families across Hawaiʻi. As a Native Hawaiian, born and raised in Hawaiʻi, with more than 20 years of leadership experience across nonprofit operations, public safety support, legal administration, public relations, and community-based service delivery, Syndi brings a rare combination of crisis-management experience, compassion, and operational discipline to HAKA’s work.
Through HAKA, Syndi supports families before, during, and after disasters and emergencies through preparedness education, emergency supplies, evacuation planning, animal search and rescue coordination, and community outreach. Under her leadership, HAKA has grown from a grassroots disaster response effort into a recognized community partner that has supported more than 1,000 families and more than 3,000 animals since 2018.
Today, Syndi’s leadership is grounded in kuleana, accountability, and service to Hawaiʻi Island families, animals, and communities. Her work reflects a lifelong commitment to crisis response, animal welfare, public service, and building practical systems that help communities prepare, respond, recover, and care for one another.
Alessandra Rupar Weber
Compassion Coordinator
Alessandra Rupar came to Hawaiʻi via Austria. She began her career in the fashion industry and transitioned into entrepreneurship, co-founding several businesses, eventually striking out on her own with Divine Goods Hawai‘i and Vegan Aloha. In 2018, Alessandra co-founded the Hawai‘i Lava Flow Animal Rescue Network (HLFARN), a grassroots group that became the primary information hub for animal-related services during the Kīlauea eruption. After the eruption, HLFARN went on to rescue more than 400 cows from the shuttered Big Island Dairy. Alessandra is an active member of Animal Rights Hawai‘i and coordinates Big Island Veg Fest. Alessandra has a huge heart for animals and their people and is instrumental in coordinating community assistance and running the HAKA ‘Ohana Facebook group. Alessandra’s intimate relationships with animal lovers, animal advocacy leaders, and animal organizations support HAKA’s goal to aid spay and neuter efforts in our community.
Vanessa Jagow
Project Manager
Vanessa, originally from the Midwest, grew up with animals starting from a young age. She has worked with and owned several types of animals, including bunnies, cats, chickens, dogs, hamsters, horses, and different types of lizards. She has worked for Habitat for Humanity to help repair homes for kūpuna in need, and after moving to Hawai’i Island in 2021, joined HAKA to help with the animals of Hawai’i and meet new people. She started her professional career in telecommunications, eventually transitioning to project management. Vaness brings those organizational and time management skills to the HAKA team to help juggle all of the balls that are constantly in the air.