A car accident in 1999 left Chanelle Kukona, 26, with aches and pains. That's when she started "dabbling in holistic health. I wanted to learn how to heal myself." Today she is accomplished at meditation, yoga and tai chi, and hopes to open what she calls a spiritual spa (she already owns the Honolulu-based production company Aloha Friday Productions). It's part of her goal to help others. "Some people can help the homeless or give $10,000 toward a cause ... I can't. But what I can do is facilitate healing through massage, a hug, making someone laugh. And that is what I try to do every single day."

"The ocean and I are one and the same," says waterwoman and environmental activist Donna Kahakui. The founder of the marine education nonprofit Kai Makana, Kahakui paddled 200 miles from O'ahu to Ni'ihau to raise money and awareness for ocean conservation in 2004. A federal agent with the Environmental Protection Agency's Hawai'i office, Kahakui continues to paddle. "Paddling is such a healthy form of exercise for your mind and body and spirit. It is never too late!"?

Recovering from a crystal meth addiction, Stankiewicz finds self-esteem "one house at a time" as a cleaner. For her, living a healthy life must include "working with others and not hanging with the old crowd." What would she tell others going through an addiction? "You have to really accept that it is time to change ... everything."

She has been a makeup artist for 20 years and still every day is like the first for her, overseeing her Kaimuki Sanctuary salon and new cosmetics line, FIXX. The enthusiasm comes from the gratification she gets from helping women. "Being in the beauty industry has given me the opportunity to counsel and teach women how important it is to build self-esteem from the inside out," says Oliveira. Here she is with her daughter, Kira, center, an aspiring photographer and actress.

"Being fit is not just looking fit," says Zekovic-Roth, 32, who was on the Olympic synchronized swimming team in her native Yugoslavia. "We need to feed our spirits as much as we feed our body and mind ... on a daily basis!" Bad migraines and a deteriorating posture led her to traditional Chinese medicine and Pilates. Now she is a licensed acupuncturist and Pilates instructor at Kaimuki Care, a rehabilitative clinic, and gives training tips on KITV on Monday mornings.

People from around the world go to Kapahulu's Na Lima Mili Hulu Noeau for feather lei by Auntie Mary Lou Kekuewa, center, and her daughter Paulette Kahalepuna, right. The pair says the shop keeps Kekuewa going. Battling Alzheimer's disease, Kekuewa still skillfully works feathers into intricate patterns. "We must share this art form if we want it to live on," she says. You can see their work on Oct. 7 at the Day at Queen Emma Summer Palace festival.