Founded 1982

Two very special women, Joan Kreeger and Lee Ann Mitchell, started The Baby Hui in 1982. Together, they envisioned The Baby Hui as a parent support group, reaching out to all parents in Hawaii regardless of race, religion or income level. The early curriculum for The Baby Hui was developed using a prototype organization in Eugene, Oregon called Birth To Three . Through their associations with the Department of Health and the Junior League, the two women obtained “seed funding” for The Baby Hui and the organization was brought to life.

In 1987, with the support of the Department of Health, The Baby Hui became an all volunteer, parent support organization with non-profit 501c(3) status. A year later, The Baby Hui hired two part-time contractors through funding from a Federal Challenge grant. In 1991, The Baby Hui expanded to the Big Island with funding from the Atherton Foundation. By 1997, the program was operating on Kona, Maui and Kauai thanks to additional funding from the Awareness Foundation.

In 1992, the Teen Program held its first Hui at Kailua High School. In 1997, the Weinberg Foundation provided funding to expand the Teen Program throughout the state.

“ A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove...but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.”