Jaedyn Janae Puahaulani Pavao can certainly entertain a crowd. Whether dancing at a backyard luau or on stage at the Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, she glides gracefully and almost effortlessly as if she were on a cloud.
But Pavao doesn’t consider herself a performer. Instead, she’s a storyteller who brings to life the people and places in the mele and chants of her hula. “I try to transcend space and time,” she says. “I imagine myself at these place-names. That connection to the aina allows me to share with the audience these places they otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to go to.”
That mindset enabled Pavao, 24, to win the coveted Miss Aloha Hula title at the 2025 Merrie Monarch Festival. The award was a culmination of discipline, hard work, and sacrifice in her hula journey that started from small-kid time. “Hula came naturally to me from the moment I could walk and talk,” she says.
Pavao remembers watching dancers at the halau of her aunt, the late kumu hula Leinaala Pavao Jardin of Halau Ka Lei Mokihana o Leinaala in Kalaheo, Kauai. In 2010, she won Miss Keiki Hula at the Queen Liliuokalani Hula Festival, paving the way for her to dance with her halau at the Merrie Monarch Festival for the past 10 years.
Jaedyn Pavao's kahiko at the 2025 Merrie Monarch Festival. Photo courtesy Mike Teruya
Even for a seasoned dancer, every moment on stage becomes a new experience. “Yes, nerves kick in,” she admits. “But at that point, you’re prepared. In the moment walking up that ramp, there’s no turning back. And you remember your purpose of being on stage. It’s not about me. It’s about making my ku-puna, kumu, and community proud. Everything just falls into place.”
Jaedyn Pavao dancing auana. Photo courtesy Greg Heller
Hula is also the continuation of her family’s hula legacy. Her cousin, Breeze Pavao (Jardin’s daughter), won second place as Miss Aloha Hula in 2023 and is a past Keiki Hula winner. She feels a sense of kuleana (responsibility) to stay true to her hula lineage. “It’s not just blood relatives, but also our kumu who paved the way for us – kumu Rae (Fonseca), Uncle George (Naope), and Aunty Lovey (Apana). My love for hula starts with them.”
Jaedyn (center) with cousin Breeze Pavao (left) and kumu hula Leinaala Jardin, who died in October 2025.
Pavao also knew at a young age that she wanted to be a health care provider after her grandfather had a stroke. “Seeing my family give so much love and care to him at his bedside, I realized that I can also make a big impact on my community,” she says.
As a public health nurse for the Hawaii Department of Health, Pavao works with students, kupuna, and others in the community with health and well-being education and clinical programs.
Hula can also be healing, she says, and she’s looking forward to continuing her lifelong journey of learning – both in health care and Native Hawaiian culture.
“We’ll see the plans Ke Akua has for me,” she says. “I’m just glad to be given these gifts to share."
On the job as a public health nurse. Photo Courtesy Jaedyn Pavao
Read a Q&A with Pavao.
Hero photo courtesy Halau Ka Lei Mokihana o Leinaala
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