Former Miss Aloha Hula, Maelia Loebenstein Carter has hula roots that began with her family. Her first kumu hula was her maternal grandmother, Mae Ulalia Long Loebenstein, a respected kumu hula who had learned from her mother, Ida Pakulani Ka'aihue Kai'anui Long -- who learned from her granduncle, the hula master Kamawae of Maui. Attending the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Maelia also studied hula with Ed Kalahiki, from whom she gained a better knowledge and confidence in chanting. When Aunty Mae passed on, Maelia fulfilled her destiny by becoming the kumu hula of their halau, Ka Pa Hula O Kauanoe O Wa'ahila. She has continued the high standards of her grandmother, taking honors at Merrie Monarch and other competitions, and presenting elegant, sophisticated hula wherever they perform.