When Chanz Palau was first diagnosed with autism at age 3, doctors told his mother that it was unlikely he would ever speak.
Pua Kamahoahoa listened to the dire prediction politely. She understood that the doctors were only trying to prepare her for what lay ahead, to make sure she understood what it would mean to care for a child who would never be able to feel or understand or return her love in the way other children might.
But Kamahoahoa also knew Chanz was special and that his path in life couldn’t be predicted quite so easily. That she understood when she had chosen his middle name, Makanaokahaku — "gift from God."
Now 12, Chanz is a bright, talkative, talented kid whose unfiltered reactions to people and situations amuse and inspire his mother.
"People are too discreet sometimes," Kamahoahoa says. "If I come across a homeless person who smells, I might smile and walk around him, but Chanz will go up to him and say, ‘Uncle, there’s a park over there where you can take a shower so you won’t smell anymore.’"
Kamahoahoa credits the Department of Education and the teachers and staff of Blanche Pope Elementary School with providing the care and services Chanz needed to deal with his developmental limitations.
The family considered Pope’s program for special-needs students so vital to Chanz’s development that when Kamahoahoa got married and moved to Pearl City to be closer to her husband’s job, the family decided to let Chanz stay in Waimanalo with his grandmother Geri Roy and aunt Hermie Lau. (Kamahoahoa visits every day.)
Today nearly every room of Roy and Lau’s home is adorned with shelves and display cases filled with Chanz’s Lego creations — from Russian fighter planes to giant robots to a 2-foot model of the Queen Mary he built when he found out Roy, a former singer, had once performed on the vessel.
"He can build anything he sees," Roy boasts.
Next week Chanz will preside as May Day king of Pope Elementary’s Hoike celebration. As part of his presentation, Chanz will perform an e ala e chant accompanied by Kamahoahoa and stepfather Paiea Kamahoahoa.
"They said he was never going to speak or act or feel, so he’s going to perform an oli as a way of showing thanks for all of the help and support he’s received to get him to this point," Kamahoahoa says.
To make the most of the moment, the family has invested in a custom-tailored uniform modeled after the ceremonial attire worn by King Kalakaua, the brilliant, oft-misunderstood monarch of whom Pua sees traces in Chanz.
Chanz is appreciative of the honor but unfazed by all the attention he’s been getting. "If there is something special about you," he says, shrugging, "it’s because God made you that way."
