Dr. LaVerne Arabella Waioli Kia

Dr. LaVerne Arabella Waioli Kia was born on June 13, 1957, at Kuakini Hospital Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. She was raised on Liku Street in Kailua and moved to Nānākuli while in first grade. The youngest of 15 siblings, she was the daughter of a mother from Kauaʻi and a father from Maui. Her father worked as a heavy equipment operator, and her mother cared for the home. Some of her fondest childhood memories were summers spent on her family’s taro patch land in Kauaʻi.

She began school at Nanaikapono Elementary in Nānākuli and later attended Sacred Hearts Academy from fourth grade through high school, graduating in 1975. To pay for her tuition, she cleaned bathrooms and classrooms at the school—rooms her granddaughter now attends. She often recalled winning a French Award in the 7th grade. She attended the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, completing a premed biology program, followed by one year in the Imi Hoʻōla Program. She graduated from the John A. Burns School of Medicine and completed a one-year Internal Medicine Internship, earning Intern of the Year Award, followed by a two-year Internal Medicine Residency Program.

Dr. Kia opened her first private medical practice in Nānākuli, later relocating to St. Francis Medical Center West, where she served as Chair of the Internal Medicine Department (1yr), Secretary of the Medical Staff (1yr), and Chief of Staff (2yrs). She continued practicing medicine at The Queen’s Medical Center West Oahu and served as Vice President of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Mood USA, founded by her daughter, until her final day on December 9, 2025.

She had a strong interest in classical art and theater. She enjoyed oil painting and charcoal drawing. She loved traveling and learning about different cultures. She was Catholic and believed deeply in the power of prayer. In her lifetime, she enjoyed horseback riding, boxing for exercise, and watching K-dramas. On her last day, she watched a puppet show with her granddaughter, which inspired the creation of The Lovey-Dovey Show on YouTube. Many called her extraordinary—for Dr. Kia was the definition of true love.