Administration
Faye Mitchell joined NHH as Executive Director in 2024 after serving as Community Relations Manager since 2022. Born and raised in Kohala and a graduate of Parker School, Faye managed an in-home caregiving agency for five years, led workshops on dementia, and trained as an End of Life Doula. Her relationship with North Hawaii Hospice began 15 years ago as a Patient Care Volunteer and has now come full circle.
Patient and Family Care Services
Dr. Melanie Payanal brings a unique and deeply compassionate perspective to medicine. A Native Hawaiian and proud graduate of Kamehameha Schools, she grew up in Mākaha and spent five years as an archaeologist before pursuing a career in medicine. She attended the University of Hawaiʻi and completed her residency training through the John A. Burns School of Medicine. Today, Dr. Payanal serves patients in Aiea at Ke Ola Pono ʻOhana Family Medicine Clinic and is the Medical Director for both Hospice of Kona and North Hawaii Hospice. A proud mother of three boys — Keola, Kekoa, and Kuana — she balanced raising her family throughout medical school and residency. Outside of medicine, her family shares a passion for baseball, including two appearances at the Little League World Series. Dr. Payanal believes success is measured not only by achievement, but by using one’s platform to uplift others. As she tells her sons, “Winning is really about what you can do with that platform to help elevate others. That’s called winning at the game called LIFE!”
Patient Care Delivery Team
Kaiki Gunderson-Cook, RN, was born on Oahu and moved to Waimea when she was three. She wanted to become a veterinarian and completed her bachelor’s in animal science at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. She worked as a vet tech before moving to New Zealand in 2008, hoping to attend veterinary school there. She moved back to Waimea and attended Hawaii Community College nursing school. After graduating from nursing school, she worked as a home health nurse for a year before joining our team as a Clinical Operations Manager/Case Manager in 2013. Kaiki enjoys being able to give back to the community.
Nina Millar, RN, has lived on Hawaii Island for more than thirty years. She became a registered nurse in 1990 after attending the University of Hawaii at Hilo. She is also a midwife, graduating from the Midwifery Program at the Maternity Center in Texas in 1983. Armed with this unusual combination of practices, which includes several years as a home health care nurse, Nina feels lucky to be present at both the beginning and the end of lives here in North Hawaii. Nina is an After-Hours Nurse for NHH.
Monica Newcomb, RN, BS, CHPN, joined our hospice team as a Nurse Case Manager in 2017. Monica moved to Hawaii Island from Poughkeepsie, New York, where she was working for Hudson Valley Hospice. Monica began her career getting a degree in biology from Syracuse University and then attended nursing school. She has worked in several capacities at various hospices for 17 years. She and her husband live in Waikoloa and are Hawaii Preparatory Academy parents.
Christine Richardson, RN, has served our hospice for many years as an On-Call Nurse, serving patients in North Kohala. She has lived and worked as a registered nurse on Hawaii Island for more than 20 years and was one of two nurses sponsored by NHH to go to Zimbabwe to work with our “sister hospice.”
Sandy Sproat, MSW, LSW, joined our hospice team as a Medical Social Worker in 2017. Sandy received her Bachelor of Arts in Social Work from Brigham Young University in Laie, Hawaii, and her Master of Social Work at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She is a long-time resident of Hawaii Island and has also worked with kidney dialysis patients at Liberty Dialysis at North Hawaii Community Hospital. Prior to her social work career, she was an educational assistant at Waimea Middle School. Sandy has also worked at Hawaii Preparatory Academy and Queen Liliuokalani Children’s Center.
