Hawaii Conference

This year, Hawaiian Mission Academy (HMA) decided to do something different for Academy Days visitation. Why not have students from across the state of Hawaii spend not just one day but several days seeing what HMA has to offer? This would give potential new students the opportunity to get to know each other before committing to HMA as their school of choice. I had the fun privilege of escorting my son and two classmates from Kahili Adventist School on Kauai to Oahu for this event.

As I arrived at Camp Waianae with the three 13-yearold boys I was chaperoning, I noted several things: the weather was fantastic, how quickly we were settled into our respective cabins, and the hum of energy that was nearly audible. Approximately 40 students, mostly eighth-graders from across the state, were the source of that vibrant energy. They were led by 10 HMA students who had been chosen by the staff to oversee all the activities that would take place over the weekend.

Four teams were established, which meant that students from one school were combined with students from other schools. And then the competition ramped up. Each team began putting heart and soul into earning points, which would be translated into “dollars” that would be used to bid on merchandise at the auction to be held on Monday. As the day progressed into evening, it seemed that the energy level did not abate until lights out at bedtime.

The Friday events led into Sabbath morning and afternoon events. Relay races, balloon popping, cardboard boat building at the pool, team banner painting, and massive tugs-of-war—all teams were working at high speed and cheering each other on. I was interested to note how quickly the boys bonded together. And by Saturday night under the big circus tent, the girls had also formed into a cohesive unit. As the Saturday night games got under way, it was now a competition of boys versus girls. At stake was the camp cleanup chores on Sunday going to the losing side. From the staring contests to the karaoke and lip-syncing contests, the cacophony of noise reached a crescendo that threatened to send the tent soaring off like a hot air balloon. Everyone was all in, with each team pulling even the shyest person into the spirit of competing.

As fun as it was to laugh, applaud, and cheer, watching kids having more fun than any video game could offer, I also observed the real achievement for which this event was structured. Despite the high spirits, yells, squeals, shouts, and laughter, when the student leaders got up to talk about their experiences as HMA students, the noise stopped as if a plug had been pulled. Student leaders had been requested to talk about balance in their lives. For one student, this involved time management and procrastination; for another student, this meant body image and learning to accept self; another student leader spoke about parental expectations and the downward spiral when parental encouragement turned into pushing. I looked around the audience and saw the same reaction each time a student leader opened up and talked about

the struggle to find balance, acceptance, and knowing who they are. These 13- and 14-year-old eighth-graders were as intent in listening to these stories as they were in going for the win in relay races. They could relate because they, too, have struggles with figuring out who they are and where they are going in life.

I realized I was witnessing student autonomy. Student leaders on the brink of adulthood had been given a task, and they accomplished it beautifully. The weekend flowed smoothly, events were well organized and well supervised, and these 10 young people showed a level of competence that was not lost on the younger crowd. These eighthgrade students embarking on adolescence could see themselves in the struggles of these student leaders. They also observed the feeling of family and support that HMA provided for each student sharing his or her experience. By Sunday morning, as we were preparing to leave Camp Waianae (and the boys had completed the camp clean-up chores), the atmosphere was a contented expectation of more good stuff to come. A large circle formed on the field, and around the circle students stated what they liked the most so far. The food was a big handsdown winner, to be tied with making new friends. An invitation was extended for students to come to summer camp, and I overheard some tentative plans being made.

The weekend closed with Monday morning in classes, where teachers had prepared fun exercises for the visiting students. Again, the competition was on, whether to build the tallest tower from spaghetti, tape, and string to computerized math drills and original English compositions; this was a final chance to win some more “dollars.”

There was one last fabulous meal in the cafeteria from Dean Marshall Freitas and his staff, a Q&A session hosted by student leaders, and finally the much awaited auction. Here too, competitive spirits ramped up the bids on items ranging from Nike apparel to Amazon gift cards. Everyone received a Nike T-shirt, printed in HMA blue, followed by a group photo op organized around the fountain.

On the plane home that Monday afternoon, I thought about the words those four student leaders had shared over the weekend. Each one referenced a Bible verse or two that had special meaning for them. Parents can say a prayer of thanks to know that their teenagers at Hawaiian Mission Academy find relevance in a text from Galatians 1:10 that states, “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ” (NIV).

____________________ By Debbie Nakamura

On October 8, Kahili Adventist School on the island of Kauai held their annual bike-a-thon. This fundraiser traditionally takes place on the bike path in Kapaa. This year, 25 students and 15 adult helpers rode for about three hours. The students rode a combined total of 400 miles in that time—one student rode over 30 miles!

Students sought pledges per mile, and to date they have raised over $4,000 to be put toward their annual outdoor education trip.

Two aid stations were set up along the path to keep the students fueled and hydrated. We could not have successfully completed this project without the parent volunteers who helped monitor the students' safety on the bike path.

____________________ By Keith Hatcher