[intro music] HIKI NŌ, Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

Aloha.

Welcome to HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

I'm Sophia Santos, a freshman at Pearl City High School on O‘ahu.

I've been involved with HIKI NŌ since I was in middle school at Highlands Intermediate and I'm excited to be your host to share the work of Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

In this episode, we'll watch stories from HIKI NŌ students who recently took home national storytelling awards during a Student Television Network competition in November.

We'll meet some customers of a Wai‘anae grocery store who tell us about how inflation is affecting their ability to shop for groceries.

We'll learn about the scientific evidence behind the joys of being a dog owner.

We’ll also witness the power of commitment to hobbies such as chess, volleyball, soccer, surfing, or dancing, and how these activities can shape who we are.

There's a lot to cover, so let's dive in.

Our first piece comes from students at Wai‘anae High School on O‘ahu, who recently competed in the National Student Television Network, or STN Challenge, last November.

Their story about how inflation affects their hometown grocery store received second place on the national stage.

We're so proud of how they represented Hawai‘i.

Let's watch their report, which they have since adapted for HIKI NŌ.

Eggs, bread, milk, rice, and produce are only a few of the many staple foods experiencing drastic price changes due to inflation here at The Wai‘anae store, a local grocer in Wai‘anae.

Local eggs are pretty, they're fairly stable in cost.

For the past few years, Kit Okimoto and his team have strived to achieve one goal.

To provide as much of the grocery needs to our community as possible.

But in the end, if the costs stay high, we can't absorb all of it for a long time.

So, we end up passing it on slowly to the consumers.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, food prices had a 5.3% increase over the past year.

Although it's decreased from early 2022, the effects remain.

We used to eat a lot of vegetables, you know, lettuce, bell peppers.

Everything has just gone up so much.

Say within maybe a week, it could have shot up to $1 more.

So, you kind of steer away from that.

And we don't want our customers to get sticker shock, and we don't want them to get the wrong idea that prices are going up so much and why aren't we doing anything to control it?

The Wai‘anae community is considered a food desert with only two grocers and a small handful of farms.

$2.17.

The impact of inflation has only made it worse.

Our prices has not increased a whole lot, but it definitely increased just enough so that we we’re able to still sell affordable local organic produce, but also be able to keep up with the cost of production.

We try to negotiate better deals, to offer better advertised promotions.

We've also done our best to diversify our supply network.

Despite inflation, it all comes back to the same goal: providing good food for the community.

We do believe in keeping our community healthy and being able for them to afford healthier.

We're very cognizant that consumers are on a tight budget, often on fixed incomes, but we also want to make sure that they can buy the food they need to nourish their families.

This is Denise Cabrera from Wai‘anae High School for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] Thanks, Denise.

We'll have more stories to share from the outstanding HIKI NŌ schools that received national awards later this season.

I'd like to stay in Wai‘anae for a bit to watch a new segment of HIKI NŌ called Did You Know.

Students at Wai‘anae Intermediate School have some interesting research to share about how dogs can influence our lives for the better.

Having a dog is like having a best friend.

They help you stay active and can offer you unconditional love and support.

Many people struggle with feelings of loneliness, and for some, finding the right dog is a great solution.

Research published in the journal animals shows that just playing with a dog can raise levels of feel-good brain chemicals, oxytocin and dopamine, creating positive feelings and the bond between humans and their pets.

According to the American Heart Association, studies show that dogs reduce stress, anxiety and depression, ease loneliness, encourage exercise, and improve your overall health.

If you want to increase the quality of your life, you might want to consider getting yourself a dog.

This is Tatiana Plunkett for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] At Moanalua High School on O‘ahu, there's a student who uses his chess talents and applies them to volleyball, another sport that requires mental calculation.

Their story received an honorable mention in the sports story category of the national STN challenge in November 2023.

Let's watch.

I've been playing chess since I was little, but I've only really got into it competitively about two years ago, my freshman year.

And as it went, I kind of got more competitive, I wanted to go to events, start winning some stuff.

With more than 30 over the board and online chess competitions, Luke’s past opponents are stuck in checkmate.

Luke's chess game is, is pretty good because he likes to study the openings.

He knows which openings, and he studies people's playstyle.

So, he knows like, he’ll know generally what openings I'll use, and then he'll go off and find opening lines of attack to actually attack those openings.

So, it keeps me on my toes.

That's what makes him actually quite, quite dangerous as a player.

I found out he was a chess player after we started playing games together.

I lowkey saw it coming, just by like, the way he like acts and looks, but I didn't think he was that good.

Doesn’t have to be a big block.

Just got to be a little block.

The skills Luke has developed playing chess also translate to his other passion, volleyball.

I think his volleyball skills grew over time, because he was like, very uncoordinated back then.

But then over time, he grew more like, adjusted to his body and now he can like, play how he wants.

So, I think the position that I play best is the middle hitter, which gives me the most kind of maneuverability in the middle position.

There's a lot of coordination involved.

And originally, I was not very big on coordination.

But as I've grown as a volleyball player, I've started to try to get more coordinated, whether it has to do with like, speed or positioning.

Even though Luke plays two different sports, he finds similarities in both.

So, I think what makes me definitely a dual threat in both sports would be that for volleyball I'm definitely, I'm like, tall so that's an advantage for just general athletics, but also I can use my knowledge from chess to kind of try to figure out what my opponents’ plans are for the game.

Whether playing on the court or table, Luke will always look for an advantage.

Like, a key takeaway I have is that I can go anywhere as long as I want it enough.

Like, if you want something enough you can make your way there regardless of how talented you are to begin with.

This is Vinson Tran from Moanalua High School for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] Congratulations again, Moanalua High School, on your national recognition for storytelling.

The next piece I'd like to share with you comes from a student at Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy on Hawai‘i Island.

She'll tell us about what it was like to find a new passion for the ocean after moving to the islands from a landlocked state.

This is Reece Lustik, an eighth grader at Hawai‘i Peparatory Academy on Hawai‘i Island.

I'm recording this at school on November 8, 2023.

I was born and raised in landlocked Colorado.

My whole life, I've loved the water.

I love playing in the pool, but it never gave me the same joy that the ocean did.

However, I could only go to the ocean in New Jersey when I went to visit for the summer.

It never crossed my mind that I could move from my home in Colorado to a place with an ocean.

But then my whole life changed.

I moved to Hawai‘i with my family.

After a while of living here, I finally tried surfing with my friends.

I instantly fell in love with it.

I started to go more often; surfing every weekend.

I gained my confidence on my board and in the water.

When I would go out with my friends, they would want to go to the tide pools and play around, but I would want to stay out and keep surfing.

Eventually when I felt I was ready, I saved up to buy my own board.

My parents bought half and I had to do chores, wash cars, and help with other big projects to work off the money.

I still surf all the time, but I'm not as focused on getting better.

Instead, I want to feel the joy of being in the water.

Now, the ocean is a huge part of my life, not just surfing.

I love to swim, scuba dive, spear fish, and free dive.

The ocean makes me feel free and independent.

When you dive underwater, there's nobody stopping you.

All the noise and the chaos of the world instantly goes away.

The feeling is unexplainable.

Through this journey, I've discovered that the ocean is my passion, and it is a part of my life and identity.

[ocean wave] In this next story, we'll meet a young man who had to mature quickly after enduring a family tragedy.

He tells us how finding a community on the Maui Waena Intermediate School robotics team helped him through the tough times.

The story produced by Maui High School was originally published in 2019.

I'm a welder.

What that is, is I put things together through hot flames.

And I put so much effort into it that it just relaxes me.

My mind is empty.

It's just a calm place.

This tranquility is something 17-year-old Maui High School senior John Fabella has been searching for all his life.

His mother passed away when he was seven, and his father was deported.

So, when he started with me in sixth grade, he was really insecure.

He'd have tantrums and like, run out of the room and stuff.

It really affects you as a person.

You grow up faster.

You make your own shelter around you.

You make your own bubble.

Luckily, one person who did get in was his former teacher and Maui Waena robotics adviser, Mrs. Jennifer Suzuki.

So, I didn't want to give up on him because I felt like too many people had already given up on him, or had lost too much.

Suzuki replaced his emptiness with camaraderie and competition.

She convinced John to join her robotics team.

So, it gave him that sense of purpose, and he needed that.

He didn't have a real strong family, so now he does.

Through long practices, this team became John’s support system.

I made family through robotics.

I made that family; it's not the family that was given to me.

Those are my friends now, my brothers, you know, my sisters now.

They helped me every single day and they push me further.

Stop.

Go.

People think robotics isn't a sport because it's not a physical aspect.

But what makes robotics unique is we as students, we as kids, teenagers, we coach ourself.

That's the best part about it because robotics, were the ones doing all the work.

We're making the runs, we're making the plays.

Now a team captain, John has built a new sense of leadership and confidence.

As a person that grew up with a lot of self-doubt, a lot of anger, robotics was a perfect way to actually unleash things and create something beautiful from my mind and my creativeness.

Now I feel more self-confident about myself, and I know more about myself.

The confidence John acquired after seven years of robotics gave him a brighter outlook on life.

Next year, he plans to go to college and major in mechanical engineering.

Despite me back then thinking that I wouldn't be here right now, building robots designing robots and actually going to college, you know, for that aspect, you know, hey, makes me super happy.

I think that robotics helped him focus and find something he was good at, and really work hard so he could prove to himself and that kind of spread in everything in his life.

If I can go see my little self, my sixth-grade self, I'll be like, “Eh, kid, never say never because things happen every single day that you can change yourself.” This is Hannah Okamoto from Maui High School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] Back on O‘ahu, a young soccer player has a story to tell about returning to her favorite sport after taking a break during the peak of the COVID pandemic.

The next HIKI NŌ student reflection comes from Tatiana Plunkett at Waianae Intermediate School.

Hi, my name is Tatiana Plunkett.

I'm an eighth grader at Wai‘anae Intermediate School, and I love soccer.

I hope to earn a scholarship to play in college one day.

I started playing soccer when I was seven, but I stopped when I was 10 because of the pandemic.

I really missed playing because I like my teammates and I enjoyed being outside.

One, two, three, four.

I started playing soccer again this month and it has not been easy on me.

Because of the time off, my stamina is not the same as theirs.

I feel like I'm way behind most of the girls on my team because they've played longer than me.

And I ask my teammates for help on how to play in different positions.

To increase my stamina on my days off, I plan to start running.

I'm gonna have to put in a lot of work to catch up, but I'm gonna do it because soccer is something I love to do.

[ocean wave] You might have heard about the grueling CrossFit exercise classes for adults.

But did you know that it can be a fun outlet for kids too?

This next story from Lahaina Intermediate School on Maui, which was produced in 2019, takes a closer look at a fun gym class for kids on Maui.

This is Janelle Ragusa.

She created the Kids Deserve to Thrive CrossFit program.

Imani’s going to the mountains.

She was born in Rockford, Illinois.

From there, she moved to Bloomington, Illinois to go to Illinois State University.

Then finally from there, she moved to Maui, where she created the Lahaina CrossFit.

I'm a mom and I want them to have all of the tools to be the best them they can be.

[bell chime] People don't really get it, like, mindfulness.

Like people understand exercise, exercising their bodies, they don't really understand exercising their minds.

It's like, just a good place to like, learn and get CrossFit in and stuff.

It's like, just somewhere to go just have fun and stuff.

CrossFit is a way that people workout and that uses high intensity, functional movements in a constantly varied manner.

If children can learn this as soon as they can think about it, then they won't have to work as hard to retrain their habits and the way they think, because the way you think leads to your actions, right?

So, if they are actually observing their actions, or observing their thoughts, then they can choose their actions and not just live by default.

So, it's easier to create those healthy lifestyle habits if you taught them earlier, right?

So, I was like, if I can provide a space that's all they get to practice and work on, that’s gonna set them up for a much easier, healthier lifestyle.

So it’s like a big pull up into a big dip.

And it's harder to change habits after 30 years than if you would just grow up learning this stuff.

So, you just gotta get that feeling.

I want kids to learn to be authentic.

I want them to learn to be themselves, and I want them to know that it's safe to do what they love.

This is Mohamed Jobran from Lahaina Intermediate for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] Living on the islands we're lucky to have front row seats to beautiful hula performances.

But it's easy to forget the work and time that goes into hula training.

This next student reflection explores the power of hula on someone's life, especially when they start dancing very young.

It was produced by my classmate, Jadynn-Kalena Young, at Pearl City High School on O‘ahu.

Enjoy.

Hula is the language of the heart and therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.

I can’t describe the aloha I feel for it.

Ever since I was five, making this now almost ten years dancing, my passion for hula instantly became a lifestyle rather than a hobby for me.

When I was five, I grew up watching my mom dance in our small bedroom trying to copy her.

I was too young to comprehend the love I felt for hula, but I always knew it was a way of expressing myself.

I started dancing for Hālau Nā Maka o ka Laua‘e with my Kumu Hula Laua‘e Yamasaki, and it's basically where I grew up.

It's my second family.

My journey through life was all through there, through victories, hardships, blood, sweat, and tears, all of it.

Speaking of, let's talk about hardships.

We have competed in competitions like the hula Onea hula festival and the Queen Liliuokalani keiki hula competition.

Training for competition is no time for nonsense, and you need to put in your everything.

You need to know what you're dancing about.

You need to work hard physically.

You need to show up ready for practice on time and prepared.

Practice lasts for hours almost every day of the week, and the yelling gets intense.

“Sway your hips, bend your knees, chant louder.” This is what people misunderstand.

Hula is more than just dancing.

But the best part is I get to bond with people I love most, where we can understand each other's happiness and pain throughout labor.

It’s a place where I can embrace my storytelling.

A place where I can develop as a person, and so much more.

Hula will always be a reminder for me to be myself.

It may be intense, but my love is unconditional for it.

If I had one place to be I would always choose to dance with my halau over anything.

[cheering] [ocean wave] In that spirit of hula and aloha that Jadynn shared so well, I’d like to go back to our archives and watch this tutorial on how to make a haku lei.

It was produced in 2019 by Island School on Kaua‘i.

Lei po‘o is a decorative headpiece worn during special events.

Lei po‘o in Hawaiian means head lei.

There are two main ways to make a lei po‘o.

Wili lei is one style where you wrap the plants onto the base.

Haku lei is another version of lei po‘o where you braid your plants into the base.

Today, we will be showing you how to make a haku lei.

The materials you will need are scissors, deboned and stripped ti leaves, and a base.

We will be using jute for our base, but you can use ti leaves or raffia.

Start by making your base.

Tie a knot at one end and create a braid about two inches long.

Now, weave in your ti leaves.

Number your strings one, two, and three.

Take strings one and two and bring them to the side.

Put your ti leaf between strings two and three.

Take string one and bring it over string two.

Fold the bottom of your leaf up.

Now, add in the next ti leaf.

Take string three and pull it over string one.

Repeat until you’ve reached your ideal length of about 18 inches.

To end your lei po‘o, braid out the strings two more inches.

Tie knot, then cut off the excess string.

Now your lei po‘o is done and ready to be worn.

This is Mackenna Tamanaha from Island School for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] We have another special segment in our newest HIKI NŌ genre called Did You Know?” This next piece comes from Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School students on Kaua‘i who explore their school's namesake.

My name is Aliyah Nadine Corpuz for Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School.

As most people know, our school was named after Chiefess Kamakahelei.

But what you might not know is who she was and why did we choose to name our school after her.

She was a powerful Chiefess, as both her parents came from high powered lineages, making her even more powerful than her own parents.

After the death of her mother, she inherited the throne and became the ali‘inui of Kaua‘i.

Through her life, she had seven children, one being the last reigning monarch of Kaua‘i, King Kaumuali‘i.

She was an influential female leader during a transitional period when Westerners first discovered Hawai‘i.

Knowing how much of an impression she left on Hawaiian history, that leaves us with the question on why our school was named after her.

When we opened up this school almost 25 years ago, Kumu Pohaku Nishimitsu was our first student activity coordinator, and he named our school.

We previously taught at King Kaumuali‘i; it's an elementary school that is located in Hanamaulu, and Kumu Pohaku named our school Chiefess Kamakahelei.

She was the mother to King Kaumuali‘i.

As we carry the responsibility of her name, we follow her example to lift up our community.

This is Aliyah Nadine Corpuz for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawaii.

[ocean wave] Well, we've come to the end of our show.

Mahalo for tuning in to check out stories produced by my generation from across the Hawaiian Islands.

Keep up with Hawaii’s New Wave of Storytellers and subscribe to PBS Hawai‘i on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.

You can find this HIKI NŌ episode and more at pbshawaii.org.

Tune in next week for more proof that Hawai‘i students HIKI NŌ, can do.

[outro music] Glad you stuck around.

We have a special segment to share.

In this next video you'll meet Mr. John Allen III and senior Denise Cabrera who make up part of the stellar HIKI NŌ team of storytellers at Wai‘anae High School on O‘ahu.

[ocean wave] I'm Denise Cabrera.

I'm from Wai‘anae High School, and I am part of Gen Z.

And I am John Allen.

I'm her teacher over at Wai‘anae High School and I'm from a time when TVs were cubes.

So John, today we're going to play a game where I'll try to stump you with Gen Z slang, and you have to try to stump me with Gen X slang.

So, I'm gonna win.

I don't know.

I think so.

Your first word is ‘rizz.’ I believe it is the root of charisma.

[bell dings] Dangit.

No.

I didn’t know you’d know that.

I figured it out.

You figured it out.

Yeah.

Let's try ‘jiggy.’ Jiggy?

Isn’t that like get jiggy with it, like a dance, like a little, a little dance or like a shimmy.

Something like that.

Yeah, kind of like that.

But more like, what's the feeling that it's – Like loose, like you kind of loosen up?

[buzzer] No.

Jiggy’s about being nervous, active, and excitedly energetic.

Are you serious?

Yeah.

Round two.

I like this one.

Okay.

Delulu.

Okay.

Yeah, I think that's the pants company, right?

[buzzer] Delulu Lemon?

No.

No?

It’s not de Lululemon?

Okay, what is ‘delulu’?

It's like delusional.

So, when you're being delusional, like somebody will tell you, “John, you're being so delulu.

Like, you're so delulu.” Oh.

Yeah, I would definitely look at them like they're crazy, too.

Phat.

Pretty hot and tempting.

Whoa, that's actually a really good one.

Very good and wonderful.

But pretty hot and tempting, I will take that answer all day.

[bell dings] That is actually a really good one.

That's what I thought what phat was.

Yeah, that’s actually a really good one.

All right.

Okay.

Rent free.

Oh, that's when - I know this one.

I know this one because I say this in class.

When I live rent-free in your guys’ heads.

[bell dings] Yeah.

Right?

Yeah.

Because I’m in your guys’ heads and you're making a decision, you're hearing my voice.

And you're like, “Yeah, John probably would not be approving of that and yeah,” I know that one.

I feel like sometimes I can hear you like, “Denise.

No.

Denise.

No.

Bad idea.” All right, here we go.

Let's say ‘hanabata.’ What?

Hold on.

It's when Hannah, like, bothers people, you know?

You could call it that.

Hannah, you're bothering that guy, you know?

I mean typically, if somebody was flinging hanabata around, it would be bothering somebody.

Is it boogers?

[bell dings] Yeah, it is boogers.

Very good.

Very good context clue.

I feel like, I feel like, remember somehow.

Have you heard somebody say that before?

My fifth-grade teacher.

Okay, yeah that makes sense.

Somehow.

Spill the tea.

How come I missed it all the time in class.

To you?

Yeah.

You spill the tea.

What was it?

It's when you, you're telling me about the situation or the rumors that are going on and stuff like that.

Right?

Gossip.

[bell dings] Gossip, right?

It’s gossiping.

Yeah, yeah.

I think I've used that in class.

Does that make me younger?

Here's a easy one for you: ‘off the chain.’ Off the chain?

Yeah.

Like, undocumented, kind of like that?

Oh my God, when something is ‘off the chain.’ Can you use it in a sentence?

Sure.

Your story was off the chain.

Like it’s really, really good.

[bell dings] There you go.

Excellent.

Very good.

Delulu is still in my head.

That’s living rent-free in my head now.

Are you going to start using it now?

Delulu is living rent-free in my head – well it’s living rent-free in my head right now.

Definitely, yeah.

‘Quillymip’ What is a quillymip?

And who came up with that?

What context of the situation in life were they in in which this word was probably going to be used?

Okay, so what is ‘quillywip’?

Quillymip.

See, I can’t even get the word right.

No, I made that up.

Oh, my goodness.

[buzzer] Why would you make it up?

Okay, fine then.

You gonna get that, I'll give you one: ‘bumbai.’ Oh my God.

No, I hear this.

I hear this.

Do you hear this?

Yeah.

It's kind of like bruh.

No.

No?

Bumbai I gon’ give you one bad grade.

Oh, no.

You better do this.

Bumbai.

Watch it.

Yeah.

There you go.

Watch it.

[bell dings] Very good.

Okay.

All right.

That was fun.

That was really fun.

I don’t know who won.

I think she won.

[boom] [bell dings three times] A lot of these you know.

You definitely know.

You must be delulu.

Delulu.

[both laughing] [upbeat outro music]