HIKI NŌ 720 Aloha, I'm Crystal Cebedo, a proud HIKI NŌ graduate from Waianae High School's Class of 2016.

In this special edition of HIKI NŌ, I'll be introducing some of the most outstanding stories from the Spring Quarter of the 2015 to 2016 school year.

I'll also be giving a shout out to my fellow 2016 HIKI NŌ graduates with best wishes for their future success.

But first, I'd like to tell you a little bit about my HIKI NŌ journey.

My HIKI NŌ career began in the seventh grade in Miss Higuchi's class at Waianae Intermediate School.

My first HIKI NŌ story was about myself, and my mother's struggle with colon cancer, and my struggle in trying to keep things under control.

My role in my story was an editor, and I was also one of the writers for the story.

Writing a story about me was extremely challenging.

The story was very personal to me, so to see it from a perspective that wasn't my own was very challenging.

I think by doing the story, it also kind of helped me get closure, and kind of talk about things that I didn't really want to talk about beforehand.

What was actually kind of amazing was that Miss Higuchi told me that I had been getting letters from people and phone calls from people who had seen it on HIKI NŌ.

I got a letter from a lady that told me to call her, and she actually mailed me a book to Miss Higuchi about daughters without mothers.

And so, that was very touching.

So, from Miss Higuchi, my seventh and eighth grade teacher, I went to John Allen, who is the video advisor for Searider Productions at Waianae High School.

I think it was a great thing that I was able to continue HIKI NŌ throughout high school.

So, as a person, I think I've grown so much.

Just from doing these stories and being able to communicate with my teammates was, I think, very invaluable.

Not necessarily ordering people around, but being able to work with people so that it's a lot easier to get things done and bring everybody together to work toward a common goal.

So, I graduated from Waianae High School, Class of 2016, and I'm planning on going to Menlo College for Fall 2016, which is in Atherton, California, in Palo Alto.

I feel like all I've been doing is saying goodbye and finishing things up and things coming to an end, but it also very much feels like a new beginning, and I'm extremely excited to see where that path kind of takes me.

Thank you for letting me share a little bit about my HIKI NŌ experience.

Now, I'd like to share a great example of how a HIKI NŌ story can offer a close-up, you-are-there look at Native Hawaiian traditions rarely seen by the people outside communities where they are practiced.

This story was reported, written, and edited by Hoku Subiono, a 2016 HIKI NŌ graduate from Kua o ka La Milolii Hipuu Virtual Academy on Hawaii Island.

[CHANTING] In the middle of September, the people in the South Kona fishing village of Milolii hold an opening ceremony of the opelu season.

For centuries, Milolii has been famous for opelu fishing, and some still use traditional fishing methods handed down through generations.

These traditional methods are environmentally safe and help sustain the fishery for future generations.

Kukulu Kuahuia still practices these traditional methods of fishing for opelu to sustain his family.

I learned about opelu fishing through my dad, which he learned through his dad, and so forth.

It is a tradition that is handed down through a generations.

Opelu is a big fish, actually, that lives on the koa.

It's a scad mackerel that we use to eat dry, raw, we use for bait.

Opelu is really good eating.

So, the opelu was real important 'cause that was what was abundant down here.

So, all the families would hanai their own koas, take care their own koas, catch their own fish when time for harvest, dry mostly everything, ship it to Oahu to be sold.

And that's how they got their goods.

The bait for opelu, or palu, is a green chum typically made from avocado, pumpkin, taro and papaya.

This bait is then put into a kaai bag, typically a handkerchief, and lowered to lure and feed the opelu.

Six months into the year is the feeding season, where the fishermen hanai, or take care of, and feed the opelu koa or housings.

The last six months of the season is for harvesting the opelu, while still feeding them.

We asked Kukulu why he thought opelu fishing was important.

It helps me by supporting my family.

What I'm doing, taking care and then harvesting, gives me more opelu to catch, to sell for my family.

So, that's why we do the hanai and the harvest.

Taking care of the fish as much as they take care of you, that's the lesson Kukulu and others are hoping the younger generation will carry on for years to come.

This is Hoku Subiono from the Kua O Ka La Milolii Hipuu, for HIKI NŌ.

Our next feature elevates a recurring theme, the bond between man and man's best friend, to new heights.

Here is a Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School story about their island's K-9 Search and Rescue Team.

Dogs are often considered man's best friend.

But for members of the Kauai Search and Rescue K- 9 Team, they're absolutely essential to finding missing people on the island of Kauai.

Our dogs are so loyal to us that they're always also looking out for us.

They'll run ahead at times, but then they'll turn around and check back, and see where you're at, and see if you're following them.

Yeah!

Any dog is welcome to become a member of the KSAR team.

Mainly, handlers look for the special characteristics in a canine.

There's, of course, obvious things that you want to look at.

One is curiosity.

You want to get that little puppy that is very curious about you.

You want little puppies that are brave, and puppies that love people.

Search dogs begin training as puppies.

They start off with simple exercises to get comfortable with their handler.

Then, they move on to find certain targets.

They also train to receive special certifications.

The third part is, you go find the handler, come back, and then go tell the person that a victim or subject has been found there.

That is the essence of search and rescue.

My girl Astro, we started her at eight weeks old, training for search and rescue.

And we would be out in the yard and trying to find anybody that would come by.

[CHUCKLE] Anybody who would come visit us, we'd say, Oh, could you hide for us?

And that's just the start of the training.

You train every day in your yard, in your backyard, you train on the weekends with the team.

The main goal of a rescue mission is to find the missing victim alive.

KSAR members and their dogs are prepared for the unexpected, and the unfortunate.

Some dogs are trained for finding HRD, which is human remains.

So, in case we're out on a search, it'd be really unfortunate, but if a person had passed away, we don't want our dogs to run away from that type of smell.

So, some of our dogs are trained to actually find people that have been deceased.

To create a greater chance of a successful mission, the dog handlers build up a special relationship with their dogs to create a feeling of companionship.

The dog and the handler is one team, is one unit.

The relationship is very close.

Our dogs, for years, have slept in our beds, live in our house.

Actually, it's their house -- we just pay the mortgage.

Always a close relationship between dog and handler makes the team work very well.

We've had to find a young hunter from Kauai who got away from his group early in the morning.

We were out two, three o'clock in the morning, and he had to go back to his truck.

Came back, and he got lost for two days.

To be able to tell his dad, who was very deep in the Waialeale area that we had found his son, to watch his dad just hug his son, I think that was ... that's chicken skin.

Come on, come on!

Come on, Hapa!

The bonds, training and commitment among members and rescue dogs reflect one purpose: They're here for the people.

This organization, made up of all volunteers and their dogs, work to bring closure to those who are missing their loved ones.

This is Brent Torres from Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School, for HIKI NŌ.

Our next stellar feature from the Spring 2016 Quarter unlocks the secret of a Hawaii-invented instrument that was heard around the world and had a profound effect on a number of musical genre.

This story comes to us from Ka Waihona o ka Naauao Public Charter School in Nanakuli, on the west side of Oahu.

[STEEL GUITAR] Its distinctive twang and slides are staples of Hawaiian music today.

The steel guitar has influenced musicians globally, but got its start more than a hundred years ago with a Native Hawaiian man from the little town of Laie on Oahu.

His name was Joseph Kekuku.

He was walking home on the train track, playing his guitar, and his comb or something fell and hit the guitar, and he liked the sound that it made.

This twang kind of sound, oh, that gave him an incentive to improve on the sounds.

So, he started practicing with this thing on the strings to get the sound that he wanted to, and eventually ended up with the steel bar.

The bar creates that sliding effect that you hear that is kind of like the signature sound of Hawaii.

[STEEL GUITAR] The signature sound started to spread.

When he was thirty, Kekuku decided to leave Hawaii.

He took his invention and his passion for Hawaiian music with him.

[STEEL GUITAR] Hawaiians were explorers.

You know, they were great navigators, and they loved to travel.

And he wanted to travel.

So, he left and went to the Mainland.

He started to share their music, and share their love of Hawaii with, basically, the haoles.

They loved it.

It went international around the world, and so, it became very popular.

They loved the steel guitar.

Not only did the steel guitar have a unique and likeable sound, it had a very adaptable sound, one that soon showed up in other genres.

All music, I mean, yeah, blues, rock and roll, Country Western.

Country Western was big time steel guitar.

Hawaiian, of course, still.

It's all over the world now.

[STEEL GUITAR] And Joseph Kekuku's invention, the steel guitar, lives on.

The unique sound that he developed lives on, and thus, the legacy lives on.

So, steel guitar has influenced the world, just by that one man ... Uncle Joseph Kekuku.

This is Sarah Peterson from Ka Waihona o ka Naauao Public Charter School, for HIKI NŌ.

I'm very honored that the HIKI NŌ staff of PBS Hawaii chose to include the following as one of the best stories from the 2016 Spring Quarter because it is the last HIKI NŌ project created by me and my fellow 2016 Waianae High School graduates, Cayla Paulo and Diamond Tuisano.

And, as you'll see, it is a story that cuts deep into the heart of our community.

For me, it's a community.

It's not just one encampment, yeah?

We all watch over the area, the kids, make sure everybody's okay.

Yeah, this place is about [INDISTINCT] and you know you going be okay.

Each morning, nineteen-year-old Adam Naki has something to do.

You gotta haul your own water.

You gotta make sure you buy your own generator so you get electricity for charge all your things.

Ashley, bring me the rake.

Adam is homeless.

She has moved twelve times before finally settling here at Hale Aole in Waianae.

While situations like this aren't ideal, residents believe it's a good place.

Yes, this community needs to be united to function well, only because living in this community, coming together, everybody has to get along.

According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, Hawaii has the highest number of homeless people relative to their population.

It's an issue that has divided the state for a while now.

That's the problem, is there's not enough Section 8 vouchers, there's not enough public housing units, and there's not enough, you know, low-cost rentals out there.

So, people end up just cycling back, ending up back homeless, you know, back in shelters.

There's no one reason why people fall into homelessness.

They, you know, had an unexpected situation happen in their life that just tipped them over the edge, where they were no longer able to financially support themselves or their family.

Is that a game?

It's not easy to find a solution to this ever-increasing problem.

But so far, Hale Aole's residents have been making the most out of their situation.

For instance, a person were to move in, they had no place to go.

They would come here and they would talk to my mom, Twinkle.

My mom would find them a spot.

They would put up their tent.

If they need help putting it up, we will come in and help them with that.

They've been encamped there for several years now.

One thing that's good about it in a way is, they're self-policed to some extent.

To me, you gotta set morals out here.

It's no different than being in a house.

Our material is different, yeah?

It's not a wooden structure, it's made out of material.

Do you want plenty?

Until the state can come to a consensus about the issue of homelessness, Hale Aole is doing as they see fit.

So far, they've been allowed to stay.

When you have more people come out, and everybody functions together, and they work together, and they go out there, at least you're gonna be heard.

One for all, and all for one.

For now, this is Adam's place, somewhere she can temporarily call home.

How you know if it's home is, if it's your sanctuary.

If you feel that you want to be there.

[INDISTINCT] This is Diamond Tuisano from Waianae High School, for HIKI NŌ.

Hawaii is blessed with great natural treasures.

Among these are our national parks.

The following story by students from Seabury Hall Middle School on Maui takes us on a trek into one of these parks that few people get to experience.

Haleakala National Park on Maui has been using mules since the 1930s.

The crater was designated as a national park in 1916, and it is protected by the Federal Wilderness Act which states: An area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by men.

There shall be no temporary road, no use of motor vehicles, no landing of aircraft.

Well, we use mules here in Haleakala because Haleakala is a designated wilderness, so in general, there's a restriction.

There's no motorized vehicles, motorized equipment, period, allowed.

During the 1930s, the trail system and the wilderness cabins were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

The mules carried all of the lumber, and all of the food and supplies for the crews that built the cabins, and the trails.

Almost a century later, Michael McKinnon, the current animal caretaker, is preparing to lead his mules into the crater on a twenty-eight-mile roundtrip journey.

What do you say, Lefty?

He and his co-workers are packing supplies to maintain the cabin and assist in conservation projects.

I can pack lumber, I can pack plants.

Anything you can throw at me up to a certain point, I can get in there on the backs of mules somehow.

If you want me to take something into the backcountry for you, I'm gonna do it.

I can cruise in there faster than you can hike.

My riding mule, Jake, will move out about four miles an hour.

Hup, mule, hup.

Good boy, Jake.

Gid up, mules.

Gid up, Toby, gid up Jake.

Haleakala is known as one of the quietest places on earth.

To minimize noise pollution, which disturbs both people and the native species, the park strives to use mechanized vehicles as little as possible.

Upon arriving at each cabin, there is work to be done, unloading supplies such as gas tanks and wood, and assisting other park workers in the rat eradication program.

The eggs of Nene birds, an endangered species, are threatened by rats.

In addition to traps, the mules have carried in native plants such as ule, aalii, and ahinahina for transplanting.

It is late in the day when they reach their last stop at Paliku.

The dependable mules have once again brought the supplies safely and quietly into the crater.

The following day, they make the long journey back across the crater, then up Halemauu Trail, then back to base camp.

This is Innes Asher from Seabury Hall Middle School, for HIKI NŌ.

Empathy is an important element in the telling of a great HIKI NŌ story.

So is maturity.

A group of sixth-graders from Hongwanji Mission School in Nuuanu showed empathy and maturity beyond their years in the following profile of an accomplished singer who tells us what it's like to be blind.

Fear is all about having control.

And when you're not in control of it, that's when you're afraid.

Some people think that the blind live a life of fear.

But for Laurie Rubin, this is not the case.

Laurie Rubin was born with Liber's congenital amaurosis, a genetic disorder that affects the retina and causes loss of vision.

People might think, Oh, I'd be so terrified to take a step without being able to see.

But I've never had time to think about it, it's just been my life.

So, I just kinda had this revelation that the fears that we do have stem from that, stem from any time that we've had time to think about the unknown.

Her inability to see hasn't stopped her from living an active life.

Her schedule includes speaking at conferences, doing performances and singing, and being a vocal teacher.

The only activity that I couldn't do, that my family said that I couldn't do, was Ping Pong.

And I remember, I was so mad at them.

I said, You can't tell me I can't do that.

Because they had given me the self-esteem that I could do anything.

So, when they told me I couldn't do something, I wasn't having it, you know.

As a result of this self-esteem, she was able to accomplish many things, one of them being writing a memoir.

So, my book is called, Do You Dream In Color?

Insights From a Girl Without Sight.

And it takes readers on a journey through my life, because I realized one of the things that people want to know is, they want to know how I do everyday stuff.

Her book highlights her life experiences and what she went through to get to where she is now.

Each chapter of her book talks about the different parts of her life, and uses a different color for them.

Despite her inability to see, she has interests that might surprise some people.

I love making jewelry.

I really enjoy playing around with makeup.

I love clothes, 'cause you know, you can feel textures.

And I've always told people, I don't necessarily think that blindness is associated with vision, per se.

Like, I think if you have a visual, creative mind, it will manifest itself, no matter whether you're blind or sighted.

Laurie Rubin has taken these words to heart.

As a mezzo-soprano opera singer, her list of accomplishments include working with singer-songwriter Kenny Loggins, and performing at the White House.

She also co-created Peace On Your Wings, a musical based on the life of Sadako Sasaki, a girl who died from leukemia as a result of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

It's really amazing to see something that when you're in your pajamas at three in the morning, just writing something down on the computer, how that can come to life on stage.

And then, more emotionally, seeing everybody get involved: the students, the parents, the audience, other people who have investment in the story.

And what I realized in that moment was that the reason I love this project so much more than anything else that we have done was because it was something that became a team effort.

Because Laurie Rubin conquered her own fear, she inspires others to be more fearless.

This is Teo Fukamizu from Hongwanji Mission School, for HIKI NŌ.

One of the advantages of HIKI NŌ is that because students are telling stories about where they live, they can give the rest of us an insider's look at what their community is experiencing.

Here's a look at how Maui is experiencing the end of Hawaii's sugar industry, as reported by H.P.

Baldwin High School 2016 graduate, Shanelle Macaraeg.

I think the type of camaraderie is what I appreciate working in where I'm at, at HC&S.

The Hawaii Commercial and Sugar Mill along Puunene Avenue, Maui, is a reminder of an industry that once dominated Hawaii's economy.

Standing since 1882, the factory has employed generations of workers in production and in fields.

Wes Bissen, a machinist, followed his father's path to working at HC&S.

I started working for the company in 1981.

I started in Paia Mill.

My family, they're all from Paia.

Was kinda nice working there, you know, where my family worked.

The company has been open for one hundred and forty-four years.

My dad worked there, and I wanted to do the same thing he did.

Koa Martin, a millwright, also has family working for the company.

My grandfather worked here.

He was an irrigator, and he retired after forty some-odd years service.

My father worked here for about sixteen years.

He was a heavy equipment mechanic.

And then, I started here twenty years ago.

After losing thirty million dollars in 2015, Hawaii Commercial & Sugar announced its plans to phase out sugar production and shut down operations by the end of 2016.

Six hundred and seventy-five workers, including Bissen and Martin, will lose their jobs.

People are uneasy as to what's gonna happen and how they're gonna make ends meet.

A lot of people here are homeowners, and they have to pay their mortgages, they have to provide for their college education, the kids.

We'll be out there looking for a job, just like anybody else.

But while the future is uncertain, the workers of HC&S won't be alone in their struggle to adapt to such change.

The Maui County and Hawaii state governments are working to create a social safety net to support the laid-off workers.

I'd like to say thank you to the Maui County, the state, Governor Ige, for helping us, helping the people transition into something new.

And I'm going to put all my efforts into that.

I'll be just like everybody else out there, looking for a job.

But in the meantime, until my time is up, I'm gonna be here focusing on what I need to get done to keep this factory running, make it home safe every night to my kids.

And pay my bills.

You know, it's sad that they're gonna close.

But we're all big boys, okay, and we've gotta focus on how it's gonna affect everybody, and you know, just try to build a better life from here on.

With the closing of HC&S comes the end of a chapter in Hawaii's history.

This is Shanelle Macaraeg from H.P.

Baldwin High School, for HIKI NŌ.

Thank you for joining me on this special edition of HIKI NŌ.

I hope you've enjoyed watching these outstanding stories from the Spring 2016 quarter as much as I've enjoyed sharing them with you.

And now, on behalf of HIKI NŌ and PBS Hawaii, I would like to congratulate all of this year's HIKI NŌ graduates.

Along with many other classes, school activities, and life experiences, HIKI NŌ has helped you develop your ability to collaborate and innovate so that you can now go out into the world and make it a better place for everyone.

I know you will.

The best of luck to all of you during this exciting new chapter in your lives.