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

Aloha and welcome to this week’s episode of HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

I'm Ella Anderson and I attend Kapa‘a High School on the island of Kaua‘i.

But today, I'm in the PBS Hawai‘i studio on O‘ahu to share stories from Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

In this episode, we'll learn how an organization on Kaua‘i keeps cultural ties alive between Hawai‘i and Japan.

We'll discover how two generations find ways to connect, despite their age gaps.

We'll meet a student on Hawai‘i Island who enlisted his father and friends to face those daunting college applications together.

And we'll meet a young student who reveals how he tackled his worries about growing.

Let's visit Honowai Elementary School in Waipahu here on O‘ahu to meet Angelo Repuya, one of our youngest contributors.

He shares a touching and honest account of how he worked to address his concerns about not growing at the same rate as his peers.

I am worried because I'm not growing.

I'm only 38 pounds, three feet and nine inches tall.

[ocean wave] Hi, my name is Angelo Repuya, and I'm in the third grade at Honowai Elementary School at the island of O‘ahu.

I am worried because I'm not growing.

I'm only 38 pounds, three feet and nine inches tall.

I am the shortest in second grade and in third grade.

I know I am the shortest because on picture day, I'm always at the front of the line.

They all seem to be growing, and I'm not really.

I feel that I eat healthy foods and exercise, but I am still not really growing.

I went to the doctor, and she told me that I was not the right weight and height for my age.

She said that I need to drink a lot of my nutrition drink and it will make me gain weight and grow.

My nutritious drink is a shake that has protein, vitamins, and minerals that helps kids grow.

And a couple of months ago, I followed what my doctor said and drank the nutrition drink.

I drink a total of 120 milliliters for breakfast and before bed.

I noticed that it started to work, and I got taller and gained a little weight.

When I started I was 38 pounds, and now I am 41 pounds.

I also grew one inch.

I hope to keep drinking my nutrition drink and keep growing and gaining weight.

I feel great about the progress I made and I'm thankful for my mom and doctor for helping me.

I feel comfortable that the size that I am and, in the future, I hope to be six feet tall.

This next story, produced by students from Waiākea High School on Hawai‘i Island, is a profile of a student athlete who doesn't let her height stand in the way of playing her favorite sport.

In a sport where height is an advantage, senior libero Jordyn Hayashi, always finds a way to go big, despite being so small.

I am five, three.

I tried to play, um, as if I'm six feet tall.

I started playing volleyball because I used to watch the UH Mānoa girls’ volleyball team play, and I just fell in love with how fast the game was, how every play, like, mattered based upon one person.

I go big by just saving all the balls I possibly can.

On Thursday, October 19, 2017, Jordyn and the rest of her team, the Waiākea Warriors, competed against their crosstown rivals, the Hilo High Vikings, in the Big Island Interscholastic Federation championships, or BIIFs.

[chanting and shouting] Before the championship game, I honestly felt like it was just another game.

We were down two sets.

I thought we're gonna lose.

Um, the thing that changed my mindset was the fact that we were playing in our home gym for championships, like ,I was not about to lose in my home gym, especially because it's my senior year.

The fourth and the fifth set, we kinda, um, change the way we're looking at the game.

We, instead of trying to play like we don't want to be the one to make the mistakes, we wanted to be the one that would make them make the mistake.

Not willing to go home defeated, the Waiākea Warriors held their ground and with determination made a remarkable comeback and ended the game victorious.

[cheers] Winning meant the world to me.

It was my senior, like, this is my senior year, and we won BIIF championship.

Division I, too.

The fact that we lost during regular season twice against them, and we lost last year for BIIF championships, it just made the win so much better.

Although Jordyn is not the ideal height for volleyball, she proves that it's not about the size of the player in the fight, but about the size of the fight in the player.

This is Mily Tsuji from Waiākea High School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] It's always good to see when students don't let stereotypes keep them from success.

That's at the heart of this next story, which was produced by students at Maui High School.

They spotlight female students who are excelling in STEM related subjects once dominated by males.

Sophomore Bristyl Dempsey really enjoy school, especially when it comes to her friends.

But this 15-year-old has a special fiery skill up in her sleeves: welding.

Um, I first started out welding because all the other boys were doing it and it sounded like something not a lot of people could do.

As I started learning how to weld, it became a passion, and it really grew on me.

This passion led her to become the only female welder from Maui High School’s robotics team.

To be the only female welder, um, it's pretty intimidating at times.

But her fear does not stop her from making an impression.

She’s very, she's a perfectionist, and she's very tenacious in doing things the right way and correctly.

Um, she doesn't accept anything other than, than her best.

Bristyl shows a great deal of perseverance and grit by scorching the stereotypes.

However, many girls have difficulty overcoming their insecurities to take part in a STEM related field.

Conceptions still exist in our society in which people think girls should it play with power tools; girls should only play with dolls.

These attitudes hinder the opportunities for girls to have hands-on exposure, um, to tools, playing with blocks, all, um, opportunities to help develop their spatial awareness, a skill that's critical in many STEM careers.

Having role models of women currently working in STEM jobs can also have a huge positive effect.

Having positive role models and more exposure to STEM will help build girls’ self confidence in their potential and in their abilities.

Adding gender diversity also leads to an increase in creativity.

I think diversity in any field is important, whether it's STEM, whether it's in politics, whether it's in business.

Why?

Because when a field of endeavor brings a lot of people with diverse backgrounds and information, I think that leads to more creativity, more dialogue, more, um, progress.

That's how I look at it and, and in fact, the diversity represents our country.

Clearly Hawai‘i, we're very diverse, lends to a much richer, uh, experience for everyone who participates.

According to University of Maryland and Columbia Business joint study, gender diversity at the management level leads to a $42 million increase in value of S&P 500 firms.

Women could do anything they want.

And they just gotta, we gotta keep telling our future generations and our kids and our little sisters and our older sisters that, um, that way more women won't be afraid or discouraged to join STEM.

This is Axl Daguio from Maui High School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] Now for a story from my home island of Kaua‘i.

Let's meet the members of an organization dedicated to cultivating ties of friendship between Kaua‘i and Japan.

The story comes from HIKI NŌ student reporter, Kate Nakamura, a senior who attends Kaua‘i High School.

When we come together and understand each other, learn about each other's culture and embrace the beauty of it, then I think that, um, that Kaua‘i becomes more beautiful and more rich.

Japanese roots on the island of Kaua‘i run deep, starting with the first major wave of immigrants arriving on Kaua‘i in 1885, according to the National Geographic Society.

Their priorities has changed where in our generation or the previous generation, their, the parents forced them into Japanese, um, school that would have, you know, learn the Japanese language and to learn some of the culture.

But the Japanese American community on Kaua‘i weren't the only ones feeling a sense of longing.

Former Japanese citizens living in Hawai‘i feel a calling to connect to local culture.

I'm very privileged to live here, and, but this is not my land, and, but I want to be a part of it.

So, I have to do my kuleana.

The newly formed Kaua‘i Japan Foundation structures a bridge between Japanese citizens and Japanese Americans to continue on their culture and traditions, despite the physical divide.

Uh, we named it the Yu Kaua‘i Japan Foundation, and, um, yu means to tie, tie the knots.

And so, we are hoping to tie the knots of Japanese generations here.

Um, but also like, Japanese, um, natives like me, um, here and then also, um, just to serve the community.

The Kaua‘i Japan Foundation is providing hope; hope to the older generations that Japanese culture will continue to grow here on Kaua‘i.

This will spread the, the Japanese culture to the new generation.

We're getting up there in years, and we cannot continue if we don't have new blood into this culture.

Although in its infancy, the Kaua‘i Japan Foundation is creating leeway for the cultural divide to be crossed and for the Japanese culture to flourish.

This is Kate Nakamura from Kaua‘i High School for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

[ocean wave] Thanks, Kate.

While we're on the topic of keeping cultures alive, one of the most delicious ways to keep tradition is preparing food.

This next story spotlights the Japanese tradition of mochi pounding.

It was produced by students at Maui Waena Intermediate School in 2017.

[pounding] The process of making mochi consists of steaming and pounding sweetened rice to create a Japanese dessert that brings good luck to the new year.

But really, sharing this tradition creates something even sweeter: memories and community.

For the past 27 years, Carolyn and Tom Fujita have hosted the annual mochi pounding at their home in Kahului, Maui.

Okay, we, we started really small in 1985.

We pounded like 50 pounds, maybe a little less than 50 pounds of mochi, and now we pound a little over 200 pounds of mochi.

But this event does not pound itself.

Every single year we've been doing mochi pounding, um, grandpa spends maybe a lot of his time preparing for it with the mallets.

He puts up the tents.

He puts out all of the chairs.

He cleans the tables, he rearranges our house, uh, he does all kinds of stuff just to prepare for this.

He does it every year.

This year's preparation has been more difficult because on November 28, Carolyn, Tom's wife, sadly passed away.

Mrs. Fujita was our matriarch.

I mean, she, she and her husband were pretty much the, uh, our, our group leaders.

They took the lead in getting, getting this together.

It's different because she's not here.

We miss her today, uh, this year because she used to do so much things.

Uh, helped me shop and helped me plan for wanting to menu.

She, she has a lot of input, uh, making the menu.

People come together from as far as the mainland to celebrate this tradition.

Everybody's not Buddhist, but you still have the tradition, and the tradition continues in the way of fellowship and continues in a way of, you know, giving some mochi that you've just pounded to your neighbors and have them share in that, in that joy of doing this kind of work.

It's more than tradition.

Uh, when I grew up, we used to pound mochi.

Mostly family.

So, that's carrying on the tradition, but for me it's getting together and a lot of friends, every relative.

I see it only once a year, and this is it over here.

This annual gathering to bring in the new year has shaped the younger generation.

Um, so when grandpa can't do, uh, mochi pounding anymore, I'm hoping that me and my brothers and my generation will be able to pursue our, you know, our goals and dreams, and then it'll be our turn.

Although Carolyn is not there to celebrate the annual mochi pounding, her spirit still lingers.

I'm sure she is looking down on us and maybe that’s why it’s clearing up.

And this morning the wind died down.

So, I'm sure she's helping us with that, too.

This is Hannah Okamoto from Maui Waena Intermediate School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] This next story is from McKinley High School on O‘ahu, where a club dedicated to connecting students with seniors illustrates the type of joy that is sparked when people of different generations come together.

They bring sunshine, they bring laughter and life.

Hawai‘i's aging population is the fastest growing age group in Hawai‘i.

Loneliness and social isolation is the silent epidemic of the aging population.

To combat this, students at McKinley High School created the Lokahi Project, which includes an annual senior citizen prom, a wish granting initiative, and weekly senior home visits to Kūlana Hale senior living apartments.

I've been in the Lokahi Project for less than a year.

I decided to join the Lokahi Project after I had a great time at last year’s senior citizen prom, and we get to bridge together the age gaps between our generation and their generation.

It has given me relationships with different younger children, because the generational thinking now is very different from when I was young.

At the weekly visits, the students do various activities with the senior citizens, such as arts and crafts, baking and karaoke, to name a few.

Um, the visits are so important because most of the seniors that we visit are often alone or don't have much family that come by.

Well, I keep myself busy.

I paint, I do crafts and stuff and I cook, you know, but a lot of the seniors can't see.

They, um, they have arthritis in their hands.

What it has done is drawn people out of their apartments that will normally not be out of their apartments.

It's happiness because we're not lonely, you know, we get to interact.

The Lokahi Project has created lasting impacts with both the seniors and students.

It's a jovial relationship.

And, um, I really can relate to Regina.

She's just like me.

She’s talkative, active, cannot sit still.

So, we're very much alike.

Oh, I've gotten to know her.

And, um, I've kind of given her some little mothering, grandmothering advice.

The way I see Faye is kind of similar to the way I see my friends at school, because we can literally talk about anything, and the fact that she's older and I'm younger, it helps bring our two different perspectives together.

It's very refreshing and very positive, um, to see children.

I learned that there's hope for the future.

This is my Mayele Bautista from President William McKinley High School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] Let's take a few moments to learn how to pull off one of the most historical fashion traditions, the tie.

Here's an instructional video from students of Lahaina Intermediate School.

Over time, fashion evolves.

Traditionally, a necktie has been a male accessory.

But lately it has grown popular with women.

Obviously, wearing a tie requires knowing how to tie one.

But don't get frustrated, because we will teach you.

Here is a Windsor knot.

To tie a Windsor knot, place a tie over your neck like this.

The wider side should be twice as long as a smaller side.

Then cross the wide side over the small side while keeping it close to your neck and fold under and over.

Next, you have to twist the part you just folded over around the shorter side of the tie and fold over and tighten.

You would then repeat an earlier step of folding the wider piece around and over the main knot.

Don't forget to keep it loose.

It should look like this.

After that, have the wider piece go through the part of the knot that you just fold it around.

To tighten the tie, pull down the skinnier and while holding the knot.

And there you go.

You just tied a Windsor knot.

Good job.

This is Taryn Cabingas from Lahaina Intermediate School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] Facing the future can be daunting, especially when it's college application season.

Trust me, I know.

This next student reflection is from senior Jacob Chong at Waiākea High School, who tells us how he managed to navigate the anxiety of preparing for life after graduation.

The cycle of search, form, essay, repeat is something I wouldn't recommend.

In fact, I would say it's difficult.

[ocean wave] Hi, my name is Jacob Chong and I'm a senior here at Waiākea High School on the Island of Hawai‘i.

Do you know what the hardest part of senior year is?

It’s not the classes, it’s not the sports, it’s not even the clubs.

It’s that three-month blitzkrieg at the beginning of the year.

It's the college application.

It's pretty fascinating how much stress the college application process can bring.

Or even when I was just laying down on my bed and thinking about it, it felt suffocating.

The cycle of search, form, essay, repeat is something I wouldn't recommend.

In fact, I would say it's difficult.

What gave me hope was finding out that all my friends were as lost as me.

When I asked them simple questions about how their searches were going, they went silent.

When I looked on their social media, all I saw was complaining about the scholarships, about the essays, about the resumes, everything.

When I saw my best friend talking about not knowing what to do, I knew I had to do something.

I asked my dad if he could help me and my friend on applications.

We started to check up on each other every now and then.

We talked to our friends in college on how to make it with structure, a goal, and a plan.

Then all we had to do was work for it.

While I don't really know where me and my friends are going right now, as it’s a bit early when I recorded this, but for the first time in a very, very long time, I'm actually feeling a bit hopeful and excited, even a little bit confident about what the future can bring.

[ocean wave] To close our show, I'd like to share this memorable piece from Kamehameha Schools Maui Middle School.

It won first place in the middle school division in our Fall Challenge back in 2019.

Our student reporters profile a local teacher's commitment to keeping her family's ties to Maui, despite difficulties due to the high cost of living in our islands.

My name is Ululani Shiraishi and I'm a sixth-grade English teacher at Kamehameha Schools Maui.

Mrs. Shiraishi and her husband are both teachers who love their jobs.

I’ve been teaching at Kamehameha for about eight years.

I'm married to Spencer Shiraishi, who's also a sixth-grade teacher, and we've been married for 27 years.

Mrs. Shiraishi and her family, like many Hawai‘i families, struggle from paycheck to paycheck.

At one point we had three kids in college at the same time, and so we also felt responsible for the decisions that we made.

Financially, roughly speaking, we were having to pay about $50,000 a year out of our pocket.

Not only does she struggle financially, but she also fights to find time for herself and her family as well.

So, between the two of us, we have four jobs.

My husband also teaches, and he has a yard business.

Another job that I have is cleaning condos, and in order to fulfill all of what's asked of us in those four jobs, it hinders us from being able to always be available to pour into the hearts of people.

A lot of days where I teach all day and then I go to a condo and I clean it and then I walk back in the house at about nine o'clock.

Despite all the challenges her family has faced, she and her husband don't plan on moving anytime soon.

And so, why we continue to do this here is because being Hawaiian and knowing that this place is who I am and who my kids are, we always want them to be able to come home.

We were wanting to make sure that we, they have a place to be rooted and grounded in who they are, and we want them to be able to always know that this is home.

Mrs. Shiraishi continues to live day to day by this belief.

Do what you love.

Like, do, find your purpose and your passion, and do it.

This is Kailea Tuitele from Kamehameha High School Maui Middle School, for HIKI NŌ.

[ocean wave] That concludes our show.

Thank you for watching the work of Hawai‘i's New Wave of Storytellers.

Don't forget to 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.

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