Kauai, HI

July 25, 2014

Paana [Sunshine, in Hawaiian] and Koua [Rain, in Hawaiian] are two old dogs whose puppy love has grown into a mature relationship. Ever since they were born they’ve been inseparable. Though they don’t have any children of their own, their owner, Esther Rivera, has been an addition to their family since she was 17 years old. With the passing seasons of life, came memories and joy.

“They fight over whose friend is walking by because they don’t bark at other dogs, they bark at each other,” Esther Rivera said.

As family members, they not only raised Esther but also her nine year old daughter, Jaysie-Jean, as well. For Jaysie-Jean, they are just like another set of parents who spend quality time with her and show their dedication through love. While they can never have a verbal conversation together, they constantly show an interpersonal relationship when communicating.

“Ai! Where that maka-pia-pia come from?” Jaysie-Jean said, wiping Koua’s eyes.

From ups and downs and experiences that shake the core of the foundation in a family, this past year, the Rivera’s spotted a storm that was coming for Sunshine and Rain. Though the actual storm wasn’t similar to the slow and deadly force of a tsunami, underneath the surface, held a gust of wind that took the family’s breath away.

“We weren’t really sure what it was. Then we took him to the doctor and they said that it would possibly be cancer. And then I noticed a couple of months later that she had a few blister spots.” said Esther Rivera.

Unfortunately, Paana and Koua were both diagnosed with different forms of cancer. As head of the household, this left Esther with a very difficult decision to make.

“To put down or not...I just don’t want them to suffer,” Esther said.

However, because of everything they’ve been through, not everyone was on the same page when it came to the well-being of Paana and Koua.

“We’re not putting them asleep,” Jaysie-Jean said.

Several surgeries and a few months later the cancer is currently in remission. However, the family is still weathering the storm.

“It was a learning experience and it was, you know, very emotional,” Esther said.

“They’re like the most important thing of almost everything except my parents,” Jaysie-Jean said.

On the road from remission, they know it’s not going to be stroll in the park. For now, this couple is going to enjoy whatever time they have left.

“Just...crossing our fingers that it doesn’t come back,” Esther Rivera said.

Even if it does return, this family will stick together come rain and shine.

Kapa’a HI

July 24, 2014

On the boardwalk of downtown Kapa’a, you will find many souvenir shops, a few eateries, and one storefront so small it’s easy to miss. One door and a sign is all that makes up the Orchid Alley storefront, however, this alley opens up into a very impressive sanctuary.

Home of sculptures made of driftwood found on the beaches of kapa’a, an impressive butterfly garden, and of course, orchids.

“We do our own hybridizing, we have hundreds of different types of orchids, some of our hybrids are nationally award winning such as Fely’s Sunshine named after my wife, we have a lot going on,” says Neill Sams, owner of Orchid Alley.

The Sams have been in business for the past 18 years, finding new and exciting ways to cultivate their passion for orchids.

“We reinvent our business every few years to keep the customers interested, the latest was the butterfly garden but there’s always something new,” says Neill’s wife Fely Sams. However, this couples reign of success has bloomed from tragedy.

Twenty-three years ago the Sams moved from the golden state to the garden isle in pursuit of a dream. A dream that just so happened to leave them facing down Kaua’i’s worst storm in decades.

“Here it is, Hurricane Iniki, it was devastating, we had just moved here and I didn’t have any friends or family, that was the lowest moment,” says Fely.

The 1.8 billion dollars in damage caused by Hurricane Iniki provided a new opportunity for the Sams.

“The property here was demolished, the building was knocked down, the ground was torn up, but it happened to be at an affordable enough price for us to buy it,” explains Neill.

The Sams slowly rebuilt the property into the successful business it is, one plant at a time.

“We started out with one umbrella out front and eventually it evolved into this,” Fely remembers, a smile on her face.

Although the Sams possess National Hybridizing awards and a blooming business, Fely measures their success a different way, “A lot of my customers have become great friends, it feels like they’re a family.”

The Sams attribute each other to their growing success, “I have to work a little harder, when we met I had a brown thumb but over the years his green thumb wore off on me,” says Fely.

“She really takes care of the customers and makes it possible for me to pursue my passion with the orchids,” compliments Neill.

Running a successful business does keep the couple apart, but with family and a little bit of TLC, the Sams are exactly where they need to be to blossom.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i

June 25, 2014

This summer, 18 year old Abreen Padeken has got a lot on her plate. For starters, she sells garlic fries every Saturday with her family at the Waianae Farmer’s Market. On top of that, a large portion of her time is spent as Student Body President at Waianae High School. To add the icing on the cake, Abreen is occupying the rest of her time and efforts to helping a local candidate.

“My family has been involved in sign waving and pep rallies and we will be doing phone banking and then going from door to door trying to get one on one person interaction.” Abreen said.

At around the age of six, Abreen was exposed to politics and the importance thereof. Her father, Daniel Padeken Jr., is a passionate advocate for teen involvement in the voting system.

“See, if there’s a big push in the high schools leading up to the 18 and 19 year olds about voting and the importance of voting and making a difference in your community...people would find it important so when they come 18 years old they look at it like, ‘Wow, I finally can vote!’” he said.

According to The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement fact sheet, less than one third in the islands between the ages of 18 and 29 voted in the last Presidential election.

This was by far the worst youth turnout in the country.

“People should know who’s going to be in the government, who’s going to be working for what they value, who’s going to be fighting for them.” Abreen said.

Organizations like We Vote Hawaii, are contributing to drive the fight towards civic education.

“The public schools do not have a program of civic education...if you really understood that who you and what you voted for made a difference in your daily life now, not in the future, I think more people would vote,” said the We Vote Hawaii founder Lyla Berg.

This program helps the students by educating and registering them at 16 instead of 18. The hope is to prepare them for the democratic process.

“I believe our young people are the leaders of today not just in the future and if you could make your voices really heard through the voting process...I think adults are going to pay attention and we certainly can learn a lot from you.” said Lyla Berg.

A lot needs to be done to turn the page on a new chapter in Hawaii. Between assisting her parents at the Farmer’s Market, helping out a candidate, and working on her responsibilities as Student Government President, Abreen knows there’s still tasks that need to be worked on at Wai’anae High. As the Student Body President, she would like to talk to the students and various clubs, resolving their concerns.

“I care. I care about everything that’s going on,” Abreen said.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
In Wai’anae High School students are able to choose the classes they are interested in and want to learn more about. For senior Briahna Rivera, the choice was always a simple one and in 9th grade she chose the path of JROTC. “I wanted to learn leadership skills and to learn things at a high level,” said Rivera.

For Briahna, her goal of learning the ropes of a leader paid off in her senior year when she became Battalion Commander for all of Waianae High School cadets.

“Based on my leadership skills and things I did, they looked at my test scores and I had high test scores and that’s how I got my position,” explained Rivera.

With a top position, comes hard work and for Briahna that’s what she went through for JROTC’s biggest event in the state. The Waianae Adventure Challenge (WAC) is hosted by Waianae High School’s very own ROTC program and is a three day challenge with over 80 teams from schools all over the island. Cadets compete in challenges such as water crossing, swimming, physical tests, rope bridging and other physical events. This year marks the 9th challenge and battalion commander Briahna, plays a big part in her school’s participation. During WAC, Rivera’s job is to make sure all cadets are in right order. Sometimes ordering around cadets is a hassle, since there are so many teams to look over.

“My struggle is just making sure that everyone ends up in the right place,” said Briahna.

From water crossing to rope bridges to various obstacle courses, certain Wai’anae High School cadets figure out the key to success and getting the job done.

“You can’t do everything by yourself, you can’t let others rely on you, you have to work together to get everything done,” said senior Alavoni Tukunaga.

At the closing ceremonies, Wai’anae high school went home with three trophies. Boys took home first for rope bridge, girls took home for tug of war and mixed took home second for tug of war. Even though one of the trophies wasn’t the Golden Eagle, which went to Kapolei who was the best overall team performance. At the end, Briahna has learned a lot about herself and what she can bring back home.

“From WAC I gained more leadership skills, you are in charge of 400 cadets,” stated Rivera. For Briahna wherever her life ends up is not something she is afraid of. Stepping into the field of presenting yourself in the outside world is what she is used to. WAC is not only a challenge of personal strength, but also mental endurance and how far you can motivate your team and yourself.

"Motivation during WAC is like a key to everyone, if you don’t have motivation you won’t get your events done,” Tukunaga states.

Briahna's next obstacle is to succeed at the obstacles that college has to offer her.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
According to the Honolulu Advertiser, Hawaii is among the highest teen suicide attempt rates in the nation at 12%, twice the national average. Reasons include parents struggling to make ends meet, a high homelessness rate, and substance abuse. This is especially high in Waianae, a rural city on the island of Oahu, where many teenagers live with heavy weights on their shoulders, whether it’s poverty or your typical adolescent’s troubles.

Motivational speaker Nick Vujicic was born with Tetra-Amelia syndrome, a disorder where one is born without all four limbs. Waianae High School was his next destination. He travels around the world, delivering motivational speeches about life without limbs, hope, and finding value in life.

“I just want everyone to know that there’s beautiful things that can come from their work of pieces, just give their broken pieces a chance,” he said.

On March 28, 2014, two assemblies were held at Waianae High School for Nick to convey his message. He promoted an anti-bullying campaign and spoke out against it, letting students know that regardless of what others say, they have value in their lives. Many students were moved by his words, hearts being captured and tears being shed. By the end of the assembly, majority of the crowd stood up and vowed to stop bullying.

The speech did not just make the students want to change their actions, but also their perspective on life. “He made me look at all the bad I’ve done and made me wanna change it,” said sophomore Kaike Kaniaupio.

Sometimes, all it takes is a few good words, and Nick delivered just that. “Another girl couldn’t say a word, but she just cried on my shoulder for about a good 10-15 seconds,” he said.

“That’s the greatest thing, to see people being changed and transformed by the message.”

Nick’s speeches may not necessarily lower the teen suicide attempt rate, but it’s a start. Students at Waianae High School were implanted with a new sense of faith in themselves. “I think that no matter what school we go to, wherever it is in the world, everyone’s looking for hope, everyone’s going through something.”

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 23, 2013

In today’s society when some people think of the sport of wrestling they think about large muscular men with strange stage names.

“My favorite is Umaga” said Sani Pitolo.

Greco-Roman wrestling is a combat sport which confronts two male competitors who try to gain control over their opponent through the use of throws, locks, and clinching techniques. The holds can only be executed by means of the upper body, with the ultimate goal of pinning the opponent's shoulders to the mat. Wrestling is not only a sport for boy but for girls too. Malie Gonsalves a Senior at Waianae High school dominates the mats when wrestling because to Malie it’s more than just a sport but a lifestyle. Although wrestling is a very physical sport, it is not all about being physically strong but also mentally.

At Waianae High Schools senior Malie Gonsalves said “My struggles was mostly mental cause you need to have a strong mental attitude to be able to wrestle and so once you get mentally strong then the physical part gets easier”.

Last year Gonsalves competed for the OIA championship finals in the last match while losing by six points in the first two period she remembered to not give up and won her match by two points and became the OIA champion. When overcoming her struggles from the help of her father; her biggest encouragement knowing what she goes through and what it takes to be on top also brings her up to do better. With the season starting back up learning wrestling techniques, strength training and conditioning Gonsalves proves to herself to be better of what others think of her.

“Well when people underestimate me I just try to prove them wrong and I can make myself better at the same time” Gonsalves said.

Knowing when she doesn’t do her best, Gonsalves betters herself for the next one while looking foward and prepares for her next match. By getting introduced to the sport by her father, to Malie wrestling is more than just a sport but a lifestyle.

“My plans after high school is hopefully go to college on the mainland and if possible and get a full scholarship to wrestle” Malie said.

Continuing to wrestle after high school Gonsalves is looking at the University of Oregon women’s wrestling team as a possible option. Hoping to go to college on the mainland and the possibility of getting a full scholarship to wrestle Malie continues to do what is her whole life.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
February 20, 2014 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

In this age of modern technology where computers, tablets, and cell phones are the major past times, a simple ball attached to a stick by a string is the newest fixation amongst teens.

The kendama is a traditional Japanese toy that dates back to over 400 years ago. Its body consists of three cups and a spike, connected to a ball by string. Its main objective is simple: catch the ball in one of the cups or on the spike. While it may seem like nothing special, the kendama’s popularity has recently spiked in Hawaii.

Kids all over the state are found with the toy, including at school. Many students bring and play with their kendamas at school, much to teacher and admin’s dissatisfaction. “It becomes a problem ‘cause it takes away their focus,” said biology teacher Elorde Tuliao. But to some kids, kendamas are more than just a game or a distraction.

“When people pink slip it means that they wanna see if they have the skills to win the other person’s kendama, and… win,” said sophomore Makana Savaiinaea. Kendama players often play a game called Dama, similar to Horse. Players take turns performing a trick, and for each trick missed you gain a letter of the word Dama. Once all letters are collected by a player, they lose. In some cases, kids are catching more than just the ball. Players have the choice to “pink slip”, or wager, their kendamas when playing the game. Pink slipping is considered gambling and is a Class B Chapter 19 offense. Some Oahu schools, such as James Campbell High School, have taken action and banned kendamas from campus.

In 2012, a study showed that 60-80% of teenagers have gambled. Over the years, schools have banned numerous toys, such as pogs and marbles, due to gambling incidents. This just goes to show that kendamas are simply another tool for students to gamble.

Eliminating kendamas from school might not stop kids from gambling, but it might do just the trick in preventing it. “I think the school is taking steps towards avoiding these problems,” said Tuliao.

The kendama might not have a screen or cool apps, but clearly, they have still managed to catch the attention of kids all over Hawaii.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
February 19, 2014- Wai'anae, Hawaii

E-Cigarettes may seem like the hot new trend in Hawaii, but according to abcnews.com they were invented in the 1960s.

An Electronic Cigarette or E-Cig is a device that contains nicotine, in which you receive through vapor inhalants. Not only does it give of nicotine but it also comes in non-nicotine, where users do it for the vape. With the E-Cigs there is over a hundred different vapor flavors ranging from fruit to coffee base to dessert styles. The E-Cig is starting to trend all over the world, especially in Hawai’i. Volcano Fine Electronic Cigarettes a worldwide seller of the product has opened and expanded to ten stores statewide. It’s was built on the theory that it’ll be a better alternative than smoking and also a way for regular smokers to get nicotine in a “healthier way”. Since it’s still new and known for now as unharmful E-Cig smokers enjoy the rule of vaping in any public setting.

“Everywhere, Cars, Beach you know you can smoke it pretty much anywhere,” said E-Cig smoker Vaughn Osterna.

There is always the possibility of having harmful effects.

“There are many health risks, the most important one that we actually know is that nicotine is a very addictive substance,” said Dr. Nicolas Nelken.

Dr. Nelken works as a Vascular Surgeon at Kaiser Permanente in Moanalua, Hawaii. He is very familiar on how cigarettes affect people internally and just like others is trying to see if E-Cigarettes do similar damage.

“E-Cigs are still very very new, I would remind you that it took twenty years to figure out that cigarettes were associated with cancer, twenty years from now we’re gonna start seeing what bad health effects are with E-Cigs, so it’s very difficult to know,” said Nelken.

What officials and the people of Hawaii do know is that in the beginning of 2014, DOH banned cigarette smoking on all city beaches, parks, pools, and athletic facilities. The thing is E-Cigarettes were exempt from the law because officials don’t know how it much it’ll affect others with secondhand smoke.

Reasonings of why the ban on cigarettes were place was because it’s common knowledge to the public on how it could cause cancer.

“About five thousand identified chemicals, four thousand of these are known to be poisonous. That’s why cigarettes are so bad for you, only one of those is nicotine,” said Dr. Nelken.

Since E-Cigarettes lack many of the chemicals that occur in secondhand smoke, they able to see the limelight, as officials didn’t place a ban yet.

“Now whether banning E-Cigarettes has an effect on cigarettes or not is a difficult thing to know. I’ll tell you since we know so little about the long term effect of E-Cigarettes, I think it’s prudent to release them carefully and very slowly liberalize use if it becomes clear that they are safe but since we don’t know that it seems prudent also to lump them in with cigarettes in terms of their use”, suggest Nelken.

As for now the Hawaii State Lawmakers limited the use of cigarette smoke in public areas, but for E-Cigarettes it’s a future still left hazy.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
February 19, 2014, Wai'anae, Hawaii

Although the cost of living in Hawaii has an expensive price tag, there is one way some local residents are racking up savings.

According to the Institute of Energy Research, Hawaii has the most expensive energy in the country with gas prices at $3.47 a gallon. Gasoline is not the only necessity costing more on the islands. Groceries such as orange juice or milk can cost up to seven dollars a gallon. Life-long Hawaii resident and mother of four, Corinne David, has decided to literally cut the cost out of shopping.

“Couponing is when you go shopping and you bust out your coupons, thats your money,” David said. Coupons are printed discounts that are offered in newspapers, online and in other media. The coupons alone only add up to a few cent’s off merchandise, but a few cents here and there can lead to hundreds in savings a month.

Accourding to Yahoo.com by spending 20 minutes per week the adverage consumer can save $1,000 per year by taking advantage of the coupon and special offiers.

Corinne spends about three hours a week planning her shopping trip. First she cuts out the coupons and then begins outlining her game plan consisting of price matching from stores, getting competing advertisement and shopping on the clearance racks.

“You like clearance because you can use coupons to get it even cheaper” David said. The three hours of clipping and deal hunting can sometime save Corrine and her family over 75% off of retail prices.

The potential for savings that couponing offers does not suit every consumer. School teacher, Vanessa Shalkey, doesn’t mind paying regular price for products.

“I think couponing is cool, you can save a lot from the discounts, but it takes time to look and cut them all out. Also, they may not have the products that I want at the moment,” said Shalkey.

For Corinne David and many others, couponing is all about getting the lowest price she can possibly get. “If I can get it for free, I want it for free. Thats the goal, 100% just pay the sales tax” David said.

Every week Corrine purchases four Sunday papers every week and with the amount money Corinne saves from couponing, she can put towards other expenses.

“I can use the savings, towards my kids football practice, or football buying their uniforms” David said . With a household of six people Corinne will continue to coupon in the future.

“I like that my mom coupons because I get free stuff, I like that she brings home deodorant because I don’t want to smell stink” said Kody Rosa. Even though Kody dislikes carrying the bags of groceries he still likes it when his mom come home with new stock. With scissors in hand Corinne David will stop when then the last copy of inserts are extinct.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 25, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

According to bigstory.ap.org, almost a third of this year's high school graduates who took the ACT tests are not prepared for college-level writing, biology, algebra or social science classes. “Compared to other students in the state, I don’t feel like I’m ready,” said Wai’anae High School senior Gloria Baniaga.

The state of Hawaii offers two types of diplomas, a regular high school diploma and the Board of Recognition Diploma. The Board of Recognition Diploma not only holds students to the same elements as the regular high school diploma, but also requires students to pass the Algebra 2 end of course exam, complete a senior project and earn one more credit of math.

“I know that this is a challenge for me, but I want the BOE recognition diploma because I work hard in class so I want to be recognized for all my hard work,” said Wai’anae High School senior Alyssa Jade Grande.

Although students struggle to meet these requirements, teachers and staff hope that a little added pressure will help prepare students for college. “I think a healthy bit of struggle is important because if you’re not struggling you’re not expanding and challenging yourself basically you’re just cruising and doing assignments in class,” said Wai’anae High School Academic Counselor Shane Nakamura.

The current requirements for the BOE diploma have been in effect for the graduating class of 2013, 2014 and 2015, but this too did not have the effect that officials hoped for. “Out of all the students who graduated from Waianae High School 10% got accepted to a four year university and 20% got accepted to a two year college,“ said Nakamura.

In the year 2016 the requirements are to change yet again. There will be four types of diplomas, the basic high school diploma, the Academic Honors, the CTE honors and the STEM honors. “So they’re really upping the standards,” said Nakamura.

Some students strive for these requirements. “Boe Recognition diplomas are important because it shows you took the effort to accomplish more than your peers.” said senior Alissa Cateil

Others feel that receiving this diploma is nothing more than just the icing on the cake. “I don’t think getting BOE Recognition Diploma is important because colleges don’t require it.” said senior Jonathan Dannog.

“Boe Recognition diplomas are important because it shows you took the effort to accomplish more than your peers.” said senior Alissa Cateil

Although the requirements for recognition diplomas require more rigorous standards, it is the challenge students need to prepare themselves for college level courses.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 28th, 2013

According to the center for disease control, obesity has doubled in teens and tripled in adolescents in the past thirty years. This growing number of overweight youth in the United States indicates that today’s youth are not getting the exercise they need.

Waianae High School’s (WHS) students are required to take one semester of physical education in the four years they attend. This is nowhere near the recommended amount of physical activity for teens. Students can get added exercise by walking or biking to campus. The majority of the WHS community live within a five to 10 mile radius of the school. Making biking a healthier and more environmentally friendly alternative to the bus or being dropped of. “I bike because it helps me stay healthy and I don’t want to pollute the atmosphere”, said English teacher Lawrence Dreyfuss.

Biking as a transportation activity is being denied to WHS students by the simple fact that they can’t securely park a bike at school. "They should have racks to encourage kids to ride bikes", said Daniel Bruening Plop.

Biking to school could be faster and safer than walking because of how much quicker you could get to your destination. “I get here pretty fast and safely using my bike”, said AP english teacher Mr. Dreyfuss.

Mr. Dreyfuss is an AP teacher that has had a couple of his students in the past have issues with Waianae not having bike racks. "One of my students had to put his bike in my class because he thought that it was gonna get stolen", said Dreyfuss. Daniel is a WHS Senior that rides his bike to school and chains it to the tree in the parking lot. This lack of a secure space actually prevents some students from using a bike even when they can. "I would bike but there are no bike racks”, said Junior Damien Dean.

“There are many benefits to having bike racks but we just don’t have the resources to obtain it”, said Shane Nakamura.

Shane is the counselor for the WHS Searider Productions academy. Shane believes that there are many reasons we should have bike racks but he also knows that there is no budget at WHS to pay for the cost of bike racks. “It all comes down to the money”, said Shane.

Transportation may be a problem for students and that is why Shane feels that there should be bike racks to not only compensate those who are willing to ride but maybe to also get some other people to start riding their bikes.

Biking could provide the exercise help students need to be more physically fit by having them be more active everyday when they have to ride their bike home rather than having to catch the bus or drive. Also this combined with Waianae’s selection of healthy food could benefit the students in a healthy way. By Waianae adding bike racks it could encourage students to be more healthy and ride bikes. “ I would ride if there were bike racks because thats way better than catching the bus or walking”, said Dean.

For students at WHS there is no way to guarantee that they get the exercise they need but bike racks may create the opportunity they need to start living a healthier life.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 08, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

15,000 adolescents in the United States are diagnosed with type one diabetes each year. Type one diabetes is when the body doesn't’ produce insulin. Without insulin, the body cannot convert sugar from food into nutrients for the cells. Some effects are extreme thirstiness, weight loss, drowsiness, and heavy breathing.

According to American Diabetes Association, about 2,050 children in Hawaii are affected by type one diabetes. In 2013, ten-year-old Markaiya Spencer became one of the 2,050.

Markaiya had been having stomach cramps, nausea, and vomiting for the past year. She was suffering from these afflictions, not knowing that they are some of the symptoms for type one diabetes. “Because I had a really horrible pain, like every time I breathe, it hurt. One day, it just tightened up every time I took a breathe,” she said. Soon after the symptoms started, Markaiya was sent to the hospital, finding out she has type one diabetes.

There is no cure to type one diabetes, but there are treatments to manage the condition. With proper management, diet and exercise a person with diabetes can still live a long healthy life. Markaiya is now taking five shots of insulin a day, and also has changed her eating habits. She eats three meals, and two snacks every day.

“Before every meal I have to do all my medical things like test my blood sugar, and do my Humalog, which is my needle shot,” she said.

She has to take a shot to check her glucose level, or sugar count. The glucose level tells her how much insulin to take.

Markaiya also has to go on a diet of 60 grams of carbs per meal each day. She can no longer eat candy, or any type of food with high sugar in it.

“I can’t eat when I want to when I’m hungry now, and because sometimes when I want to play outside I can’t because of the insulin. It might come out of my sweat when it’s really hot outside,” Markaiya said.

She uses a booklet that contains a list with how many fat, carbs, and sugar is in a certain type of food. She then takes all of the food she’s about to eat, and adds them all up to equal 60 grams of carbs. The mathematical balancing act is time consuming, but it is a small price to pay to stay healthy.

Being diagnosed with diabetes at such a young age and having to take on greater responsibilities to make sure she maintains a healthy lifestyle has opened up her eyes in a new way . “I just want to say that diabetes, now that I experienced it, I feel really scared. And now I know that kids diabetes is worse than adult diabetes and that’s what makes me really scared, and that’s all.”

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
Nov 27, 2013 - Halawa, Hawaii

The clock is ticking down, the roar from the crowd is deafening and there’s only one click of a camera that separates a cover quality photo from a lousy one. The pressure of getting this great shot is one that Eugene Tanner lives with everyday as a photojournalist.

Eugene works with the University of Hawaii as a sideline photographer. It is his job to capture the action of a game in a single moment. He’s been working in this field for over the last two decades and his work has taken him all over the country. During his travels he has lived in five different states and has worked for various newspapers such as the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register. While working for the papers, Eugene has covered news,sports and even award ceremonies. “I got to help with the photo coverage with the emmes, and even did logistical work for the Oscars,” Tanner said.

From the bright lights of Hollywood to the field at Aloha Stadium the pressure to capture that perfect shot remains the same. "The pressure that I feel is just a sense of urgency,” Eugene said.

The sense of urgency comes from snapping the perfect picture, editing the photo and sending it out to the clients as soon as possible. As a journalist getting content out there first is the biggest challenge, “my clients are in Colorado right now, Colorado State is the visiting team, so I’m really trying take care of newspapers in Colorado,” said Tanner.

Although covering college sports may be fun, for Eugene it doesn’t compare to enjoyment he gets out of high school football games. “It’s just so much fun, there’s so much passion, so much joy, so much emotion, that’s what really cool,” Tanner said.

Photography is a profession of the pure joy for Eugene, and though Eugene doesn't consider himself a rich man, it is not the income that keeps him holding the camera on the sidelines. “It is an extraordinary career, it’s very rewarding. I hope to do this for the rest of my life,” Tanner said.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 8th, 2013

Not a lot can happen in 26 seconds, but in the United States, thats all it takes for one student to drop out of high school. However, some students do make it out in time, 69% at Wai’anae High School according to Counselor Shane Nakamura.

In America, children are taught that if you sit in a classroom for 15 years and get good grades, and then sit in a lecture hall for 4 to 8 years, you’ll be successful. The road to college is perceived by some high school students as the only option, but others have found another way.

“We’re lending money we don’t have to kids who can’t pay it back, to educate them for jobs that no longer exist. We have become ‘profoundly disconnected’,” Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs said on his website mikeroweworks.com.

His website is dedicated to educating students in jobs that do still exist, such as trades. Apprenticeships are programs you can enter that are centered around a specific trade. For example, in a construction apprenticeship, you get hands on learning on a job site as well as one or two classes such as trigonometry and surveying building layouts to help you further understand work in your trade. A new study done by Purdue University shows that hands on learning helps people to develop a deeper understanding of a subject as compared to lecture or book based learning.

As compared to college, an apprenticeship program takes about four years, and you start working right away at about ten dollars an hour. At Wai’anae High School, there is an entire building dedicated to College and Career planning, and a college presentation almost every week, but not many students are aware of apprenticeships as an option after high school. According theguardian.com, an estimated 55% of this years college graduates will fail to land a job that requires a degree, but in an apprenticeship, you start work as you learn, and progress to a full-time position upon program completion.

College just isn’t for everyone. “After my first semester of college, my teachers told me to stop wasting my money. I was failing all my classes so they told me to just not come back,” said John Bator, a non-working foreman and graduate of the apprenticeship program. For him, an apprenticeship was the right choice,”I was already working three jobs, so when a friend of mine told me about the program, It seemed like just the best answer. I’ve been working in Construction for 25 years and I’m the boss now.”

John started in the apprenticeship program working for about 10 dollars an hour, and has worked his way up to about 40, learning valuable skills with real-world application along the way. “I would definitely tell any kid out there that learns better hands-on to check out the program.”

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
October 29th, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

Sweating all day long, sweeping and mopping, from cleaning floors and picking up after the students, some people who work hard to keep Waianae High School campus clean feels unappreciated due to the fact of graffiti.  

Over the two decades public schools had issues with vandalism, and it has been one of the highest concerns throughout the past years. Many schools struggle with money because some of the students that attend there destroy school property by vandalizing the school property. The federal government spends more than 20 billion dollars on public schools in the U.S and thats only for the things they need like reconstruction. Students who attend Waianae High School have their different perspectives of the atmosphere of the school and how it looks.  Many concerns turn to the custodians and cleaners, opposing that custodians don’t do much and that they lack cleaning the campus. 

"I feel bad cause I feel that everybody should take responsibility for their own actions.” sophomore Jaychelle Kamali’i said.

However, many students don’t know that the struggle and hard work our custodians go through to keep our school environment clean and healthy for the kids.  

Many criticize custodians and that custodians only do nothing but clean what they are told to. Little do students in Waianae High School know that the custodians care and they take there time to clean the classrooms and campus for the students. 

“Chairs are always all messy that’s why I do take the time to fix it and I would’ve appreciated if it was you know pushed in or set straight.” custodian Helen Kepo’o said. 

“I don’t think it’s right of them to do that and I don’t know why they take the time to even draw on walls” Kepo’o said.

Caring and spending hours cleaning room after room Kepo’o does her best to keep classes clean. Many students vandalize and they don’t see how it affects the people who do their best to make the campus look healthy and clean and Kepo’o does her best to make the students have a good clean campus.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
November 27th, 2013

Here in Hawaii, when someone thinks of a University of Hawaii football game tailgating events, star players, or even the peppy cheerleaders on the side lines come to mind first. Rarely does the casual fan think about the workers above the action in the press box. There are reporters from different media sources that cover the game, and workers who keep track of the scores and individual statistics. Among this mix of reporters and number keepers is color analyst for ESPN Radio 1420, John Veneri, whose job is to announce the game from the radio booth. With a large amount of people in the booths, comes a load of pressure.

“Anything else before the actual games you have butterflies, then once you get into it you get three hours, you can’t stay nervous for very long,” Veneri said.

Announcers like Veneri need to be very cautious with what they say not only because of the teams, but their family and friends in the stands. “You have to be careful on what you say, even though they’re college players they’re still kids. Their families listen, their coach wides listen, while there’s no pressure, there is a certain level, you have to have a certain level of professionalism to talk about the kids, the players,” Veneri said.

With having to be careful with their words, it packs more pressure on to the press box crew. Even with high levels of professionalism as announcers, everyone make mistakes.

“When you make mistake and you don’t realize it till later, you kind of just brush over it and then just sure you say whatever’s true or correct later on,” Veneri added.

When the game is over and the players have shook hands, the workers in the press box wrap everything up. Ease has come over the workers above the field after they have felt the same pressure that the players might feel. The pressure of this game may be over, but there is always a new game. Luckily, it’s the pressure of the job that keeps them going.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
October 28th, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

Hawaii is home to over 7,500 farms, covering over one million acres. On a few of these acres sits Maili Moa, or Maili Chicken. They’re an egg farm on the Leeward Coast of Oahu who’ve been rolling out their product for almost two decades. The owner, Mark Takaki, is all about quality and control on his farm. “Quality control is so important to us here, which is why everything we do is all hands on. It keeps things regulated and just gives us a better egg for our customers,” said Takaki.

A lot of work takes place to get these eggs from the chicken to the customers. Everyday, eggs on the farm are washed, sized, graded, and the packaged. Some will be delivered to customers who subscribe to monthly deliveries while others will be packaged for sale on the farm. Regardless of destination, the process and care of the eggs is always the same.

Providing the consistent service and product isn’t cheap though. Hawaii does not have a feed mill, so it has to be flown in for an enormous cost, which left Maili Moa scrambling to make ends meet. Takaki said, “Feed prices went through the roof overnight and basically we needed to downsize because we couldn’t compete with the mainland eggs coming in so cheap.”

Still, this didn’t keep the chickens on the farm from cheeping. To ensure their survival, the farm separated themselves from the flock and switched to producing cage-free eggs. Takaki is the only farmer in Hawaii who has made the switch, and the difference really shows. “I enjoy when my customers come and they really say, ‘We don’t wanna buy from the mainland, we prefer your eggs, your eggs are the best,” Takaki said.

For now, Mark is still trying to get the word out about what he and his farm are doing, and what it could do for Hawaii.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
October 25th, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

It started with a jump. The stadium lights blinding, the cheers deafening and the coaches on the edge of sanity. Chaz Bollig goes for the ball, which is a little too far- so he springs into the air. Catch! Then suddenly...nothing. In the game of football, the chances of sustaining an injury are fairly high.

Take Varsity football player Chaz Bollig, for example. In the past few years, he’s broken his collarbone, knee, seven fingers and in pop warner season had an intense concussion. Injuries like these are all too common among student athletes now, with over 2 million occuring each year, according to U.S. Center for Disease Control. For Bolig. one affliction in particular stood out. “I lost memory for a long time after my concussion. I think it was for about a whole week, maybe even longer. It was scary, I had no clue what happened or anything,” Chaz said.

A concussion is a brain injury that occurs from a serious hit to the head or body. Of the 2 million student athlete injuries that do occur, 300,000 of them are traumatic brain-related. Chaz recovered from his injury slowly, eventually returning to the field to play once again.

In Hawaii it takes a student athlete 23 days on average to be cleared to play a sport again. Even with recovery time and new studies being done regarding the effects of concussions, The Department of Education has had an increase of 600 reported injuries from the 2007 to the 2012 school year. This jump in accidents has caused concern among sports officials and athlete's parents. "You don't want to think of the death part, it's just more of how is going to be after he recovers or even if he recovers," said Randell Bollig.

On a global scale, the recognition of concussions and its harmful effects on athletes during sports season has arisen. For instance, the NFL has been sued by more than hundreds of their players or the player’s families because of wounds that cut too deep to mend. "Trainers always try to take it pretty serious and try to make sure you don't have a concussion," said Chaz Bollig.

Overall, many adolescent sportsmen and sportswomen from across the nation are encountering numerous injuries difficult to bounce back from. Whether the blame can be pushed on the athlete or the sport, cannot be determined.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
Emil Muroka lives for the catch. He gets up at 8am and is out the door with his fishing gear in tow, ready to spend countless hours at his favorite fishing spot.

“I fish for passion, I fish for excitement, I fish for my own joy,” said senior Emil Muroka. As a recreational fisherman, Emil fishes as a hobby and a way to keep busy during his free time. Others, like Eileen Bebeau, have a different reason.

“It started out recreational and you kinda get hooked on it so we do it quite often now commercially and we supply the market in this area,” said commercial fisher Eileen Bebeau. Both Emil and Eileen rely on fishing, something that might not be around in the next thirty years.

According to The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, more than 3/4 of the world’s fish stocks are overexploited. This overexploitation creates countless changes to the ocean’s environment, as well as those who fish in it.

Bebeau said, ”there is a difference when we fish, it’s already showed a decline from 30 years ago. We used to catch 6-7 ahi in a couple hours fishing close to shore and you can’t do that anymore."

In thirty more years, the changes will follow the same trend unless something is done to cut the line of overfishing. If nothing is done to balance the ocean’s sensitive environment, the world’s fish stocks will be depleted by 2048, according to a journal in Science Magazine. The drastic changes from thirty years ago give fishers an idea of what thirty more years of overexploiting fish populations could do.

“If I couldn’t fish anymore, I don’t know what I would do. It’s something I can’t even imagine. I would be lost.” said Muraoka. The instability of the ocean’s future causes concern but it does not have to be a fear of the unknown.

Department of Land and Natural Resources Director WIlliam Aila said, “What you wanna do is manage the amount of fish that get taken out in a relative ratio so that balance continues to exist. When you have balance, you’re not overharvesting and the environment is at its optimum potential.”

As the scales of the fish population are balanced, fishing as a lifestyle, or even a hobby, becomes more secured.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
October 29th, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

Cheerleading requires a lot of dedication and commitment, “Yes, especially when they compete with other schools, there’s a lot of stunts, flips, and all that kind of stuff” says Athletic Trainer Ben Joven.

Straddles, liberties, and back handsprings, cheerleaders have to learn them all, all while supporting and encouraging their team. Despite all the work involved in cheering, many people still don’t consider it a sport, but to others, cheerleading is more than that.

“I like cheerleading because, it’s exciting, and it pumps you up,” junior and Waianae High School Cheerleader Jasielle Phillips said.

Some people think of cheerleading as less of a sport because they only ever get to see cheerleaders on the sidelines.

“I think people say that cheerleading isn’t a sport because they only see us at football games, and they don’t normally see us at competitions and our practices, and they don’t really see what we do here,” junior WHS Cheerleader Angelika Ayau said.

At each practice cheerleaders run a mile, and do extensive cardio and strength training exercise. What many people fail to realize is that cheerleading can give you a boost throughout college by earning scholarships up to $1,000 or more. There are also nearly twelve to fourteen schools that offer full-ride scholarships to cheerleaders. Although some others may not see cheerleading as a sport, the fact that colleges are willing to pay for their schooling proves that a cheerleader is a valued college athlete.

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
December 3rd, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

“A dream’s never too big, and in the end, it’s only you,” said Esteban Vilchez. “It’s you who has to decide what you want to be, what you need, what you what to do in life, because it’s you that’s gonna be your spine, your backbone. You need to think, is this gonna make me happy? Is this what I want to do for the rest of my life?”

Wai’anae High School has, roughly, a 30-percent dropout rate. In his junior year, Esteban Vilchez became part of that statistic that dropped-out of Wai’anae High.

“The reason I left public school is to further my education and exceed in what I needed for my courses, and just for everything, so I can get ready for college,” said Esteban. “I really wanted AP Sciences- like AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Physics. I guess that I was skeptical, afraid that I wouldn't get enough information from Wai`anae High School.”

WHS offers a total of five Advanced Placement classes: two AP Literature and Composition, two AP Language and Composition, and one AP Calculus class. WHS Counselor Shane Nakamura said that Wai’anae High does not offer more AP classes because resources are being assigned to teach repeat classes for those that failed that specific class. But for those at WHS that want to be challenged in another way, there are other means.

“There is this program called Running Start. In Running Start, you can earn dual credit, high school and college credit," said Nakamura. "You can challenge yourself a lot. Last school year we started it off, we offered one English 100 class, so that was pretty innovative."

After Esteban left the public school system, he enrolled into Orion High School. Orion is an online schooling program that is accredited by Advanced Education. Orion is also an accepted schooling by Esteban’s goal college, John Hopkins University, which has one of the top education programs that Esteban feels he needs to achieve his goal career.

“At first I wanted to become a teacher, then an actor, and a architect,” said Esteban. “I decided I wanted to be a Biomedical Engineering just the science of it... I would study Biomedical Engineering to help the world, make a change and cure diseases.”

Wai'anae, Hawai'i
October 29th, 2013 - Wai'anae, Hawaii

Can do guys can do! Even though Waianae High School has not had a male cheerleader in three years, sophomore Stephen Kaopuiki decided to change that this year.

Kaopuiki never pictured himself cheering, he was the guy who would make fun of the cheerleaders. He thought cheerleading was so easy he could do it no problem, not knowing how much work it really is.

“I’ve never pictured myself cheering, I thought it was stupid but now I love it. I began to feel more comfortable being around a crowd and people," Kaopuiki said.

Kaopuiki decided to try out for the team.

“What encouraged me to jon was my friend Jazmine a returnee telling me to join," Kaopuiki said.

However after making the team and is experiencing his first year Kaopuiki is noticing that some people do talk about the cheerleaders especially Kaopuiki because he is the only male, he doesn’t care what other people think about him but say but he thinks “they shouldn’t knock it till they try it”.

Not only is Kaopuiki learning what people say about cheerleading, but he’s learning what work cheerleaders put.

Kaopuiki said, “I like stunting and dancing, its fun and I feel proud when I hit a stunt” and so he did.

Kaopuiki says his team is his support because they push and tell me to try new things. To illustrate Kaopuiki motivation to becoming the best he can be is to keep going because “once I hit it I feel proud”.

When being doubted by others one thing that can lift him back up is friends because ‘they help me improve so that I can prove the ones who doubted me wrong”.

Kaopuiki says if you like it and have fun doing it you shouldn’t need to care what others think. In the future he plans on coming back for his Junior year but doesn’t know yet if wants to get scholarships to do college cheerleading.

Stephen plans on showing his school spirit by doing what he loves for the next years to come.