Program News - August 2011

Sherri Patrick, Program Director 

Our new adult and youth leadership classes of 2012 are off and running and both groups have already completed Orientation!  Mahalo to Helen Cox (KCC) and Sheryl Grady (KIUC) for opening their doors to provide us with comfortable and convenient meeting places!

Our Adult Orientation was an all day affair in KIUC’s corporate office conference room.  It started off with a presentation from the A&B Foundation to Leadership Kaua’i for a $2,500 grant for the year!  Mahalo to Board Members, previous Executive Directors and Alumni - Mark Hubbard, Mason Chock, Brenda Jose, Sheryl Grady, Kaulana Finn, Corey Nakamura and Tom Clements - for coming by to show their support for this new class of leaders and to participate in our 3-minute introduction exercise!

A large portion of the day was devoted to identifying and analyzing Meyers-Briggs Personality Type Indicators (MBTI) for each participant.  MAHALO nui to Sheryl Grady for facilitating this portion of our program year after year!  The class is loaded with “ENFP” and “ISTP” but ISTJ, ISFJ, INFP, INTP, ESFP, ENTP, ENFJ and ENTJ’s add their balance to the mix!

Each class member was assigned a “Master Mind Partner” to provide support to each other in accomplishing program and personal goals.  Their first assignment is to develop, script and record a series of 60 second Public Service Announcements (PSAs) for radio.  Mahalo to Stacy Wong, Trustee of the Knudsen Trust for providing us with a great practical exercise to grow our participants’ philanthropic attitudes!

Pi’ina Hoku and their parents joined us at the Hawaiian Studies Hale on the KCC Campus for a productive afternoon on August 12th.  We have representation from Kaua’i High School, Kapa’a High School, Island School, Kanuikapono Charter School, a Home-Schooled student, and new to our program this year are participants from Kawaikini Charter School and Kaua’i Christian Academy!  Mahalo to Bill Arakaki and each school’s administration for providing us with such quality youth leaders!

The weekend of August 19th through the 21st, we took this eager Pi’ina Hoku class up to the CCC Camp for a Koke’e Retreat.  Mahalo to Marsha Erickson and the Hui o Laka Staff for their wonderful hospitality and to our drivers and chaperones – Lilane Corpuz, Char Ravelo, Nolan Rapozo and Thomas Nizo!  Our goal was to build camaraderie between the students and to introduce them to the 5 Leadership Practices.  They worked hard and played hard!  They identified 2 goals for the intergenerational service project days we have scheduled on October 15th and January 14th.  The first goal is to introduce sports and fitness to keiki 4 to 12 years old and the second is to uplift and honor kupuna in our community.  They are sure to accomplish great things as declared in their class Mission Statement, an acronym for ACHIEVE…Always Carry Heart In Each Virtue Everyday!

Please be sure to watch for wonderful results from both groups this year - they are off to a great start!