HAWAII, OKINAWA STUDENTS SHARE “UCHINANCHU ALOHA”
by Karleen C. Chinen (Bito Doshi Kai)

“Aloha! We had a wonderful time. We had a chance to see many things. Wherever we went, the people of Hawaii welcomed us. We made many friends. We are now brothers and sisters in heart. We will see each other again someday.”

It was a perfectly delivered speech by Okinawa high school student Yuko Shiroma. But you had to have been at the March 16 Aloha Party at the Hawaii Okinawa Center to have known that Yuko, whom the students had selected to speak on behalf of them, had choked back tears from the moment she began speaking. The next morning, she, along with 26 other high school students, would board a plane that would take them home to Okinawa, ending a journey that had broadened their view of the world in a way that a classroom never could.

Last month for the 11th consecutive year, families from throughout the island of Oahu opened their homes — and their hearts — to 27 Okinawan high school students in a program co-sponsored by the Hawaii and Okinawa departments of education in partnership with the Hawaii State Legislature and the HUOA. The Hawaii students — many of whom hosted Okinawan students — will visit Okinawa for two weeks in June, living with host families with high school-age children.

The exchange program is an opportunity for the students to learn about the world’s diverse cultures by experiencing them. It also helps foster global awareness and a sense of internationalism in both the Hawaii and Okinawa students.

“I would like to offer respect, gratitude and congratulations to all those who invested themselves . . . who made this student exchange rewarding for both sides — and most especially to the families,” said State Schools Superintendent Paul LeMahieu. “I can only imagine how rewarding it has been. You have our thanks.” LeMahieu also thanked student exchange coordinator and Iliahi Elementary School principal Jane Serikaku for HUOA’s participation in the program.

“This is a meaningful exchange because Okinawa and Hawaii have deep historical ties,” said Hitoshi “Chip” Miyazato of the Okinawa Prefectural Department of Education. “Promoting international exchange is important to us all,” he said, adding that Okinawa hopes to expand the exchange program. Miyazato said he also hopes the students will contribute to society by becoming the leaders of a peaceful world.

In his brief comments, HUOA President Jimmy Iha noted that the Hawaii Okinawa Center was built to honor the Okinawan Issei who began immigrating to Hawaii in 1900. “If they were here today, they would be so pleased to learn that we have students from Okinawa coming here to learn American culture and education with students who comprise all of the ethnic groups we have in Hawaii.”

As Superintendent LeMahieu observed the students on their last night together, he knew how bittersweet their parting would be the next morning. “The best way to deal with bittersweet moments is to make promises to stay in touch with each other,” he told the students. Technology has made contact almost instantaneous, he said. But he underscored the importance and value of in-person meetings and experiences. “It is more important that we meet face-to-face before we meet on the web,” he said.

Seventeen-year-old Hana Esekia hosted Hokubu Technical High School student Yukie Shirakura, also 17. Hana loved the experience. “It was great! Awesome!” she said. The Nanakuli High School student, who takes Japanese language in school, said she had wanted to experience hosting a student from another country. “I wanted to see how their culture and language is different from ours,” she said. Although Yuki spoke very little English, she was always willing to join the Esekia family in whatever they did or ate. When asked what she enjoyed eating most in Hawaii, she quickly replied: “pizza!”

Hana’s parents, Alapati and Poly Esekia, knew well the trials and tribulations of settling in a new land, for both were once newcomers to Hawaii: Alapati, who works at the Navy-Marine Golf Course, is from Western Samoa; his wife Poly, a secretary for a construction company, came to Hawaii from American Samoa.

So when Hana asked her parents if she could host an Okinawan student in their home, they quickly replied: “Yes!”

“It was a really good experience for Hana,” said Poly. “My heart goes out to students from a foreign country.” She and her husband were especially pleased at the prospect of hosting a foreign student, whose challenge of adjusting to a new environment is even tougher than for an English-speaking student.

Still, Yuki was treated like one of the family. The homestay program gave her an opportunity to experience Hawaii’s common practice of extended ‘ohana.

After attending classes and afterschool activities with Hana for about a week, Yuki and the other Okinawa students spent a few days on the Big Island, where they were hosted by members of Hilo’s Hui Okinawa. Poly Esekia recalled how much Hana missed her new friend from Okinawa when she was away in Hilo.

The Aloha Party was especially hard for Yuki, who wiped tears from her eyes as the evening came closer to ending. The next morning, she would be saying good-bye to her Hawaii family.

But the two teens may be reunited in Okinawa in June. Hana is keeping her fingers crossed that she will be selected for the Hawaii-to-Okinawa part of the exchange. Having hosted an Okinawan student gives her the edge over other student applicants who did not host a student.

Two weeks earlier, the students had been total strangers — the language barrier that separated them as vast as the Pacific Ocean. But these high schoolers — from Hawaii and Okinawa — had stepped outside their comfort zones and what had flourished in the short span of 14 days was a beautiful friendship that would always occupy a special place in their hearts.