Several Saint Louis School students had the opportunity to spend the day with kupuna at the Hawaii Kai Retirement Homes.
Senior Counselor Cheryl-Lyn Funk explains her reason for visiting the Hawaii Kai Retirement Homes, “First, the goal is to accomplish community service requirement,” explains Funk. “Second, it is to create compassion for our kupuna in the community; and third, it is to allow exposure for the school and to inform residents about Saint Louis School.”
Visiting the Hawaii Kai Retirement Homes is a tremendous opportunity for the students at Saint Louis School. “It is a great opportunity for exposure for the school and since social-emotional learning is supported at STL, it creates compassion and empathy for others,” adds Funk.
Funk strongly believes that the Saint Louis students can, “acquire service skills (working in the dining room). They were also able to hone their “gentlemen” skills by learning how to present themselves in a more formal opportunity.”
Seniors who attended the event shared their experience of visiting the Hawaii Kai Retirement Home. “It was definitely different from my other community service because the other community service I was doing was mostly like working,” said Brennan Molina. “This one was more like talking story with them and then seeing things from their perspective.”
Molina is convinced that working with our kupuna is a positive experience for students. “It’s good for society because it allows us to take care of the elderly. It allows us to take care of the people who came before us and kind of paved the way for us.” As the students spent time with them, Molina realized that he and his classmates were also benefiting from the experience. “The best advice I got from over there was don’t be afraid to leave Hawaii. The guy said, ‘Hawaii is always going to be here, so might as well go see the whole world before you settle down in one place.”
As many of the students helped out at the retirement home, it provided a better understanding of what our kupuna experience in this senior living community. Senior Rustin Young attended the event and had a wonderful experience spending time with the residents.“It was very insightful because I originally expected to serve them their food and be done,” shares Young. “But while I was there, I was able to see that the seniors aren’t like you would normally think, frail and weak. They were full of energy and loved to talk to me and the other students.”
Young encourages other students to attend the next visit to the Hawaii Kai Retirement Homes, “These seniors that live at the retirement homes would love to see new faces,” explains Young. The simple act of taking time out of the day can brighten their day when someone comes and visits them. It is truly a heart-filling experience.”
