WAIMEA – Christmas begins with “C.” So does “collaboration.” Through the efforts of Waimea High School students under teacher Billy DeCosta, his assistants, and various county agencies, Christmas came a little early yesterday. DeCosta, a woodworking and carpentry academy instructor,
WAIMEA – Christmas begins with “C.”
So does “collaboration.”
Through the efforts of Waimea High School students under teacher Billy DeCosta, his assistants, and various county agencies, Christmas came a little early yesterday.
DeCosta, a woodworking and carpentry academy instructor, said the students in the classes completed seven of the 10 picnic tables it set out to do.
But beyond putting together pieces of wood, DeCosta arranged with Monica Adams-Hansen and June Akuna, art teachers at Waimea High School, to have the art students create floral centerpieces for each of the tables.
Working through Bernard Carvalho of the county’s Office of Community Assistance, a county Public Works crew waited for instruction for the distribution of the completed tables.
“Four are going to the Hofgaard Park in Waimea just in time for the parade Saturday night,” Theresa Koki, the county’s anti-drug coordinator, said. “Two are going to The Kids Club at Pa’anau in Koloa, and the final one is going to the courtyard at the Mo’ikea Building.”
Each of the tables had “County of Kaua’i” inscribed on the center plank, Ron Badua, one of DeCosta’s “assistants” representing the carpentry academy of Kaua’i Community College, said the wording had to be routed into the wood as a deterrent to theft and pilferage.
Artwork from Reyna Teter and Marah Silva adorned each of the routed sections. These Menehune artists got help from fellow students Mariah Teter and Dante Martin.
The bulk of the work was done through the collaborative efforts of 104 Waimea students enrolled in the Building and Construction Technology/Wood Shop program, DeCosta said.
Additionally, working in the inimitable DeCosta style that Carvalho described as “throwing the labels out the door,” Waimea special education students had their hands in the project by sanding and painting the tables.
DeCosta took the time to acknowledge the Waimea teachers Kim Frasco and Nalani Shigematsu who work with the students. He also noted the efforts of his “assistants,” Badua, Julian Lacro whom DeCosta said is teaching him as well, and Jeadene Kajiwara.
“This is truly an awesome feat,” Carvalho told the students who watched the tables get loaded up Wednesday morning. “When the aunties, grandmas, uncles and grandpas sit at these tables, they’re going to appreciate your hard work. What you have done is a great example of how you can give back to the community.”
Koki, who had earlier dropped off a shipment of “Wising Up” books to teacher Liko Pereira’s Transitions to High School class, said the tables earmarked for Pa’anau were like Christmas presents to the students in The Kids Club, there.
“We used to sit on the ground, before,” one elated student from The Kids Club said, clutching a wrapped jar.
Koki added that Suzanne Kashiwaeda, a social worker from Koloa School, even bought a tarp with her own funds to help the students in the program.
Kashiwaeda, who oversees The Kids Club program, said the afterschool program was designed to help students do their homework while waiting for parents to return home from work.
“We have students from Pa’anau, a county-run housing facility, and Kawailehua, a state-run housing project, but they bring their friends and we don’t turn anyone away,” Kashiwaeda, who describes herself as “Da Biggest Aunty,” said.
She supervises the program with help from Cindy Tin, whom Kashiwaeda describes as “the best volunteer ever.”
On any given day, student attendance in The Kids Club can range from as few as five students to as many as 20 or more, Kashiwaeda said. Attendance is determined by how many students decide they want to do ukulele classes which are offered on Wednesday afternoons.
The Kids Club was started by funding from the county’s anti-drug office under the “Healing Our Island” grant program.
“It offers students something to do after school in a supervised environment until the parents come home,” Koki said.
Overwhelmed by the two picnic tables that greeted them, the students did not forget the special jars of baked goods and cookies they made for the Menehune students. Nor did they forget the special cards of appreciation they made out of special paper they created using recycled paper.
These represent some of the efforts achieved by The Kids Club students, Kashiwaeda said.
“Normally, the routine is homework first. Then, it’s snacks, games and sometimes, crafts,” she said. “What surprised me is how they don’t want to end the homework portion until everyone is done.”
The Waimea High School students who fashioned the tables for appreciative benefactors could not be present when the tables were delivered, but DeCosta said it was alright.
“We had our own luncheon, yesterday. Ron, Lacro and myself cooked up a bunch of kalua pig and other food to feed 104 students,” DeCosta said. “This was to celebrate what they accomplished.”
