LIHU‘E — There was none of the hoopla or pomp of a pageant, Tuesday. And in that silence save for the excitement of Tina Albao, the Boys &Girls of Hawai‘i Kaua‘i coordinator, Tavia Rapozo became the Boys &Girls of Hawai‘i Youth of the Year.
“She won!” Albao exclaimed in a text message. “She is the Youth of the Year! Now, she’s on her way to Hanapepe.”
The competition between the finalists from Maui, the Big Island, and the Military took place through Zoom and using video teleconferencing capabilities. Rapozo represented the winner of the competition between Kaua‘i and O‘ahu.
“Originally, she was going to do it from her home,” Albao said. “But there were problems — Zoom didn’t work that well and she was all pixelated. But Asaka Herman was working so we moved everything to the teen center at the Boys &Girls Club, Lihu‘e Clubhouse.”
Rapozo said working from the teen center was a different experience.
“Not being able to see the judges in person felt new,” she said in a text while getting to Hanapepe. “It was a bit of an obstacle to tackle when trying to find the best way to interact with the judges over the Zoom meeting. I did the best that I could and presented myself and personality the way I would if the event were in-person.”
Albao said she was going to call to find out what comes with the Youth of the Year honor.
“It’s all virtual,” Albao said. “I know she’s going to the regional competition, but everything is still up in the air. That’s probably going to be virtual, too so I need to find out when everything is going to take place.”
The virtual air presented its set of obstacles for Rapozo to hurdle.
“Learning to speak with my emotions through the screen was a different obstacle,” Rapozo said. “The hardest question I was asked today was a follow up question about my grandfather. I found myself crying while delivering my answer, but I believe that it showed that I am human and that I care about my family and community.”
Albao said the Boys &Girls Club on the island are using distance learning and televideo capabilities to tend to their memberships at the West Kaua‘i, Lihu‘e, and Kapa‘a clubhouses.
The programs offer live video of arts and crafts, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math programs, music, and hip-hop dancing where club members are able to follow from home.
“Instagram live can join in several spice points to create interaction,” Albao said. “That is one of the reasons we decided to use it. The first one started March 23 and each site logged in from their devices for the live program that runs for 90 minutes. Parents were emailed fliers with the links to let them know they will be interacting with club members and when they need to log on.”
