Teens aid in conservation
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KAILUA — More than three dozen Mainland and Hawai'i teens and young adults gave up their family vacations for the chance at some hard labor with shovels and slogging through muddy waters to reshape a bird sanctuary in a Kawainui Marsh canal.
Over the weekend, they dug channels across a small island used by water birds, built a pond there and constructed ramps to make it easier for chicks to climb onto land and escape predators.
Paul Caluscos, a 16-year-old high school student from Houston, said working in the marsh was hard work but satisfying.
"I feel really great about what we did," Caluscos said yesterday. "We widened a hole from about 5 feet wide to about 15 feet wide, and there were two ducks living there so we watched them for a while."
Blisters were an occasional but not disabling problem, he said, and the work had physical benefits as well.
"It was a really good workout," he said. "And it was a fun time, I would say."
The young people take part in the project to experience the culture of Hawai'i away from the typical Waikiki vacation while performing community service.
"I could never take a vacation to Hawai'i and see the things I'm seeing," said Matt O'Hara, 24, a leader with Putney Student Travel, which arranges these trips.
O'Hara's group is spending most of its time with Habitat for Humanity building homes in Kapolei. But they've also killed alien vegetation, rebuilt a wetland lo'i and helped restore a heiau, all in various areas of O'ahu.
The students knew that physical labor would be part of the tour package, and they've responded well, O'Hara said.
"They're not experienced carpenters, but they're all willing to listen and learn," he said. "They went with the attitude that no matter what they're doing, they're helping and making progress."
The East Coast Mainland youths, 14 to 19 years old, have been in the Islands for about two weeks and expect to stay through the end of the month. They're with Putney and World Horizon International.
The local youths belong to the Hawai'i Youth Conservation Corps and range from high school sophomores to college juniors.
Jordan Freeman, 24, with World Horizon, said the students are screened and selected to take the trips, for which they must pay. Most have been on family vacations and camp-outs and are seeking new experiences.
"It sounded like a great opportunity to integrate into a different culture," said Freeman, a group leader. "For me, I definitely think it's an ideal way to travel."
Freeman, who is with eight girls, said they painted a kitchen for HUGS (Help Understanding & Group Support), did some childcare work and will work at a YMCA day camp.
The girls are not used to the hard labor of digging in the mud with a pick and shovel, still "they've been really good and the complaining level is not bad," she said.
At Kawainui Marsh, the students are helping with a project to improve one of several islands in the marsh that were created by the Army Corps of Engineers when it built the flood levee, said Chuck Burrows of 'Ahahui Malama I Ka Lokahi, which is doing the project, paid for by the Kailua Bay Advisory Council.
Students from Stanford University, Kamehameha Schools, Sierra High School Hikers and Christian Home School have participated.
The goal is to make the island easily accessible and attractive to native endangered species, Burrows said.
The students provide manpower and their contribution is welcomed, he said.
'Auli'i George, 20, of the Youth Conservation Corps, said local teens enjoy the hard work because it's more fulfilling and gives them an awareness of their surroundings. Plus, the students meet other people and make strong connections.
"It brings people together, sharing with the Mainlander what Hawai'i is all about: taking care of each other, working together and learning together," George said.
Staff writer Karen Blakeman contributed to this report.
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com. or 234-5266.
