By Lee Cataluna
Advertiser Columnist

Last Saturday morning, Adam Turin and his parents, Deb and Mike, headed out early for the History Day Competition at UH-Manoa. Adam, a sophomore at Kahuku High, was hoping to qualify again for the national History Day competition. Last year, he placed first in the nation in the individual performance category.

"I believe it was 7:02, because I remember looking down at the clock because we were trying to get there on time," Adam said.

When he looked up, he saw an oncoming car veer into their lane and head straight for the family's Ford Escort.

After a head-on car crash, Adam Turin, 16, of Kahuku still managed to win second place at the History Day contest. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

The accident happened on Kamehameha Highway in Kahalu'u. An off-duty firefighter saw what happened and stopped to help. Adam tried to get to his mom, but he couldn't open her door. Adam had been in the passenger seat. His father, who had quadruple bypass surgery two months ago after a heart attack, had been riding in the back seat, surrounded by Adam's props and set pieces for his speech.

"When the ambulance came over, they got me on the gurney, loaded me in the ambulance, got my dad in the ambulance and then they finally got my mom out of the car. They had to pry her seat off because it was jammed forward and she was jammed into the front.

"So they loaded all three of us into one ambulance. Me and my dad were just lying there quiet.

And then they put my mom in, and she was just screaming because she shattered, like, every bone in her legs. I was saying, 'It's OK, Mom.' And I took her hand, and I thought she had a pair of gloves on because her hand felt so rubbery and her hands were just cold. And that got me worried. Every little bump in the road hurt her legs all the way to Castle."

Through it all, Adam's mom kept insisting that he had to go to History Day.

"I told her I was fine. And I was just trying to keep her calm, and she told me, 'Adam, I know you're going to do a great job. Knock 'em dead.' And I said, 'I will, Mom. Don't worry.' "

Another Kahuku parent, Andrea Gale, also on her way to the event, stopped when her daughter said, "That's Adam!"

At Deb Turin's urging, Gale put all of Adam's props, costumes and backdrops in her car in case he made it to History Day. No one thought he would.

Kahuku teacher Poppy Vaioleti followed the ambulance to Castle Medical Center to be with the family. Adam was X-rayed and examined and told he was OK but would be very bruised and sore for a while. As soon as he was released, he asked Vaioleti to drive him to the competition.

"I was thinking that if even they have to wheel me in there, I am going to give this speech about my history project."

On the way to UH, Adam got a call from the hospital. His mom was going into surgery.

"I was told that she had broken her legs and fractured her pelvis and that they were taking her into surgery. That's all I knew."

His dad had cuts to his head and hand that needed stitches, and there were concerns about his recent bypass surgery.

Many of the Kahuku contingent competing in History Day were caught in traffic behind the accident. When his classmates found out it was Adam and his family, they were very upset.

"They're all friends," said Kahuku teacher Lorey Ishihara. "We practice together every day after school. So they were all worried about him and shocked because they saw the accident scene."

The Kahuku team members assembled Adam's backdrops and props just in case he showed up.

He did.

The backdrops he had painted with scenes of New York had blood on them. The Kahuku students helped to arrange Adam's laminated posters to hide the stains. A wooden box he used to illustrate a ballot box had been broken, but he used it anyway. His papers were covered in blood, probably his father's, so his teacher thought it best he not see those. Even his costume had blood on it.

"Mrs. Gale washed it off," Ishihara said. "She took his vest and washed it, and it dried by the time he got there. It was just a little damp. But he put it on and he just performed like a performer. I mean, it was the true meaning of 'the show must go on.' "

Adam couldn't do all of the moves that he practiced because he was so sore, but he did what he could to perform the presentation he had been working on for nine months: "The Irish Gangs of New York," which describes, according to his teacher, "how they encountered resistance as an immigrant group and they rose to greatness."

The Turin family has something of a history with History Day. Adam's sister competed three years ago. His brother went to the national competition three times. Adam went last year. Mom and Dad accompanied each of their kids to the event. "Yeah, we're like the History Day family," Adam said. "It's good fun."

But this time, it was different.

"I'm usually nervous when I perform this speech," Adam said. "I'm always shaky when I do it. But this time, I was just thinking about my mom and dad the whole time, so I didn't have time to be nervous. And I just ran through it, and people said it was wonderful, it was flawless."

He won second place in the Senior Performance division and the opportunity to go to the national competition this summer.

Deb Turin got out of surgery at 11 that night. Adam got to talk to her around 1 in the morning. He told her he was going to nationals.

"She started crying and talking about how she was proud of me," he said.

Adam is staying with family friends while Mom recovers at Queen's. He hopes his father will be released from Castle soon. Adam is in school, though he's still bruised and sore. He's looking forward to the national competition, when he can do his speech the way he practiced, including the moves that are still too painful to make.

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.