Students of Kahakai Elementary School gearing up to return to the classroom on Aug. 3 will have something extra to smile about.
Boxes and boxes of needed school supplies were donated — and just in time — as NextHome Paradise Realty and LavaKids brought “Luke Day” to Kahakai Elementary last Wednesday.
Luke is NextHome’s beloved orange French bulldog, symbiotic leader and mascot, who designates his June 15 birthday as a special “Luke Day” — an opportunity for community outreach where the focus shifts solely to giving back.
“The whole idea and inspiration for Luke Day is to do a community give back,” said Mike Drutar, owner and principal broker for NextHome Paradise Realty. “I checked with all the agents as to what they thought would be a good give-back to the community and overwhelmingly, as soon as they heard the idea of doing something for the elementary schools and getting supplies for the kids at Kahakai, everyone was pretty motivated. So, it was a pretty easy decision to make Kahakai our Luke Day beneficiary.”
For Lavaman Triathlon founder and race director Gerry Rott, partnering with NextHome on Luke Day was a no-brainer, as this is what her youth program through LavaKids is all about — supporting vulnerable school-aged children by getting them the supplies they need to be successful in the classroom.
“Our motto for LavaKids is, Kulia I Ka Nuu, which means, Strive to Reach the Highest,” said Rott, who is also a real estate agent with NextHome. “And that’s what we want our children to do — to strive to do their best, strive to take control of their own health, and be responsible for their lifestyle. LavaKids always supports any programs for the betterment of the youth.”
Basic school supplies are always in demand, but even more so now coming from a year devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hawaii schools were closed to in-person learning for most of the 2020-21 school year with students staying home for online distance learning. The pandemic also led to an immediate shutdown of most businesses, which in turn, magnified financial instability for many vulnerable families with school-aged children.
Kahakai Elementary School is designated as a Title I school — a school that receives federal funds to support the academic achievement if at least 40% of the student population comes from families who meet low-income criteria. According to the Hawaii State Department of Education website for the 2020-21 school year, 58.22% of the student population at Kahakai meet the eligibility criteria.
The amplified need for additional support is now, and with NextHome Paradise Realty and LavaKids donating what Drutar calls, “evergreen school supply items,” at-need students will be in for a treat at the start of the school year.
“We have highlighters, erasers, glue sticks, composition books, pencils, crayons, folders, notebooks, and school supply kits — it’s kind of those evergreen items, things students will always need, things we know will get used for sure,” Drutar said of the donation. “We just wanted to make sure we covered as many grade levels as possible.
“The thing for me is, while we are all trying to get back to normal, unfortunately for a lot of kids normal is not having school supplies. I know a lot of parents are doing the best they can but they have to make tough choices. I think we have a chance as a community to come in and fill in the gaps and that’s what I really like about our team coming together to do this.”
For Kahakai principal Kori Takaki, lessening the burden for as many students as possible is always the goal.
“We have students that we know always need help and then maybe we have students we wouldn’t recognize need help,” Takaki said. “And after a pandemic like this, I think there is a lot of those families that maybe look okay on the outside but maybe need some help. Just remembering from being a family of three kids, going school shopping was a huge burden. Money that parents normally don’t have to spend all at once — it’s kind of like Christmas — but not fun.
“So, a donation like this just really helps us to lessen the burden. And with no extra school funds to buy school supplies for kids, we need community partners like this that will give us their love, help and support. So, we are just really appreciative that they came out and we didn’t have to ask. And that’s the best kind of donation when you don’t need to ask.”
Takaki recently took the helm as principal in June and will be entering her 26th year with the Department of Education. Her lengthy work experience includes positions as a teacher, vice principal, principal, and complex academic officer. Takaki was also a student at Kahakai back in the 80s and feels she has come full circle returning to her elementary school.
“I am brand new stepping in as the principal but not new to this school,” Takaki said. “Been here as a teacher and a student back in the 80’s, so very happy to be back and very proud of this school and everybody in it. I’m just really looking forward to giving kids the best year in the most normal way as possible while still keeping everybody safe.”