The Best Things in Life are Free
There are some things on which you just can’t put a price, as one day of free-for-all play for kids, teens and families at the State Capitol proves
By .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
E-mail this story | Print this page | Archive | RSS
|
There are some things on which you just can’t put a price, as one day of free-for-all play for kids, teens and families at the State Capitol proves
Seems like children and teens today are always plugged into something - from iPods to Facebook, cell phones and PSPs, there is an electronic device to carry young peoples’ attention 24/7.
And don’t even get me started with Twitter.
But this Sunday, it’s time to unplug and tune into real life at the 16th annual Children & Youth Day, when the grounds of the State Capitol, Department of Health, Frank F. Fasi Civic Center, Hawaii State Library, Iolani Palace, Kalanimoku Building, Kamehameha V Judiciary History Center, Washington Place and Punchbowl Street will be shut down and turned into the biggest playground you’ve ever seen.
Turns out an actual law was established in 1994 to celebrate and honor our keiki through the festivities surrounding Children & Youth Day on every first Sunday of October. According to state Sen. Susie Chun Oakland, the idea for this sort of community event came about during the Hawaii State Legislature’s Keiki Caucus 15 years ago.
“Oftentimes we look at the very negative things about what’s happening with young people, but the vast majority of our youths are healthy, happy, very productive people,” says Chun Oakland, who, along with Keiki Caucus co-convener former Rep. Dennis Arakaki, listened to feedback from more than 700 children and youth advocate groups at the monthly meetings.
“We wanted a celebration that could really highlight that. We wanted to make sure we highlighted the better things, the positive things, of young people.”
The initial plan was to have a week set aside each year focused on all the contributions children and youths make to our state. But they quickly learned seven days just isn’t enough time to pay proper homage to all the good deeds and stories coming out of our schools and community centers. So in 1997 another law was passed dedicating the entire month of October to young people.
You heard it right (and can Twitter this to your friends): Thursday begins Children & Youth Month in Hawaii!
“Every day I think is a celebration, but at least we want to set aside a time to recognize all that is special about our keiki,” Chun Oakland says as a smile spreads over her face.
Planning for each Children & Youth Day goes on just about every day as well. A rag-tag group of volunteers from various occupations take time out of their schedules to donate time, resources and whatever else they can to ensure each year’s event is bigger and better than the one before.
“I think because there’s a lot of care for our children and teenagers, it’s more a friendship that develops. People just want to do something nice for our youths,” says Chun Oakland. “They donate their time, give from their hearts. It’s just a really good feeling.”
“This (the Capitol) is their home,” adds volunteer chair Myrna Murdoch. “This is their place to play, work, get things done.”
|
Seems kids are getting the message that government can be fun: The inaugural Children & Youth Day had an attendance count of about 200; last year saw more than 37,000 people running, playing and learning all along the state grounds.
“It’s neat to see whole families come down,” Chun Oakland says of the excitement she still feels toward the day. “And there’s so much to learn. There are so many things happening in the community that support our families, so it’s good to learn about everything.”
There’s certainly no shortage of things to do this weekend. Free activities you can thank this group for include train rides; inflatable bouncers; Yu-Gi-Oh and Aloha Milk Caps Slam-O-Rama tournaments; martial arts demos; cow milking; hands-on cultural arts demos; guided tours of historical buildings and landmarks; a media lounge; live musical entertainment from Royal Hawaiian Band, Honolulu Boy Choir, Keiki Steps, Jordan Segundo, hip-hop dance crews and high school groups; obstacle courses and so much more, it can’t all fit in this article.
New to this year’s event is an exhibit from NASA in the Capitol’s chamber, with astronauts John Harrington and Brian Duffy flying in for a once-in-a-lifetime talk-story opportunity.
Popular attractions making a comeback are the Green Zone, to promote the importance of recycling, and the Teen Zone, catering specifically to secondary and high school students.
“The reason we focus in on teens is because I feel a lot of kids are just drifting or hearing the wrong message, they don’t know what life’s about,” explains Dennis Young, one of the volunteer chairmen behind Teen Zone. “What we wanted to do was give kids the chance to get grounded, to find in essence their purpose for life or how they can improve their lives. It just keeps growing and growing, so apparently it resonates with a lot of people.”
There’s so much going on for teens they had to dedicate an entire lawn just to fit everything. Outside of the Kalanimoku Building you’ll find a fashion show, urban art show, bungee jump, flight simulator, Samalhi Sky Dancers, obstacle courses, mountain climb, exhibitions and “nightclub” PG-13, which shows adolescents the serious dangers of drugs, sex and alcohol in a humorous yet relatable light. There’s also a Money Zone, where financial experts will be on-hand to teach teens money matters now, before they incur debt.
“Financial literacy’s big right now because lots of people are struggling,” Young says. “I attend financial seminars and got guys, like, 50 years old going, ‘Why didn’t teach me this in high school?’”
Another lesson the planners of Children & Youth Day hope to pass on is that of community service. Funding such a grand endeavor can get pricey, but luckily a good portion of money expenses are donated in kind. But Chun Oakland admits they are always looking for donations to keep Children & Youth Day going strong. Checks may be made payable to Good Beginnings Alliance and mailed to 33 S. King, No. 200, Honolulu, HI, 96813.
“Part of this whole event is not just giving to the children, but actually having them learn skills and gain knowledge that will help them be better individuals, be able to give back to their communities and opportunities for youth themselves to be a part of all of this,” says Chun Oakland.
“Our motto this year is ‘The Best Things In Life Are Free,’” Young adds. “We chose that motto to bring people back to the realization that the values money can’t buy - family, love, friendship - are really, when you think about it, the best.”
Rediscover the better things in life at Hawaii’s 2009 Children & Youth Day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 4. Sponsored in part by McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii, Hawaii Children’s Trust Fund and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the event is planned to have more than 250 exhibitors and community organizations offering interactive, educational and fun activities for the whole family. Free parking will be available at all surrounding state and city parking lots. (Punchbowl will be closed to street traffic between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.)
For more information, call 586-6130.
Page 1 of 1 pages for this story
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS
Most Recent Comment(s):
