On October 15, while the other grade levels were taking the PSAT, the senior class of 2015 celebrated Senior Day with a field trip to Kakaako Waterfront Park and Ala Moana Beach Park.
At HBA, the annual Senior Day consists of a service activity followed by a class bonding activity. This year, the seniors handed out sandwiches to the homeless and picked up trash. Senior Class Council Secretary Asia Sheehab said, “I loved making the sandwiches in the morning. I felt like that itself was a good bonding experience because we were working together to quickly make hundreds of sandwiches in like 15 minutes.”
While handing out sandwiches, seniors Daniel Traylor and Dominique Hart were able to converse with one of the people they met. Traylor said, “It was quite a phenomenal experience actually. We basically talked for two hours, which honestly felt like 30 minutes. It was very fascinating to just sit and listen to this person’s life story.”
Think about how you can leave HBA a better place than when you entered.
After hearing the man’s story and struggles, Traylor and Hart shared some encouragement from the book of Proverbs in the Bible. Traylor continued, “He was not even slightly ignorant or stubborn in what he knows and believes. I admire his will power to be a better person. I gave him my Bible that day because he was so interested about hearing about Proverbs. It was the first time I ever witnessed to someone, and it was my first time actually going out to talk to people in that situation, and it was actually really fun.”
Once all the sandwiches were given out and the trash was picked, senior class advisor Terence Li gathered the class for a short debrief. “We definitely came here, and we’re leaving it a better place. And I think as you guys leave your senior year, start thinking about your legacy and how the underclassmen remember you. Think about how you can leave HBA a better place than when you entered.”
The seniors at Kakaako Waterfront Park then walked to Ala Moana Beach Park to meet with the rest of the seniors. There, they spent the rest of the day relaxing at the beach and playing games at the park. Sheehab commented, “The whole day was really nice just to spend it together, regardless if we were serving others or hanging out.”
Photographs by Dylan-John Loo (’15)
