In This Together: Konawaena High School's PAAC Club Year in Review
Mara Baguso spent three hours transferring cats from surgery to recovery cages. She was also, in that same afternoon, meeting working veterinarians for the first time — watching them work, talking to them, imagining her own future. "As someone who wants to be a vet when they grow up," she wrote, "I had the opportunity to meet and talk with a few vets/vet techs and see them work in person."
That's what a GAP project can be when it's chosen well: community service and personal discovery at the same time.
Rebuilt from the Ground Up
Konawaena High School's PAAC Club came into this year with a near-full roster turnover — almost all of their seniors graduated at the end of last year, leaving the club to rebuild. They recruited 12 new members, bringing the club to 15, and met every Tuesday (roughly three times a month) in person until their school shut down, then moved online. President Alyssa Tagawa and officer Lyka Lomongo led the club through what was, essentially, a relaunch — and by the end of the year, they had more WorldQuest teams than ever before.
Three GAPs, Three Kinds of Giving
Aloha Animal Oasis brought members into a cat spay and neuter clinic, where they spent three hours post-surgery monitoring recovering cats, transferring them to cages, and making sure they were okay. The SDG connection is SDG 15: Life on Land — controlling the stray cat population protects Hawaiʻi's native bird species. For Mara, it was also a window into a possible future. "It is such a privilege to be a part of achieving it."
Konawaena Wildcat Korner Garage Sale took a different form: free clothing, dry food, toys, and books, set up for community members to take. Olive Langford moved racks of clothing and folded extras. When people started arriving and choosing what they needed, something shifted. "I really felt a sense of achievement and that I was helping the community." The project connected to SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production. Olive's takeaway for next time: get the word out earlier, bring in more people.
CEPF — Civic Engagement & Policy Forum was a joint event with Kealakehe High School, built around diplomacy simulation and debate. For Lyka Lomongo, it was a first. "It was my first time trying something like this, making me come out of my shell. Through discussions, debates, and teamwork, I learned about the importance of critical thinking and the ability to understand global issues from multiple perspectives. It showed me that diplomacy is not just about speaking, but also patience, respect, and collaboration."
PAAC Programs
LEAD Summit: Ahnalise came back with a list: new people, new things, and — for the first time — archery. "I did archery for the first time and loved it." Beyond that, she learned to make ribbon lei, identified her leadership style, and left with a clearer sense of how to use it.
Global Vision Summit: Lyka attended GVS and found that the patience she practiced at CEPF continued to develop there. "I definitely had a lot of fun and my patients definitely got better after that day." She's talking about patience, spelled with a small, honest typo that somehow makes the reflection more real.
Academic WorldQuest: President Alyssa has competed every year since she was a freshman. This year, Konawaena fielded their most teams ever. They didn't win — but Alyssa is already thinking about next year, when almost everyone in the club will have competed before. "I feel like since almost everyone in the club has done it by now, we have a better shot at going to nationals."
What This Club Is
Member Satina Caraballo's overall reflection is the kind of thing that makes a year-end report worth reading:
"What I love about PAAC is all the things they go to help the community, and fundraisers to help fellow members to go places. Being in this club is amazing to me and I love all the people in the community. I will cherish and support everyone in this club because we are in this together... I am proud to call myself a PAAC member."
A club that rebuilt its entire membership this year and still managed three GAPs, three PAAC programs, and a president who has shown up every year since freshman year — that's not a club that needs much. It's a club that knows what it is.
Alyssa wants to go to nationals. With this crew, she might get there.
Konawaena High School PAAC Club, led by President Alyssa Tagawa, completed three GAP projects (Aloha Animal Oasis, Wildcat Korner Garage Sale, and CEPF with Kealakehe High School) and attended LEAD Summit, Global Vision Summit, and Academic WorldQuest during the 2025–2026 school year.
