Kapua Medeiros (George Hi'ilani Mills recipient) & Joshua Martins, Brandi Waiwai'ole (Native Hawaiian Ho'okipa recipient) & John Kuewa, Samuel Spurrier (Native Hawaiian Ho'okipa recipient) & Brooke Spurrier
This season, nine new scholarship funds were made available to applicants, including the Native Hawaiian Ho’okipa Scholarship. With support from this new scholarship opportunity, recipients Brandi Waiwai’ole and Samuel Spurrier are pursuing degrees in business and the travel and visitor industry.
“Through your kindness, you have made it possible for full-time workers and moms to better themselves and get the education we need and deserve.”
As a second-year student studying business administration at Heald College, Brandi aspires to focus in the field of hospitality and tourism because “it is my passion -- I enjoy meeting new people and seeing new places. I love to educate and involve our visitors with what Hawai'i and its people have to offer.” Like most students today, she manages to juggle a demanding schedule professionally holding down a full-time job along with school. Brandi is a single parent and cites her daughter as the driving force for going back to school. Enthusiastically, she says “I want to create a living environment for us to grow and strive in.”
Leveraging experience from her years at Radford High, she is a firm believer in community revitalization projects and volunteering with organizations like Habitat for Humanity and the Hawai'i Public Housing Authority. Brandi also makes it a priority to incorporate time to give back and affirms, “taking an hour to help someone else in need can change their life forever and that is the satisfaction that all people should experience.”
“It is a pleasure to express my gratitude for this scholarship and an honor to be a part of Princess Pauahi’s vision and legacy. Most importantly, I am filled with a desire to serve and hope to give back to our Hawaiian community in every way possible.”
Samuel, a Kahuku High graduate, is staying local to study the travel and visitor industry. As a full-time senior at Brigham Young University – Hawai'i, his field of study is hospitality and tourism management. “My educational efforts and hands-on work experience are stepping stones as I anxiously pursue a leadership career in Hawai'i’s visitors industry,” he says. “Ke Ali'i Pauahi Foundation and all those involved in this life-changing organization have set a standard for my endeavors and achievements. I am committed to learn and progress in this industry while constantly integrating the Hawaiian culture into tourism to share and preserve our culture.”
Echoing Brandi’s eagerness to be engaged in a good cause, Samuel shares his steadfast commitment to extend Princess Pauahi’s legacy. On campus, he has coordinated a panel discussion on ethics and volunteered to be project leader for a Kaho'olawe Environmental Sustainability project involving redevelopment of agriculture. “Most importantly, I am filled with a desire to serve and hope to give back to our Hawaiian community in every way possible,” he said.
Why establish an endowed scholarship fund?