REYNA IWAMOTO
STAFF WRITER
It was “lights out” for Moanalua High School’s Homecoming Week September 17-21. Except not in a good way. Two separate electrical issues interfered with one of the busiest weeks of the school year.
First, a power outage in the gym left the facility without lights and bleachers stuck in the closed position. This forced the Homecoming Assembly to move to the athletic field at the last minute. Second, an electrical issue that rendered one side of the stadium lights inoperable was not repaired on Thursday as scheduled, requiring the Homecoming football game against Damien to relocate to the Radford High School John E. Velasco stadium.
“I regret that the class volleyball game could not go on [in the gym],” Moanalua High School Principal Robin Martin said. “The DOE attempted repairs to the gym's electrical system on [September 21]. This is why the entire campus unexpectedly lost electricity for a while on [that] Friday,” Martin said.
The repairs did not work, however, and the gym and fitness center remained in the dark into the following week.
The stadium light issue worsened after a DOE electrician working on the system was injured. The incident also caused further damage.
Student Activities Coordinator Sherwin Pang was left scrambling the on morning of September 20 to find a way to still hold the Homecoming Assembly.
Although the final round of the volleyball match did not happen, all other homecoming activities carried on as usual, albeit in a slightly different format. Pang expressed his appreciation for the faculty and students’ flexibility.
“Throughout it all, everyone on staff was very cooperative and helpful and together, we all made the best of a few bad situations,” Pang said.
Pang also shared his thoughts on the current condition of the gym and field. “The situation is what it is, so there is no sense complaining about what we cannot do. Rather we need to focus on what we can do and just make adjustments,” Pang said.
In an email interview, Mrs. Martin explained the current situation in the gym. “The electricians believe that they have isolated the problem at the gym and have scheduled to pull new wires on Monday, October 1. If all goes as planned the gym should be up and running on Monday night for the girls volleyball game against Roosevelt. Therefore, as of now, we have not moved or rescheduled any of the gym activities,” Martin said.
As the electricity problem in the gym has yet to be fixed however, the Girls Volleyball team has made adjustments to their practice routines. Head Coach Alan Cabanting explained that the team has continued to hold their practices in the gym, opening the doors to let in enough light to see. “We’re just practicing in the dark,” Cabanting said.
Despite this challenge, the players have all maintained positive outlooks on their training and the rest of the season. Senior Outside Hitter Jeslyn Spencer and senior Libero and Defensive Specialist Jaycie Kodama explained their thoughts on their practice situation. “It's definitely not going to stop us from playing our game,” Spencer said. Kodama expressed a similar optimism in her opinion of the changes in her team’s practice. “At first it was difficult [to not have lights], but we adapted, and now it's okay,” Kodama said.
Cabanting also explained that as of September 28, the location of team’s senior night is up in the air. The team’s senior night will be held on October 3, 2018, however if their game can not be held in the gym, the team will travel back to MoHS from the school they play at and celebrate, possibly in the cafeteria. “The usual senior night events may not be able happen. The slide show, the last spike [over the net], the lei giving- all of that may be affected," Cabanting said.
Regarding the state of the athletic field, Mrs. Martin shared a glimpse of optimism. “The news for the field, though still grim, is a bit more hopeful. It is possible that the parts are more readily accessible than it was first thought and that the damage was not quite as extensive as we thought,” Martin said.
Despite this, the damage done to the electrical system still requires a large amount of repair.
In an email interview, Mrs. Martin explained how the Football team and Marching Band have been working with each other’s schedules so both are able to get some practice in on the field. “The football team and band are working to accommodate each other on the field for practice during daylight hours when possible. In addition we will try to give each of these groups time under the lights by moving one or the other to other available venues who have volunteered their facilities,” Martin said.
The Marching Band practices every Tuesday and Thursday on the athletic field, however due to the lack of power, the directors have to reschedule their practices every day. Senior Ryson Casupang explained that the Marching Band does not know until last minute where they will hold practice. Mrs. Martin also shared that as of late September, plans for the Marching Band’s Menehune Classic on October 20 remain undecided.
“The Menehune Classic, that had to be held at Kapolei last year due to track construction, is one of the events that will need to find another venue. We are currently considering our options for that event, but are grateful that other schools always reach out to help each other when these emergencies arise,” Martin said.
From the Football team, Senior Defensive Tackle Jesse Kaohi explained how the predicament the team is in is similar to last school year when the track was being renovated during the season. “Adapt and overcome. That's what we dealt with last year, so it's nothing new,” Kaohi said.
Fellow senior and Center Chandler Camba expressed the team’s determination despite this setback. “We’re not going to change our preparation,” Camba said
Because of the condition of the stadium lights, Athletic Director Joel Kawachi has been able to make changes to the football schedule. The football game on October 5 against Waipahu High School will be held at the Aloha Stadium and the October 13 game against Nanakuli High School will be held during the day on the MoHS athletic field. The team’s senior night will be held on Saturday, November 13 at 3:00 p.m.