Nohealani Ledesma
Nohealani Ledesma is finishing out her last year of college. She is currently attending the University of Portland, studying nursing with a focus on exercise science.
Nohea recounts the lessons, relationships, and sense of purpose she’s discovered through her journey with Hawaiian Canoe Club…
Aloha, ʻO Nohealani Ledesma koʻu inoa. As said last year, I am honored to be able to apply to the Lake ʻOhana Scholarship for the third year in a row, and sadly the last time. I soon embark on a journey that every kid dreams and hopes for, but it is a scary reality. I graduate college with a Bachelors in Nursing and a Minor in Exercise Science in May of 2025. Although I am very excited about earning my degree and being able to start my career as a nurse, I am also very scared to be thrown into this big real world. Recently, I have been thinking really long and hard about my expectations when I graduate such as where I want to work, paying rent by myself (not with four other girls), social life, etc. The main thing that comes to mind however is my attachment to Maui.
I always get asked, “Are you coming home to work after college?”, and my answer is always “eventually”. It is very difficult for me to think that I won’t be able to come home at least for christmas break and summer break. My dream is to be able to come home, help my parents, and serve my community as a nurse, but it unfortunately seems impossible to do so right now out of college. I have been telling myself that it is okay to stay on the mainland and gain exposure to things and specialties that I know I could never experience in Hawai’i, especially Maui. I truly think that I would not be able to have the confidence to step outside of my comfort zone if it wasn’t for Hawaiian Canoe Club. I have learned so many life lessons growing up through the Kamali’i program and transitioning into paddling with the adults. I was not only taught about respecting others, but also how to grow social relationships, and to find the importance in every little thing. The Kamali’i program is a place that I would love to bring my keiki to one day, as long term, I do plan to come home and serve our community in any way needed.
At first, I had trouble thinking about what to write for the essay this year as I did’t want to write something similar to last year. I figured that since I had been thinking so much about graduating college recently, it would be a perfect time to reflect and thank the organization that has helped raise me and get me to where I am today. I find many teenagers on island and in the state of Hawai’i feel that leaving home is too scary and the mainland is all negative. If I could say one thing to them, it would be to go and explore and experience things that you would never be able to experience in our small beautiful state. It truly is a privilege to live where we do and it really opened my eyes how special our culture is. Yes, I am haole, but I was raised in Hawaian culture, and experienced a huge culture shock when I first went to college! It made me appreciate our home even more and I am forever grateful that I took a chance and went to the mainland to make my dreams of being a nurse to our community come true.
So Mahalo to Hawaiian Canoe Club for raising me right, helping my parents create this backbone I stand on, and for helping me realize how much I love my home and my people. This scholarship will be used against my last year in college and one day, I will be able to come give back to our island and our HCC ‘Ohana.
