Nature nurtures

A farm program in Makaha celebrates 20 years of bringing early science lessons to life

STORY SUMMARY » | READ THE FULL STORY

Gigi Cocquio's business cards read, "Gardener: We grow people." He takes this title seriously, and it shows as folks pass him by, sharing greetings, smiles and hugs.

'Through the Eyes of Children' » Open house: 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday » Place: Hoa 'Aina o Makaha, across from Makaha Elementary School » Admission: Free » Call: 695-8978 or visit www.hoa-aina.org Featuring » Activities: Fruit-tasting, harvesting, fish fry, pizza-making in a stone oven, bread-baking in a mud oven, hay rides, coconut and lau hala weaving, Hawaiian games » For sale: Event offers a white elephant sale, country store and a Kid's Corner selling items made by students.

For two decades, Cocquio has shared the experience of working on the Makaha farm Hoa 'Aina o Makaha -- which translates into "The Land Shared in Friendship in Makaha" -- with students from Makaha Elementary School.

Children from kindergarten to grade 6 plant and harvest crops, create experiments and build solar ovens while learning about science. "Plus, they get to take home the vegetables to eat," Cocquio said. "Some of the kids tell me that they really needed it." Many of the schoolchildren are from low-income families at or below poverty level, he explained.

"We see children that have problems. They come here, we give them a hammer and nails or a shovel and the attitude is very different. They come here and feel peaceful. And that is most important."

Cocquio, a former Catholic priest, was ordained in the 1960s in Italy and was sent to the Philippines, where he lived in Tondo, a large shantytown. He offered the church as a place of refuge where people could gather to discuss oppression and politics under the reign of President Ferdinand Marcos.

Eventually his activities got Cocquio deported. A fellow priest, Ed Gerlock, urged him to go to Hawaii.

Cocquio planned to never forget how basic human rights could be stripped away from those less fortunate.

Assigned to develop land allotted for the Church of the Sacred Heart in Waianae, Gerlock and Cocquio began to cultivate a small garden on the property. That project has greatly expanded and now serves Makaha Elementary students and their families.

The farm will hold its annual open house, "Through the Eyes of Children," on Saturday. This year's event will mark the 20th anniversary of the farm and commemorate a recently published book with the same name, chronicling the growth and sustenance of Hoa 'Aina o Makaha.

"Both the garden and all who came here have made a difference in my own life," Cocquio said. "And I am deeply grateful."

---

---

FULL STORY »

At Hoa 'Aina o Makaha, textbook science comes to life.

Lessons on balance and motion, liquids and solids, meet reality as students from Makaha Elementary School cross the street to the five-acre Hoa 'Aina o Makaha farm. Through the Na Keiki o ka 'Aina program, they learn about plants, solar ovens and even bees.

"We can talk about things and read books, but until you are out here doing it, it's kind of abstract," sixth-grade teacher Scott Oberg said.

He finds notable differences in the youth when they participate in outdoor garden activities. "It's such a relaxing place. It really opens up the four walls of the classroom. I spread them out, and they don't feel so boxed in."

He added, "This offers them a direct tie to what they are learning -- they have a much deeper connection. The kids definitely want to be out here ... and it keeps them in check."

Sixth-grader Nicole Pomare appreciates science much more these days. "At my old school we would just talk about things. Working in the gardens made me understand more about things. It made me like science more. It's now my favorite subject."

The schoolchildren are responsible for all of the gardens. They build sheds, make solar ovens and grow and harvest crops -- all in an effort to teach a love for the land and the importance of caring for it. They reap benefits in the process.

For example, the children work for months enriching the soil, panting seeds, watering and weeding. They even talk, sing and coax the plants to grow. In the end they're rewarded with ears or corn, carrots, tomatoes or bags of beans to share with their families.

As the students progress, they learn to prepare the ground for planting, how to handle seeds and fragile seedlings, the skills of watering, weeding, harvesting and cooking. Many first-graders are already "veterans of the farm" who are familiar with the animals and know the plants by name.

A group of second-graders conducted an experiment that involved planting lettuce in farm soil, potting soil and sand. The group determined that farm soil was best.

Fourth-grade teacher Colleen Bertolino was working with her kids to create small models of the gardens using shoe boxes and art supplies. The children also have built rock waterfalls and learned to garden in pots.

"They may not have a large area at home," Bertolino said. "In the garden they enjoy the taro patch most."

Gigi Cocquio, the farm's founder, also meets with parents on weekends. "We normally have about 50 to 90 parents each time. They get to see what the kids do and work on the farm themselves."

Although the garden offers many educational experiences, many go beyond academics to include a sense of community, relationship-building and values. Schools around Oahu regularly visit to learn more about the plants and animals (including goats, chicken, ducks, geese and rabbits). They also learn about bees and how to extract honey from the hives, and practice fishing for tilapia in a tank and how to raise the fish.

The farm has also served outreach programs, from an alternative school for young people in substance abuse programs to a women's support group that met at the farm and helped implement peace programs to alleviate fighting and violence at Leeward Coast high schools.

Lynn Okamura, vice principal at Makaha Elementary, is especially grateful for the refuge that the garden offers the schoolchildren, some of whom have difficult home lives.

"We hear stories like how their uncle was holding a pistol toward their dad or a boyfriend beating up a mom," she said. "Being on the farm relaxes them. They feel safe and secure."