Congratulations Spartans!  We are PROUD of YOU!

Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA Baseball State Championship
2013 DII All-Tournament Team (Maryknoll School)

Most Outstanding Player - Chase Uyema
3B - Phillip Aylward
SS - Trevor Hirano
OF - Brent Hironaga
Pitcher - Chase Uyema
DH - Justin Ushio

The entire Maryknoll Grade School student body poses for a photo with their new hats!

On Monday, April 29th, Make-A-Wish Hawaii made Maryknoll sixth grader Skylar Soares’ wish come true in celebration of National Wish Day. Instead of taking a trip to Disneyland or meeting her favorite actor, she chose to give away her wish by giving all the students at Maryknoll Grade School their own hats to promote sun protection. “I didn’t really want to do anything for myself. I kind of wanted to give back,” Soares said.

Diagnosed with three life-threatening medical conditions, Soares is Hawaii’s second known survivor of a rare auto-immune disease. Soares’ sensitive skin requires that she wear a hat at all times, even indoors. She quickly realized that she’s not the only one at risk from the sun’s rays and decided to design her own line of sun-safe hats. “I felt really loved and special. It’s kind of hard to feel special when you’re in the hospital all the time,” Soares said. That day, the “no hats in school” rule was broken!

Read more and watch the video here: http://www.khon2.com/2013/04/29/make-a-wish-hawaii-recipient-chooses-to-give-her-wish-away/

Hana hou, Maryknoll!  Eleven students were announced as winners in the annual Nene Award Book Competition, more than any other school in the state. The winning books were The Lemonade War and The Invention of Hugo Cabret.

In the Digital Media/Interpretive Category, the 4th grade team (Mari Shoop, Catherine Choi and Taylor Anne Arakaki) won first place. The 5^th grade team (Cade Lehl, Braden Kim and Cody Chow) received an honorable mention. Sixth grader Jamie Lacno received an honorable mention in the creative writing/interpretive category.

Maryknoll students also scored high in the Poster Contest. Brie Bella took First Place for 4^th grade. Honorable mentions were received by 6^th graders Ashley Sim, Brayden Bella and Skyler Chun. Congratulations to all!

Pictured above: Maryknoll Students with The Lemonade War author, Jacqueline Davies

Pictured are the Maryknoll Speech team 2012-2013 qualifiers for the State Tournament, held on April 20, 2013.
Back row:  Michaela Yamashita, Andrew Nilo, Wesley Kamikawa, Nicole Choy, and Chris Chow
Front row:  Katherine Guevara and Theodora

The Maryknoll Speech Team finished its 2012-2013 season on a high note.  Seven students qualified for the State Speech Tournament, and competed in Duo Interpretation, Program Reading, Impromptu Speaking, and International Extemporaneous Speaking.  After four rounds of competition, Wesley Kamikawa emerged as victor in not just one, but two events:  fourth place in International Extemporaneous speaking and first place in Impromptu.  His achievement was recently acknowledged by the Honolulu City Council , which presented Wesley with a special certificate of recognition. 

The Maryknoll Speech team is a member of the Hawaii Speech League, that sponsors monthly speech and debate tournaments for both private and public schools throughout the state.  In addition, many students on the Maryknoll Speech team have earned membership into the prestigious National Forensics League, a national honor society for speech and debate.    Currently the Maryknoll team has a membership of forty-five students.  Practices are once a week, after school on Wednesdays with  Mrs. Fran Wong, coach.  The new season will begin in August 2013; those who wish to join the team are welcome to do so by attending the first day’s meeting yet to be scheduled.  Inquiries can be sent to:  fran.wong@maryknollschool.org

Maryknoll…Living Green! was Maryknoll’s week-long celebration of Earth Week from April 22nd – 26th. The week consisted of green curriculum, a recycling fashion show, mini open market and a trash-less lunch week. In coordination with Ma’o Organic Farms and to promote educational awareness of Community Supported Agriculture, Maryknoll also offered a limited number of organic food boxes containing a dozen products, mix of salad greens, cooking greens, roots, herbs, fruits, and several other seasonal and certified organic foods as part of Maryknoll…Living Green!

One of the more popular events on campus was “Project Greenway” (a twist on the hit television series “Project Runway”) on April 25th; it was a fashion show that involves the making and designing of clothing mostly made from recycled materials like garbage bags, duct tape, Capri Sun packets, etc.  Each year, people throw away and waste recyclable items, when it can be used for something else; therefore, in celebration of Earth Day, the fashion show contest challenged each class to create outfits out of recycled materials and prizes were awarded to the class whose design was most creative.

There is a PTG meeting is on Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at 6:00 PM. It will be held in the Maryknoll Community Center's Ma Multipurpose Room.

Mahalo to all the Kindergarten families who were able to join us on Saturday, August 18th for the Parent Teacher Guild’s Kindergarten event! In order to help our keiki transition into the school environment and feel comfortable with their new classrooms and teachers, Kindergarten students were able to experience what their first day of school will be like. The students learned the daily student routine, brought in their backpacks and learned to store them in their personal cubbies, met their teachers and peers, participated in a craft activity and played on the playground! Our Kindergarten parents also had the chance to meet other parents and become more familiar with our Parent Teacher Guild. We hope that this event will make it a little easier to drop of your children on their first day of school this week! Welcome to Maryknoll grade school, a nurturing community where your students embark on the exciting adventure of learning.  

What is Founders’ Day?  Who are our founders?  Why do we celebrate it in February?  These are some questions that you might be asking yourself when celebrating our Founders’ Day Mass in February.

By the mid 1990s, Maryknoll School was still Maryknoll yet, although two Sisters were still on staff, there were no more Maryknoll Sisters actually teaching at the school; the presidency was no longer under the governance of the Maryknoll Order but rather a layperson; and Sacred Heart Church was no longer run by the Maryknoll Fathers.  Without the physical presence of the Maryknoll religious – the Fathers, Brothers, and most importantly, Sisters - on campus, the overarching question became, ‘How do we, as Maryknoll School, continue the Maryknoll legacy and honor the Maryknoll charism?”

In response, Founders’ Day was designed and initiated to commemorate our school’s founders and their life’s work as well as to be a reminder of the values upon which the school was founded.  To begin, Founders’ Day happens in February because the Maryknoll Sisters were finally recognized as a religious order by the Catholic Church in February, 1912. 

Now, however, instead of just one day, (which in not nearly enough time to honor all that Maryknoll represents!), Founders’ Day has morphed over the years into almost an entire week -long celebration.  During the week, there is an all school Praise and Worship ceremony, when people share their testimonies about their journeys of faith at Maryknoll.  The Junior Commitment ceremony also takes place during this week.  The juniors receive their pins and/or rings and pledge their allegiance to Maryknoll and the practice of Noblesse Oblige.  And there is, of course, the annual Founders’ Day Mass, celebrated on the altar made from the gold tree that used to be a part of the Sisters’ garden and convent.  Founders’ Day allows us at Maryknoll to remember our founders – the Maryknoll Fathers, Brothers, and, most importantly, the Maryknoll Sisters; remember the work that they have done over the years ‘making God’s love visible;’ and to rededicate ourselves to our founding legacy.  As we celebrate Founders’ Day this year, please take some time to not only reflect on the work of our founders, but to find a way to practice it yourself so as to continue the legacy of Noblesse Oblige.

Celebrating 100 years of ‘”Making God’s Love Visible” is a monumental task, yet that is exactly what Maryknoll School set out to do this year to honor the Maryknoll Sisters’ Centennial and their lasting legacy.  Maryknoll School, currently celebrating its 85^th anniversary, created a partnership with Catholic Charities, an organization also established by the Maryknoll Sisters, 65 years ago, to further commemorate the Sisters.  All together, because of the Sisters, Maryknoll as a name has achieved 250 years of service here in Hawaii.

To highlight the partnership amongst the Sisters, the School and Catholic Charities, Maryknoll School has held different drives and volunteered numerous hours over the course of the Centennial Year.  To kick it all off, Maryknoll Grade School collected toiletries throughout the year.  The donations were a part of the offerings at each monthly school mass, being brought to the altar by students, and then donated to Catholic Charities.  Catholic Charities was particularly grateful for the toiletries as these basic necessities that are sometimes overlooked but are very important to living decently.  Also, a Grade School canned food drive was held during November under the direction of 8^th grade teacher, Mr. Wendell Bacnis.  Students, working through their homerooms, made a conscious effort to find and select food and other requested items for families.  By doing random acts of kindness and giving from their personal allowance, the students earned enough canned food and other miscellaneous items to successfully meet the wants and needs of thirty deserving families.  Also in November, high school students spent an afternoon at one of Catholic Charities Senior Housing Residences, making Thanksgiving crafts, playing bingo, and sharing some ono food with the residents.  In December, Maryknoll families and high school students spent many hours helping to wrap gifts that had been donated to Catholic Charities.  High school students once again devoted their time, talents and energy to residents of the Wisteria Nursing home, holding a fun filled Christmas party for the seniors, enjoying the holidays together.

Furthermore, Maryknoll School hosted an anniversary celebration for the Sisters in October, with nearly 300 guests coming to honor, thank and congratulate the Sisters on 100 years of giving.  Although the Maryknoll Sisters’ Centennial Year comes to an end in January, the Sisters’ legacy, “Making God’s Love Visible,” continues to touch the lives of many and, we hope, will do so for at least another 250 years!

The University of Hawaii at Hilo got clutch hits and solid pitching on Tuesday and split a baseball doubleheader with Azusa Pacific University.
In the opening game in Azusa, Calif., freshman Will Cleary drove in two runs and freshman Jordan Kurokawa pitched 7 2/3 strong innings as the Vulcans triumphed 4-1. The host Cougars rallied to win the second game 1-0 in nine innings.
“What a difference a day makes,” said UHH coach Joey Estrella, alluding to a lopsided sweep by APU on Monday. The scores were 14-2 and 8-1.
“We came out with more energy today and our pitching was good. We also had some opportunities, especially in the first game, and we took advantage of them. I feel good about the effort, but losing Game 2 in extra innings was tough.”
In Game 1, the Vulcans (7-23-1 overall, 6-17-1 PacWest) scored two runs in the third inning to break up a pitchers’ duel, then added solo runs in the seventh and eighth innings to pull away. Cleary, a second baseman from Pocatello, Idaho, had two hits and drove in a run in the third and seventh innings.
UHH also got two hits from Tyler Nitahara, Austin Cusack and Brad Fairweather. Left fielder Zachery Hamasaki drove in a run. Brendan Casey and Tyler Putjenter each had two hits for the Cougars.
The Vulcans rode Kurokawa’s strong arm and then 1 1/3 innings of steady relief from Sheldon Shishido to contain the Cougars (8-18, 6-10). Kurokawa, a right-hander from Maryknoll High School on Oahu, allowed seven hits and one run to earn the win. Kurokawa (2-2) struck out five and walked one.
Shishido took over with two outs in the eighth and finished. He didn’t allow a hit or run.
“Jordan pitched well, but everybody pitched well today,” Estrella said.
APU starter Jason Plowman (2-4) hurled 7 2/3 innings and took the loss. He gave up 10 hits and four runs.
In Game 2, Joel Belk (6 innings) and Hunter Brown (3 innings) combined on a shutout to lift the Cougars to a 1-0 win. APU’s Richie Brown hit a solo walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth to win it for the hosts.
Belk gave up four hits and didn’t allow a run in his six innings. He struck out five and didn’t walk a batter.
Brown (1-2) gave up three hits and no runs. He struck out two and walked one while picking up the win.
UHH’s Jeremy Dela Cruz, a sophomore from Honolulu, started and pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings. He allowed four hits to go along with four strikeouts and three walks.
Shishido (2-2) came in the bottom of the eighth to get an out, then faced Brown in the ninth before giving up the walk-off homer.
Nitahara and Fairweather each had two hits to lead UHH’s seven-hit attack. No one paired hits for the Cougars, who had five hits in the contest.
“We’re confident going forward,” Estrella said. “We’ve got a lot of games left to play. We’ve also got a few injuries to overcome but we want to finish strong.”
The Vulcans play Dixie State College at 11 a.m. today in Riverside, Calif. The teams will complete a rain-delayed game from Hilo earlier this month, then play a seven-inning contest to finish the day.
UHH wraps up its California road trip with noon doubleheaders at Cal Baptist on Friday and Saturday in Riverside, Calif.
http://hiloathletics.com/news/2013/3/26/BB_0326135916.aspx

By Billy Hull, Star Advertiser, March 27th, 2013

Zac Fujimoto has started 104 games in three years at Loyola Marymount. Not once has he ever taken one of those games for granted.

"A day doesn't go by where I don't think how blessed I am to have the opportunity I have," said Fujimoto, who has started 19 of LMU's 23 games in center field. "I do look back on things and think it's crazy, but I would not change anything I've done. I don't have any regrets."

In 2008, Fujimoto graduated from Maryknoll and drew no interest from any Division I schools to play baseball.

His father, Gregg, wanted his son to attend a four-year university, but Fujimoto wasn't ready to give up his baseball dreams. So the two came to a compromise.

"We agreed that I had two years to try and get a scholarship to a D-I school," Fujimoto said. "After that I'd attend a four-year university."

He enrolled at Central Arizona Junior College out of high school as a freshman and was immediately struck at the difference in skill level.

He decided to redshirt that season, leaving him only one year to play baseball before moving on in order to keep his word with his father. As his second year in Arizona got under way, it became clear he wasn't going to get much playing time, but he still wasn't going to give up on his dream.

"It was a big gamble, but I figured I had a better chance playing at Hartnell than where I was," Fujimoto said. "I transferred just for the spring and spent that one semester at Hartnell."

The coach at Hartnell didn't guarantee Fujimoto playing time either, so he earned it the hard way.
When the season was over, Fujimoto was named the team's offensive player of the year and made second-team all-conference after leading the team with a .346 average. Yet it still wasn't enough to garner any serious consideration from D-I schools.

"I could have played another year, but I wanted to honor my dad and the deal we made, so I decided to walk on at LMU and try out for the team," Fujimoto said. "I figured I'd roll the dice one more time and if they liked me, they'd keep me and if not, I would hang up my cleats."

The LMU coaching staff didn't just like Fujimoto; they were enamored with him enough to start him in 50 of the team's 51 games in 2011. Fujimoto hit .262 with five doubles and 26 runs scored that year and has gone from attending a junior college that wouldn't play him to a Division I school that has started him in more than 100 games in three years. Fujimoto is three hits away from 100 as the Lions continue West Coast Conference play hosting a three-game set against Gonzaga starting Thursday.
LMU finished 30-25 overall and 11-10 in conference play two years ago and was 14-10 in the WCC last season, but didn't qualify for the NCAA tournament either year.

For the first time, the conference will host a four-team tournament at the end of this season with the winner receiving an automatic berth in an NCAA regional.

"We kind of like that because both years I've been here, we finished in the top four and this year we have a chance to make (a regional) if we get hot at the right time," Fujimoto said. "We've been walked-off on in four games this year and played a lot of games close, so with this format this year, we know we still have our chances ahead of us to move on and play in the postseason, which is really exciting."

LMU has played 18 of its 23 games (the Lions are 10-13) this year away from home, including four at the UNLV Rebel Classic in the third week of the season. The Lions played UH twice and Fujimoto came up big in a 9-0 win over the Rainbows in the tournament opener, going 2-for-3 with a double and three RBIs.

"It was definitely a little special," Fujimoto said. "Being from Hawaii, you always want to beat the home team."

 During the holiday season, many people plan their end-of-year gift giving.  If you are considering an end-of-year donation to Maryknoll School for tax purposes, we ask that you keep these very important deadlines in mind:

Online gifts. Your online gift must be made by Dec. 31, 2012. To make your gift online, go to Maryknoll Give. IRS guidelines require that online credit card transactions be completed no later than 11:59 p.m. in the time zone in which the gift is made.

Mailed check or credit card gifts. Checks mailed to us must be dated no later than Dec. 31, 2012, AND must be postmarked no later than Dec. 31, 2012. Credit card donations mailed to us must be received by us by Dec. 26.  IRS guidelines require us to process credit card donations for 2012 before the end of the year. Our office will not be open Dec. 29-31.

Phoned-in credit card gifts. Phoned-in credit card gifts must be received by noon Dec. 27, 2012.

Securities. If you wish to make a gift of securities, please contact us no later than Dec. 26. You may call us at 952-7310.

Gifts to our annual fund (AIM) may be designated for the operating fund or for scholarship.

If you have any questions, please call us at (808) 952-7310 or email development@maryknollschool.org. Please remember that our office will be closed Dec. 24 and 25 and Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.

From kindergarten through 12th grade, Maryknoll's students are challenged each and every school day to develop mind, body, and soul.  Science and robotics programs, economics, theater and band, art, extracurricular activities, athletic programs and retreats all develop the whole child.

Your support of our annual fund, which goes directly to school programs, is an investment in quality education and ensures continuation of all that makes Maryknoll special.

We're in the home stretch for the 2011-12 Annual Investment in Maryknoll campaign.  We have until the end of June to meet our 2011-12 goal of $425,000.  The education of our Maryknoll children is a partnership - your participation in this mission through your gifts makes all the difference and we see it every day in the faces of our children.

Noblesse Oblige

Maryknoll 20
Maryknoll 30