NANAKULI, Hawaii -- On July 7, Soldiers from the 225th Brigade Support Battalion, "Dragons," 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, participated in Nanakuli Elementary School's annual Summer Bash on the west coast of Oahu.
Nanakuli Elementary, who is partnered with the 225th BSB, created the event in 2016 primarily to incentivize families to early register their children into kindergarten and increase enrollment. It is now growing into a community-wide gathering to kick-off the school year.
While the Summer Bash started off as a way to bolster the student body by early registration, it quickly evolved into a fun event for the whole community. Representative Andria Tupola, representing District 43 in the Hawaii House of Representatives said, "We wanted families to come to the school early, and we thought a good way of attracting them was to give away school supplies. We decided to have booths full of school supplies and others where they could learn, get free books, and get educational tips."
This year, over 20 sponsors and vendors from around the Nanakuli area participated in the Summer Bash. Focusing on health, wellness, and literacy, local businesses donated school supplies for the students, offered discounted haircuts, and promote healthy living.
"It was a joint initiative with Representative Tupola and our school," Lisa Ann Higel, the principal of Nanakuli Elementary School, said. "Let's help families with some school supplies when they come. To do this we needed some vendor support. That made it grow into; 'let's have some health, wellness and literacy booths,' turning it into a kick-off event before school starts."
Focusing on literacy, children were encouraged to play games and were rewarded with free books. Soldiers from the 225th BSB lent a hand by running some of the game booths and playing with the keikis.
To help promote active lifestyles and to energize the community, Dragon Soldiers set up an obstacle course for the children. The course consisted of events such as sprints, push-ups, sit-ups, hula hooping, high crawling under simulated barbed wire, and a sack race.
"It's always an honor and privilege to serve in the communities we live in," said Capt. John Szpyrka of the 225th BSB. "As Soldiers, we want to be a part of those communities. Participating in events like this, allows us to show a small token of our appreciation to the permanent residents who host us around this great nation and the rest of the world."
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