Maui High School commemorates 50 years with “A Golden Homecoming”

Maui High School marks a major milestone, as it commemorates five decades of changes on its Kahului campus.

The community is invited to attend an outdoor event on Saturday, Feb. 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

Called “A Golden Homecoming,” the festivities will include live music with local groups Nuff Sedd and Homestead, campus tours, stories from notable alumni and teachers, historical displays, food trucks (including Al’s BBQ Pit, Bang Um Out Grinz, Pastele House, OGO and Maui Fresh Streatery), a classic car show and more.

This free event will be held in the center of the Kahului campus at 660 Lono Avenue.  Masks will be required and social distancing is encouraged.

In January 1972, the first classes moved from “Old Maui High School” in Hamakuapoko, where MHS had existed since 1913. 

For seniors like Glenda Nishida and many of her classmates, it was a jarring transition to move in the middle of a school year from the lush wilderness of North Shore Maui to a dry, sparse stretch of land in town.  However, she says it brought her class even closer together.

“We bleed Blue,” Nishida laughed. Her class of 1972 was the very first to graduate in Kahului.  “Our class came from all over the place but it didn’t matter.  Somehow, we all clicked and our class just blended.  Wherever we are, we’ll still be Maui High.  No matter what.”

The campus slowly evolved through the years with more landscaping, classroom space and students.  Activities, sports and school spirit thrived.  Teachers had a huge impact on many students, including Hawai’i State Senator Gil Keith-Agaran, class of 1980.

“They took an interest in us and, looking back, some of the suggestions we had in organizing the events were a little bit outrageous, but they let us talk it out and get to the correct conclusion. I think that taught me that it’s good to hear and to listen,” Sen. Keith-Agaran said.

The event is intended to bring alumni, their families and others in the community together to commemorate a campus that has seen 50 years of changes and graduations, with many more to come.

“Maui High, to me, is more than a learning institution,” said class of 1989 graduate Shan Tsutsui, former Lieutenant Governor for the state of Hawai’i.  “I was not the best student, but there were things that I was good at and interested in.  So it’s where you find yourself, and I feel like, hopefully, even today’s generation of students are finding what their passion is, and if they can find their passion, that can kind of be their purpose in life.”

The event is presented by the Maui High School Foundation in collaboration with Maui High School and with support from Mahi Pono as event sponsor. 

Find updates on the MHS Foundation Facebook and Instagram pages.  People can visit the website to buy event T-shirts and learn about other ways they can show their support.