HCAP WEEKLY September 14, 2026

Leeward Client’s ECS Journey Towards Becoming A Pharmacy Technician

Esther visited the HCAP Leeward District Service Center seeking assistance with pursuing her educational and career goals in the healthcare field. She was referred by one of HCAP’s partner agencies and connected to the Nā Lima Hana Employment Core Services (ECS) program.

Esther expressed interest in participating in job readiness training and was informed about the other services and opportunities available through the program. She successfully completed all required ECS forms and demonstrated a strong commitment to moving forward with her education and career goals.

With support from the ECS program, Esther was approved for tuition assistance to enroll in the Pharmacy Technician program at Hawaii Medical College. She is currently attending school and working toward completing her training and preparing for a career in the healthcare industry. 

Esther’s story is an example of how access to supportive services and educational opportunities can help individuals overcome barriers and take meaningful steps toward achieving their personal and professional goals. Through her dedication and determination, Esther is building a path towards a brighter future and a rewarding career. 

Leeward District staff will continue to provide monthly follow-ups and support to Esther as she progresses through her training. They are very proud of Esther for taking this important step towards achieving her goals and look forward to seeing her continued success. 

Click here to learn more about Nā Lima Hana.

Reading Together at Head Start

In Head Start classrooms, parents and grandparents have been enjoying reading with the children each morning as families arrive. This shared experience helps create a welcoming environment and supports smoother transitions into the day, helping children feel grounded and ready to learn. As the families take a moment to participate in their children’s education they are also able to notice emerging reading skills that their little ones are developing like keeping attention, retelling, letter recognition and following print from left to right. These observations strengthen the partnership between home and school and set the tone for a day filled with literacy-rich experiences.

Throughout the day the children encounter multiple opportunities to engage with books and print in meaningful ways. After lunch the children may participate in quiet reading time, providing a calm and seamless transition to the next activity. They may read signs around them or listen as teachers read to them as well. Reading together is a wonderful opportunity for bonding while supporting children’s early literacy, vocabulary, language development, and love of learning. These shared reading experiences strengthen not only early literacy skills but also the sense of community that defines Head Start helping children feel seen, supported, and connected to the people and world around them.

Click here to learn more about Head Start.

Kalihi HCAPtains Kick Off the LEGO League Season

Recently at Kalihi Hā Initiative: Creative STEM After-School Program, students were excited to kick off a brand-new FIRST LEGO League season with their robotics team, the HCAPtains! The team is thrilled to welcome two new additions to the HCAPtains, while also welcoming back three returning team members from last year.

This year’s FIRST LEGO League theme is Bioglow, which takes the students on an adventure into the jungle to explore the natural world and investigate the amazing ways living things interact with their environment. For their Innovation Project, the HCAPtains will be turning their attention to an important issue right here at home: invasive species in Hawaiʻi. The students will be researching how invasive species impact Hawaiʻi’s unique ecosystems and exploring how STEM and innovation could help address this challenge.

For now, the LEGO team has divided into smaller subgroups and have been busy building the mission models for this year’s competition table. While building LEGO models can be exciting, it also requires patience, focus, teamwork, and a willingness to carefully follow instructions step by step. The HCAPtains did a great job sticking with the process, even when the building became tedious or took longer than expected.

There were definitely a few bumps in the road along the way! Pieces didn’t always fit the way they expected, instructions sometimes needed to be double-checked, and something had to be taken apart and rebuilt. Even when things became challenging, the students did their best to stay focused, support one another, and keep their excitement going, with a smile on their faces!

Soon enough, the HCAPtains are ready to move on to one of the most exciting parts of the season: building and coding their robot. The students will soon begin experimenting with different designs, learning how to program their robot, testing their ideas, troubleshooting problems, and figuring out the best strategies for completing their missions.

We are just getting started, and there is a lot of learning, building, coding, researching, and problem-solving ahead. We can’t wait to see what this new group of HCAPtains accomplishes together!

Click here to learn more about Hā Initiative.