The families started at the check in lobby where everyone received boarding passes. They then made their way through TSA, jumped on the Wikiwiki bus and got a tour of Terminal 2.

The families met with some of United’s flight attendants and got to see some of the catering equipment and how they put food on the airplanes.

Keiki then learned about the different equipment and vehicles the United employees drive everyday, and posed with some of them. The field trip finished off with a tour of a working airplane. The keiki had so much fun exploring.

We send a heartfelt mahalo to United Airlines for hosting our Tūtū and Me ʻohana and we hope to see them again soon.

Upon arrival at the farm, our families and staff were treated to a short video about agriculture on Hawaiʻi and how the farm works (did you know that 62 pairs of hands touch your food before you do?). Then they lined up and went on a hayride, and for many keiki it was their first.

“We went on a hayride for the very first time and we got to see some scarecrows out and about,” said Deja Hansen with her young son Kohl. Deja and Kohl have been coming to Ka Paʻalana for almost two years. “They never fail to amaze us with their knowledge, as well as that one-on-one communication and time that we get to have with our children.”

Families stopped for a photo op in front of the remaining sunflowers before heading down the fields to the pumpkin patch. While the keiki were instructed to try to find smaller pumpkins they could carry on their own, some could not resist the challenge of finding a pumpkin as big as they were.

Ka Paʻalana closed out the day with bento lunches and some resting from the Leeward heat in the shaded picnic areas. All the families had a wonderful time reconnecting to the ʻāina, learning about where their food comes from, and spending time together.

Another one of our program mothers, Nati, also enjoyed the day out with her family. “These field trips are important for us families because not all the time do the mothers, fathers and kids get to have that family time,” she says. “And they don’t have the money to go out, so stuff like this counts.”