Hilo, HI (PRWEB) December 26, 2013 -- Pacific Quest, an outdoor therapeutic program for struggling adolescents and young adults, is pleased to announce they will begin offering a series of alumni events for 2014. Pacific Quest’s mission is rooted in true sustainable growth and it is when students learn to engage in their communities and be of service to others, that new levels of growth may be realized.
In the Hawaiian culture, the word “Ohana” means family, which can be blood-related, adoptive or intentional. The concept emphasizes that families are bound together and members must cooperate and remember one another. When a young person begins their journey at Pacific Quest, they become part of a larger Ohana. As they discover the best in themselves, they forge new and meaningful relationships with family members, peers, their community and the natural world. These experiences leave an indelible mark on their lives and in the lives of their families.
Week after week, staff members receives letters from alumni students who reach out simply to say, “thank you” or “you made a difference in my life”. Sometimes these letters come years later as the “seeds” planted have taken time to mature and come to fruition. Some are from students who may have struggled during their stay - but have come to realize the value of their experience. While each alumni student’s letter is unique, all share a common theme. Alumni students and their families consistently express a desire to reconnect with one another, with the staff that were instrumental in helping them during this step of their journey and with various experiences they shared.
Alumni Ohana Days will provide a series of experiential activities for alumni families to re-imagine the work of "incorporation" and the next step of sustainable growth in their own communities. These community-building events focus on service, an action-oriented approach to giving back, and leaving a legacy that goes beyond the self. Lori Armbruster, Communications Director, comments, “Ohana Days may incorporate volunteering in an urban garden, harvesting food for a farmers market or local food bank, or building a garden for a local school or charity, and a host of other healthy lifestyle events.” This experience will broaden the support network for Pacific Quest alumni, encouraging community involvement, and reawakening parents and students to what it really looks like "to be the change you want to see in the world."
About Pacific Quest
Pacific Quest is an outdoor therapeutic program for struggling teens and young adults, located on the Big Island of Hawaii. Their wilderness programs offer a clinical, yet holistic approach to treatment, going beyond traditional wilderness therapy and teaching sustainable life skills. Pacific Quest’s proprietary therapeutic model is a groundbreaking approach that uses organic gardening to create concrete metaphors for its students as they cultivate their own health and happiness. Pacific Quest provides an environment that allows for a true discovery process for its students, a place that is safe, structured, experiential and natural. Owned and operated by a veteran team of professionals with hundreds of years of combined wilderness program experience, Pacific Quest offers a unique approach to treatment that is individualized for each student.
Mark Agosto, Pacific Quest, http://www.pacificquest.org, +1 (808) 987-7809, [email protected]
SOURCE Pacific Quest
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