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Sixteen-year-old Sedona Estomo is going places. In fact, she already has – and her nomadic experience led her to where she is today, as the winner of the Hawaii Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs 2015 State Youth of the Year Award.
Estomo’s family moved from California to Maui when she was 10 months old, only to circle back to the Golden State a few years later to care for an ailing relative. After a series of moves up and down the West Coast, family members packed their bags and headed back to Maui for good.
“We moved around a lot,” she said. “It wasn’t easy. But the one thing that kept me grounded was the Boys & Girls Clubs I belonged to.”
The high school junior said she joined the Boys & Girls Club a decade ago for a sense of stability.
“It was a way for me put down some roots,” she said. “And it also helped me grow as a person.”
Today, she’s a proud member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Maui Haiku Clubhouse.
“I love this organization,” she said. “There’s a support system in place for anyone who walks in the door and there’s always something to keep you busy, so you can be a kid – and a good person.”
Estomo said her self-confidence has been bolstered by her experience at the Boys & Girls Club and she is now committed to helping other teens cultivate and maintain a strong sense of self-worth.
The Youth of the Year Award is the highest honor a Boys & Girls Club member can receive. The award acknowledges youth who have tackled personal challenges and obstacles to become voices of their generation. Recipients also receive a $5,000 scholarship.
Estomo, who was nominated for the award by a Boys & Girls Club director, was required to answer a series of essay questions, sit through a personal interview and prepare a speech.
She joined a Toastmasters Club to brush up on her oratory skills and wrote a speech that articulated her personal journey, as well as her efforts to empower other teens to lead healthy lives while building self-confidence and self-worth.
“I want people my age to know that they don’t have to conform,” she said. “And it’s OK to just be yourself.”
Estomo’s speech was a big hit with the judges, who selected her as this year’s winner.
“It’s such an honor,” she said. “I look forward to competing again this summer.”
Estomo will join other state-level award winners at the Pacific Region Youth of the Year competition, which will take place this summer in California. From there, five regional representatives will advance to Washington, D.C., to compete for the title of “National Youth of the Year.”
Estomo said she also plans to visit Disneyland and a few college campuses while she’s in California. A junior at Kihei Charter School, she is also attending the University of Hawaii Maui College, where she’s taking a full load of courses. She plans to earn her associate’s degree concurrently with her high school diploma.
In her spare time, she tutors her classmates, volunteers for various community organizations and works as an intern at The Gym Maui. This is where she developed her passion for health and fitness, as well as a long-term goal to own and operate a gym someday.
“I want to open a global fitness program after graduation,” she explained. “So I’m learning the ins and outs of the business at The Gym Maui. It’s been a great experience.”
Estomo is already studying to become a personal trainer, but she has to wait until she’s 18 to take the certification exam. She also collaborated on an at-home workout video series and is gearing up for a bodybuilding competition in August.
“It all ties into self-confidence,” she said. “It’s eye-opening to see people transform and start to feel better about themselves – inside and out.”
Estomo and Anne-Tone Case, the Hawaii Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs’ Military Youth of the Year, were honored at an event held last month at the state Capitol. She may be going places, but Estomo will always be a part of the Boys & Girls Club.
“I plan to stay involved,” she said. “It’s been such an important part of my life.”
The Hawaii Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs is made up of three nonprofit organizations – the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii, the Boys & Girls Club of the Big Island and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Maui. The alliance serves more than 28,000 youth members each year in 17 cities and four military bases throughout the state, and its clubhouses and outreach sites offer a diverse range of programs and affordable membership.
To learn more about the Boys & Girls Clubs of Maui, call (808) 242-4363 or go to www.bgcmaui.org.
* Sarah Ruppenthal can be reached at sruppenthal@mauinews.com.