Plans finalized for Lunas volleyball team’s trip to UH senior night match

Trixy Nuesca-Ganer breathed a little sigh of relief Thursday when she received final word that a trip that had been discussed for a few weeks was 100 percent confirmed for her Lahainaluna High School girls volleyball team.

The Lunas, whose Maui Interscholastic League season that was delayed by the Aug. 8 wildfire is over, will travel to Oahu to attend the University of Hawaii's senior night match against Long Beach State on Nov. 18.

Nuesca-Ganer got word Thursday from the man spearheading the venture, Keith Amemiya, that it was OK to speak publicly about the trip because it was absolutely confirmed.

"It's absolutely cool, it's absolutely amazing, we really appreciate all of those that are involved that have supported Lahaina and Luna Strong (campaign) and the fundraising and everything that they've done," Nuesca-Ganer said Thursday. "We're Lahainaluna girls volleyball competing with Lahainaluna football, obviously sometimes the other sports during the fall get left in the shadows.

"It's very heartwarming to see all of these different businesses and entities get involved and do this for our volleyball team. There's no words that I can say that will really capture how I feel and how a lot of our girls feel for this opportunity."

The trip is being generated by the Luna Strong campaign that Amemiya spearheads as the president of the Downtown Athletic Club of Honolulu.

When Nuesca-Ganer told her girls of the likely possibility of the trip a couple weeks ago, she said the reaction was through the roof.

All of the Lunas' coaching staff lost their homes in the fire, and seven of the 12 varsity players who are making the trip lost their homes or access to their homes in the devastating wildfire as well.

Nuesca-Ganer's uncle David Nuesca, her mother's brother, died in the fire and the family home that she grew up in is gone.

"I don't think that there's a word that describes it," Nuesca-Ganer said. "There were a lot of tears and it was tears of happiness. Great, for something this big, it was just overwhelming. The excitement and everything, I think it's starting to kick in now that we're in the month of November and they can see that it's right around the corner.

"They are happy, they are excited. Like I said, there's not a word to really describe this whole thing. It's not just the girls, it's the parents, the coaching staff, the community and even for all of those that have made this possible, I think there's no real description of how this is going to affect their future."

As the I's were dotted and T's crossed, Nuesca-Ganer was touched more and more by the enormity of the outreach. Nuesca-Ganer said that seven sets of parents have booked the trip at their own expense, a fact she just found out Wednesday.

"You know Lahaina, we come strong," Nuesca-Ganer said with a chuckle.

She realizes with this kind of outreach, her team now knows it is not alone in the recovery efforts.

"This is big, that's exactly what it is," she said. "It's just overwhelming the amount of love and support that has come for us, for our town. It's just incredible. Like I said from the beginning, we appreciate everyone -- the businesses and the people, the individuals -- that have put this together and have really come to support Lahainaluna High School and all the sports.

"It's not just the big names, but even the smaller individuals that have just like done in and was like, 'OK, where do you need the help? How can we help?' "

Hawaiian Airlines is covering the air fare, the Pagoda Hotel is covering the lodging, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car is providing the rental vans.

"The reason we wanted to do it is because we want to support all Luna athletic teams as much as possible," Amemiya said Thursday. "Football has gotten its share of support, but we felt it was important to support other teams as well, especially a girls team."

Amemiya, who is a vice president for Central Pacific Bank, went out of his way to give credit to American Savings Bank, which will be funding dinner for the Lunas prior to the match. Several officials from ASB will then join the Lunas group at the match on Nov. 18.

"We're excited to host the Lahainaluna High School girls volleyball team at our ASB Campus in Honolulu," Ann Teranishi, president and CEO at American Savings Bank, said in an email to The Maui News on Thursday. "These remarkable student-athletes, along with their families and community, have endured so much and we are grateful for the opportunity to celebrate their hard work and resilience. As part of our commitment to support the Maui community during this challenging time, ASB also contributed $25,000 to the Downtown Athletic Club Hawaii's Luna Strong campaign."

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com.