Every Monday at the Makanalani farm is dedicated to picking fresh citrus from our lemon, lime, grapefruit, and orange trees. We pick the fruits, sort them for sale, and clean them off before weighing and setting them aside for delivery. We sell them to restaurants and businesses around the island to contribute to keeping the Makanalani camp free!
This week I’d like to introduce you to Daniel. A recent college graduate with a heart for serving. Daniel is our expert landscaper but also enjoys evening swims and playing FortNite after long days on the farm.
1. Can you give us a brief summary about how you found out about the internship? “I found out about the internship from my housemate Gabe. He told me about the internship and encouraged me to go. I looked into going and talked about it with my girlfriend and ultimately decided I wanted to do it.”
2. What has God been teaching you since you’ve arrived? “God has taught me trust while I’ve been here. Coming here was all risk. I recently graduated college with a degree in technology and hadn’t been able to find a job. Coming out here with no plan for when I get back is taking a lot of trust that God will provide for me while I’m out here.”
3. What has been one of your favorite things so far about the internship and the island? “What I love about Kauai is the mountains. I’m from Washington State and they have big beautiful mountains out there. Although these mountains aren’t quite as big, they are both impressive and shear. I did a hike on a segment of the Na Pali coast and was floored by the views of the valleys, ocean, and mountains in the region. It reminded me that there is nowhere in the world I can run to that God hasn’t been there first. My favorite thing about the internship are the farm days. We can be doing any number of labor intensive tasks. My favorite is weed whacking and hedging, although both are extremely tiring. Of those two, hedging is more difficult because of how much you can cut and which angles to cut at. At the end of long days I love being able to explore the farm for lilikoi, starfruit, and my personal favorite, guava.”
4. What has been the most challenging yet rewarding? “The most challenging thing about being here is working at the kids house. This is where all of our guests stay so we spend most days detailing and keeping it immaculate. Doing things right and well are a high priority. The reward from working hard is getting the time to hangout with the kids at their camp and to be at the house. It was such a blessing.”
5. What would be your advice to someone interested in applying? “For someone looking at the internship, know that it’s not a small commitment, but it also doesn’t consume you. You’ll have plenty of time to do the things you want after you put in work on your service days. I’ve been able to explore the island with the other interns on our days off, but also have the time to keep up with friends and family back home. The people here are really fun, and it has been a great blessing getting to know the other interns. Coming here you’ll be surrounding yourself with people that are easy to love and love what they do. Just do it. I hesitated for way too long before deciding and coming out here was so worth it.”
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Coconut Marketplace is all the hype right now! We have a new Jojo’s Shaved Ice AND a new Chicken in a Barrel opening within the next couple of weeks! Our Jojo’s Manager, Emma, has been putting in a lot of work painting and prepping for the health inspection and grand opening. Our Chicken in a Barrel Manager, Andrew, is hard at work creating signs and also putting in countless hours getting the restaurant ready for it’s final procedures before opening. Check out these progress pictures and stay tuned for our grand opening announcement!
