Every year, the FAST for LIFE is sponsored by the Junior Class, but students in grades nine through 12 can also participate.

Each person who attends the FAST is asked to donate first aid supplies, canned goods or toiletries, which are given to Waikiki Youth Outreach (YO), an organization which helps teens on the streets.

Junior Haley Clark said, “Some materials that students brought were band aids, packets of Tylenol or aspirin, packets of tea or socks. An important toiletry that students donate is sanitary napkins. Many teen girls who are living on the streets often do not have the money to purchase this necessary item.”

Twenty juniors were working under the guidance of Sr. Katherine Francis Miller and Sr. Irene Barboza. Juniors Leeyanah Santos, Desiree Batangan and Megan Garcia were the overall coordinators.

The FAST for LIFE ran from 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Feb. 21 in the auditorium.

The theme was “FAST, Pray, Love,” and their correlating song was “One Woman” by United Nations.

Santos said, “The theme reflected the ideas of living life to the best of your ability and not to take it for granted. We talked about self-harm, gun control, self-esteem and happiness.”

At the FAST, students prepared care packages for the YO organization.

Participants learned about world hunger and domestic violence. They learned how to approach a situation and to think of solutions for their own communities.

Between activities, students participated in energizers led by junior leaders.

The FAST underscored the idea that teens with good families, shelter and positive influences need to recognize and show appreciation for their comfortable lives by helping those who do not..

Garcia said, “We wanted to emphasize the importance of taking the time to appreciate our own lives. Self-esteem and self-harm are major issues commonly found among teenagers. I believe that a majority of the participants were able to relate to the theme and overall, the event was very effective.”