The Fellowship Club Connects Students on Campus

Emma Lee, Reporter

     Clubs are a common way for students to connect through shared interests. As the only religiously affiliated club at MHS, the Fellowship Club connects Christians in their shared beliefs.

    “The purpose of the club is to reach out to people with the light of Jesus Christ, to bring people to Christ and to provide a place where Christians can also be surrounded with each other and encourage each other,” said Fellowship Club Senior Nicholas “Nico” Lee.

    Digital Media and CTE teacher Jason Tamura has been the club’s adviser for 16 years — as long as he’s been working at MHS. The teacher whose position Tamura had taken was the current adviser then. They attended the same church, which led him to fill the role. “It keeps me accountable. I wouldn’t be a good Christian club adviser if I weren’t a good Christian,” said Tamura.

    The club has lunch Bible studies and weekly Vivas, where students have pizza, games and a message on Tuesdays after school. However, the club’s biggest functions are its yearly fall and spring camps. These consist of three days of games, worship, messages and fellowship. The isolation from school and home makes it a unique environment for students.  “The camps are amazing. I like the atmosphere at camps. Like everybody’s like a family,” said Freshman Julicia Chapman.

    The Fellowship Club provided a place for members to connect with a community of other Christians on campus. Lee, having moved to Hawai’i in the middle of sophomore year, was in the midst of transitioning to a new school when he was introduced to the club. “It’s something different and it’s a lot more casual, so I liked it. I liked meeting new people and you go back to school and it’s completely different now because you at least know another person,” said Lee.

    Fellowship Club Treasurer Junior Sharon Kang added, “Just being in the club where I knew a lot of people cared about me and just being in an environment with a bunch of other Christians that were my age and who have gone through similar things because they were older than me right when I first joined — it made it a lot easier to like get out of that depression and (that) kind of stuff.”

    With a different set of officers elected every year, like most clubs, the Fellowship Club has fallen under new leadership numerous times. For example, when Tamura first started advising, there were only four officer positions; now there are six. However, continual change of leadership makes establishing a sense of stability difficult. Most officers don’t keep the same position for more than one year in a row. “Every president brings their own personality to the club and a lot of things that they bring to the club, they adopt new principles and new ideas,” said Tamura. Kang added, “Once someone feels finally adjusted and finally comfortable in the role, oh it’s the end of the school year.”

    As a student led club, leaders and officers play a main role in decision making, organizing events, running fundraisers and other tasks. These responsibilities gave students opportunities for personal growth in leadership. “I had to ask a lot of questions and I learned an exponential amount, disproportionate to the amount of time that’s passed by,” said Lee.

    Tamura added, “They always do their best and they always have struggles and they always persevere through them.”

    As the school year nears its end, clubs across MHS are electing new officers as well as bidding farewell to graduating seniors.