Rena K. Thompson, Laie, HI: an interview by Savani Aupiu, 15 September 2009

Transcript (25 pages) of an interview by Savani Aupiu with Norman Thompson at Hawaii on 15 September 2009. Part of the Pacific Islanders Oral History Project, Everett Cooley Collection tape no. U-2014

Rena Thompson was born and raised in Kahului, Hawaii. She is the middle child in between two sisters. She is married and has two children. She works at Kahuku Elementary School. She is Hawaiian, Filipino, French, Irish, Polish, and Portuguese. Her dad is Hawaiian, Portuguese, and Caucasian and her mom is Filipino and Caucasian.Rena talks about going to Kamehameha High School in her senior year. She discusses the differences between Kamehameha and her previous high school, Castle. In order to get into Kamehameha a student must have Hawaiian heritage, must take a test, and have an interview.She talks about her parents' educations. Her dad finished high school and her mom went to BYU Hawaii and studied to be a teacher. Growing up her mom encouraged good study habits and enforced rules for school, and her dad encouraged her and her sisters to have fun as well as to focus on school. She went to school at BYU Provo for two semesters and studied art. She did a field study in New Zealand. After her field study she transferred to BYU Hawaii and finished her studies there. Rena and her family spent a lot of time on the beach. Her dad surfed and they would travel to Tonga and Tahiti to visit the beaches there.She is a member of the LDS church. Her dad converted her mom to Mormonism. She tells her mom's conversion story. Though her mom's side of the family is Catholic they are respectful of her decision to become Mormon. She talks about working while raising her children. She likes staying at home to watch the children and take care of the house. She tells the story of meeting her husband. She saw him working construction on campus every day. She was working at the Polynesian Culture Center and his brother, who also worked there, started asking her questions for him. He eventually asked her friend if he could call Rena. She said yes and he and Rena started to talk and then started to date. She discusses growing up with her two sisters. She got along with both her younger and older sisters, but they have trouble getting along with each other.Rena would like to pursue her art, but she has also always dreamed of opening a bakery. Right now though, she wants to focus on raising a family. She would like to have two or three more children. She wants to stay in Hawaii because she wants her children to grow up in Hawaii in the culture she was raised in.Project: Pacific Islanders. Interviewer: Savani Aupia