Gretchen, 21, a junior at Clemson University from Columbia, SC, is majoring in Sociology with a minor in travel and tourism. As a Moondance student, she explored Big Wild, Fiji, and Thailand. This summer, she leads the Maui trip, bringing her enthusiasm for travel and her ability to inspire others. With her diverse travel experiences and academic pursuits, Gretchen is poised to lead her group on an unforgettable adventure.
Sadie, 21, from Atlanta, GA, is gearing up for her first leadership role with Moondance, leading the Maui trip. Heading into her junior year at the University of Michigan, majoring in Political Science, Sadie displays her leadership through her involvement on campus, including her role as president of her sorority. With Moondance adventures in Alaska (Midnight Sun), the Dolomites, and the Hawaiian Islands as a student, Sadie understands the importance of fostering camaraderie and creating memorable experiences. Excited to guide her team through the beauty of Maui, Sadie looks forward to sharing her passion for adventure and leadership, creating lasting memories along the way.
Jared, 22, hails from Birmingham, AL, and recently graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Supply Chain Management. With a background as a whitewater raft guide on the Ocoee and Nantahala Rivers, Jared brings a wealth of outdoor leadership experience to our team. Additionally, his passion for music as a drummer in two different bands during his time at Auburn demonstrates his creativity and ability to collaborate effectively. Excited to embark on his first leadership role on our Fiji trip, Jared is eager to inspire teenagers to embrace adventure and foster meaningful connections in the great outdoors.
July 8, 2024
We can’t believe how fast these two weeks have wrapped up, but we’re so excited to share our Fourth of July and end-of-the-trip celebrations.
What better way to celebrate than with Griff! Griff, a former Moondance leader and now a resident of Maui, met us bright and early for a Fourth of July sea kayak and snorkel. Cate and Ainsley spotted a massive sea turtle swimming just feet away from us and called the group over to witness such an incredible experience. It was a core memory for our group, something to forever remember on a Moondance trip and on such a beloved holiday! On the way home, we stopped for lemonade and ice cream to kick off our celebrations. With such a fun day occurring, we all realized how much fun our van rides around Maui truly are. Witt screaming the lyrics to Jelly Roll and Ford consistently feeding us with a great aux became special moments that all of us would soon reminisce on, and soon find out that it’s the little things that mean the most to us.
For example, we ended our day with homemade poke bowls and watching the sunset on the mountain tops of Haleakalā. Throwing footballs, casual games of Spikeball (serious practice for the Olympics), and Jared teaching ukulele lessons proved to be such a happy memory of what it means to live in the moment. Sparklers, American music, and a classic Ricky Bobby quote from Ford to start Moonup ended such a wonderful day celebrating the USA!
Friday came fast with lots of action to unpack: morning surfing and OLYMPICS DAY! After a late sleep-in and eggs and sausage with veggies in our stomachs, we hit the road and got to surfing with the outstanding Maui Beach Boys. Palmer crushed it with his determination to make every wave to the best of his ability and ride it out to shore every time! Emma was not far behind as she mastered her stance and challenged herself to practice 180°s on her board.
Once arriving back at camp, we decked out in RED to get ready to show up and show out for the MAUI OLYMPICS! It was such a fun day, especially as Warner kicked off the relay races by showing everyone up in the down-and-back football field sprint. Soon after, Charlie stepped in as QB in the 6v6 football game and passed to Hampton for a touchdown each & every time. However, Liza and Anna took home the gold medal in the girls’ Spikeball game, absolutely dominating against white & blue. With burgers and hot dogs to end the night, our team stayed after to chicken fight, play the name game, and take pictures of our picture-perfect day. Rolling up camp just before quiet hours called for an immediate Moonup, hose shower, and early bedtime for an eeaarrrlllyyy morning wake-up.
Ending the trip with Redline Rafting could not have been more exciting! Although it called for an early wake-up, MAU B loaded the van and headed out to snorkel along the Molokini Crater. Caroline already got her songs in the queue as we rode around in the ocean along the coast of Maui. Captain Nick and McKenna provided the best breakfast, lunch, and day, closing the best two weeks with the best 12 kids. After making a few pit stops for some last-minute souvenirs and gifts for family and friends back home, we rolled up to our little slice of heaven to soak in the last memories made at the place we called home for the past 2 weeks.
An intimate banquet dinner—steaks, potatoes, mac and cheese, caprese salad, and all—allowed all 15 of us to eat family-style and debrief all the memories made with the loved ones by our sides. We then made a gelato stop before a long Moonup, where tears were shed and hugs were everlasting. There was nothing that truly could have altered this day to make it what it was: the best ending you could ever ask for to your trip of a lifetime.
With airport day upon us, how lucky are we to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. Family, friends, and those reading this, we couldn’t be more grateful and thankful for y’all for sharing such amazing people with us for the past 2 weeks. Jared, Sadie, and I (Hey! It’s me, Gretchen!) genuinely realized the reason why we lead: these 12 kids. It was a pleasure, honor, and blessing to know each and every one of the people that make up MAU 2B. A Hui Hou (until we group again)!
All our love,
Gretchen, Jared, & Sadie
July 4, 2024
Aloha again from Maui 2B! After just four days, we didn’t think it would be possible for this group’s dynamic to get even stronger, yet all twelve of these lovely people continue to surpass our expectations. We’re loving every bit of our time with them and are thrilled that we still have 5 more days of fun!
Picking up where we left off, after a day of beach cleanup, the group ended the night with burrito bowls, a memorable Moonup under the stars, and then headed to bed for an early morning. After a good nights rest, we hopped in the van and headed off to explore a new part of the island – Lahaina! After a bit of off-roading, we arrived in Honokowai Valley, which is nestled within the West Maui Mountains, to kick off our second part of the trip with some conservation work with Maui Cultural Lands! We were lucky enough to learn about the area and importance of our work from Eukolu, President of MCL, and his team. Spearheaded by LODs Cate and Warner, our group weeded the area to help prevent invasive species from taking over the land. Charlie and Witt were particularly good at this task and received many well deserved shoutouts from Eukolu! We ended the activity with some laughs and learning some local slang from Eukolu’s amazing mother, Puanani. After saying our goodbyes and thank yous to this remarkable team, we headed to the beach for a quick picnic lunch of sandwiches and chips. Just when the group thought we were headed home post-lunch, we surprised them with a quick stop at Black Rock Beach for some cliff jumping! What started as a spontaneous cliff jumping ended as a quick shopping trip at an outdoor shopping center! Ford and Emma immediately sniffed out açai and shaved ice for us – two fan favorites! After a long and successful day, the group headed back up Haleakala, where we enjoyed Mediterranean bowls, filled with chicken, peppers, tomatoes, onions, hummus, and tzatziki! After Moonup, we headed to bed with full bellies to get ready for another amazing day on the island!
Happy July!! We started the new month with a later wake up call and arose to the smell of some homemade breakfast burritos (another special shout-out to Chef Jared)! Then we packed up the van and headed out for ziplining!!! After our longest, but gorgeous, ride, we arrived at Kapalau. Here, we completed six lines, each with jaw dropping views. Not only did we get to zipline, but we also got to cross the “Golden Gate Bridge of Maui,” with equally incredible views! Ziplining itself was great, but Caroline and Anna especially enjoyed Kapalau Zipline Legend, Uncle George, and his jokes. The group hopped back in the van, and by Hampton’s request and the group’s seal of approval, we made a pit stop at Kapalau’s Plantation Course to explore the stunning PGA course. After that unexpected but exciting stop, we drove down the rode to Slaughterhouse Beach, where we enjoyed a charcuterie board lunch alongside a sea turtle that decided to join our family on the beach for the afternoon. After another exciting day, it was time to head home. As requested by LODs Ainsley and Witt, we got in the 4th of July spirit a little early, and cooked up some burgers, mac and cheese, and caesar salad! Palmer and Ford showed off their cooking skills, making a feast for 15! We ended the evening with an awesome Moonup once again and crawled into our sleeping bags!
We began another day in paradise by rising with the sun and grabbing a quick bagel breakfast. This early wake up was worth our long awaited day of surfing!! Liza popped up immediately, and everyone else followed her lead! On our way back home, we somehow ended up at another shopping center! This time Ford and Caroline scouted out some local matcha for us. After a quick but successful shopping spree, we headed home and made some hot dogs for lunch. We then got to help out Evan, our host for these two weeks, on the farm. He taught us about the importance of regenerative farming, making us understand and appreciate our home here on Maui that much more. The group harvested and washed carrots and ended the day with Evan’s famous water slide! Because of all of their work and high spirits, we decided to surprise the group with a dinner at Milagros Food Co, a local favorite Mexican restaurant in Paia! From there we headed to Ho’okipa Lookout for a beautiful Maui sunset.
We kicked off another early morning with a yogurt and bagel breakfast! We headed to Wailea for a morning of stand up paddle boarding. Brandon, one of our amazing guides, taught the group about the Battle of Olowalu and King Kamehameha. After a morning of lessons and SUP, we jumped back in the car and you guessed it…. ended up at some more shops, this time in Kihei. From there we went to Walmart to get our gear for the upcoming Olympics (a Maui tradition…. more updates to come), and Caroline got us all some Tru Fru to share. We drove back home for a relaxing afternoon, enjoying some lettuce wraps for lunch, made with the carrots we had harvested the day before. This for our energy up, which helped us with our post-lunch Olympics practice. We then packed up the van again to do some laundry in Makawao. After our clothes were clean and smelling fresh, we went home for a ramen dinner. After playing some more games and enjoying the beautiful weather, we ended the day with another great Moonup led by LODs Palmer and Anna before crawling into our sleeping bags to get ready for another early morning and long day of 4th of July festivities!
Time is flying by with this group, but we are thrilled that we still have so much time to share and so many memories to make. With the trip being about halfway done, we can genuinely say that this group would not be the same without each of your lovely children. Each of them brings their own energy and life to our little family, and we are so lucky and grateful to have gotten to spend the past 9 days with them!!
A Hui Hou,
Sadie, Jared, & Gretchen
June 30, 2024
Woohoo! MAU 2B is HERE and in full swing! Follow along to hear about how our crew of 12 has made this island a home over the past 4 days.
After a long airport day with all kids landing safely, we started off our first night with a Moondance ritual: pizza! With full bellies and tired eyes, we headed to bed early and hit the hay fast!
Wednesday morning started off slow as the kids got to sleep in.. so we thought. Due to the time change getting to them, our morning started bright and early. Chef Jared kicked off the trip with eggs, Canadian bacon, yogurt, and toast with your choice of topping! Hampton, being nominated first as LOD (leader of the day), exemplified his leadership skills in every way; always cleaning after others and offering a lending hand. Then, we started our journey to Rappelling, safely overcoming the road to Hana! Anna killed it, gliding down the 50 ft waterfall while water pounded in her face. Simultaneously, Ainsley and Warner found a cave and climbed inside of it to watch everyone rappel down. Such a cool sight to see! After this, we came back home to get introduced to the kids’ new home, and a game of man hunt to wrap up the night. A yummy dinner of chicken pesto pasta set the tone for the next 2 weeks spent in Maui.
First day of Windsurfing came with strong winds and determined hearts! Liza popped up on the board, eager to learn and master the skills our outfitters patiently taught us, while Cate caught a ride from one of our guides, learning the ropes of such a challenging sport. Shortly after, we headed to a beach park where Emma proved her volleyball skills to the locals. Everyone joined in to play, and ended up dominating! Ford & Palmer’s dynamic duo continue to keep the vibes high no matter the day or situation, constantly keeping us on our toes and out of breath laughing. In the afternoon, we headed over to Wailuku for a cooking class. We toured the farm, made venison taro tacos with beet salad and coleslaw, and finished the night off with a view of Haleakala from the rooftop. Once returning home, Moonup commenced underneath a starry Maui sky!
A long June 28th was special as we celebrated Jared’s birthday! Chicken patty melts prepared us for our second day of Windsurfing. Charlie used the wind to his advantage as he accomplished 360°s on his board! We headed back home after a successful day of Windsurfing and had delicious nachos before going out on an afternoon excursion. We stumbled upon a beautiful beach in Kahului and spent the afternoon exploring hidden gems! On the way home, Witt surprised all of us with an incredible aux, culturing the group from his different tastes in genres. We made a surprise stop at Foodland to load up on some poke & cake, lighting all 23 candles for such a special celebration. Of course, the night couldn’t end without cake ending up all over multiple faces.
After a successful sleep in, the weekend began with M&M pancakes and then finding ourselves in the middle of a Fourth of July parade! We got into Makawao and walked around the Farmers Market, supporting local! Caroline continued to grind out her friendship bracelets, ensuring all 14 of us get one. Her hard work and time spent making these make it even more honorable to wear around Maui. We hit the food trucks in Kihei, having Thai, burgers, Acai and everything in between. Then, we landed at Po’olenalena Beach and spent the afternoon picking up trash and discussing the legacy we want to leave on the island. Now, as we continue to grow and learn about one another, we reminisce and share excitement for the activities to come and precious time we have left together.
Hearts so full,
Gretchen & Jared & Sadie
Shoutouts:
June 26, 2024
Hello Maui families,
We have heard from our leaders last night that the group has landed safely in Maui. The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure!
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next two weeks! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
–Moondance HQ
