Much Love For Maui!
June 20, 2026
Our Final Goodbye!
Day 11: The Maui Olympics brought fierce and high energy, as we competed against the other Moondance groups in a day full of relays, soccer, spike ball, and other beach games. We dressed to the nines- wearing jorts, black tops, and lots of face paint. It is quite possible your kids may still have a bit of paint on them 🙂 ! Stirling, Chris, Holt, and the rest of the group gave it their all, destroying the competition in every sport. The energy was high from start to finish, and after a full day of friendly competition, our group came out on top! It was a great way to end the day, and our group celebrated with pizzas! Layne Elizabeth and Jim led our Moonup, and after an exhausting day, our group went to sleep.
Day 12: We spent the morning at a marine institute, where we participated in a hands-on conservation activity and learned more about the marine ecosystems that make Hawaii so special. It gave us an even greater appreciation for this beautiful place that we have been lucky to call home for past few weeks. Wiley and George were especially interested in the native seals and coral conservation. Overall, the experience was both educational and inspiring, giving everyone a chance to connect with the island in a meaningful way. That evening, we joined the other Moondance groups for a banquet luau to celebrate our incredible time in Maui. We celebrated with local Hawaiian musicians, and the traditional music was perfectly complemented with impressive fire dancers that were able to come to our campsite. It was definitely an incredible end to an incredible few weeks! While the night was bittersweet, it was the perfect way to bring everyone together one last time. Lauren, Kenny, and Arlie told stories from the week on the basketball courts under the stars, so everyone could chime in with a final reflection. Ricky and Annabelle led our final Moonup, which was a sad, but special, goodbye for two weeks well spent.
Airport Day: Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye. We spent our long airport day giving hugs, capturing and sharing last-minute photos, and reflecting on an unforgettable time in Maui. We are so grateful for the friendships that have been fostered, and we are incredibly lucky to have our Maui 1C family. We wish everyone safe travels home, and we are confident that the memories created on this trip will last a lifetime. Thank you again, we have so much love for all of your children
– Holland, Mason, Austin
Sun, Surf, Repeat
June 16, 2026
GOOD MORNING Moondance Families!
The kids and I are having a blast swimming, snorkeling, and surfing across the world! We are so thankful for you and your support for your kiddos. Below is an update on our past few days, along with a thank you from your kids!
Day 7: Windsurfing was epic. Starting our day out with a bang, we had an early wake up and headed towards a new park. We had bagels with cream cheese, protein bars, and fruit (grapes, apples, and bananas) on the way, while we jammed to our new playlist. At the airport the first day, we asked the kids to each list 5 of their favorite songs. Ricky is the best on aux, queued Futurebirds and Zach Top. We combined all of the songs into one massive playlist they can listen to after the trip. Arlie and George really focused in and were able to fully tack and jibe. We started out windsurfing with a 30 minute safety briefing and instructions because most of the kids hadn’t windsurfed before. When we got out in the water, we saw sea turtles! We’ve been able to see sea turtles at almost every water activity, including snorkeling, stand up paddle boarding, surfing, and now windsurfing. The kids love them. They aren’t scared of humans at all and will swim close by. Although, it was a more challenging activity, they persevered and made it look easy despite the surf. The wind was tough, but everyone got up and was able to successfully turn and go back and forth. We finished up around lunchtime, and because of safety and wave size, we do the majority of sea activities in the morning. Later that afternoon, we met with a professional lei maker on a beach. Jim and Chris loved making a lei. She brought fresh flowers from a local orchard and explained the tradition and meaning behind a lei.
Day 8: It was stand up paddle boarding day! Lauren was a champ with her hurt ankle, and Holt also looked like a natural in the waves. We had a safety briefing on sharks, and also open water safety. We learned how to manage rip currents. The hardest part about paddle boarding is getting out of the break and coming back in. We timed it two by two, so the students went in teams and made their way out into the surf. Our outfitter asked everyone what type of Hawaiian history they would prefer to learn. We learned the deep history in how the Shaka came to be, and also the many meanings behind “Aloha”. It can mean “hello”, “goodbye”, “I love you”, etc. That afternoon, we tasted local Hawaiian cuisine at some food trucks, and ate lunch while waiting until the next activity. Everyone got shaved ice, poke bowls, or smoothies. Another animal we keep spotting is chickens! There are baby chicks everywhere. They really wanted the kids’ food…
Day 9: Yesterday we had a change of plans, but the kids took it positively. As we arrived at the sea kayaking and snorkeling tour, the guide said the waters were too rough. We had gotten there at the crack of dawn because of the surf potential, and the outfitter informed us that the big waves should only come in sets every twenty minutes. Sadly, those big waves were coming every twenty seconds. There was no way to sea kayak and get out there safely. Instead, Kenny and Layne Elizabeth took control as leaders of the day, creating an afternoon jam-packed with fun. We stopped for ice cream per Annabelle’s suggestion. Stirling and the rest of the girls cooked Chinese food for dinner, complete with steamed rice, spring rolls, and orange chicken. As an appetizer/dessert, the students have loved strawberries and Nutella. They take on so much responsibility in the kitchen, and I’m so impressed that at the beginning of the trip, cooking was out of their comfort zone, but now everyone is so excited to cook that they hang out with the cook crew throughout dinner. Wiley and Arlie led a great Moonup, and informed everyone of our plans for tomorrow! No one took long to fall asleep, as they’ve all had an extra-packed, long day.
Here is an update from the kids:
Annabelle: Dear Madre and padre! Thank u so so much for letting me come to Maui, I am having lots of fun. Also can u pack my lacrosse stuff, soccer stuff, the white crocs, my strawberry makeup bag, and hair stuff. Thank u so so much love u lots see u soon 🔜! Love babybelle
Chris: Dear Mom and Dad, thank yall so much for sending me on this Moondance trip to Maui. It is so much fun and I am very thankful for yall sending me on this trip. I love and miss yall.
Kenny: Thank you guys for sending me here. I love you
Holt – Thank you so much for sending me to Maui, I have had an awesome time and can’t wait to see you soon.
Ricky: Thank you for sending me to Maui. I’ve had such a good time. See you soon.
Stirling – thank you so much for letting me have this opportunity. I love you so much and can’t wait to see you soon!!
Arlie- HEY MOM AND DAD!!!!! I love and miss yall so much and can’t wait to see you soon. Thank yall so much for sending me here and I’m so thankful!! I love yall forever 🩷
Layne Elizabeth- Thank yall so much for letting me go on this trip and giving me the opportunity to have this much fun in Maui! I love yall so much thank you!!!
Lauren- Thank yall so much for letting me go on Moondance, I’m having so much fun in Maui again! Love and miss yall so much!
Jim- Thank yall so much much for letting me go to Maui. I have had a lot of fun and I can’t wait to see yall.
Wiley- Dear Mom and Dad, can’t wait to see y’all soon, can’t wait to tell y’all all about it. Thank you, and love you .
George- Hey Mom and Dad. I’m having a great time here, thank you for letting me come. I miss y’all and can’t wait to see you soon.
Fun in Maui!!
June 13, 2026
Hey Moondance Families!
It has been the best week, and we are so thankful to have your wonderful kids with us in Maui!!!
They also wanted to say hey – below is a trip update and the student shoutouts.
Day 3: We made it to community service, and wrapped up with a cooking class! Our guides emphasized the value of invasive species removal along a riparian corridor. Stirling, Lauren, and Holt are talented in saving indigenous Hawaiian medicinal plants as they learned about the importance and uses of local species. The sunset cooking class allowed for Ricky to utilize his baking skills from home. It also allowed for Arlie to “pop off” on cutting pineapple as an addition to tapas. The outfitter allowed us to self-harvest our dinner, and the finger limes we collected we finished quick by Wiley and George.
Day 4: We headed into the rainforest for canyon rappel after driving a beautiful highway. The rainforest rappel was amazing! It first began with some pretty significant showers, so we thought we were going to be unable to swim in the natural waterfall pool. After careful consideration from the outfitters, we jumped in and literally soaked in every moment of the activity. Arlie and Layne Elizabeth really stood out!!
Day 5: Chris and Jim helped cook breakfast this morning. They cooked eggs, sausage, and waffles for the group before zip lining. Kenny and the boys crushed zip lining with Austin, and Annabelle led the girls thirty minutes later. Annabelle and Chris wrapped up our day with Moonup, and decided that they all wanted to cowboy camp outside!
Always grateful,
Holland, Mason, and Austin
Wiley -What’s up Mom and Dad , I am having a great time at Moondance. My favorite activity so far was surfing or snorkeling. Right now I am headed to wind surfing. Talk to you later
Jim- What’s up Mom and Dad. Hawai’i has been very fun, I have really enjoyed surfing and snorkeling and right now we are heading to go wind surfing. Can’t wait to talk to y’all later.
Chris – Hey Mom and Dad, I am really enjoying Moondance and I have had so much fun snorkeling, surfing, and rappelling. We are on the way to wind surfing right now. I can’t wait to see y’all in a week.
Kenny- Hey Mom and Dad I have had a great time surfing and snorkeling and repelling and doing community service. I am on my way to wind surfing and I hope it’s a lot of fun.
Ricky- Hi Mom and Dad I’ve had such a fun time at Moondance. I’ve been surfing, zipping, repelling, snorkeling, community service, and windsurfing. I have also been helping cook dinners for the group.
Holt- Hi Mom and Dad, I have had a great time in Hawaii over the past week doing everything from surfing and snorkeling to giving back to the community I am going to wind surfing rn and can’t wait to see you soon
Arlie- Hey Momma and Dad!!! I’ve been having so much fun. I loved our cooking class, dad would have loved it too. My group is great and I don’t want to come home! My activities are super fun, can’t wait to tell you all about it. We had wind surfing today, I think I did good! Tell everyone I miss them and I love y’all so so soooo much!!!🩷 👋
Stirling – Hi mama, I have had so much fun in Maui this week. We went zip lining yesterday and went windsurfing today. I can’t wait to see you when I get back. Love you!!
Layne Elizabeth- Hi Mom and Dad!!! I’m having so much fun in Maui and I’ve made so many new friends! I don’t want to go home and we’ve done so many fun activities like today we went wind surfing! I miss y’all so much! Love y’all!🩷
Annabelle-
Dear Mother and Father
I’m having so so much fun here and I’ve made so many friends and I love Holland She is a bomb.com as Mom says😂. I miss you all. I hope you guys are having as much fun as I am. The views and the scenery is out of this world. Trying to work on my grammar and sound more performative when I type and send messages to you guys. I hope this is working. And yes, I mean performative not proper. I like the sound of it better. I love you so so much and I can’t wait to see you. I have having so much fun. Have a good time whatever you’re doing.
George- Hey Mom and Dad, I’m having so much fun in Maui. I’ve met a bunch of great people and we have done so many fun activities. I’m having a super great time. Love you so much, George.
Lauren- Hey Mom and Dad, I’m having so much fun and meeting so many wonderful people. My group got very close immediately from the beginning. I loved surfing and snorkeling, we swam with turtles!
Update from Maui!!
June 9, 2026
Welcome to Maui Parents!! This group is killing it!
Airport Day: From the start of arrival day, relationships started to form. We played hacky sack, wavelength, and some other chill games at the airport. After everybody arrived, we headed to Ho’okipa Beach for our pizza party at sunset, where we saw sea turtles resting on the beach. Talk about a dream!
The night ended with Moonup, a nightly Moondance tradition highlighting highs of the day, leaders, and “nugs” which are small moments we are thankful for. Lastly, we assign a Leader of the Day (LOD), and Jim and Stirling stood out as natural-born leaders from the beginning.
Day 1: We kicked off the trip with a snorkeling tour of Molokini Crater! The guides were incredible, showing us dolphins, coral reefs, and of course, sea turtles. We learned that sea turtles use smaller fish as a natural cleaning system, and the outfitters shared fascinating information about the unique marine ecosystem surrounding the crater.
They also explained a special opportunity that only happens in the morning because of the wave progression. In the cracks of the crater, a natural “elevator” wave cycle creates an oceanic force that George and Kenny jumped straight into. The girls followed instantly, crushing it in the water and making the most of the adventure.
Layne Elizabeth and Arlie became boat buddies, and we got some great pictures of them looking at the dolphins. Lauren was always ready to jump into every new experience. Annabelle and Ricky were constantly encouraging others and helping everyone feel at ease in the water.
For dinner, we had spaghetti and meatballs, which Holt cooked to perfection. Wiley was incredible at taking the lead on cleanup and getting all the boys involved.
Day 2: Today was surf day! Lauren and Chris quickly showed their natural talent on the board, but that wasn’t stopping anyone else from catching waves. Arlie tried 360 spins on the board, earning an applause from the outfitters.
George and Kenny continued to seek out every opportunity, and Jim and Wiley brought encouragement to the group. It was a day that every camper had a moment they were proud of.
After surfing, we spent the afternoon at Pono Grown participating in community service. We helped care for local fruits and vegetables, learning about sustainable agriculture and the importance of supporting Maui’s local food systems. This experience meant a lot to our group because the work wasn’t just benefiting us, it was directly supporting local families and strengthening the community that has welcomed us so warmly. Travel isn’t only about seeing amazing places, but also about contributing to them.
Thanks for the best kids everrrrrrrr 😉
With gratitude,
Holland, Mason, Austin
Safe Arrival!
June 7, 2026
Hello Maui Families!
We heard from our leaders last night that the group has landed safely in Maui! Please remember that our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will post trip updates throughout the trip! This will allow you to follow along with their adventure. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
