All immigrants think about this…the American Dream. Yet, it is not about becoming rich or famous; it is about creating and maintaining a legacy over the years.

Ms. Elaine Owens is a special case. Not only is she ethnically from the second-generation group, but she is also a second-generation mentor to Team Kika Mana (TKM).

It is our job as the next generation to document and expand our team’s story. Unbeknownst to Elaine, we will document her story, too, for this team wouldn’t exist without her.

Elaine captained the first two years of the McKinley Robotics Team. Under the guidance of Mr. Milton Lau and 2008 Woodie Flowers Finalist Award Winner Mr. Alan Ing, she discovered a newfound love for electrical engineering. She then went on to the Rochester Institute of Technology, where she obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering. And now she works for Hawaiian Electric Company with Mr. Ing, the same mentor that helped her find her true calling.

In 2005, she returned to become a mentor herself, hoping to inspire us like her mentors inspired her. She succeeded. Sophomore Jessica Lee recalls how “[Elaine] listens to us very thoroughly whenever we discuss ideas. Instead of just giving out answers, she asks leading questions. With a gentle nudge in the right direction, we are able to find the solutions to our problems. She encourages us to think outside of the box every time.”

Elaine excludes no one, speaking the universal language in this multicultural environment, eliminating all barriers. Elaine always stresses that everyone has to help, not just a select few. Last season, she split the electrical team into pairs and challenged each to write two autonomous codes independently. Without her to lean on, students could only depend on each other, reinforcing their relationships while learning to trust each other. Ever since that lesson, the working atmosphere on the team noticeably improved. Now, everyone helps each other instead of making Elaine do all the work.

Of course, some questions only she can answer, but it takes a special skill to translate her extensive knowledge into something mere students can comprehend. Elaine has that skill. Junior Jonathan Huang remarks that “she just has a way of breaking down difficult concepts into understandable ones.” Without getting carried away by her own explanations, Elaine considers her audience. She then reinforces her lessons with individual and group hands-on programming, written, and wiring tests. If a student performs badly, she lightheartedly remarks, “FAIL,” which makes the students laugh and try harder; we now understand that there will be many failures before we achieve success. Elaine has no air of superiority. Everyone on the team can respect AND relate to her.

Senior Sam Hu notes that Elaine is “willing to sacrifice her own time to teach us and others everything she has learned.” Not only did she mentor TKM members, but she also held sessions on electrical and programming basics for other schools when most of the Hawaii teams were just forming. Not only does she volunteer at many robotics competitions locally, she also coordinates many of them, including five just this school year alone. Her devotion is tireless and is not lost on her students.

“Elaine took the inspiration FIRST gave her some ten years ago to a higher level by returning to inspire the next generation,” says Erica Lei, TKM alumni and current engineering student. Elaine gives back to the community and passes her experiences to the next generation to provide an even better future. She truly changes the way young people regard science and technology. Elaine leads, inspires, and empowers.

We have been very fortunate to have a mentor who has given us strength in everything we do and it is with great honor that we nominate Mr. Alan Ing for the Woodie Flowers Award. He has been with us from the very beginning of our involvement with FIRST Robotics and has given us much more than an ordinary mentor gives to a team.

After receiving an email in 1999 from fellow engineers about mentoring FIRST teams in Hawaii, Mr. Ing decided that he wanted to be a temporary mentor for McKinley High School. So in year 1999, Mr. Ing mentored the very first robotics team at McKinley High School who was one of two very first teams in the state of Hawaii. What was supposed to be a temporary volunteer job grew into a permanent volunteer job for Mr. Ing as he became passionate about sharing ideas and working with students. Today, he inspires us more than ever and even uses up his vacation time to help us.

Mr. Ing has always been a resource for our own team as well as other teams needing guidance; as senior John Paik would put it, "Always there and always willing to lend a hand." With the Hawaii Regional occurring for the first time this year, many new rookie teams are starting out this season in the state of Hawaii. As one of the oldest teams, we know how hard it is to start out and Mr. Ing has made great efforts in helping our team to help other teams. He offers help to teams other than our own and encourages us to embrace the idea of gracious professionalism by offering guidance and answers to questions from other rookie teams. Mr. Ing was involved with several formal committees for the Hawaii Regional and has therefore has taken the initiative in making the Hawaii Regional a reality.

Even though Mr. Ing graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, he learned mechanical engineering theories on his own. He also learned to machine to supplement all his other skills and knowledge to share with students and mentors. Over the years, Mr. Ing has donated many of the equipment in the machine shop used today to build our robots. According to first-year member Helen Chang, "Mr. Ing teaches us machining skills in a very fun, effective way." It is interesting how Mr. Ing inspired many students over the years to go into mechanical engineering even though he is an electrical engineer. Daniel Hong, a 2007 graduate of our robotics team, is now at the University of Hawaii studying mechanical engineering. He says, "Mr. Ing has showed me many aspects of engineering and made me realize that mechanical engineering was for me when I worked with him in the machine shop."

In his first year with Team #368, he instilled a passion for engineering within many former students including Elaine Owens. After being taught by Mr. Ing, she pursued an education in electrical engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology thanks to the influence from Mr. Ing. Upon earning a degree in electrical engineering, she returned to team #368 as an electrical/programming mentor and describes her experience with him as, "Inspirational."

More importantly, Mr. Ing's enthusiasm exemplifies the vision of FIRST. Mr. Ing has helped us understand the intricacies of the practical application of science and technology which many students will not learn in school. In this sense, he is the hero who has imparted a new generation of mentors and teachers for Team Kika Mana and has also inspired students to pursue professional careers in engineering.