It was 2020 when Brenda DeCambra enrolled at Leeward Community College’s Waiʻanae Moku Education Center—a year marked by significant personal and global challenges. While the world was shutting down amid the COVID-19 pandemic, DeCambra was undergoing drug treatment and filing for divorce after a 30-year abusive relationship. She also moved in with her sister and brother-in-law in Waiʻanae—both of whom were attending Leeward CC at the time.
DeCambra said that seeing her family’s commitment to their education served as powerful inspiration. That, plus her desire to make a better life for herself, her six children and her five grandchildren, fueled her desire to pursue higher education.
“I wanted to prove to my children that anything is possible, no matter your age or your past, as long as you are determined and motivated,” DeCambra said.
DeCambra said adjusting to college life was tough, especially with technology-heavy coursework, but she found strength in the support from tutors, mentors and professors.
“Waiʻanae Moku has made me feel at home, and the environment is safe for learning and growing,” said DeCambra. “I was able to be myself and not be judged by anyone, which means a lot when you come from a background of addiction and family struggles like mine.”
Waiʻanae Moku has made me feel at home.
—Brenda DeCambra
DeCambra will graduate on May 9 with an associate’s degree in liberal arts before transferring to University of Hawaiʻi–West Oʻahu in the fall to pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Eventually, DeCambra plans to take her journey full circle by getting a master’s degree in social work and using her experience to help others facing similar struggles.
“The courses I took at Waiʻanae Moku helped me to better understand core values like service, social justice, dignity and the worth of an individual,” said DeCambra. “Now I have more insight into the problems we face in our communities and how we can try to solve them.”
—By Devon Bedoya
