Hosana Kabakoro has packed a lot of living into her 18 years. A student at the College of Southern Idaho, she was the recipient of a Congressional Bronze Medal for initiative, achievement, and service; is an avid skier and surfer; and was recognized by former First Lady Laura Bush as one of America’s top 50 high school volunteers. Today she serves as Miss Teen Idaho, making her the pride of the Gem State as well as Fiji, where she spent much of her early life.
FIJI Water is immensely proud to be one of Hosana’s sponsors. We caught up with her as she prepares to compete in the Miss Teen USA contest.
Q: Tell us about your background.
A: I was born in South Korea when my dad was attending seminary, but we moved to Ca’audrove [Fiji] when I was just three years old. I also lived in Suva [Fiji], Kona and Honolulu, Hawaii for a short time, but I consider Naweni village my Fiji home. We moved to Idaho four years ago and I love it here and am as proud to be American as I am Fijian!
Q: What is the one thing you miss most about Fiji?
A: I watched a documentary about a group trying to establish an eco-resort in Fiji last week, and it brought back so many memories. I miss the simplicity of the village lifestyle. I know that is changing, but I believe the people of Fiji recognize how precious our traditions and culture are, and will work to maintain them. I guess what I miss most is going down to the sea with my bubu [grandmother] Di Waqa and fishing and listening to her tell me stories about when she was little. I am so busy here in America and, every now and then, I long for the quiet of the village when everyone is having an afternoon rest. I also miss the sound of the sea breaking out on the reef and when, on a really, really hot day, the tide comes in and all of a sudden a breeze starts to blow and cools me off. That was a wonderful feeling!
Q: What do you love most about America?
A: I love knowing I am free to be all God created me to be. The only obstacles are the ones I put up. It doesn’t matter what race, color or gender I am. In America, I can truly become anything I want to be! I love being American and I am so honored to represent my state.
Q: What do you love most about Idaho?
A: Idaho is one of the least populated, and thus, pristine states, in America. We have high deserts, deep valleys, spectacular lakes, canyons, and rivers. When you visit Idaho, you come to understand what “purple mountains majesty” really means. I love the beauty of this great state. I love being able to drive up out of the desert, past tumbleweed and stone, into the forests and lakes of the mountains. I love seeing deer cross the highway, and I love knowing I live in a place rich with history and the sacrifice of men and women who worked to make America what it is today.
Q: What would you say are the most challenging problems facing American teens today?
A: I think American teens sometimes do not realize just how fortunate they really are. This can lead to a sense of entitlement, rather than a heart of gratitude. I believe the greatest challenge facing American teens today is recognizing the tremendous blessings and opportunities they have, and then not taking them for granted or wasting them. Use them to change history! So many of the wonderful girls I have the privilege of knowing at Girl Scouts, Miss Teen USA, and the other organizations I work with have grasped this concept, and we feel a tremendous responsibility to challenge other teens to do so as well.
Q: What do you want the world to know about Fiji?
A: I want the world to know that Fiji is a nation of tolerance and understanding. I want the world to know that for over 100 years, Christians, Muslims, and Hindus have lived, laughed, raised families, and worked together peacefully to build a nation affectionately known as “The Isles of Smiles.” I want the world to know that while we are not perfect, we are a nation learning about Western culture while struggling to maintain our own unique identity. I want them to know that Fiji and its people are special, and rare and precious for just the reasons I listed.
Hosana is sure to be a hit at the Miss Teen USA contest, which will be held on July 24, 2010.
Q: Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten?
A: In the next five years I see myself working my way up in broadcast journalism and mentoring young women to make careful choices. In ten years, I see myself as Fiji’s very own female Anderson Cooper!
Q: We understand you helped start the first library on the island of Vanua Levu in Fiji. Why is service to others so important to you?
A: I was fortunate that my mom started teaching me to read when I was just two years old. We didn’t have television in Naweni so I spent hours, especially in rainy season, reading books about history and science and art. When a child is able to develop a love for the written word, there is no limit to what they can learn. When village schools are underfunded, students often suffer because they do not have access to quality texts. This means they never have a chance to develop a love for reading. Libraries make it possible for kids to borrow books at an early age and learn to love reading. There really is nothing as wonderful as finding a cool spot in the shade under a mango tree, and then opening a book to the very first page and beginning to read what someone else has written. I want kids all over the world to be able to experience this. Every child in Fiji, and every child in every village and town in the world should have access to a library.
Q: If you won the lottery tonight, what would you do with the money?
A: The first thing I would do would be buy a ticket for me, my mom, dad, and sister to fly to Fiji in November so we can attend the Fiji Children’s Day awards. I have been asked to speak and am working to raise sponsorship so we can all attend this wonderful event. The next thing I would do would be to put a complete water and filtration system in Naweni village so the people would finally have access to potable water for the first time ever. I remember my mom treating people with huge boils, scabies, and gastrointestinal diseases on a daily basis simply because there was no dependable access to potable water. The next thing I would do would be to pay off my parents’ house in Idaho so we could sell it and return to Naweni and rebuild our home there. The rest of the money would be put in a fund and I would use interest and dividends to finance appropriate responses and projects aimed at alleviating disease and poverty in the South Pacific. Oh yeah, I would also buy a new cellphone!
Q: If you became a famous actress, what is the one thing you would ask to have in your dressing room?
A: It’s the same thing I ask my mom to bring to every appearance I make as Miss Idaho Teen USA: I have to have two big bottles of FIJI Water and a box of Altoids Cinnamon Mints.
Q: If you could trade places with anyone, real or fictional, living or dead, famous or not famous, who would it be, and why?
A: I would change places with Larry King, because he has the power to inform, educate, and raise awareness on so many of the issues facing us as a world. And also because then I could meet Jason Derulo!
Q: What is the message that you’d most like to share with America’s teenage girls?
A: You can be a problem solver or a problem maker — the choice is yours. Be informed. Be involved. Be compassionate. Be brave! Be bold! Be gentle! Be all God created you to be!
The 2010 Miss Teen Universe contest will be held July 24 at the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, the Bahamas.
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