At 18 years old, ‘A‘a Stender did something that few can even imagine. In just under 25 hours, he walked from the shores of ‘Anaehoʻomalu Bay in Waikōloa to the summit of Mauna Kea, covering 53 miles and climbing 13,800 feet in elevation. The challenge, known as Sea-to-Summit, is one of the toughest physical and mental trials on the Big Island.
For ‘A‘a, it became more than a test of endurance. It was a rite of passage.
As the summit drew near, by his side were his father, Joe Stender; his uncle, Kaipo Stender; and coach Tiger Hill. They watched as ‘A‘a battled fatigue, doubt and the breaking point. Around mile 30, his body began to rebel, and quitting lingered like a shadow. But with encouragement from men who knew him best—and with a deep resolve that surfaced when the climb grew steepest—‘A‘a chose to keep moving. Somewhere in those last miles, he shifted gears. The boy who began the journey gave way to the man who would finish it.
Their rally through the pain was simple: “Top shape.” No matter how blistered their feet, no matter how stiff their backs, they met every question about their condition with those two words. “Top shape.” It wasn’t bravado—it was mindset. It was grit disguised as humor, discipline wrapped in defiance.
At the summit, Tiger placed a lei around ‘A‘a’s shoulders, speaking the words that marked the moment.
"We see your life. We acknowledge it. And we champion it. We are with you,” Coach Tiger Hill said.
Joe Stender affirmed his son’s calling: he was born for greatness. And when ‘A‘a raised the Hawaiian flag into the thin summit air, he stood not just as an 18-year-old who had conquered a mountain, but as a son of Hawai‘i—representing a generation rising with quiet strength, servant hearts and living in his family’s legacy.
That climb is now behind him. Today, ‘A‘a Stender is in the Fire Academy on the Big Island, giving these years of his life to serve his community. His decision to walk this path wasn’t about comfort or convenience; it was about conviction. He is choosing to spend his youth in service to the Hawaiian Islands, changing the trajectory of his life in the name of something bigger than himself.
But ‘A‘a’s story is not just his own. It lives within a moʻokūʻauhau—a lineage. Every step he took up Mauna Kea was built on the foundation of those who came before, those who sacrificed, prayed and fought so that this generation could rise stronger. And in the same way, every step he takes forward now will lay a path for those who will follow. None of us climbs alone.
And that is the call this story carries to every young person across the islands: rise up—step into lives marked not by self-preservation, but by radical, selfless conviction. The climb to Mauna Kea showed that greatness is not found in wealth, status, or ease—it is found in discipline, in community, in early mornings and hard choices, in courage to ask for help when you feel weak, and in the resolve to keep climbing when the weight feels unbearable.
If there is one thing the Sea-to-Summit revealed, it is this: the path is there for those willing to walk it. If you feel stuck in what you know, but conviction burns inside you for what’s right, you can choose a new way forward. You can live differently. You can live for others.
This is the moment to set culture instead of following it.
“Moʻokūʻauhau is the thread binding past, present, and future into one living story.”