Mabel Hefty

I was never in a class that Mabel Hefty taught; however, she had a profound impact on my life as a family and personal friend. When my three-year-old self met her, she was the first adult who invited me to use her first name. Instead of “Mrs. Hefty”, she was simply “Mabel” or when I was young, an elided “Mabelhefty” because I liked the sound of it. This gesture of openness and adult interest in me as someone worth her time was a very early invitation to speak up.

(Only when I was in the 4th grade, in the company of other students, did I need to remember to address her as “Mrs. Hefty”.) Through decades of friendship she taught and reminded me to try always to be kind, resilient, and forward looking. She may have had the most influence on me during my twenties when she affirmed and insisted that I shake off my self-absorption to get on with life. There was no hiding from Mabel’s belief in your potential. I greatly admired her competence, compassion, and fearlessness along with her remarkable ability to inspire those qualities in her students.

Two of the most prominent members of The Mabel Hefty Alumni Association said it well. “Ms. Hefty,” President Obama said, “taught me that I had something to say – not in spite of my differences but because of them. She made every single student in that class feel special.” Among those experiencing this empowerment was the renowned navigator, Nainoa Thompson. “Mrs. Hefty, she was great ... She was so understanding and sincere; she cared for me. Intuitively, she knew how to reach out to me. With her, I had no fear of failing; I could learn anything from her.”

I like to think that Mabel would be pleased to know that students will be assisted in attending Punahou through a scholarship fund even as I know that her name being attached to it wouldn’t be her priority.

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Punahou School

1601 Punahou Street, Honolulu, HI 96822
808.944.5711