‘Respect’ is a core Chuukese value that serves to harmonize and regulate relationships among people and with nature…regulating expectations and behavior among children toward one another (related to age and gender); relationships among adults and children (including teaching roles of elders, grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts); relationships among traditional chiefs, church leaders and teachers; and relationships of people toward land and ocean (including plants and animals)…’Respect’ is the cornerstone of the Chuukese character. – Dr. Margarita Cholymay
Inspired by Dr. Margarita Cholymay’s dissertation on creating an authentically Chuukese educational system to form value-centered Chuukese youth, the FAIRO Project aims to perpetuate the culture of fairo (respect) among our Chuukese youth today.
In 2015, Vid was part of a team of doctoral students from UH Manoa who conducted several focus groups comprising of Micronesian parents on Oahu, Maui, and the Big Island. The final report of the consultancy study revealed that respect (fairo) is the top concern for the participants across all the Hawaiian islands. Micronesian parents in Hawai’i are concerned that their children are losing the value of respect which was the core of their experiences back home.
Fairo Campaign
The Fanapi Foundation sets out to encourage all Chuukese abroad to find ways to perpetuate fairo in their personal lives, families, churches, associations, clubs, classroom, or aterenges. Find what works for you and start today. The following are some of our recommendations:
Fairo Family: Teaching and modeling of fairo should always begin at home. We parents have the biggest responsibility (and blame) for not teaching our children about the values that we grew up in back home in Chuuk.
Fairo Tree: Develop your family tree and teach it to your children so they know their aterenges.
Fairo Day: Transform Thanksgiving Day (November 24, 2016 ) every year into a day in which we remind, teach, encourage our children about the Chuukese value of fairo – giving respect to earn respect. What better way for us Chuukese to show gratitude (Kilisou) on Thanksgiving Day than to reclaim the best of our cultural value and embody fairo as respectable, respectful members of the community in which we live whether in Guam, Hawaii, Minnesota, Kansas City, Oregon, Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, New York, wherever.
Fairo Wear: Design and wear uniforms that communicate the value or join me in wearing the Fairo – give respect, get respect shirt from Raatior Design. Just as we wear uniforms at our gatherings (mwiich) in Chuuk to show unity and common purpose, maybe if enough people wear the fairo message it might start conversations about the word fairo. The more we talk about fairo uniform across the US to remind us all wherever we are to live respectful lives. Order Form>
Fairo Reminder: Give our children an artifact they carry with them such as a wristband that reminds them about [FAIRO] – giving respect to get respect. Remind them to respect their classmates, teachers, principals, custodians, librarians, food service staff, everyone they meet at school or in their workplace. Wearing the artifact might also start conversations with others about the meaning of fairo; any time we have an opportunity to share with a non-Chuukese about our value of respect as the core of our culture the more we begin to change hearts, minds. The more we talk about it, the more we may actually begin to reclaim and live the value. Order Form>
Fairo Gatherings: In our community or church gatherings (mwiich / mwiirh / mweish), our leaders, ministers, priests, elders, parents, teachers should talk about the importance of fairo – respect for self, others, and the environment.
Fairo Friends: Let’s use the social media such as Facebook to show respect. Join our FB friends on Thanksgiving Day to use our specially designed Fairo profile. Live respectfully on forums.
Fairo Programs: Start an after school or Saturday cultural enrichment program in your community to teach our Chuukese youth about our Chuukese history, language, values, artform, and the various ways to embody fairo.
Fairo Centers: Wherever possible, our Chuukese communities should start Uuten Fairo (Fairo Centers) where our elders and cultural practitioners can come together with our youth to perpetuate our Chuukese cultural practices, performances, and art form.
Fairo Share: Let’s help each other out by sharing the different ways to respect the local culture and people in your state, community, neighborhood, school, workplace, organization, church, etc. For example, in Hawaii where I live, I suggest that all Chuukese people in Hawaii should learn the words and melody to the two important songs (Hawai’i Pono’i and Hawai’i Aloha) for the Hawaiian people so we can join them in singing their songs. Simple ways to respect the people and land in which we are guests.
Wear Fairo Proudly!
Click on the “Order Now” button for our Order Form. Fill it out, enclose your payment and send to the address on the form.
All proceeds from t-shirt & wristband orders subsidize the Fairo Project.
Cash, checks, or money order are acceptable. Make check, money order payable to “Fanapi Foundation”
Please make sure you include your name, address and contact information.
Give a Gift: You can also order t-shirts and wristbands as a gift for someone, organization, church, or youth group. Just send us the name and address of the person(s) along with the donation.
Bulk Orders: Contact Vid Raatior (vid@raatior.com) if you’re interested in ordering in bulk for your organization.
