Coaches carry out a major role in molding students who seek to play high school sports. However, the vast majority of coaches will admit that without the help of parents that their job would be much tougher.  In the case of the Kahuku’s girls volleyball team, parent Elizabeth Brown has been a prime-time helper in assisting coaches accomplish various tasks that help support the success of the team.
 
Brown has two daughters who play for Kahuku.  Tatiana Brown, a junior, is a member of the varsity team while Taha, a ninth grader, has earned a spot in the junior varsity team.  “I have two daughters who absolutely love playing volleyball,” emphasized Brown. “I make every effort to be an encouraging parent not only for my daughters, but for all of the players on the three teams.”
 
For the past several seasons the OIA formed a Blue Division, designed to give schools the option of fielding a third team of girls volleyball players. Under this avenue, more students will have the opportunity to play in games and develop their skills.
 
“Last season I helped run the concession stand and assisted in various fund-raising drives for the volleyball program to help pay for expenses like the uniforms and travel cost,” Brown said
 
Schools depend upon a variety of fund-raising efforts to maintain their athletic programs.
 
Brown added, “Since the girls usually play in states, the money which the team raises goes a long way in paying the expenses of the extra games that they play.”
 
Brown concluded that Tatiana and Taha sustained a strong interest in wanting to play volleyball early in their lives by attending Kahuku games to watch older family members participate in the sport.
 
“When the girls were much younger I would take them with me to watch their cousins play. They would always be ready to go,” Brown confessed.
 
“One of the cousins played on the Kahuku team that won the state championships. So from early on they had a desire to work hard to develop their skills so that they could make the team when they got to high school.”
 
The girls started their playing career with the North Shore Club.  “I would take them to practices and help drive the players to the game sites.  But I wouldn’t take them if they didn’t do their school work,” Brown said.  “So they knew that they had to make good grades in order to play. Although both of them played other sports in their early years, they choose volleyball as their passion,” Brown said.
 
She says Tatiana and Taha are full-focus on their game. “The night before a game is when they start preparing. They lay the game uniform out and they go to sleep early,” Brown pointed out.
 
“During the season I don’t have to worry too much about the foods that they eat. They are very health conscious, especially my oldest daughter. So they do watch what they eat to keep the weight down so that they can get the most out of their vertical jump.”
 
Tatiana plays the outside hitter position along with being a defensive specialist. “If they need her in the back, they will play her there. But she prefers to help the team score points on the front line,” Brown said.
 
Taha plays the middle blocker position. “At one time she was an outside hitter,” Brown said. “However, with her height the coaches decided that she would be more effective in the center. We know that as she grows, height does matter.”
 
She has a son, Tyrone Brown, who plays on the Kahuku football team as a running back and on the boys volleyball team. He is a senior.

Brown said,  “Playing volleyball at a high level is very hard to do.” She says that her daughters have hopes of getting to that high skill level to earn an opportunity of playing in college.  “I think that the both of them are very focused on the goal of playing in college,” Brown said. “I will do what I can do to support them.”