For Drew Camacho, the journey from addiction to academic success has been transformative. A former heroin user, the Hawaiʻi Island native spent more than a decade in a destructive cycle of substance abuse, felony charges and incarceration.
“Looking back, I think I’ve always kind of had issues with substance abuse. No outlets, no real support,” Camacho said. “And as a local boy, like our culture—we don’t talk about these kinds of things. We don’t tell anybody, ‘Hey, I need help.’”
After serving 16 months in prison for multiple violations, Camacho was given an unexpected opportunity that changed his life—a chance to enroll in a treatment program at Bridge House in Kailua-Kona. During his time at Bridge House, Camacho worked on his recovery in a 7-acre lychee farm and in the garden. However, when it was time to transition out of treatment, Camacho was unsure of his next step. That’s when a counselor introduced him to Hawaiʻi Community College–Pālamanui.
Pālamanui gives ‘peace’
Camacho enrolled there in 2021, initially pursuing a certificate in substance abuse counseling, while working at Bridge House. However, after experiencing burnout, he pivoted to liberal arts and found his true passion in caring for the land, with the help of mentors such as lecturer Richard Stevens and academic advisor Kalei Haleamau-Kam, who is now the director of Hawaiʻi CC–Pālamanui.
After taking a history class from Stevens that emphasized love of and service to the land, Camacho started working in the campus’ botanical garden.
“I started learning about my (Hawaiian) culture, and doors just started opening,” Camacho said. “And I love that place. It gives me peace.”
He teared up, describing Stevens as a father figure and a friend, whom he joins with in the lava fields and the trees of the Pālamanui Forest Preserve for conservation work almost every week.
Camacho said, “He’s lived an amazing life, and he’s passed on some of his morals and his values and his mindset to me to just keep going and take care of the land, and how important our land is.”
Stevens described Camacho as someone “solid” who impressed him from their first meeting.
“Whether in the classroom, or in the field preserving and restoring the endangered Hawaiian lowland dry forest and ancient Hawaiian trail system, Drew is there, not only backing up all that we do, but leading the way,” said Stevens. “He is a dynamic, humble and natural leader with a personal quest for excellence combined with an immense love and devotion to the ʻaina, the culture and his ‘team’ of classmates, teachers and community members.”
Haleamau-Kam added, “I am proud of Drew’s educational success. Watching him grow, push through challenges, and stay true to his goals has been nothing short of inspiring.”
Captain of the ‘Dream Team’
Camacho’s determination and resilience have inspired many around him. It is no surprise that he was selected to be the student speaker at Pālamanui’s commencement ceremony on May 17.
Stevens said, “I have been keeping in mind a ‘Dream Team’ of the top students I’ve had in almost 40 years of teaching—absolutely the most brilliant in the classroom and the most valuable in the field. Drew is the captain of that team.“
In the future, Camacho plans to take more classes in tropical ecosystems and agroforestry management and pursue a bachelor’s degree online at UH Hilo through the UH education center at Pālamanui. His dream is to have a community-based substance abuse treatment center that focuses on reconnecting people to the land through growing food, agroforestry and farming.
He has a message for his fellow graduates that resonates from his life experiences and from his heart.
“For those who are graduating, that’s a testament to the courage to keep going and the willingness to trudge through adversity,” Camacho said. “That’s pretty much my message—to continue, and don’t stop. This is not the end. This is just one chapter in the beginning of a new journey.”
—By Kelli Abe Trifonovitch
