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  • Why the graduation lei is a popular, meaningful tradition - planetcirculate

    Why the graduation lei is a popular, meaningful tradition


    At commencement time, new graduates don their decorated caps and gowns, waving diplomas as they smile for photos. But many graduates also wear lei — made from flowers, candies, or ribbons around their necks — as congratulations from family and friends.

    Gifting and wearing a lei is a now ubiquitous tradition during graduations and other special occasions, including birthdays, weddings and even funerals. But where did the colorful, eye-catching garland come from, and what does receiving and wearing it actually mean?

    With its roots in Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander culture, a lei refers to a series of strung-together objects — most commonly fresh flowers, but can also be made of leaves, braided ribbons, nuts, candy, shells, or even folded money — that are meant to be worn around the neck.

    Since the Hawaiian language doesn’t distinguish between singular and plural, the word “lei” also refers to more than one of these garlands. A lei can also be worn around the head — commonly called a haku lei, or lei po’o (flower crown) — or wrist.

    Samara Suafo’a, a professor and assistant director of the Department of Teacher Education at Claremont Graduate University, said that in Hawaii, lei were historically regarded as a symbol of rank, wealth and royalty.

    “Because traditional lei are made from elements of the land (i.e. flowers, leaves, vines, shells, etc.) they were also a way for Native Hawaiians to honor and pay homage to their gods,” Suafo’a, who grew up in Honolulu, said.

    She distinguished the lei garland itself from the act of gifting or receiving a lei, especially one that’s been handmade. The tradition is rooted in acts of service; recognizing that one’s personal achievements are “never just about you, but rather about those who paved the way for you and those who will follow.”

    “What a beautiful extension of love and support. Seriously, when is the last time someone made something for you, with their own hands, that came straight from the land?” Suafo’a said. “To me, lei are the ultimate way of saying to the receiver, ‘I may not have much to offer in the form of monetary gifts or material things. But I’m here and I took the time to make this for you.’ Lei are the truest form of aloha.”

    While lei are believed to have originated with the Hawaiians, many Asian Pacific Islander and Oceanic cultures also practice their own lei-making, giving and receiving customs.

    Mission Viejo resident Heather Heleloa runs an online directory of authentic, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander-owned businesses and lei makers across Southern California.

    The community is tight-knit, all valuing the tradition behind the lei, she said. For many Pacific cultures, wearing certain lei styles and colors signifies a person’s ranking. For example, a monarch or chief could wear a feather lei design. The materials — resources from the earth that people had access to — all vary, from sea shells and ti leaves, to kukui nuts and small animal bones.

    Though customs differ, lei should also be adorned a certain way, “not as decoration or an accessory piece,” Heleloa said. Typically, the gifter — who either makes or purchases the lei — places it over the receiver’s head, so that person must bow their head slightly, and the lei is worn draped half in front of the chest and half down the back. Refusing to wear a lei is a show of disrespect.

    Heleloa graduated in May from USC with a Master’s degree in hospitality — proudly wearing a handmade lei po’o around her graduation cap.

    Wearing lei is “not about status. It’s to recognize one’s achievements, and it’s about love,” she said. “There’s a lot of mana, or strength and power, that goes into both lei-making and receiving. It’s your way of sharing love, respect, kindness, and a bit of you with that person.”

    Graduates celebrate, honor the tradition

    Cal State Dominguez Hills graduate Christian Alvarado wore his colorful maile lei made of leaves — a gift from his girlfriend, mom and grandmother — as he walked across the stage at his school’s May 20 commencement.

    “We had to continue the tradition,” said Alvarado, who graduated with his bachelor’s in business administration. “My grandfather is from Hawai’i too, so it’s really meaningful.”

    Ontario resident and Cal Poly Pomona graduate Adrianne Manapat wore her orchid lei, a money lei, and a fresh lei po’o crown during her graduation ceremony on May 22. The lei were meaningful gifts from family and close friends, and Manapat plans to preserve them — next to her new Bachelor’s degree in organizational communication — for as long as she can.

    “My best friend, who is originally from Hawaii, had the crown specially made and brought it all the way here from Las Vegas,” Manapat said. “I felt special; like she went through all the trouble and picked those flowers and colors just for me.”

    Marketing graduate Teresa Lopez shared her excitement after walking across the stage at her graduation from Cal State Northridge on May 22. Her sister-in-law adorned her with a lei bearing Lopez’s name, graduation year, and two origami butterflies made out of dollar bills that took her two hours to make.

    Receiving the lei was more than a congratulatory gift, but “a symbol,” Lopez said, “meaning that people are proud of you.”

    CSUN graduate Ancely Juarez was surprised with a handmade lei at her graduation. “It feels so meaningful to have something handmade worn around you at such a beautiful time.”

    Andrea Neri received a lei from an aunt who she had been staying with during her time at CSUN studying emerging media production.

    “It symbolizes all of the hard work I went through the past five years,” said Neri. “Finally, I’m doing this, and walking and showing off everything I’ve accomplished.”

    Sharing the ‘Aloha’ spirit 

    Redondo Beach resident Leilani Huggins first began making authentic floral lei as a child. Named “Leilani” meaning “heavenly lei,” she learned different techniques such as the classic lei kui, made by piercing together flowers with a needle and thread; and lei wili, a winding style typically used in headpiece lei.

    Huggins started making lei garlands for friends and relatives for special occasions. She later took her skills a step further, becoming a full-fledged business, “Leis by Leilani.” She also started teaching lei-making classes in Orange County and L.A., wanting to “share the Aloha spirit,” and has passed down the tradition to her sons.

    “Lei have been so synonymous with graduation,” said Huggins. “It’s a benchmark in one’s life and it’s really important to their next step in adulthood.”

    Huggins said that she starts to see orders for her bright, colorful lei come as early as December for graduations that are months away. With a busy graduation season from December through June, Huggins has fulfilled hundreds of orders by hand. The process can take her anywhere from 30 minutes for more simple lei, to three hours for complex designs.

    The business has also expanded its graduation inventory to include customizable head and chest pieces. Sourcing, cleaning the stems and preparing the flowers takes the most time, Huggins said, and orders have to be made quickly because “everything is ephemeral — as soon as you start making (lei), the flowers are on their dying process.”

    Terrie Ito’s family has owned the Walteria Flower Shop on Hawthorne Boulevard, in Torrance, for nearly 50 years. Ito, the store manager, said that the South Bay is home to many Native Hawaiian families wanting to continue the tradition of gifting a fresh floral lei to their child. The shop has become a community staple in the South Bay, and works with local schools to fulfill growing graduation lei and bouquet orders.

    At Walteria, all lei orders start at $45, and a portion of sales go back to the schools. The shop has two specialty lei-makers who learned the craft in their local hula halau, and everything is made in the store.

    Ito noticed that sales have skyrocketed this school year, especially for the haku headpiece lei, braided with raffia; and the open-ended ti leaf lei, which hangs loose off the shoulders, similar to a stole or honor cord.

    “Coming out of COVID, people are just more celebratory, more thankful. Students had to go through those years of online learning, and they’re just so thankful they get to celebrate and have their full graduation,” Ito said. “We all know people who couldn’t march… so it’s an honor to be able to receive, wear your lei and celebrate.”

    Vendors and schools see lei popularity and sales

    Long Beach resident Martha Pasellas has been a lei vendor at graduations for over 30 years. On May 20, she set up her booth outside of the Dignity Health Sports Park; selling handmade floral, candy and ribbon lei to the families of Cal State Dominguez Hills graduates.

    Pasellas said that she observed graduation lei sales were more popular in California and the West Coast than in other states, where she hasn’t seen too many vendors. She said that she has met other businesses who make around $10,000 during busy graduation season, but those vendors typically travel to farther areas in San Bernardino or San Diego.

    “I (sell) a lot more local, usually in Long Beach, and this graduation is the farthest that I go,” she said, “but I make around $3,500.”

    Pasellas admitted that sometimes vendors get kicked out from the ceremonies without having the proper sales permits. It can be hard to make a profit then, she said, but other times security does allow business outside the stadiums, on sidewalks and near places where people could walk by.

    “We’re here and will continue to be here,” she said.

    The Orange Unified Public Schools Foundation coordinates graduation lei sales for the district’s five high school ceremonies in early June at the Fred Kelly Stadium in Orange. Graduation store coordinator Nicol Jones said that sales go back to the foundation to support schools’ programming and resources.





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