Grandmother’s devotion is definition of labor of love

When Nohea Chang speaks of "the most challenging, fatiguing, fulfilling job" she’s ever had, she isn’t referring to the 40 years she spent as a teacher.

Rather, she means the pre-dawn to post-dusk labors of love she undertakes in caring for her four beloved grandchildren each weekday.

"I loved having children and I love having grandchildren," says Chang, 70. "When I’m with them, I try to incorporate both play and education. I want to make a positive difference in their lives."

Bodhi, the 20-month-old child of son Keoni and his wife, Sharon, arrives at 5:45 each morning, babbling happily as soon as he comes through the door. Daughter Noe­noe Barona’s kids — 9-year-old Jacob and 7-year-old Julia — arrive next for a quick breakfast before shuttling off to school.

On Fridays 3-year-old Taylor, daughter of Chang’s youngest child, Keala Roberts, joins the fray.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Chang and Bodhi attend Tutu and Me, the innovative traveling preschool program offered by Partners in Development. On other days Chang takes Bodhi to Booth Park for fresh air, free play and one-on-one grandma time.

By the time Chang and Bodhi are done with lunch and a nap, Jacob and Julia are back and ready for a snack — fresh fruit and poi — and rides to their respective after-school sports and activities.

Chang and second husband Richard Vierra spent innumerable hours doing laundry, preparing snacks, tending to "owwies" and scanning the aisles at Savers for educational toys. It’s a working retirement that befits their family-centric worldview.

Chang was raised by her grandparents in Pauoa Valley and attended Bingham Tract School, Kawa­na­na­koa Intermediate School and Roosevelt High. She earned a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Hawaii and later added a master’s in middle-level education.

In 35 years with the state Department of Education, Chang taught at King Intermediate, Jarrett Intermediate, Moana­lua Intermediate, Radford High and Alia­manu Intermediate and also worked as a Central District resource teacher. She spent another five years teaching fifth-grade social studies at ‘Iolani School. Squeezed in between were stints as an adult-education teacher.

Chang retired in 2005 so she could baby-sit her first grandchild, Jacob. Her standing as a tenured tutu has been reaffirmed with the arrival of each new grandchild.

"I want my grandchildren to believe in themselves, to care about other people and to always know right from wrong," Chang says. "I want them to understand what true north is in their lives."

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@staradvertiser.com.