Give, Never Expect, and then Give Some More: The Jon Mozo Celebration

“Our parents were very good to us,” Chris remembers. “They always took us on trips and let us know that it’s a big world. My dad was in the military for 30 years, but he always made time for the family and taught us the right things: how to set our priorities straight and respect people. That’s the big thing; when you have respect for other people, you get it back in a lot of ways. You’ve got to support everyone. There’s no good or bad or being better than someone else.”

Living a simple life and being there for family and friends is what is most important to Chris and the rest of the Mozo ‘ohana. “None of us are movie stars or in the position to make major political changes,” Chris explains. “If it all came down to one thing, it’d be service to others. Everyone wants more money or more land, greed has taken over so much, but we just want to help people out and be there to support the youth and the community.”

With a youth center on the horizon, Nikki is excited. She has a degree in social work and is happy to call Hau‘ula home. “Jon taught me a lot but one thing is you have to set goals for yourself,” Nikki recalls. “Life is short. You never know when your last day is going to be, so live every day like it’s your last—that’s the way Jon was. He was always in an urgent rush to get things accomplished. But at the same time, life is simple and we need to enjoy the simplicity of life, which is loving one another and being there for one another and not being greedy.”

While there are thousands of good causes to get involved in, Nikki maintains that teaching and helping the youth through Jon’s vision has become the family’s niche in the world. “Jon’s a good example of having a wholesome life, and being good to people, and setting goals and accomplishing them,” she says. “So we want to continue to show kids the way to do that for themselves.”

“Jon has so many legacies,” Nikki maintains. “Today is just about coming together and enjoying life. Jon loved to throw a party. He’s really happy today that this party has gone down. It’s not just about him though—Jon was so humble; he wouldn’t want it to be all about him. It’s about coming together to celebrate what life has to offer us, and, what are we going to do about it?”