The presence of friends and relatives on the mainland makes moving there much easier. In short, the more Hawaii people leave, the more Hawaii people leave. Marion McLeod wears a Stanford sweatshirt, and would like to go there or to the East Coast for college. It's kind of like a requirement to go away. Lillian Yonamine's mainland-bound students often return to give college talks to the younger generation.
Older siblings can encourage younger ones to move.
Bi Vong is a senior at Roosevelt, but is already thinking about Hawaii's economy because her older brother talks about it. Hawaii's not big enough for him to expand, and he probably won't get rich here. The economy's not good enough for him. Vong plans to go to the mainland for college. Parents follow their kids Hawaii often remains the gravitational family center for ex-islanders, but when an entire generation moves away, family dynamics can change.