Hula teacher Michele Drumright remembers the day 16 years ago when she left her home in Hawaii and traveled with her husband to a new life in Winters.

She was in her early 20s, and had grown up on the Big Island and attended college on Oahu.

The islands were all she'd known, and it made her terribly sad to leave, she said.

But her mother told her not to worry. She would carry Hawaii with her wherever she went.

"I took it literally and brought Hawaii with me to the little town of Winters," Drumright said with a smile.

Since arriving in Yolo County, Drumright, now 38, has taught Hawaiian and Tahitian dance to hundreds of students in her adopted hometown.

Drumright's Halau Hula O Lei Hali'a – the hula school of fond memories – was named for her island upbringing.

Because of Drumright, the town of 7,000 residents has acquired a Hawaiian subculture, with many locals embracing the art of hula.

Her students' performances have become well known at the annual Earthquake Festival and Youth Day events and at community luaus.

After some initial skepticism, Drumright said, "I think people just soaked it up."

Last week, with a soft breeze blowing at sunset, a dozen dancers swayed on the lawn of a city park. A portable stereo, perched on a white gazebo, played Hawaiian music.

Wearing flowers in her dark hair, Drumright led her students through dozens of dances.

"Smile!" she encouraged them during a modern hula.

Later, students performed traditional Hawaiian chants as Drumright pounded on a gourd.

The hula, Drumright explained, started as a ritual of Hawaiian men preparing for war. Women later took it up.

Since she was 3 years old, Drumright has practiced with hula masters.

"Hula is a calling in life," she said.

The songs of hula are filled with poetic imagery celebrating nature, love and human struggle.

In the women's hula, words take shape in fluid, graceful movements that represent images such as a flower, the ocean or mist. Together, they tell a story.

In the men's dance, gestures are more aggressive, with the thumping of chests and other warrior-like moves.

Drumright's students have ranged from young girls to women in their 60s.

Hayley O'Neil, 38, and her four daughters have learned the hula together for the past five years.

She said hula is family-oriented, like Winters, and provides an opportunity to learn about another culture.

O'Neil's daughter Kayla, 16, said she enjoys learning the hula with her mother. "It's sort of like family bonding time," she said.

A smaller number of students have been men and boys. Cosmo Kasapligil, 9, started doing the hula after sitting through his big sister's practices.

"I thought I might as well do it, too, if I was going to sit there and play my Game Boy," he said.

Cosmo said it's challenging because the dance moves that boys have to learn are different from the girls' movements.

Over the weekend, Drumright invited current and former students to a potluck dinner and performance at a church hall in Winters.

Girls wearing feather headdresses and grass skirts swayed to the melodies, with Drumright sometimes joining in, while boys stomped to the throbbing beat of drums.

The reunion was somewhat bittersweet because Drumright has decided to scale back her teaching to focus on her family.

She and her husband, Aaron, a professional firefighter, have four children. Drumright also works for Hawaiian Airlines. Along with classes, it's a demanding schedule.

In 2006, she said, there were 185 students in her school, and she taught five days a week. She also took a group to compete in Tahiti that year.

Now, she'll work with a core group of 50 to 60 students and prepare them for an upcoming competition in Hawaii.

But the change means leaving behind members of what many regard as a large extended hula clan in Winters.

"Michele is just like family to us," said Ashley Shaw, 14.

Drumright said she, too, is saddened but knows it's time to start another chapter in her life.

"I almost feel," she said, "like I'm leaving Hawaii again."

Call The Bee's Hudson Sangree, (916) 321-1191.