In this paper, the author reflects on experiences with being an outsider researcher during their dissertation in which they worked with six undergraduate Native Hawaiian mentees and their six faculty mentors. Four mentor participants self-identified as Hawaiian themselves, whereas two mentors were non-Hawaiians. In this qualitative study, the author explored the ways in which engagement in mentored research activities influenced the Native Hawaiian students' learning and development, including academic persistence and scientific identity formation. The author conducted interviews with mentees and mentors, observed the mentoring interactions, and analyzed documents that participants shared. The study was conducted in 2018 at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, where the author pursued a doctoral degree in educational psychology as an international student. Coming from a Slovenian and non-Hawaiian background, the author discusses in this paper how their own researcher identity shaped and was shaped by the research process. The author focuses on the strategies used to facilitate trust within the participants and to enhance the collection and interpretation of their stories.