The Institute of Museum and Library Services has informed Sen. Daniel Akaka of federal grants to two Hawai‘i museums. IMLS will award Waioli Corporation in Lihu‘e a $52,783 Museums of America grant to begin a digital equipment and archiving project
The Institute of Museum and Library Services has informed Sen. Daniel Akaka of federal grants to two Hawai‘i museums.
IMLS will award Waioli Corporation in Lihu‘e a $52,783 Museums of America grant to begin a digital equipment and archiving project to digitize all of its museums’ historical records, which include missionary, sugar plantation, Wilcox family, Kaua‘i Public Health nursing, and Hawaiian government documents.
“I was … pleased to hear a grant was awarded that will preserve the Wilcox family treasures on Kaua‘i,” Akaka said, according to a press release.
IMLS will award a Museums of America grant of $125,400 to the Laupahoehoe Train Museum on the Hamakua Coast of the Big Island to strengthen its educational outreach and community awareness through projects developed around the theme, “Highlighting of Hawaii’s Railroads,” including programming on railroad, plantation, and cultural history, and a production of a short DVD.
Akaka wrote a letter in strong support of the grant application in December of last year. “I appreciate the tireless dedication by community members over the past decade to tell the story of the railroad, which played a significant role in the rich plantation history of Hamakua Coast. Given the community’s success in preserving this important part of their heritage, I am confident that this grant will go a long way,” Akaka said, according to the release.
