ABLE Prom lights up Royal Sonesta

NAWILIWILI — With strong support from the County of Kaua‘i, Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami and others, the Lihu‘e Missionary Church coordinated the ABLE Prom on Saturday at the Royal Sonesta Kaua‘i Resort and its renovated ballrooms.

“This is the first time since the pandemic that we’re coming back to the hotels,” said Ana Munoz, the lead coordinator of the ABLE Prom and author of the “Perfectly Loved” book that shares insights on raising a Special Needs child.

“Last year, we were at the Koloa Missionary Church and the prom somehow lacked something that being at a resort brings to the prom.”

About 100 promgoers with special needs and disability challenges were announced with the accompaniment of a horn blower using a special heralding horn given to the group by Dely Sasaki. A Step and Repeat photo station allowed the audience more time to cheer and welcome the special prom guests to an evening of table service dinner, prom elegance and dancing.

Earlier in the afternoon, female promgoers were treated to hair and make up treatments by professional beauticians, who donated their time and supplies at the Lihu‘e Missionary Church, where the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i provided snack foods during the preparation period.

The Kaua‘i Bus provided transportation for the group to the Royal Sonesta, which decorated the entryway to the ballrooms that transformed the service entry into an elegant prom entry.

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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.