Po‘ipu Beach Park was the beneficiary of efforts from a group of visitors from IHS, a global business information services company based in Denver. About 150 people earned incentive trips to Kaua‘i from IHS and wanted to do more than
Po‘ipu Beach Park was the beneficiary of efforts from a group of visitors from IHS, a global business information services company based in Denver.
About 150 people earned incentive trips to Kaua‘i from IHS and wanted to do more than just “bask in the sun,” states a county release.
Coordinated through Chrysalis Events Hawai‘i, a destination management company, the visitors signed up for various community service projects spread out across the island, including the sprucing up of Po‘ipu Beach Park.
IHS volunteer teams were also sent to community projects at the Kawaikini Charter School, Maka‘uwahi Cave Reserve, National Tropical Botanical Garden and the Kilohana Plantation.
“IHS is very focused on corporate sustainability and community is an important part of that priority,” said Jane Okum Bomba, senior vice president and chief sustainability, IR and communications officer for IHS. “We believe the only way to achieve long-term success for our company is to ensure the communities where we live, work and play are thriving and vibrant. We wanted to give back by contributing effort toward some of the projects which needed to be done with the goal of leaving the island in a little better shape than when we arrived.”
IHS, employing more than 600 people in Colorado and more than 5,500 worldwide, according to its website, rewards its top performing employees and their guests with a week-long stay at a top-notch visitor destination. The group selected the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i Resort and Spa as its destination for this trip.
“This is the first time we participated in community projects during our celebration trip,” Okun Bomba said. “Many of our employees were so energized by the opportunity to do some meaningful work and engage with the wonderful people in your community. IHS would like to thank the people of Kaua‘i for welcoming us so warmly.”
Paint, rollers and brushes for the Po‘ipu Beach Park project were supplied through the county’s Adopt-A-Park program.
The team made short work of the project, finishing in about two hours. In that time, they repainted picnic tables, performed minor repairs and did general trash cleanup.
Eddie Sarita, coordinator of the county’s Adopt-A-Park Program and manager of the Kaua‘i War Memorial Convention Hall, said anyone who signs up as a volunteer in the Adopt-A-Park program can select how he or she would like to help.
Training for how to perform a particular task is available, he said.
“Volunteers can help in a lot of different ways,” Sarita said in the release. “They can pick up litter, remove graffiti, sweep the courts and pathways, pull weeds, rake leaves, plant flowers, or engage in other approved projects.”
An entire park, or particular areas within parks, may be adopted.
Those include sports fields, exercise courses, flower beds, trees and shrubs, pavilions, playgrounds, basketball and tennis courts, bike and pedestrian paths, undeveloped parkland and restrooms.
Over the years, many local community groups also have engaged in beautification projects at county parks, and Sarita said a group of more than two dozen volunteers from the U.S.S. Hopper will be working on projects at the Hanama‘ulu Beach Park and the Peter Rayno Sr. Park on Saturday.
Call Sarita at 241-6623 for more information about the Adopt-A-Park program.
