LIHUE — The gentle rain which started to fall Thursday demonstrated the might of Keren Gundersen at the atrium of the Lihue Civic Center, Moikeha Building. Gundersen, who will be leaving Kauai for Oregon to be with her family, was
LIHUE — The gentle rain which started to fall Thursday demonstrated the might of Keren Gundersen at the atrium of the Lihue Civic Center, Moikeha Building.
Gundersen, who will be leaving Kauai for Oregon to be with her family, was on hand to receive accolades from Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., the Kauai County Council, and the Kauai delegation to the state Legislature.
Carvalho, through a proclamation presented by Nadine Nakamura, the Kauai managing director, bestowed the honor of Gundersen being an Ambassador of Goodwill, in celebrating her accomplishments during the Hawaii Invasive Species Awareness Week.
“My warmest ‘aloha’ for conserving the unique charm and natural beauty of the County of Kauai, a place which will be in debt to you for generations,” Nakamura said.
Jay Furfaro, the Kauai County Council chair, agreed, noting the county council recognizes and acknowledges Gundersen for “her pivotal and extraordinary contributions to Kauai as project manager for the Kauai Invasive Species Committee.
“Keren has been a driving force on KISC for the past 12 years,” Furfaro said.
With a background in project management, an awareness of the environment and economic havoc that invasive species can cause, and an enormous commitment to protecting the environment, Gundersen, over her 12-year tenure, grew KISC into “an effective conservation force supported by an annual grant-funded budget of more than $700,000 and a staff of nine, Furfaro said.
“Although Hawaii’s natural beauty is well-known throughout the world, the strength and basis of Hawaii’s unique island lifestyle lies in its people,” said Gini Kapali, Rep. Derek Kawakami’s chief of staff, who flew in for the presentation on behalf of the Kauai delegration to the State Legislature. “Through their personal relationships with families, friends, and neighbors, and through their dedicated efforts to serve the needs of their community, people such as Keren Gundersen have created the true meaning of the ‘aloha spirit’ which we all enjoy.”
• Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
