New mobile education unit rolls onto Kahaluu Beach

The Kohala Center’s Kahaluu Bay Education Center has a new, brightly painted, 25-foot van serving as a mobile education unit at Kahaluu Beach Park.

Blessed by Danny and Anna Akaka and officially placed into service on Monday, the vehicle replaces the original van that has served since 2011 as an education center and snorkel rental concession. Daily use plus the weather and salty air had taken its toll on the original van.

Kahaluu Bay Education Center’s new home provides more than 1,000 cubic feet of additional space for snorkel gear, merchandise, educational materials and a flat-panel monitor for screenings of the center’s bay orientation video. The additional capacity will enable the center to serve and educate even more visitors on how to enjoy Kahaluu Bay without harming its fragile corals.

The center began its $60,000 fundraising efforts for the new vehicle in January 2014, and supporters quickly pledged $40,000 in matching funds. Within six months an additional $20,000 in pledges made the upgrade a reality.

The vehicle was procured through FoodCart USA and had once served as a food truck in South Dakota. FoodCart USA brought the vehicle to Southern California to be inspected, repaired, painted, and the interior gutted and new walls installed. It also coordinated the installation of a colorful and educational vehicle wrap designed by Honokaa-based artist Jessica Young before the vehicle was shipped to Kawaihae courtesy of Matson Navigation.

Kahaluu Bay’s spectacular and easily accessible snorkeling attracts more than 400,000 visitors each year, making the bay the most popular tourist destination on the west coast of Hawaii Island.

Moving forward, Kahaluu Bay Education Center plans to embark on a fundraising campaign to develop a long-term plan that will improve Kahaluu Beach Park’s public facilities and establish a permanent education center.

Kahaluu Bay Education Center is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day that the park is open.