Summer is here!

Aloha kākou,

With summer in full swing, we have been having fun at our restoration sites with a number of families and large groups coming to help out!  This month's work day at the He`eia Estuary involved a great group of over 70 community members that did some impressive work removing mangrove seedlings and weed-whacking Guinea Grass. Everyone participated in out-planting over 150 native coastal plants and got to experience the rising tide's effect on the water level throughout the estuary. At Hakipu`u, the volunteers spent the day weeding through a very steep hillside, the keiki had a chance to plant some young Koa and 'Ohia trees and all volunteers had time to enjoy the views overlooking Kāne'ohe Bay on our walk out of the valley.  We got a lot done at both project sites and have huge piles of greenwaste to prove it!  

Mahalo to all of the individuals and groups who took the time to volunteer with Hui o Ko'olaupoko in June 2016 including staff from Anheuser Busch and their families, local Boy Scouts and basketball teams, and service members of the U.S. Air Force Navy, Army and Marines! Be sure to check out the latest project photos on our Facebook Page. 
 
                                                                        Over 120 volunteers contributed 
                                                                        330 hours of service in June 2016! 
 
As the summer continues to heat up, cool off in nature and join us for an upcoming workday at He'eia and take a dip in the rising tide or in the cool mountain spring waters of Hakipu'u. We also encourage everyone to take a moment to look around your house for ways that you can be conserving water and doing your part to mālama 'āina from your own property. Here at HOK, a few of our favorite practices are: utilizing rain gardens to help stormwater infiltrate back into the aquifer, landscaping with drought tolerant native plants and installing rain barrels to capture rain water for later use.  More information on these and other tips can be found on the Resources Page of our website and our staff and interns are always available to answer questions or just talk story about the best practices for your home.
 
Don't forget to view our current projects, upcoming events and visit our Facebook page for photos from our events.