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Bank of Hawaii Partners with Papahana Kuaola

HONOLULU, HAWAII

September 16th, 2019

More than 300 Bank of Hawaii employees, family members and friends volunteered earlier today at Papahana Kuaola for a variety of ʻāina-based service work. From trail building and invasive plant removal to native planting and lo‘i maintenance, volunteers from keiki to kupuna worked together to help care for the environment and promote greater sustainability during Bank of Hawaii’s 14th annual Community Service Day.

The volunteers, called the Bankoh Blue Crew, worked on a variety of projects at Papahana Kuaola in the ahupuaʻa of Heʻeia, including:

  • Lo‘i Maintenance—Volunteers helped clear weeds and debris and provided maintenance to the kalo patches, allowing participants to connect to thousands of years of farming traditions.
  • Plant Propagation—In partnership with Hui Kū Maoli Ola, volunteers learned how to propagate native plants. The plants will be used for reforestation projects.
  • Reforestation—The reforestation project aims to transition an overgrown invasive forest into a thriving native forest. Volunteers helped transition our land back to ‘āina by outplanting native plant species.
  • Trail Building—Volunteers hiked up the ridge to help construct mountain trails.

Working together with leaders from Papahana Kuaola and Hui Kū Maoli Ola, volunteers planted more than 800 native trees; rehabilitated one mile of trail; cleaned two lo‘i; and propagated more than 3,000 native plants, including ti leaf, ‘olena, nanea, kalo and loulu palms, which are endemic to Hawai‘i.

The Bank of Hawaii Foundation made a $5,000 donation to Papahana Kuaola to support the nonprofit’s efforts of creating quality educational programs focused on environmental restoration and economic sustainability.

Bank of Hawaii’s “Bankoh Blue Crew” volunteers are out serving the community almost every weekend. They have donated nearly 3,327 hours of their time to 68 community service projects as of the end of second quarter.

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