Plants for Kea‘au High Campus: Several years ago, when the school was being built, the head of maintenance asked us to start some shrubs for the campus. The plants were finally ready, and so was Mr. Kelly, so we are now ready to deliver the first batch,

Database of our Plantings: This was the idea of Mark Franklin, and the Board liked it so much that we are putting it together, including photos. We are going all the way back to when we were Puna Outdoor Circle – after all, under whatever name, these were still our projects. We blew ourselves away when we started making the list and realized how much planting we have done over the years!

Tree Planting: Board member Mark Franklin has been planting native coastal species along the road between Four Corners and Ahalanui Park, on the makai side. Eventually they will provide some shade and beauty.

New Materials in MOP Library: Although money has been tight this year, we still managed to augment our library with books on landscaping and children’s books. Remember, one of the benefits of MOP membership is that you can borrow books (one at a time for up to one month).

Visions of Puna: We are now partnering with HCEOC (Hawaii Island Economic Opportunity Council under George Yokoyama) and Paul Ogasuwara: Paul is providing the space for our video studio, and HCEOC is covering the utilities and insurance. Our Education Chair, Del Pranke has added this own equipment to ours, and he and Keola Downing have created a state-of-the-art professional studio. The monthly show “Report to Puna”, in which Gary Safarik interviews various people on local issues, is one of our productions. We are working on educational public service announcements, documentaries and oral histories of our kupuna.

“A Homeowner’s Guide to Coqui Control”: Lots of misinformation has been disseminated about these Puerto Rican frogs, so we decided to counter it with facts. It is now available at our office and also at Pahoa Feed & Fertilizer. We are trying to get funding to put out the guide for larger distribution. Any ideas?

Booths at Special Events:
Hawai 'i County Fair: We helped Big Island Invasive Species Committee (BIISC) and Operation Miconia staff an information booth.
Native Plant Workshop: We had a table at this workshop where we had information and examples of live potted plants – the ‘Ohe makai was in bloom, and made a big hit.
Malama i ke Kai: Over 100 Puna talents (including MOP members Graham Ellis, Angie Baker and Greg & Joy McCluer) took part in this double header show at the Pahoa Gym, sponsored by Hawaii Community Foundation. The theme of the show was appreciating our surrounding ocean and becoming aware of the necessity of taking care of it. We were invited to have an educational exhibit on ocean issues, and we generated a lot of interest.

“The Right Tree in The Right Place”: This great little book, printed on recycled paper, was put out by DLNR’s Kaulunani Urban Forestry Program and co-sponsored by HECO. Mike Kraus of Treeworks passed 8 cases of them on to us and we distributed them all within one week. Pahoa Library sent out copies to every library in the State system, and gave away many more. We are trying to get the updated editions to distribute again.

Nat’l. Arbor Day Poster Contest/Syllabus Materials: These were passed on to us by Mike Kraus of Treeworks. We passed these educational materials along to Pahoa Elementary, Hawai 'i Academy of Arts & Sciences, Kea‘au Elementary, Waters of Life Charter School and Christian Liberty Charter School.