Rotary Club of Ala Moana members, family, friends, and UH Mānoa HELP students joined forces to refresh classroom doors at Lunalilo Elementary School, completing nearly four times the work originally planned.
The Rotary Club of Ala Moana (RCAM) brought together Rotarians, family members, friends, and student volunteers for a School Beautification service project at King William C. Lunalilo Elementary School on Saturday, August 29. Volunteers spent the morning giving classroom doors a fresh coat of paint. The doors are painted in specific colors to help young students recognize and remember where their classrooms are located. What began as a two-hour project with a goal of painting about 30 doors quickly grew into something much bigger.
Thanks to an overwhelming turnout of volunteers, the team was able to expand the project from one school building to four. Each building had approximately 30 doors, meaning volunteers tackled about 120 doors in just two and a half hours. Teams spread throughout the campus, working together to prepare and paint the doors. The strong turnout allowed the group to accomplish roughly four times the work originally planned.
RCAM volunteers included Lani Paet, Greg Concilla, Jamie Apuna, Scott Wishart, Scott Sonoda, Sue Ann Lee, Casey Yoo, Konrad Ikei, Lori Williams, Jim Williams, and Hyunji “Ji” Martinez. Several brought family members and friends to lend a hand, including Sue Ann’s Compass co-worker Sharissa Toyooka; Casey’s wife, son, and daughter; and Konrad’s mother. Their participation turned the project into a community effort that extended beyond Rotary club membership.
The project received an additional boost from approximately 30 students from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Hawaiʻi English Language Program (HELP), part of the Department of Second Language Studies, along with Assistant Director Gina Redila. The students are in Hawaiʻi studying Travel Industry Management and complete volunteer hours as part of their program. Community service also gives the students an opportunity to practice their English-speaking skills while meeting and working alongside people in Hawaiʻi.
By the end of the morning, freshly painted doors could be seen across four buildings at Lunalilo Elementary School. The project showed how quickly a simple campus improvement can grow when many people are willing to pitch in. For RCAM, the morning was about more than paint—it was an opportunity to support a longtime community partner while bringing Rotarians, families, friends, and students together through service.