About Lani-Kailua

Kawainui United

In 1912, The Outdoor Circle was formed to keep Hawaii clean, green, and beautiful. In 1946, Lani-Kailua Outdoor Circle organized to bring the vision to Kailua. In the mid 70’s, LKOC formed the Ad Hoc Committee for Kawainui Marsh. ( Some mis-guided developers thought our marsh would be a good place for a mall.)

From the mid-70’s to 2007? Have we been patient? NO!!! But we haven’t given up, and we haven’t gone away.

Now, thanks to the efforts of many persistent people and organizations, we are taking a big step toward making our wetland reach the spiritual, educational, cultural, ecological, and esthetic potential we knew in our hearts was there from the beginning.

Sharon Geary, president of Lani-Kailua Outdoor Circle, accepted a copy of the bill unifying the marsh lands under the ownership of the State of Hawaii from Governor Linda Lingle in a signing ceremony at Kawainui Marsh on June 28, 2007. This unification will qualify our wetland for federal funds to restoration and protection.

For more Kawainui Marsh information and volunteer opportunities please visit www.ahahui.net.

Partnership with the Women’s Community Correctional Center

In 2001, some our members were helping with landscaping at the Women’s Community Correctional Center in Kailua. Someone noticed the derelect remains of a plant nursery on the grounds. In return for referbishing the overgrown facility and paying for materials and tools for classes in horticulture, LKOC was able to establish a partnership with the Department of Public Safety and the Correctional Center. The DPS would provide the teachers to teach the women gardening and nursery work, which provides them with job skills when they are released. The Community Service Work Line (10 of the most-trusted women under the direction of a very skilled woman officer) would take over the maintenance of several of LKOC’s public plantings.

The program has thrived; and we have, through grants, donations from community businesses and other contributions as well as our own LKOC funds, contributed more than $90,000 toward the program at the nursery. At the same time, the Community Service Work Line has saved LKOC funds, while the women maintain the public plantings better than the commercial firms we had been paying. The women are greatly appreciated in the community, their self esteem grows, and we have had reports of the beneficial impact from what they learned through the program helping them after their release.

The deSign Team

The deSign team is tasked with taking down expired garage sale, party and other temporary-type signs on Monday afternoons. Signs on public property (such as along roadways, on telephone or electrical poles, or on street sign poles) are illegal. This team removes them and any expired signs (“Sale Saturday”…now it’s Monday) and makes Kailua a more beautiful place.

Motto: If you see an illegal or expired sign, take it down on Monday.