Reef Etiquette Sign Installed at Kahekili Beach Park

We're proud to announce that Kahekili Beach Park, a popular diving and snorkeling site in West Maui, is home to Maui's newest reef etiquette sign. Visitors to the beach will now have the opportunity to learn about the reef and marine life they'll encounter and how they can help protect this ecosystem.

Getting this sign installed was a true community effort and a testament to the importance of persistence. Back in early 2008, Island Spirit Yoga wanted to sponsor a reef etiquette sign on this site through our "Adopt-a-Sign" program, but permission was denied by the organization that oversees the privately-owned beach park. Island Spirit Yoga decided to sponsor a sign at a different location (Napili Bay); then two years later local resident Sophie Greeno came forward to revisit installing a sign at Kahekili, especially since the site is now part of a new marine protected area, the Kahekili Herbivore Fisheries Management Area (KHFMA). Representing owners of the nearby Mahana condominium, Sophie wanted to sponsor a sign at Kahekili Beach Park in memory of a friend and fellow volunteer naturalist, Kathryn Dragas. To the dismay of many fans of the reef, though, renewed efforts to obtain permission were still denied.

Supporters of the Kahekili sign at the KHFMA birthday party Photo courtesy of Liz Foote

In order to garner community support, CORAL co-hosted a "birthday party" at Kahekili Beach Park to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the KHFMA. We enlisted many attendees to indicate their support for the reef etiquette sign by posing for a picture with a poster of the sign. We also created a "Kahekili Reef Etiquette Sign Supporters" Facebook page and explored various other ways to get word out to the community. Yet despite these efforts and the clear support shown by the community, we were still unsuccessful in gaining approval to install the sign in the park.

Fortunately, the tides turned when community leader Elle Cochran took the initiative to talk to the Kaanapali Operations Association (KOA), which owns the land immediately adjacent to the park's boundaries. Elle has been a great advocate for local reef-friendly projects—she was instrumental in founding and coordinating groups such as the Save Honolua Coalition, Maui Unite, and FACE Maui (Faith Action for Community Equity), and she was also a driving force behind gaining the final approval from the state to install port-o-potties at Honolua Bay. (We're also happy to report that Elle has just been elected to the Maui County Council!) Elle was able to secure support from KOA to install the reef etiquette sign on their land. In late September, KOA's Glenn Gazmen completed the installation in a prominent spot along the beach path near the park's showers.

The sign was officially dedicated on October 3 with an unveiling ceremony. Earl Kukahiko conducted a Hawaiian Blessing for the event, which was attended by about thirty community members, including Sophie Greeno and several of Kathryn's friends and neighbors at the Mahana, as well as Elle Cochran and CORAL's Hawaii Field Manager, Liz Foote.

After the dedication ceremony, the community celebrated with a potluck hosted by Sophie Greeno and the other Mahana condominium owners who had sponsored the purchase of the sign in memory of Kathryn. Community members had the chance not only to connect with each other, but also to learn how to get involved with the Kaanapali Makai Watch program to actively participate in reef conservation efforts.

A reef etiquette sign cake to celebrate the occasion! Photo by Gail Richard

We at CORAL want to applaud the many people who were instrumental in this effort, and we are excited that this sign is now available to educate residents and visitors at a key site within the Kahekili Herbivore Fisheries Management Area!

If you would be interested in sponsoring a sign in Hawaii or one of CORAL's other project sites, please contact us.