Silverswords Focus of Pahoa Rotary Club Trip

Members of a Pahoa civic club went up Mauna Kea recently to help in efforts to restore the endangered silversword.

Fourteen members and friends of the Pahoa Sunset Rotary Club volunteered to water 200 of the plants that were recently planted at around the 9,500-foot elevation. They also pulled invasive fireweed during the Oct. 19 trip.

The invasive fireweed plant. UH photo.

While on the mountain, the group also attended the Malolo o ka Po Lani, a Hawaiian cultural presentation held at the Mauna Kea Visitor Information Station on the third Saturday of each month. The event includes a speaker from the community providing a cultural perspective on Mauna O Wakea, as Mauna Kea is also known.

A representative for the club said the trip ended with stargazing at the visitor’s center at the mountain’s 9,200-foot elevation

Founded about five years ago, Pahoa Sunset Rotary Club currently has about 15 members in the lower Puna area, said club President Glen Calvert.

For information about visitor center activities or volunteer opportunities, call Mauna Kea Support Services at (808) 961-2180. For information on road conditions, call (808) 935-6268.