Kaiser staff volunteer in North Kona, Hilo for its Annual Day of Service

About 100 Kaiser Permanente physicians, providers, nurses, clinical and administrative staff, and their family members offered hands-on service at two sites on Hawai‘i Island as part of the 2026 Kaiser Permanente Hawai‘i Annual Day of Service in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

On the Hilo side of the island, volunteers returned to the Haleolono fishpond at Kamokuna in Honohononui for the eighth consecutive year to support coastal restoration efforts. Working alongside the Edith Kanaka‘ole Foundation, participants focused on removing invasive plant species and repairing sections of the historic fishpond wall – an important cultural and ecological resource for the community.

“This work is about more than restoring a physical place – it’s about honoring the history, culture, and relationships connected to this land,” said Luka Kanaka‘ole, Communications Officer for the Edith Kanaka‘ole Foundation. “When volunteers return year after year, it shows respect and kuleana, and it strengthens the connection between people, ʻāina, and community.”

Meanwhile, in North Kona, Kaiser Permanente volunteers partnered with the Akaka Foundation for Tropical Forests and the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Forestry and Wildlife at Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a Forest Reserve. The group supported restoration of the region’s rare dryland forest ecosystem through activities that included planting native species, collecting seeds, and clearing invasive weeds and vines.

The reserve is home to native flora and fauna, including nesting nēnē, and holds deep historical and cultural significance. This is the 10th year Kaiser Permanente volunteers have come to Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a to work on the forest restoration project.

“When dedicated volunteers show up to work alongside the community members and partners who care for Pu’uwa’awa’a year-round, it creates real, lasting impact,” said Rebekah Dickens Ohara, PhD, CEO of the Akaka Foundation for Tropical Forests. “We’re grateful to Kaiser Permanente for ten years of helping restore this precious ʻāina.”

Hawai‘i Permanente Medical Group, which oversees care delivery for Kaiser Permanente Hawai‘i, has hosted an annual Day of Service since its 50th anniversary in 2010, according to a press release from the medical group.

“As health care providers, our responsibility extends well beyond the clinic,” said Matthew Murray, DO, family medicine specialist and physician-in-charge at Kaiser Permanente’s Hawaiʻi Island clinics. “The reforestation progress we’ve witnessed over the decade we’ve been volunteering here reinforces the idea that lasting health – for both people and our ‘āina – comes from sustained, collective effort.”

The Hawai‘i Island projects were part of a coordinated, statewide effort that brought together more than 1,000 Kaiser Permanente Hawai‘i physicians, providers, nurses, staff, family members, and community partners volunteering simultaneously on O‘ahu, Maui and Kaua‘i.