Kilauea Lighthouse Restoration Efforts gets Hampton Help
By Dennis Fujimoto, The Garden Island
October 4, 2012: The Kilauea Lighthouse restoration got a big boost from the Hampton Hotels, through its Save-A-Landmark program Saturday.
Hampton Hotels donated $25,000 toward the restoration of the Kilauea Lighthouse in honor of National Public Lands Day, which was celebrated Saturday, states a release from the Kilauea Point Natural History Association.
“We are thrilled to be able to help aid the preservation of the Kilauea Lighthouse as it prepares for its centennial celebration in 2013,” said Judy Christa-Cathey, vice president of global brand marketing, Hampton Hotels. “This donation to one of Hawai‘i’s most iconic landmarks signifies the realization of our goal to help at least one landmark in each state. This is a momentous milestone in our brand’s history — one we’ve worked toward for nearly 12 years.”
The presentation was made to the KPNHA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service during the Kilauea Lighthouse local celebration of National Public Lands Day.
Sue Boynton, KPNHA president, Gary Smith, KPNHA Capital Campaign co-chair, and Shannon Smith, refuge manager for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Kaua‘i National Wildlife Refuge Complex, accepted the contribution.
The Kilauea Lighthouse is one of the most visited attractions in Hawai‘i with more than 500,000 visitors each year. The iconic landmark was selected as a Hampton Hotels landmark during a public voting campaign hosted by the company and attracted more than 60,000 votes from communities around the world.
The Kilauea Lighthouse started lighting the way for mariners in 1913, states its website. It served as a pivotal navigational aid for ships sailing on the Orient run.
The historic light station consists of a concrete lighthouse, three field stone keepers’ quarters, a fuel oil shed, cisterns and a supply landing platform and is one of the nation’s most intact historic light stations.
After the light was decommissioned in 1976, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acquired it in 1985 and currently manages the 31-acre site as part of a 203-acre wildlife refuge. Kilauea Point is listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places.
Entitled “Beacon for the Generations to Come, Ka Lama Kuhikuhi No Na Hanauna,” the KPNHA is conducting the capital campaign to restore the lighthouse, the first phase of the restoration work being completed in November 2008 when the anchor bolts securing the lantern room to the concrete tower were repaired and replaced.
The next major phase of work involves repairing the unique cast iron roof and lantern assembly and stabilizing the lens. The work is taking place now and will be followed by the final phase, which will entail repairs to the concrete tower, opening the closed vents and window openings, installing new windows and removing the inappropriate exterior coating to return the tower to its original appearance.
To date, Hampton Hotels has preserved 60 historic sites in 50 states and three countries and has donated more than $2.5 million and more than 8,000 volunteer hours toward the research and refurbishment of roadside landmarks.
“The Save-A-Landmark program has been an important part of the Hampton culture for many years and has enabled thousands of our team members to give back to their local communities, but we’ve truly only just begun,” Christa-Cathey said. “We look forward to expanding our community relations program and aiding even more communities worldwide through a new volunteerism program called ‘Hampton Helps.’ Just as we are committed to delighting our guests, we want to bring our positive, friendly service culture — what we call Hamptonality — to community service to help improve and uplift our communities.”
Visit www.hampton.com/helps for more information about the Hampton Helps program. Visit www.kilauealighthouse.org for more information, or to contribute to the restoration efforts at the Kilauea Lighthouse.
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