The State of Hawaii’s plan to dismantle the Hawaii Tourism Authority will have other far-reaching consequences. One of these is the fact that the state may cut the Visitor Aloha Society funding – an organization that serves as a critical support organization for Hawaii’s visitors in need.
Launched in 1997 by the Honolulu Rotary Club, the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii (VASH) provides aid to visitors that experience trauma or tragedy. Any time visitors experience a loss, the organization is there to provide comfort. Over the past 24 years, the primarily volunteer force has provided comfort, consoling, and aid to thousands of visitors. And while the organization relies heavily on volunteers, it does still need funding to operate.
State May Cut Visitor Aloha Society Funding
In 2020, VASH received $370,000 in state funding. This year? $277,000. But, that funding could get slashed to zero. That’s because the State of Hawaii is looking to cut funding to the Hawaii Tourism Authority’s Safety and Security Programs or eliminate the organization as a whole.
State leaders believe that Hawaii no longer needs a marketing entity since visitors came rushing back to the islands. But, the reality is that they’re wrong. The Hawaii Tourism Authority is instrumental in helping to bring balance to our tourist industry. Plus, marketing is going to be needed again in the future. Part of the reason Hawaii is seeing such a rush of visitors is because Americans are still largely banned from most popular destinations. That could change soon, though.
What’s more, the Spirit of Aloha is what sets Hawaii apart from other destinations. That means helping visitors in need. And in order for us to do that, we need organizations like VASH – which is why we also need to continue to fund them.
Final Thoughts
Hawaii’s officials are something else. First, they let $30 million worth of COVID tests expire even though we have a legitimate need for them. Then, they want to shoot the goose that lays the golden egg and kill off the organization that’s responsible for so many facets of Hawaii’s visitor industry. None of this makes any sense to me.
I found the Hawaiian people very racist/xenophobic to outsiders when visiting there last month with my family…and the locals generally not hospitable off the resort area. I’m not surprised if they continue the trend of local residents making Hawaii harder to visit by non-Hawaiian residents.
I’m sorry you experienced this. I’d say most aren’t racist – though I know the pandemic has caused far more tension. In this case, though, this is a case of the government shooting itself in the foot. I’d call it stupidity rather than racism.
In 2015 I took my wife, kids and mom to the Big Island for vacation. Unfortunately my mother passed away unexpectedly while we were there.
VASH reached out to us, sent us a little gift baskets of stuffed animals and activities for the kids. Offered to help with anything we needed. The biggest thing they helped with was the rental car, I think they called the rental agency and got them to extend the rental car an extra few days and honor the rate I paid initially.
It was nice but not really anything I couldn’t do myself. I think if I needed financial support they may have provided some but I was OK.
Tom, that’s awful. I’m sorry for your loss and that you had to go through all of that. Thankfully, your situation appeared to be rather mild. However, there are times when victims/families really needed help from VASH. This is especially true for violent access against tourists, which happens at times. Or even in cases in which a honeymooning couple loses a spouse while here. I believe that happened a few years ago with a honeymooning Japanese couple got into a terrible accident – in that case, the language barrier alone can make things incredibly difficult.
I actually think this is one of the more meaningful things that Hawaii offers. It’s something that you hope you’ll never have to rely on. But if you do end up needing it, it’s great that it’s there and helps us to set ourselves apart. All that aside, offering this type of assistance, no matter if its needed or not, exemplifies the true spirit of Aloha.
$370,000 is pretty small potatoes for Hawaiian tourism. Maybe it’s just me but this move really comes across as eating your seed corn.
It is, but it wouldn’t be the first time our government leaders made such a boneheaded decision.