Easter Seals Disability Services

Easter Seals Hawai‘i is proud to announce the grand opening of its newest and largest building, Nāpuakea, in Kapolei. Following a five-year, $8 million capital campaign, the 20,000 square foot facility, constructed under LEED guidelines, will house diverse services for more than 500 infants, children, youth and adults with developmental disabilities or special needs and their families. Programs at Nāpuakea will include Early Intervention (the state’s largest), Youth Services, Adult Day Health, Support Services and Workforce Development. Nāpuakea will also serve as headquarters for the organization’s extensive in-home and community-based services on the Leeward side.

“Expanding much needed programs and services to West O‘ahu families had been a long standing dream,” said John Howell, president and chief executive officer of Easter Seals Hawai‘i. “Our board of directors, capital campaign donors, staff and families all contributed to bringing the vision of Nāpuakea to reality. We are especially grateful to The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation for their $2.1M gift.”

Nāpuakea boasts 20,000 square feet of program and service facility space including 3 large therapy rooms, a multi-media training room, 2 kitchens, 20 offices, 9 bathrooms, an adaptive playground and an IT center.

Nāpuakea's multi-media training room will provide for a state-of-the art Continuing Education Program for Easter Seals Hawai‘i therapists as well as those from other health and human service providers. Continuing education is crucial to maintaining high quality programs and services. The industry is one of ongoing research and discovery of new therapies all along the disability spectrum. Through continuing education, therapists and service providers remain on the forefront of expertise in the management and delivery of programs for those with disabilities. Easter Seals Hawai‘i looks forward to bringing industry leaders to Hawaii to speak and conduct workshops, thus eliminating the need for costly training trips to the mainland.

The literal meaning of the name Nāpuakea is “white blossom,” which represents the white lily that has been an identifiable part of the Easter Seals logo for decades.  Elements of the building’s Hawaiian name also make reference to children and to local plants used for healing purposes, while the lily has long served as a symbol of hope and life.
 

About Easter Seals Hawai‘i

Easter Seals Hawai‘i is one of the state’s oldest, largest and most respected non-profit providers of services to infants, children, youth and adults with developmental disabilities or special needs and their families. Easter Seals Hawai‘i employs more than 400 people, and provides more than 400,000 hours of direct service to individuals and families across the state. All funds raised by Easter Seals Hawai‘i remain in Hawai‘i and allow the organization to continue its long tradition of service for Hawai‘i families. For more information, please call 808-536-1015.