Vash Hawaii Island

Programs: We served 1148 visitors in 2017. The top three adversities in 2017 were medical emergency (29%), lost items (18%), and uemv (14%).

crime prevention and ocean safety - this year our public service announcement aired 56 times per week all year round. We continue to distribute our brochures that include informationon identity theft, safety tips, and water and ocean safetly. We are currently in the process of updating our brochures and developing a mobile app in cooperation with a new ocean safety non-profit that we will include on the new brochures. We are also campaigning to get local rental car agencies to utilize vash keychains that will include safety tips for theft as well as the mobile app information on them. The hta safety tips link is published in our quarterly newsletter, provided on our website and included in our powerpoint presentations. We are posting weather alerts on our facebook page to inform visitors to extreme wave and weather conditions, as well as safety advice.

community involvement and outreach - during 2017, new community partnerships were formed, and previous ones were renewed and strengthened. Vash is regularly involved with community partners such as kona crime prevention committee, hawaii island safety and security professionals, airport operations committee, chamber of commerce, as well as giving presentations every month to community groups. We also meet with the police departments monthly at shift briefings and maintain close relationships with community hospitals and hospice. We recently recruited a captain from kona police department to sit on our board of directors. In 2017, vash hawaii island organized several community events and fundraisers, both to raise funds, and also to increase our visibility in the community. Some of these events included "rhyme, women and song", "uncorked" wine and food festival, "visitor industry charity walk" and our "first annual charity bowling tournament. "