HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0850.000 2002-2004
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jarakaki@interpac. net
From: "AI Konishi" <akonishi@ interpac. net>
To: <jarakaki@ interpac. net>
Sent: Monday, November 08, 2004 7:28 AM
Attach: untitled-2.htm
Subject: [Fwd: RE: County Council help with accessing Kailua Kona Gymnasiums]
Original Message
Subject: RE: County Council help with accessing Kailua Kona Gymnasiums
From: KonaDorr247@aol.com
Date: Sun, November 7, 2004 12:20 pm
To: akonishi@interpac.net, aliiciro@konamet, nsMCAZIMERO@netscape.net,
GoSmurf@hawaii.mcom, DYamashiro@vmchawaii.com,
Heidi@flowersbyHeidi.com, GardeniasBloom@aol.com, r _
kaawajr2 96740@yahoo.com, Sunday@ilhawaii.net, DKalei@wmconnect, y . _
anunoaola@hawaii.rr.com, ilagand001@hawaii.rr.com,
darrenabellera@yahoo.com, aura@hawaii.rr.com, Oginhi@gte.net, v
desvsv@konacoast.net, Sports@westhawaiitoday.com, _
Rodmann.Yomes@Fairmont.com ' -
Aloha County Council,
1 am writing on behalf of our Volleyball program in Kailua Kona, and for
the 100 + Players and coaches seeking time to hold volleyball practices _ and leagues at the Kailua Kona Community Gymnasium, and at our local
high school gymnasiums, The reason I am writing is my concern over the
lack of gym time we have been unable to access over the past 3 years
here in Kona.
To get a better understanding of the reasons we have been unable to
access the local gym is to go to the source of why we have been unable
to access it, and that is the people running the gym. The public gym,
I thought, were for the people of Kona to be able to use for sport and
recreational sport. An outlet for children and adults to participate
in sport and sport programs. The participation in organized sports for
the betterment of our children. Ideally, the Gymnasium was built for
many sports to access; Basketball, Volleyball, Badminton, and a variety
of other indoor sport. However, our gym seems to be reserved for
Basketball only, and an occasional day or night, if we are lucky or if
it is available, is afforded the sport of volleyball. Our program was
established to further the sport of indoor volleyball 3 years ago
because the sport in Kona was almost dead with no activity, and only
kept at the high school level, with no feeder program to build the
younger children for the high school level of play. 3 years ago myself
and a handful of coaches set out to build a volleyball program with
children ages 6 to 16. We started with 24 kids and have built it up to
over 100 children from Waimea to Milolii. The huge problem with this
is no access to the community gym nor the high school gyms in Kona. We
have been denied access and the only time we have been able to access 8450
the gym maybe one day a week like Sunday's, or a 1 day tournament for Comm. No.
which we had to pay the gym $200 to hold it at the Kona Gymnasium. An Ref. To: MG
Ref. Uat 1
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outrage in my book, since our tax dollars should allow for us to access
the Gym without having to pay additionally to hold practices or
tournaments at a community gym. We have been forced to improvise by
using beach courts at Magic Sands, Coconut Grove Market Place Hard Rock
Court, and various park fields with set up nets to practice indoor
volleyball. This seems to me and the rest of the Volleyball community
here in Kona, upsetting at best.
The reason I am writing the county council is to seek your help to
access facilities in Kona for Indoor Volleyball. We are asking for
equal opportunity to use our community gymnasium to hold practices,
leagues and tournaments. We also have high schools with Gymnasiums
which are not being used for programs such as ours nor given access for
fear of liability reasons. In Hilo, Gymnasiums are being used at
Schools and community gyms to better their children in sport,
especially volleyball. It seems ridiculous for Kona to lag behind Hilo
because we have the lack of facilities to hold such sporting programs,
leagues and events. Especially if they are designed to improve the
children of Kona. As the population grows here in Kona, as we have
seen in the past 20 years, there is going to be a huge need for
community recreational facilities for sports like indoor volleyball or
basketball.
I am seeking your help to access our Kona Community Gymnasium and school
gymnasiums for the sport of indoor volleyball. I know the parents,
children and the coaches of our program as well as other volleyball
programs would appreciate your response to our request. I don't feel
my request is unrealistic nor unfair. I believe this issue must be
addressed. We have a program starting in the next few weeks and we
have not gotten a well received response from our community gym, and
have not tried the high schools for gym access because of being turned
down in the past for gym time. I can be reached to discuss this issue
at length at (808) 896-9581 or (808) 327-0337.
Thank you in advance to your attention to this important issue.
Mahalo,
Jim Dorr
"Concerned resident and one of the coaches with the
Hawaiian Touch Youth Volleyball Program"
11/8/04