The nearly two-decade-old Rotary Club of Kihei Sunrise, which has performed many community service projects in South Maui from providing dictionaries to elementary school students to spearheading beautification projects at Kalepolepo Park, will be dissolving, a club official said Monday.

Joanne Doell, the club’s president, cited declining membership. In its heyday, the club had 25 members; its membership currently is down to 12.

“It is with sincere regret that we take this action,” said Doell. “We are encouraging our members to consider joining one of the other 10 Rotary clubs on Maui.”

Chartered in February 1996, the club has been active in the South Maui community and has been honored as the “Small Club of the Year” by Rotary District 5000, which oversees all 48 Rotary clubs in the state.

In addition, the club has earned recognition for several of its community service projects. At Kamalii and Kihei elementary schools, the club gave dictionaries to 3rd-graders and developed the Keiki Dental Project for 1st-graders and an ethics program.

The club also has maintained the benches near the humpback whale sculpture at Kalama Park, organized beach cleanups and been the driving force behind several beautification projects at Kalepolepo Park, she said.

Recently, the club partnered with the University of Hawaii-Maui College Dental Assisting program, under the leadership of Joyce Yamada, and the Institute for Hawaiian Music with George Kahumoku on projects.

“We may be dissolving the club, but we are not dissolving friendships,” Doell said.

In the coming weeks, the club plans to hold private social events to celebrate the club’s accomplishments over the past two decades.

“One of our members has generously agreed to organize pau hanas in January,” she added, “so we may be morphing into the ‘Pau Hana ‘Ohana.’ “

Doell said members of the club are grateful to the community for its support through the years. She also singled out the owners of the 5 Palms Restaurant at the Mana Kai Maui Resort and Chez Meme for hosting their meetings.

“I was looking for an appropriate metaphor for this wonderful group of committed Rotarians and realized that if the Rotary Club of Kihei Sunrise were a song, our closing lyric would be ‘ha’ina ‘ia mai ana ka puana,’ which means ‘my song is ending,’ ” said Doell.

“Our members have considered it a privilege to have served our community in so many ways,” she said.