The Rotary Club of Maui has been awarded the Adopt-A-Highway No Ka Oi Highway Hui Award by the Hawaii Department of Transportation.

Based in Kula, the club cares for a two-mile stretch of Kula Highway from mileposts 16 and 18 in Keokea. The group organizes at least four cleanups a year as part of its broader, year-round commitment to community service.

“Of the roughly 160 groups that volunteer for Adopt-A-Highway in Maui County, Rotary Club of Maui is one of the smaller ones, but their positive attitude and deep dedication have really had an outsized impact,” said Ty Fukuroku, program manager of Environmental Management, Highways Maui District, in a statement.

“They are among the most reliable in carrying out their cleanups, and they’ve attracted others who are not Rotary members to join their cleanups,” Fukuroku said. “We’re very pleased to offer this award as a mahalo for their continual service.”

The Adopt-A-Highway program works with volunteers to remove trash from Hawaii’s state highways and help prevent litter and other pollutants from getting into the ocean and other bodies of water. Volunteer groups commit to adopting a two-mile segment of a highway for a minimum of two years.

“A lot of us and the volunteers live right here, and they join us (at our cleanups) because this is their neighborhood, their ohana,” club member Michael Lilly said. “They’re not only helping us as a Rotary Club, they’re helping themselves because they live here.”

In 2025, Adopt-A-Highway groups in Maui County carried out 141 cleanups, involving nearly 1,600 volunteers who removed 1,740 bags of trash, and the program fits in well with Rotary’s mission, according to Rotarian Heather Mueller.

“It just feels good to help the environment. Everyone puts in 100%. There’s a very, very strong community in Kula,” Mueller said.

In addition to entities such as the Rotary Club of Maui, groups participating in the Adopt-A-Highway program include businesses, churches, schools, youth organizations, nonprofits and families.

Organizations in Maui County interested in signing up for Adopt-A-Highway can search for available highway segments at www.stormwatermaui.com, where applications, cleanup forms, a safety training video and program information are also available.