New Hawai‘i Keiki Museum to open at Kings’ Shops
Who knows what’s going on behind the doors of Hawai‘i Keiki Museum? A peek inside their new Kings’ Shops space might show folks unboxing robots, polishing rocks, refinishing an antique plantation desk or building a home for monarch butterflies.
The sky is not the limit, as Hawai‘i Keiki Museum connects learners to their island home by way of science. And, Hawaii Island is a living classroom, where scientists study the stars from the top of the mountains, to the pellagic world of the deep ocean — with all the volcanic action, endangered species and growing things in between.
The community is invited to come to Kings’ Shops and learn more at Hawai‘i Keiki Museum’s grand opening on Thursday at 2 p.m. Sponsored by Coca-Cola, admission is free for all on that day.
The first Hawai‘i Keiki Museum (HKM) opened in Kailua-Kona in 2022, a time when most students were stuck at home, getting schooled by Zoom. Concerned about the fragility of the public school system, and lack of keiki’s social time, Founder Dana McLaughlin and co-founder Jyness Jones came up with the idea of a discovery center or science museum.
They designed and executed a high energy, engaging space, pulsing with color and threaded with whoops and laughter from day one. Kids played hard and learned fast, interacting with exhibits and learning stations, all geared around science — specifically science related to Hawai‘i Island.
McLaughlin and her team continue to collaborate with the island’s science community: astronomers, marine scientists, geologists and more. “The focus of the museum is on the science of the Big Island, everything from the coral reef research being done by Dr. Burns at the University of Hawaii, to our Kona Mountain Coffee farm partners, and our astronomy friends at Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope and others. We have many partners, and we work hard to be a hub for science enthusiasts.”
“It was a business model that made sense for this community,” McLaughlin says. “It provides space for kids to run around, and it’s indoors, to help get out of the hot sun during the summer months.”
“The Kings’ Shops space is a second location,” she continues. “We have been asked dozens of times to open another museum. The Waikoloa museum will be very different. The Kona museum is open at 10 a.m., and at that hour it attracts a lot of preschoolers. The Waikoloa museum will be open from 2 to 8 p.m. every day of the week, designed to appeal to children aged 9-16 and their caregivers. The exhibits will be different, and the classes and activities will also be different.” HMK always welcomes the community to join them, as teachers, volunteers, docents, exhibit builders and more.
The new location adds a new dimension of outdoor exercise, as HKM takes over operation of the mini golf course at Kings’ Shops. Open from 2 to 8 p.m., the 9-hole course offers a fun way for beginners, juniors or golfing families at all levels to enjoy a quick round before sunset or after dinner.
The Hawai‘i Keiki Museum at Kings’ Shops will be open from 2 to 8 p.m. daily. Admission for adults is $15, $7 kama‘aina. For children $10, $7 kama‘aina, free for infants under 6 months. Admission covers both locations on the same day.
Special classes, field trips and party rentals are an additional cost. The golf exhibit is $10 per adult, $5 kama‘aina. For more information call the Kings’ Shops HKM at (808) 315-8862, or the golf exhibit (808) 897-0423, or visit www.hawaiikeikimuseum.org.
