HONOLULU – To kick off the holiday season, employees at First Insurance Company of Hawaii, Ltd. (FICOH) swapped their annual holiday party for a community service event today, partnering with Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii (SCH) to remove marine debris and trash at three beaches on Oahu. The sites included Kailua Beach, Ala Moana Beach and Oneula Beach Park in Ewa Beach, better known as “Hau Bush.”
At the start of the event at Ala Moana Beach, FICOH surprised SCH with a donation of $3,000 as part of its commitment to the environment and sustainability of Hawaii’s coastlines.
“I want to thank our associates for embracing the holiday spirit and coming together to make a difference in our community,” said Mark Yoda, FICOH president and CEO. “We appreciate Sustainable Coastlines’ support in giving associates around Oahu the opportunity to participate.”
"We want to thank First Insurance for changing up their holiday traditions to make an impact with us," said Rafael Bergstrom, SCH executive director. "When volunteers come out to a beach cleanup, they take away valuable lessons that will help to fight the causes and effects of plastic pollution so we can keep our coastlines clean."
Historically, FICOH has thanked its associates during the holiday season by hosting a holiday party in the morning and giving associates the rest of the day off. This year, FICOH coordinated an outdoor volunteer service project instead, which had the additional benefit of allowing associates to reconnect safely after months of working apart.
SCH provided supplies and logistical support at the three beach clean-up locations. Nearly 200 FICOH associates took part in picking up marine debris, plastic pollution, fishing gear and nets, and other types of shoreline trash. In keeping with the annual holiday tradition, associates got the rest of the day off following the beach cleanup.
About Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii
Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii (SCH) is a grassroots nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire local communities to care for their coastlines. They accomplish this by organizing fun and engaging community beach cleanup events, sharing knowledge through a robust educational program, promoting awareness through public outreach campaigns, engaging business leadership in hands-on solutions through corporate cleanups, providing the tools needed for others to host their own cleanups, and offering sustainability consulting and waste diversion services at events.
To date, SCH has reached nearly 45,000 students with educational content and has removed over a half-million pounds of debris from Hawaii’s coastlines with the help of over 30,000 volunteers. SCH strives to continue to grow their impact and fulfill their vision of a plastic-free ocean. For more information, visit: www.sustainablecoastlineshawaii.org.
About First Insurance Company of Hawaii
Founded in 1911, First Insurance Company of Hawaii, Ltd. is the oldest and largest property and casualty insurer domiciled in Hawaii, with assets of $666.4 million, liabilities of $399.5 million, and policyholders’ surplus of $266.8 million as of December 31, 2020.
First Insurance, a member of the Tokio Marine North America (TMNA) group of companies, enjoys an “A+” rating from A.M. Best Co. Proud of its broadly experienced, service-oriented staff, First Insurance employs 300 insurance professionals and distributes its products through 26 independent general agencies. First Insurance was awarded the American Heart Association’s Workplace Health Gold Achievement for 2020. In 2021, First Insurance was named Hawaii’s number one Best Places to Work in the “large company” category by Hawaii Business magazine.
First Insurance supports many local organizations through monetary donations made at the corporate level, by its associates and the First Insurance Charitable Foundation. Its charitable giving focuses on four areas: 1) education and career development; 2) family, social services and health care; 3) environment and sustainability; and 4) civic, culture and the arts.