The Salvation Army’s Kroc Center’s influence on the community has had an economic ripple effect, and it’s more than direct spending.
More than half of its $23-million economic impact last year was a direct result of its educational, health, and supportive services.
Major John Chamness, divisional leader of The Salvation Army Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division, says the center’s value reaches beyond monetary figures.
“I see people from all walks of life — this facility is for everybody, not just those who are in shape,” he said. “It’s for the common person making changes in their lives. People say they can’t believe in one facility you have a swimming pool, fitness center, arts and crafts, lectures, daycare, it goes on and on.”
Here are five things you may not have known about the Kroc Center:
- The center’s daycare program — which is at capacity with nearly 100 children enrolled — provides child care and education services to the community worth $2.8 million.
- The Kroc Center’s fitness programming has a value of $4.1 million annually to the community, with its gym, aquatic, and sports activities.
- Services provided by Hawaii Kroc Center volunteers, as well as scholarships granted and subsidized memberships, have a combined annual value of $5.6 million.
- Hawaii Kroc Center visitors, local and traveling from the Mainland, spend $2 million annually in the region.
- Direct spending by the Kroc Center resulted in a local economic impact of $8.8 million last year.