Project Vision Hawai`i

What Project Vision Hawai`i does

Project Vision Hawai'i is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Honolulu that delivers free health and human services to underserved populations across the State of Hawaii. Founded in 2007 and led by Executive Director Darrah Kauhane-Floerke since February 2020, the organization operates a portfolio of mobile and facility-based programs including a 35-foot mobile vision clinic equipped with retinal imaging cameras, the Hiehie 26-foot mobile hygiene trailer providing hot showers and dignity services to homeless individuals, school-based vision screenings through a partnership with Vision to Learn (covering ~50,000 students annually), medical respite and low-barrier housing through the kauhale (tiny home village) program (most recently Ka Malu Ko'olau, a 34-unit village opened in Kaneohe in February 2024), the MI-Home prenatal care program for homeless mothers, and reentry support for justice-involved individuals. The organization's geographic footprint spans Oahu, Hawaii Island, Maui, Molokai, and Kauai, with services extended into Maui wildfire disaster response following the August 2023 Lahaina fires.

The underlying technology stack is anchored by mobile digital retinal imaging and instrument-based vision screening equipment capable of screening 4-5 students per minute per station, mobile hygiene trailers with propane-heated water and solar-powered systems, and telehealth-enabled prenatal care devices. Operational data systems include the Athena Health EHR platform. More than 60% of staff have lived experience with homelessness, incarceration, or substance use, providing culturally competent service delivery.

Project Vision Hawai'i operates on a donation and grant-funded model. All services are provided at no cost to recipients. Revenue streams include foundation and corporate grants (Kaiser Permanente, The Edmund C Olson Trust, The Wilber Family Foundation, Kamehameha Schools, First Hawaiian Bank, Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association), individual donations (including legacy giving and donor advised fund contributions), state and city government partnerships (City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii Department of Human Services, $300,000 state grant in 2019), and corporate charity beneficiaries such as The Sony Open's Friends of Hawaii Charities. The organization is sustained by a dense network of more than 20 institutional partners across healthcare (The Queen's Medical Center), education (Hawaii DOE), government (HPD, DHS), national nonprofits (HomeAid Hawaii, Vision to Learn), and corporate technology (Microsoft TechSpark).

Name

Project Vision Hawai`i

Legal name

Project Vision Hawaiʻi

Website

https://projectvisionhawaii.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Project Vision Hawai'i is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating mobile vision and hygiene units alongside kauhale (tiny home village) housing programs to deliver free health and human services to underserved populations statewide across Hawaii.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mobile Community Health Services

NAICS

Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120), Other Residential Care Facilities (62399), Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly (62331)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)

akta.pro primary industry

Primary Care for Underserved Populations (e.g., migrant, homeless, refugee clinics) (HLAFAGAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Affordable / Low-Income Assisted Living (Medicaid Waiver Focused) (HLADABAE), Overnight Respite Care (HSABAGAB), Safety Check-Ins, Wellness Calls & Monitoring (Non-Clinical) (HSABAAAG)

Keywords

• Mobile health services
• Vision screening programs
• Homeless outreach services
• Community hygiene programs
• Human services nonprofit

Headquarters

HQ city

Honolulu

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Foundation and Corporate Grants: The organization receives grant funding from foundations and corporations such as Kaiser Permanente ($90,000), The Edmund C Olson Trust, The Wilber Family Foundation, Kamehameha Schools, First Hawaiian Bank, and HLTA
2. Individual Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, including direct donations, legacy giving, and donor advised fund contributions
3. Government Partnerships: Funding from government entities including state grants ($300,000 state grant mentioned for vision program) and city funding
4. Corporate Sponsorships: Beneficiary of The Sony Open's Friend's of Hawaii Charities and other corporate charity events

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Project Vision Hawai`i delivers free mobile health and human services to underserved communities across Hawaii through a fleet of 35-foot mobile vision and health screening units, 26-foot mobile hygiene trailers, and kauhale (tiny home village) facilities. Services include vision screenings and eyeglasses, hot showers, medical respite, housing, prenatal care, re-entry support, and benefits enrollment, delivered directly at schools, shelters, rural areas, and homeless encampments.

Product overview

Project Vision Hawaii operates as a mobile health and human services nonprofit offering a portfolio of interconnected programs. The core offerings include: (1) Mobile Vision and Health Screening units that travel statewide providing free eye exams, vision screenings, and health checks using a 35-foot RV with retinal imaging equipment; (2) Hiehie Mobile Hygiene Center delivering hot showers and hygiene services to homeless populations via mobile trailers; (3) Kauhale (tiny home village) programs including Pūlama Ola medical respite and Ka Malu Ko'olau permanent housing, providing low-barrier shelter with wraparound services; (4) Vision to Learn school-based partnership for student eye care; (5) MI-Home prenatal care for homeless mothers; (6) Re-entry support for formerly incarcerated individuals; and (7) Med-QUEST/SNAP enrollment assistance. The organization was founded in 2007 and has served over 115,000 patients across Hawaii.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Hiehie: Mobile hygiene program providing hot showers, restrooms, and hygiene services to people experiencing homelessness. Named after the Hawaiian word for 'dignity'. The program operates 26-foot trailers equipped with three private shower stalls, toilets, sinks, and solar-powered lights and fans. Can accommodate 15-20 showers per day.
• HONU
• MI-Home
• Pūlama Ola
• Pu'uhonua o Nene

Products and services

• Mobile Vision and Health Screening A 35-foot mobile clinic equipped with digital retinal imaging equipment that provides free vision screenings, eye exams, diabetic retinopathy screening, and eyeglasses distribution to underserved communities, seniors, and students statewide in Hawaii.
• Hiehie Mobile Hygiene Center A 26-foot mobile hygiene trailer equipped with three private shower stalls, toilets, sinks, propane water heating, and solar-powered lights and fans, providing free hot showers and hygiene kits to people experiencing homelessness.
• Pūlama Ola Medical Respite Kauhale A 10-bed medical respite village providing short-term residential care, nursing support, drop-in services, and wraparound social support for homeless patients discharged from hospitals but too fragile for street living.
• Ka Malu Ko`olau Kauhale A 34-unit tiny home village in Kaneohe providing low-barrier housing with 24/7 security, intake staff, peer support, communal bathrooms, showers, laundry facilities, and daily meals for homeless individuals.
• Pu`uhonua o Nēnē Temporary Shelter A temporary shelter with military-grade tents providing housing for up to 150 wildfire survivors and homeless individuals, with on-site medical facilities, showers, restrooms, meals, and transportation services.
• Vision to Learn School Partnership Program A joint initiative with Vision to Learn providing free vision screenings, eye exams, and eyeglasses to students at Title I schools across Hawaii, with a goal of 60,000 screenings over three years.
• MI-Home Prenatal Care Program Midwifery Integrated Home Visitation Program providing prenatal and postpartum healthcare and social services for homeless mothers using mobile health devices and telehealth in partnership with University Health Partners of Hawaii.
• Re-Entry Support Services Services for individuals with criminal justice involvement including the Moving Forward support group, peer specialist certification, workforce development, and assistance with housing, employment, and public benefits applications.
• Med-QUEST Application Assistance Assistance with applications for Hawaii's Medicaid program (Med-QUEST) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for low-income individuals experiencing homelessness.
• COVID-19 Response Services Mobile testing, vaccination clinics, and education services for homeless and underserved populations, including partnerships with community health centers for expanded testing capacity.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40 people found shelter through Hawaii's first mobile homeless center
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Vision to LearncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015National nonprofit partnership started in 2015 to expand vision care across all Hawaiian islands. Project Vision Hawaii and Vision to Learn use mobile vision clinics to provide eye exams and glasses to students in need. Joint initiative aims for 60,000 vision screenings over 3 years at Title I schools.
• Friends of Hawaii Charity / The Sony Open HawaiicoreGTM or Marketing PartnerProject Vision is a beneficiary of The Sony Open's Friend's of Hawaii Charities. The Sony Open provides grants to nonprofits and matches donations through Aloha for Hawaii charities site.
• Lions Clubs of MauimajorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of Project Vision Hawaii's mobile clinic stops in Maui communities including Keanae Peninsula Park.
• MicrosoftmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSelected as part of Microsoft's national TechSpark program to increase access to health and human services in Hawaii. Donations and partners covered more than a third of $2 million construction cost for Ka Malu Ko'olau kauhale.
• Marcus Mariota Motiv8 FoundationmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership providing support for Hiehie mobile hygiene program. Cindy Tokita, a former homeless individual, discovered the program through Motiv8 Foundation's workshop and later became a full-time employee.
• HomeAid HawaiicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState's kauhale development partner. Built Pulama Ola medical respite village in 7 weeks and Ka Malu Ko'olau kauhale. Reduced construction costs by $700,000 through pro bono labor and donated materials.
• The Queen's Medical CentercoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReferral partner for Pulama Ola medical respite kauhale. Project Vision meets weekly with hospital officials to discuss how the kauhale meets patient needs.
• Mental Health KokuacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Punawai Rest Stop hygiene facility. Project Vision provides COVID testing bi-weekly at the facility. Mental Health Kokua operates Hawaii's oldest nonprofit mental health social-rehabilitation service provider since 1973.
• University Health Partners of Hawai'icoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Maternal-Fetal Medicine physicians to create MI-Home program providing prenatal health care and social services for homeless mothers using mobile health devices.
• Hawaii Police DepartmentmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerHPD officers work with homeless residents at HONU mobile homeless center. Officers on site around the clock make the center appealing for those with young children.
• HOPE Services HawaiicoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReceived $75,000 grant for Clinical Behavioral Health Program serving rural communities on Hawaii Island. Partner in Puna micro-housing units managing facilities without plumbing.
• Hawaii Health & Harm Reduction CentercoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReceived $75,000 grant for homeless prevention services to Oahu's transgender community through Kuaana Project.
• City and County of HonolulucoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnered on HONU/LIFT project providing mobile homeless center with hot showers. City provides operating funding for various homeless services programs.
• Department of Human Services HawaiicoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerState partner for Pu'uhonua o Nene temporary shelter for wildfire survivors who were homeless pre-disaster. DHS secured resources and funding for shelter operations.
• Tutu Bert's House / Institute for Human ServicescoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerOriginal brick-and-mortar medical respite facility receiving residents from Pulama Ola pilot project. Hawaii's largest homeless shelter operator.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Healthcare for the Homeless (National Health Care for the Homeless Council): National advocacy and technical-assistance network supporting 300+ HCH programs serving people experiencing homelessness across the U.S. Broad incumbent: defines the field PVH operates in, and HCH's "medical respite" model is the conceptual blueprint for Pūlama Ola and Ka Malu Ko'olau.

Others

• AlohaCare: Hawaii-licensed nonprofit Medicaid (Med-QUEST) and ACA health plan serving low-income residents. Listed as a partner here because AlohaCare directly funds PVH's MI-Home prenatal program via the Waiwai Ola grant and is a natural payer counterpart as PVH moves into value-based contracts.

Direct peers

• Aloha Medical Mission: Hawaii-based nonprofit providing free mobile medical, dental, and vision care to underserved populations in Hawaii and the Pacific. Direct peer: same mobile-clinic delivery model, same target populations (uninsured, low-income, homeless), and even listed on PVH's own website under programs — they are explicitly co-positioned in the local safety-net ecosystem.
• Mental Health Kokua: Hawaii's oldest nonprofit mental health social-rehabilitation provider (since 1973), operating housing, case management, and street-outreach programs for people with mental illness and homelessness. Direct peer: PVH partners with MHK at the Punawai Rest Stop hygiene facility and at Pu'uhonua o Nene; both deliver low-barrier services to overlapping homeless populations.
• HOPE Services Hawaii: Hawaii Island nonprofit providing emergency shelter, housing, and behavioral health services on Hawaii Island. Direct peer: PVH shares a $75K Kaiser grant cohort with HOPE, and HOPE partners with PVH on Puna micro-housing operations; both serve rural Hawaii Island communities with overlapping homeless populations.
• Vision to Learn: National nonprofit operating mobile vision clinics that provide free eye exams and glasses to students in underserved schools. Direct peer: PVH has been a Vision to Learn operating partner since 2015, jointly delivering nearly 10,000 eye exams and 6,000+ glasses across Hawaii schools under an identical model.
• Remote Area Medical: National nonprofit operating mobile pop-up clinics delivering free medical, dental, and vision care to underserved and uninsured populations across the U.S. Direct peer: same free mobile-clinic model, same target populations, and broader geographic scale — a useful national benchmark for PVH's per-state impact.
• Hawaii Health & Harm Reduction Center: Hawaii nonprofit providing harm reduction, housing, and primary-care services to people experiencing homelessness, substance use, and HIV. Direct peer: receives grants from the same Kaiser Permanente cohort as PVH and serves the same street-outreach populations in Honolulu.
• Institute for Human Services: Hawaii's largest homeless shelter operator, running Oahu's main shelter (Tutu Bert's House) and feeding thousands daily. Direct peer: PVH's Pūlama Ola medical respite referred residents to IHS's Tutu Bert's House, evidencing a tightly linked service continuum in the Hawaii homelessness response.
• Hawaiian Eye Foundation: Hawaii-based nonprofit dedicated to vision care, ophthalmic education, and sight-restoring services. Direct peer: shares the vision-screening focus and Hawaii footprint; notably, PVH's current ED Darrah Kauhane-Floerke maintained the Hawaiian Eye Foundation ED role during transition, evidencing tight institutional ties.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ProjectVisionHI
• Facebookfacebook.com/projectvisionhawaii
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/projectvisionhawaii
• Instagraminstagram.com/projectvisionhawaii

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Project Vision Hawai`i