photo courtesy Hawaiʻi DLNR

(BIVN) – Twenty-five recruits are now fully commissioned conservation officers with the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement, or DOCARE, seven of whom will report for duty on Hawaiʻi island.

Maui Nui and O‘ahu will also be getting seven additional DOCARE officers from the Recruit Class 24-01, while Kaua‘i will have four.

A graduation ceremony was held Friday morning at the Hawai‘i Convention Center, where the DOCARE recruits were surrounded by family, friends, DLNR leadership and academy instructors. Each new officer was presented with a graduation certificate, followed by badge pinning.

“The job you have is very heavy, it’s challenging, it’s indispensable,” DLNR First Deputy Ryan Kanaka‘ole told the recruits. “Without a working enforcement arm our department is toothless, it is ineffective, we fail at our mission. I think I speak for everyone at DLNR, when I say thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your service.”

photo courtesy Hawaiʻi DLNR

“As a civil servant your job is to serve our fellow citizens and visitors alike,” said DOCARE Chief Jason Redulla. “It is important you recognize that while you may have a formal chain of command of people who are your bosses, the taxpayers of the state of Hawai‘i are your bosses, too.”

The academy program started in 2017 and has resulted in nearly doubling the number of officers in the field, the DLNR says.