We are excited to celebrate the Hawaiʻi State Public Library System (HSPLS), which recently earned widespread media coverage for its record-breaking Summer Reading Challenge.
A Fresh Brand, A Bold Challenge
In 2024 and 2025, we partnered with HSPLS on a comprehensive rebranding initiative designed to honor Hawaiʻi’s culture, celebrate the uniqueness of each island, and reflect the ohana spirit that defines this beloved statewide system. The project included community engagement across all six islands, a new logo and brand story, staff training, and a full suite of templates and tools to support consistency.
The new brand launched in Summer 2025 in conjunction with the statewide Summer Reading Challenge, which adopted the theme “Mele”—a celebration of music, poetry, and stories that connect people across generations. HSPLS set a bold public challenge: register 25,000 people for Summer Reading.
A Record-Breaking Summer
HSPLS may not have hit the exact target, but they came impressively close. According to Big Island Now, 23,467 readers participated—“a 44% surge in participation compared with 2024.” That included:
- 9,692 children, who together logged over 5.3 million minutes of reading
- 3,091 teens and 10,684 adults, who reported reading more than 102,000 books
- 21,077 in-person library visits to engage with the “Word of the Week” program
State Librarian Stacey Aldrich summed it up best: “Over the summer, tens of thousands of readers from across Hawaiʻi showed us how much reading matters,” she told Big Island Now, adding gratitude to all who joined in and helped “strengthen our tradition of literacy in Hawaiʻi.”
Why It Matters
This campaign demonstrates how a refreshed, community-driven brand paired with clear, ambitious goals can inspire action on a statewide scale. The Summer Reading Challenge didn’t just bring more people into the library—it reintroduced HSPLS as a vital, vibrant community hub for every generation.
Congratulations to HSPLS on a summer of music, laughter, and record-breaking reading!
Cordelia Anderson Consulting 