LIHU‘E — The island’s state employee tasked with advocating for the blind is losing his job a week before Christmas due to state cutbacks.

Glenn Nakagawara had been servicing between 40 and 50 Kauaians with visual impairments for around seven years, and some of his supporters are under the impression that once he loses his job, it will take an act of the state Legislature to get it back.

“This is a crucial service for these people,” said Kea Shields of Kealia, who has a visually impaired friend at Mahelona Medical Center in Kapa‘a.

Blind services are “such a crucial thing,” she said.

Friday, Dec. 18 is Nakagawara’s last day on the job, he said.

Lillian Koller, director of the state Department of Human Services under which the Vocational Rehabilitation and Services for the Blind Division falls, said Nakagawara’s termination is due to the number of blind clients on this island.

“Because we have a relatively small number of blind clients on Kaua‘i, compared to the other Islands, it is a more efficient use of taxpayer money to serve this caseload using a part-time rather than a full-time instructor,” she said.

“Due to Hawai‘i’s worsening budget crisis, the state Department of Human Services must continue to reduce expenses throughout the agency, including our Vocational Rehabilitation and Services for the Blind Division.

“Our highest priority is retaining employees who provide direct services to clients, including assessment, training, counseling and job placement,” said Koller.

“This arrangement is the only option we have at present. However, we are exploring other options to find a long-term solution,” she said.

Nakagawara said he was told by his supervisors not to talk to the media, but since he is being terminated anyway agreed to speak on the condition that his comments with respect to his position would be verified through official DHS sources.

Nakagawara said he has no other job lined up yet, and that his position as a rehabilitation teacher involves, among other things, teaching blind Kauaians how to live independently.

Specifically, he helps them learn to cook, clean, do laundry and otherwise get around and live independently in their homes, and helps them get the confidence to do things out of the house as well, like shopping and checking the mail, he said.

Dave Eveland, Ho‘opono (roughly translated as “services for the blind”) statewide administrator, said Nakagawara is one of seven Services for the Blind employees affected by the reduction in force, or RIF.

Eveland said he isn’t authorized to fill vacancies, or even to recruit to fill vacant positions, and that Kaua‘i’s blind clients will be served by teachers who will travel from O‘ahu or the Big Island.

“We’ll provide services (to Kaua‘i) as best we can,” said Eveland.