KALAHEO — Kaleo’s Pharmacy, an independent retail community pharmacy, is located near the Kalaheo post office, tucked away in a corner of the parking lot shared by the post office, the Hawai‘i Health Systems Corp. Clinic at Kalaheo, and the Kaua‘i Kookie kitchens.
“I know,” said Cyrus Kaleo Tumbaga, the pharmacist/independent owner of the facility that celebrated the blessing of its pharmacy on Saturday.
“I put a sign up on the side of the building fronting Papalina Road, and I hope that helps people find us. We built this from scratch after Kalaheo Pharmacy moved out. There was a small pharmacy that was inside the clinic. That became Kalaheo Pharmacy, and then Papalina Pharmacy that has been replaced by the Edward Jones building.”
Kaleo’s Pharmacy is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. There are temporary hours for Saturdays and, according to Tumbaga, Kaleo’s Pharmacy is closed on Sundays.
“Eventually, we’d like to start doing deliveries from the westside to the South Shore,” Tumbaga said. “We have a technician who is temporarily out, so deliveries are by request until we get back to full strength.”
Tumbaga was born in Hanapepe, and is married to Beverly Tumbaga, who was also born on the westside of the island.
“Cyrus has been a pharmacist on the island for the past 12 years, and has always worked in local, independent pharmacies,” Beverly Tumbaga said. “You might recognize our names as previously being head coaches for the Waimea High tennis teams for the past five years.”
The experience for Tumbaga has been valuable, seeing firsthand the benefits of community, independent pharmacies to the community, as well as the benefits of connecting with a provider who was born and raised on the island.
“We still help with coaching the Menehune tennis program,” Tumbaga said. “Opening this pharmacy is like a dream come true because my goal has always been to get an education on the mainland and eventually return home to give back to the community.”
One of the benefits Kaleo’s Pharmacy customers can enjoy is the free vitamin program, where Kaleo’s Pharmacy can provide at no-cost, a 30-day supply of Good Neighbor Pharmacy vitamins available in four formulations — Children, PreNatal, Century Adult and Century Mature.
“We hope to extend our services, not only to the South Shore and westside communities,” Beverly Tumbaga said. “We hope to serve as people’s local community pharmacy for many years to come.”
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
