The Salvation Army Kroc Center Hawaii — Attraction in Oʻahu

More insidious practices by an organization that has decided it can operate however it would like as long as it offers this much to the community.

My daughter is in dance at this location, and we used to love coming to the pool before I tried putting my membership on hold. I came to the free day they had earlier this year and was surprised by the amount of resources this place has to offer. I was recommended a scholarship since I am physically disabled and my daughter also has a disability.

This weekend, I spent the weekend in the hospital for a heart issue I am dying from. I am clearly disabled as I was more than happy to prove to KROC on my scholarship paperwork (which they happily filed) but upon trying to put my membership on hold, I was laughed at by two members of the staff, including Jill, the main manager at guest services, when I mentioned that it is unkind to ask someone who is disabled, for a doctor’s note containing “information on when you will fully recover”. I’m sure I will receive a response to this review denying all wrongdoing, which is why I recorded the phone conversations to show to my lawyer.

This policy is not only invasive, it is incredibly predatory on the very people this organization claims to help: the community. I am beginning to understand that this company only wants members who make their organization appear better from the outside, so they can maximize profits. They do not appear to me to want those struggling to make ends meet. Those who are sick and looking for respite. Me.

When I addressed the 3 issues I had with this organization, I was laughed at by Jill. I just can’t help but think you need to be a relatively cold person to laugh in the face of someone who spent their weekend in the hospital. I called to suspend my membership and ended the call by cancelling it due to the service I received.

I told Jill I lived in Honolulu and would not be able to bring a doctors note (which is quite embarrassing for someone who does not work and dying from heart disease to ask their doctor for) until saturday. She laughed and said she could make an exception until Friday and that’s it. I asked if they could make an exception, why it took me mentioning leaving a review, and not me explaining my circumstances, to be offered one. She laughed again. I hope anyone who is in a similar place in life reads this before also being humiliated.

I don’t mind releasing the audio call if anyone...

My niece loves this place (this is where she had her 5th birthday party), so we took her there on a Monday during her fall break. We got there at around 9:45, and there was a private group in the water play area, and we were told that we couldn't go in until 10 AM. Once they cleared out, the place was empty so I highly recommend going on a weekday. I've never been on a weekend but my sister has told me it gets super crowded. It's not just for kids though. There's also a lazy river you can walk through or use one the floats they provide. Unfortunately, the big water slide isn't open until later, so we didn't get a chance to check that out.

You can't bring food into the center but you can always keep a cooler in the car, leave and come back. They clean the pool from 11 to 11:30, so that would be a good time to get lunch. If you don't want to eat in your car, there's a cafe that serves pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. all for a pretty reasonable price.

You don't need to be a member to visit the center. You can buy day passes, which is what we did. It's $24/adult and $20/kid, so obviously not something you want to do every week but fun every once in a while to hang out for...

If you are looking for a swimming lesson for kids, this is the worst place to go. My friends told me about their worst experience, but still, I went ahead and enrolled my child. It's totally a waste of money. Since Ricky is no longer the manager of the Aquatics, their swimming lessons went downhill. I have 100 fellow homeschoolers who did not continue enrolling their kids for swimming after sharing my experience with them. Based on my experience when my child was enrolled in the swimming class, the kids are not learning what they are supposed to learn. The swimming instructors are inexperienced and totally unorganized. At the beginning of the season, there were like 8 or 10 kids. Then, the very last day, there were only 4 kids who were there, and worst, they were just killing time by getting toy ducks on the pool. That just tells what kind of instructors they are. Despite addressing the issue to the current aquatic manager, she gets back to my child by scolding loudly, which is very unprofessional when my child was not even doing something bad. The instructors also play favoritism. I highly recommend going to American Renaissance Academy for swimming instead of...