Members of the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise put the finishing touches on the 540-foot white picket fence at Hale Aloha in October.

LAHAINA — Members of the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise recently completed a project to improve the 540-foot white picket fence at Hale Aloha in Lahaina.

Over four workdays spread out from April to October, the Rotarians painted all 852 pickets that make up the fence. Many of the posts and beams were rotted beyond repair, and 450 pickets needed to be replaced.

Staff from Lahaina Restoration Foundation cut new pickets with the unique, historic round top. Rotarians then went to work and applied a primer coat and two coats of finish to the new pickets.

Located on Luakini Street, Hale Aloha is one of Lahaina’s historic coral block and stone buildings from the 1800s.

It was built by members of Waine’e (now Waiola) Church in commemoration of Revered Dr. Dwight Baldwin’s vaccination efforts that resulted in Maui escaping the small pox epidemic that decimated Oahu in 1853.

Hale Aloha was the site of the Lahaina Union School and later a parish hall. It soon became known as the “finest hall in the famous sea-port town of Lahaina.”

Over time, the building stood empty and deteriorated rapidly. The County of Maui purchased the property in 1973 and started the restoration.

In 1992, Lahaina Restoration Foundation completed the restoration at its own expense, reinstalled the bell tower and added an out-building with restrooms.

In 2010, LRF found a “sister bell” online that was made in the same factory and in the same year as the original church bell. LRF installed the bell in the belfry, completing the restoration that was in progress for 37 years.

Lahaina Restoration Foundation uses the building for the cleaning, categorizing and archiving of its collections, the Hands on History program and the Lahaina Quest Camp and Program.

“The fence painting completed by the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise brought the community together to care for Lahaina’s legacy,” said Theo Morrison, executive director of Lahaina Restoration Foundation.

“We really appreciate their service to the town.”