They are the ones who teach the many school children who visit Sea Life Park each day about a variety of marine life from Albatross to Zooplankton. They also teach in the community through special events, exhibits, displays, and presentations. It covers such topics as corals, marine invertebrates, ocean plants, fish, seals, dolphins, whales, and much, much more. After the course a docent usually learns a presentation on one topic of interest and comes once a week to give it to school groups. In addition to gaining new knowledge and skills, docents make new friends, participate in field trips and social events, and receive free family admission and discounts at Sea Life Park.
Volunteers come from many backgrounds and range from high school seniors to retirees.
Maggie Nakamura, a Waimanalo resident, took the Docent Workshop in 1993 and began teaching preschool and kindergarten students about sea turtles, sea stars, and other topics. She also helps with one of the plays given for first to third graders. She finds the schedule works well with her job as a nurse at Queens Hospital. Maggie loves being with the children and seeing their faces light up as they watch the animals and touch the many props she uses in her presentation. She has also enjoyed traveling to different parts of the island and even outer-island to teach about ocean life.