It is easy to miss Eye Center of Hawaiʻi in Kona if you aren’t looking for it. Located off Queen K, the blue building is the only indicator that it is there. Despite its subtle appearance, extraordinary things are happening inside.
Founded in 2001, Eye Center of Hawaiʻi has multiple locations on Oʻahu, Maui, the Big Island, and Kauaʻi. At the Big Island location, they provide one of the only centers where local residents can have surgeries for severe visual issues such as retinal detachment, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and other debilitating eye issues. In addition, they provide standard ophthalmology services and treatments, including vision tests, screenings and an optical shop.
While the services offered by Eye Center of Hawaiʻi are fairly standard, the doctors and staff are exceptional. Working out of the Kona location, soon-to-be retired Lt. Colonel Dr. Farhad Safi’s journey from a war-torn country to calling Hawaiʻi home is far from ordinary.
Born in Afghanistan, Dr. Safi’s family struggled with poverty and being caught in the Afghan-Soviet War. With few prospects for education, a unique opportunity in high school allowed him to attend college in the USSR to study medicine. After several years, a new opportunity arose: a chance to live in Hawaiʻi. At 21 years old, unable to speak English and having never seen the ocean, Safi and his family relocated to Oʻahu with the help of his uncle’s sponsorship. When he landed on Oʻahu, he prayed for help because he thought the plane was crashing into the water. It was just turbulence.
Life did not become easier for Safi. UH Manoa would not accept his international college credits and required him to start his entire college education over. With little money and a diet of Spam and Burger King Whoppers, he attended Kapiolani College, then transferred to UH Manoa. During this time, he worked three jobs, including at his uncle’s rental car business and as a cadaver technician, to pay rent, cover tuition and send money back to family in Afghanistan.
Newly graduated from UH Manoa, the next step was medical school. Now, with a family of his own, Dr. Safi needed a way to cover the high costs of completing his dream. In 2003, he found the answer. In his 30’s, Dr. Safi joined the Army, which paid his tuition and allowed him valuable experience working with eye trauma from veterans wounded in combat. After residencies and placements all over the U.S., Dr. Safi could choose anywhere he wanted to go. The answer was a simple one.
“Hawaiʻi gave me everything I have. I raised my seven kids here. My family is here. This is where I want to die.”
Gregarious and fluent in multiple languages, Dr. Safi’s love for the island cannot be compromised by money or prestige. Hawaiʻi nei gave him everything, and his wish is to repay the favor, one surgery at a time.
“Hawaiʻi gave me everything I have. I raised my seven kids here. My family is here..."