For 30 years, the late John Vollrath of Haleiwa went to a rain gauge every day at Pupukea Heights to collect rainfall information for the nation's climate records.

Before he died Feb. 15, he was nominated for the National Weather Service's prestigious John Campanius Holm Award for outstanding service in the Cooperative Weather Observer Program. Only 25 are bestowed nationally each year and Hawaii last received one in 2004.

Vollrath's son Doug accepted the award on behalf of the family at a recent presentation by Jim Weyman, meteorologist-in-charge of the service's Honolulu Forecast Office. He said his father was avidly interested in the weather and enjoyed checking his records against those on the evening news.

Weyman said Vollrath was a very dedicated observer, honored by the weather service both for the length of his service and for providing accurate, legible weather observations.

“;He knew how to read paper tape punched out and often detected problems before we identified them,”; Weyman said. The retired electronics technician also designed a better battery for the system, he said.

“;This is an outstanding legacy Mr. Vollrath has left for the people of Hawaii for generations to come,”; Weyman said.

Reports from volunteers in the Cooperative Weather Observer Program are used for studies of climate change, drought monitoring, water and land management, legal cases, plans for agriculture development, transportation, water quality and other purposes, he said.

The Holm Award is named for a Lutheran minister who took the first known systematic observations in the American colonies between 1644 and 1645. Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were early volunteers maintaining weather records, according to the weather service.

The Cooperative Observer Network, totaling about 11,700 volunteer observers nationally and 300 in Hawaii, was established in 1890 for meteorological observations and to record climate conditions primarily for agricultural purposes. The voluntary observers usually don't have real time gauges but their daily readings are important for climatic records, Weyman said.

Volunteers are always needed for observers, he said. They are provided with training and gauges. Anyone interested may call 973-5270.