WAILEA - Hawaii's economy is "not so good," U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye acknowledged last week, but Maui's high-tech industry could provide the push the islands need to make a turnaround.

"If you put your minds together, if you work together, nothing's impossible," Inouye told more than 500 people attending a $150-a-plate fundraiser for the Maui Economic Development Board's Ke Alahele Education Fund on Thursday night at the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa.

Speaking during an event honoring recipients of grants from the fund, Inouye recalled a visit to Maui in 1991. His friend, the late Maui philanthropist and leading arts supporter Masaru "Pundy" Yokouchi, organized a gathering of businesspeople and friends who were interested in giving the island "a shot" in what appeared to be a downturn in the economy.

The sugar plantations and the pineapple-canning business were reporting substantial losses and both were contemplating employee layoffs and business closures. Yokouchi and his friends suggested that Inouye help obtain federal funds for the development of a supercomputer at the Maui Research & Technology Park in Kihei.

They argued that the Air Force could use the computer in connection with its telescope operations on Haleakala, and businesses and educational institutions such the University of Hawaii could gain access to the technology for their own purposes.

"I think that's possible," Inouye recalled telling Yokouchi. "And that was the beginning of what we have today."

Back in 1991, fewer than 100 people were employed in the high-tech and science industry on Maui, Inouye said. Today, there are more than 2,000 people working here in fields relating to mathematics, science and technology, all earning an average of $70,000 a year.

In comparison, the average salary in Hawaii, according to Inouye, is $40,000 a year.

Inouye also mentioned that he attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday for a Haleakala mirror-coating facility. The ceremony was observed via videoconference at the Institute for Astronomy, Advanced Technology Research Center in Pukalani.

According to the Air Force Research Laboratory, the ceremony represented the culmination of a $16.6 million effort, which began in May 2006, to start the first re-coating of the Advanced Electro-Optical System 3.67-meter telescope atop Haleakala. The telescope was commissioned at the Maui Space Surveillance Complex in June 1996.

The Ke Alahele Education Fund program, established in 2007 on the 25th anniversary of MEDB, aims to strengthen Maui County's high-technology work force by nurturing local education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

This year, more than $49,000 was awarded to 14 recipients, with programs involving more than 1,000 students, educators and community stakeholders in Maui County.

With private contributions from Maui-based businesses and community partners, more than $75,000 has been awarded, to date, to educators, students, parent groups and community organizations. Examples of grants awarded this year include: $5,000 to Maui Waena Intermediate School for 8th-graders to monitor and study beach erosion at Waihee Beach, $5,000 to King Kekaulike High School for the creation of global positioning system technology stations, $5,000 to the Kihei Charter School for six-week summer math classes for 6th- and 7th-graders, and $5,000 to Papini Innovations for a three-day professional-development program for elementary school teachers cultivating environmental stewardship.

In addition to the grant program, the fund also offers internships, apprenticeships, professional development and training assistance.

Applications for awards from the fund are accepted continually. The grants committee expects to make another round of awards in time for summer programs or professional development training.

For more information on Ke Alahele Education Fund, visit www.medb.org or call 875-2300.

Thursday night's fundraiser surpassed its goal of $175,000 by approximately $10,000.

Inouye was credited for sponsoring congressional initiatives that support the Maui Economic Development Board's mission in promoting and supporting high-tech industries.