Hawaii 2 facts for kids
 Hawaii 2
Location in Maine
Hawaii 2
Location in the United States
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| Location | St. George Lake Liberty, Maine, US |
| Coordinates | 44°23′51″N 69°20′12″W / 44.397418°N 69.336586°W |
| Area | 6 acres (2.4 ha) |
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United States
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| Hours: 6 am – 8 pm | |
Hawaii 2 (previously Birch Island) is a six-acre (2.4 ha) private island in Maine's St. George Lake. Previously used as de facto public land, in 2014 the island was purchased by Cards Against Humanity LLC as part of a fundraiser for the Sunlight Foundation. After licensing the island for use by those who contributed to the campaign, the nearby town of Liberty, Maine threatened the games company with hundreds-of-millions in fines for code violations.
Pre-2014
Prior to Cards Against Humanity's 2014 purchase, the Bedke/Fox Family Trust owned Birch Island and allowed it to be used by the public. Since the early 1980s, locals had used the location to picnic, swim, camp, and vacation.
2014 purchase
In 2012, Cards Against Humanity LLC (CAH) fundraised $70,000 (equivalent to $89,227 in 2022) for the Wikimedia Foundation. In the company's announcement of this, they joked that the company could have bought a private island instead (Little Monkey Caye in the Monkey River, Belize). For their 2014 fundraiser, the company brainstormed what gifts could be sent via first-class mail, weigh less than two ounces (57 g), measure within 11.5 by 6 inches (290 mm × 150 mm), and be "really flexible." Remembering their 2012 joke, CAH liaised with the CBRE Group to buy a private island.
Inspired to conserve some small piece of wilderness, raise money for charity, and "make people laugh", CAH bought Birch Island from the Bedke/Fox Family Trust on October 31, 2014 for $190,000 (equivalent to $234,869 in 2022). The island, located near Liberty, Maine in St. George Lake (within sight of Maine State Route 3), was renamed Hawaii 2 because "it's the Maine island". Though Google Maps updated the name upon seeing the deed, CAH forwent filing with the United States Board on Geographic Names because of the time involved and "[a]pparently, geographic name changes must benefit the community, by honoring a local hero or something."
