A Mele Kalikimaka to All: ‘Elves’ Around Hawai‘i Island Helping ‘Ohana in Need

By Catherine Tarleton

This is the first in an occasional series where Ke Ola Magazine highlights some of the important work of our on-island nonprofits. Enjoy learning about these two organizations and please support them. If you have a favorite nonprofit organization, please let us know the name and weʻll add it to our ever growing list of worthy stories to feature in future issues of Ke Ola. – Barbara Garcia, Publisher

Project Hawai‘i

“There’s no such thing as Santa,” said the little girl, hands on hips. It was 11pm on Christmas Eve, and a silly looking lady in an elf costume had just finished delivering gifts in the beach park when she stumbled upon the child’s family living in a van. Elf Magin Patrick, Program Director of Project Hawai‘i, had heard it before.

“I’m sorry, but there certainly is a Santa, and he asked me to make sure he doesn’t forget anybody. And if you and your mom will give me their names and ages, I am going to come back with presents for you and all your brothers and sisters,” she said.

“If there is a Santa, he will bring me what I want,” said the little girl. “And I want a Care Bear. No, I want the red Care Bear that sings. And my brother wants a train, and my sister needs a rolling backpack because she can’t walk very good.”

At one in the morning, after a rush trip to the 24-hour toy store where the red, singing Care Bear was waiting on the top shelf, along with train, rolling backpack, and presents for six more siblings, Magin returned to the site, holding her breath in fear they might have vanished, like so many do. The little girl was there, eyes wide as the moon.

“I told you Santa was real! I told you Santa was real!”

A crack of magic in the bitter, brittle shield of one so jaded and young can let a lot of light shine on the child inside. These moments make a difference, turn lives around—from the tough-talking teen mom who got her GED and became a teacher, to barefoot baseball players who hit home runs with new sneakers, and throngs of kids who start to fit in when they learn how to brush their teeth, to eat at a table, or catch the bus.

Magin has been taking care of homeless kids since she was 19, opening a thrift store to raise money for a halfway house for teenagers. “People always ask why I do this,” says Magin. “My answer is, this is what I was born to do. In Hawaiian they say kuleana. This is my kuleana.”

She moved to Hawai‘i in 2002 and was stunned by the number of homeless people on the island, not living in shelters like they do on the mainland, but surviving in tents, in the bushes, and in beach parks. Project Hawai‘i (PH), the nonprofit Magin runs with partner Cliff Kama and a small army of volunteers, was conceived as a nonjudgmental way to make holidays a little better for homeless children. Today PH serves keiki on O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Island with Santa gift deliveries, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and other holiday parties, summer camps, a teen mentoring program and more.

PH also operates free summer programs, like Adventures Abound day camp, with tours of Mokupāpapa Discovery Center, Pana‘ewa Zoo, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, and more across a two-week period.

Their weeklong overnight camp experience, Kamp Kalōpā, takes place in the Kalōpā State Park and includes camp outfits and shoes, hygiene products and nutritious meals. The award-winning Teen Mentoring Summer Camp program gives youth the opportunity to expand their potential and gain leadership skills while enhancing the lives of homeless children.

Christmas Wish Program

“Kids don’t have the choice if they are poor or not,” says Trudy Farley, volunteer coordinator with PH. The heart-driven nonprofit runs free summer camps and holiday parties for up to 350 homeless and underprivileged children and their families.

What began as a gift-wrapping table at the old Borders bookstore in Kailua-Kona has evolved into a year-round service for keiki and ‘ohana, thanks to the tireless work of a small army of volunteers, spearheaded by Program Directors Magin Patrick and Cliff Kama.

Trudy now hosts the Christmas Wish Program gift-wrapping booth at her store, Trudy’s Island Art in the Kona International Market. Proceeds help fund PH’s bounteous Christmas dinner at Aunty Sally’s Lū‘au Hale in Hilo—complete with games, prizes, a visit with Santa, and gifts for all the children.

During December, shoppers may stop by Trudy’s to have purchases giftwrapped for a donation, and pick up one of the many Keiki Tags posted on a special board, each with a child’s name, age, and a few items on their Christmas wish list. “These kids have things on their list like sleeping bags, underwear, books—they love books,” says Trudy. “Nothing like iPods or cell phones, none of the things the rest of us take for granted.”

Trudy says it’s most rewarding to see donors go shopping with their own children, a real eye-opener for young people. “It makes them think, ‘wow, kids don’t have the same things we do,’” says Trudy.

Trudy came to the island from Southern California about eight years ago and wanted to connect with and give back to her new community. “Because I’ve moved away from my family and friends, I like to get involved in something for the holidays,” says Trudy. “It gives me something to do to focus on other people. I mean, I’ve got everything I want, and it is nice to see you can make an impact – especially at the party, when you see all the smiling faces.”

According to the PH website, there are an estimated 2,565 homeless people on Hawai‘i Island, most of whom are single mothers, struggling to provide food, shelter and basic necessities for their children. On average, emergency shelters permit a length of stay for families of 96 days (120 days for singles). Transitional housing projects act as stepping-stones between emergency and permanent living situations. They allow stays of 351 days on average, however, only 64% of families actually move from transitional into stable, permanent housing.

While affordable housing is a critical element in Hawai‘i Island’s homeless situation, it is not the only factor, as family crises, job loss, drugs and alcohol, mental illness and other issues come into play. “I certainly don’t have that kind of knowledge [to solve the problems] but if I can make it a little better, that’s a good thing,” says Trudy.

The Christmas Wish Program takes place December 1–23, 2013, with gift-wrapping, toy drop-off, and Keiki Tags available at Trudy’s Island Art. Open daily 10am–4pm, Trudy’s is located in Kona International Market in the Old Industrial area, at 74-5533 Luhia Street, Kailua-Kona. Givers can also email info@projecthawaii.net to have a child assigned to them.

There are no limits to ways those who live on Hawai‘i Island and those who love Hawai‘i Island can help PH brighten the holidays for a child. Donations of time, toys and other items, food, services, gift certificates, and monetary contributions on any level are gratefully appreciated.

Big Island Giving Tree

“In the last two years, 90% of applicants asked for food,” said Rhonda Bell, coordinator for Big Island Giving Tree, a volunteer nonprofit that helps families with school supplies, holiday needs and more. “They ask for clothing for children. Basic necessities. Most get a little bit of food stamps, but they don’t qualify for assistance because they have full time jobs.”

Rhonda, Nancy Carr Smith, and others picked up the banner once carried by the Lōkahi Giving Tree program, carrying on their good works and making sure all funds raised in the community stay in the community. In partnership with fiscal sponsor, the Christopher Nance Children’s Foundation, Big Island Giving Tree’s adopt-a-family program provides food, gifts and more to seniors, homeless and working families who would otherwise go without.

Christopher Nance, an Island resident, offered his Foundation’s sponsorship at no cost. “I sit on his board of directors,” says Rhonda. “And he asked me ‘why don’t you use our foundation, and everything you raise will be yours?’ Because, he said, ‘The reason I opened this foundation was to bless people, and if I take a percentage I am not blessing people to my full potential.”

Similar to Project Hawai‘i, Big Island Giving Tree (BIGT) allows generous community members to “adopt a family” for the holidays. Adopters cover the cost of a big turkey dinner and three gifts for each keiki in the household. Contributors on a smaller level may adopt a child, or contribute new, unwrapped toys, gift cards, or monetary donations of any amount.

“We are very particular the people we serve,” said Rhonda. “These are working families struggling to make ends meet, to budget money wisely and stretch from paycheck to paycheck—not using all the services to enable them. They may have lost a job and everything is mayhem, or they are experiencing circumstances beyond their control, like the death of a parent, a house fire, or other emergency. And, I have a heart for seniors because they have very little and live on very little.”

Rhonda, who runs a custom embroidery business, Ke Ala o ka Lani, from her home in Kawaihae, is one of the dedicated team that volunteers countless hours to help those less fortunate in a big way. Last year, BIGT was able to support more than 300 seniors at eight different senior housing complexes in Waimea, Kohala, Honoka‘a, and Kailua-Kona, as well as homeless people and families. Altogether they raised more than $73,000 last year, and their 2013 goal is $100,000. Applications for families are accepted from November 18–December 11.

The holiday push begins at the Waimea Christmas Tree Lighting on Thursday, December 5, 7–8pm at Parker School. The always festive, and sometimes chilly holiday kick-off includes entertainment, free coffee and cocoa, and other refreshments for sale, plus community talk-story. On Saturday, December 7 at 10am, BIGT takes part in the Waimea Christmas Parade and afterwards sets up a donation drop point at Waimea Center (McDonalds side). On Sunday at Parker Ranch Center’s Food Court (Starbucks side), they will staff a donation table from noon–3pm, while the community enjoys entertainment by the Hawaii Preparatory Hand Bell Choir, Waikoloa Dance Company hip hop, Aulani’s Hula Hālau, and more.

“Big Island Giving Tree Store” will be open at Parker Ranch Center, December 4–20, Tuesday through Saturday from noon–6pm. The store will be a drop-off location for items and monetary donations and the central place to organize the adopt-a-family or adopt-a-child program.

“Businesses, organizations, churches, little clubs, all kinds of people and groups can help,” says Rhonda. “We all have heart for different things. Last year, someone wanted to give because he vacations here and wanted to help feed seniors. Another person, from Colombia, wanted to buy toys for kids.”

Like Trudy, Rhonda sees the value of this type altruism for children. “I bring my children along a lot of times on the deliveries to see how other people are living—because sometimes they think they have it rough. My youngest asked me one time, ‘Why are we always doing things for other people?’ and I said ‘God told us we need to be servants when we are here, to serve, not to be served. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

“We have much,” says Rhonda. “We are richly blessed.” ❖

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Big Island Giving Tree
To volunteer contact: Rhonda Bell
808.880.1984, thebigislandgivingtree@gmail.com

Tax-deductible donations may be sent to:
The Big Island Giving Tree, PO Box 2786, Kamuela, HI 96743
Make checks payable to the Christopher Nance Children’s Foundation with “Big Island Giving Tree” in the memo.

Project Hawai‘i
Tax-deductible donations may be sent to:
Project Hawai‘i, PO Box 1844, Kea‘au, HI 96749
808.987.6018, info@projecthawaii.net

HelptheHomelessKeiki.org
ProjectHawaii.org

To volunteer for the Christmas Wish Program, contact Trudy Farley: 808.987.7880, hitrudy@gmail.com

Contact writer Catherine Tarlton: catherinetarleton@gmail.com