STRATEGIC PLANNING MEETINGS

Wednesday, March 13, 2024 • 10:30 A.M.

Various Oahu Island Locations • See Articles Below

March 2024 Newsletter

It was a red and pink Valentine's Day at Pacific Club for our February Membership Meeting: Shown are Jane Winslow, Ku'ulei Pai, Peggy Monell and Jeanette Godfrey.

Help Us Plan Our Future

We hope that many of you will participate in our March 13 Strategic Planning Evaluation Meetings. These small-group meetings, in various neighborhoods on Oahu, give our members an opportunity have their voices heard regarding Assistance League of Hawaii. This is your chance to share your ideas, concerns and suggestions about how to make our organization ever better. We need your input. All meetings begin at 10:30 a.m. Venue locations are listed in the Strategic Planning article below. Remote members can participate via Zoom from the Thrift Shop Ohana Room location. 

Many of the changes and improvements made to Assistance League of Hawaii during the last few years were the direct result of suggestions made during these Evaluation Meetings. The collective brain power of our dedicated member/volunteers is essential to the success of these meetings. An Action Plan is developed from ideas generated at these meetings, and our Board of Directors and Committee Chairs address the Action Plan items as quickly as possible. Please help us to keep our organization growing and improving by being part of this process.

Mahalo for all that you do.

New Volunteers Help Our Organization Thrive!

We do great things for our community and need extra hands to help make it happen. Please welcome new members, Kim Nguyen, Susan Bauer, Allison Shinn-Yuen, Lisa Wilson, Jessica Henao and Robert Fox to our ranks. Remember, if you are upstairs and see a face you don't recognize, please introduce yourself and welcome our newcomers. It's challenging to start as a new member, so any support you can give them would be great. Let your friends know we are always looking for volunteers. Contact me for more information.

In the photo above: Jen Turvold, Susan Bauer and Kim Nguyen

Proposed Budget Includes Funding Increases

The Finance Committee met and developed the Proposed 2024-2025 Budget. With Assistance League programs providing increased services to the community, budgets for Operation School Bell, Operation Wildlife, We Care and Outreach will be significantly increased. 

The new Budget will also provide for significant increased funding for Marketing/Communications, credit card fees, utilities costs (electricity/water) and the cost of room rentals for business meetings. With the increased cost of doing business, many line items in the budget have been marginally increased. 

The Proposed 2024-2025 Budget will be presented at the April 10, 2024 Membership Meeting and voted upon at the May 8, 2024 meeting.

Into Action!

Although February was a short month, there continues to be lots of action in our five programs and March promises to be even busier!

We have many new members coming on board with Assistance League of Hawaii, so for the benefit of all our members (new and old), here is a short summary of each of our five programs, with the name and phone number of our chairs.

Don't hesitate to call them to chat about some of the ways you can volunteer. Everyone is needed, and there is a volunteer opportunity designed for each of you, to match your time, skills and interests!

Besides our monthly newsletter, be sure to check out Mary's Monday Morning Message as well as our Facebook page and website to get a better idea of what we do!

OPERATION SCHOOL BELL®: Provides new school clothing to economically disadvantaged children, including in-store shopping events, purchasing of school t-shirts (contact Laurelyn Berger, 808-394-6678) and Kokua Boxes (contact Mary Monohon, 619-339-6575). OSB also provides tutors for children in our schools who need help learning to read and provides a wide range of library services at Pu'uhale School Library (contact Carol Hasegawa, 808-383-4124). 

New to Pu'uhale Library - preschoolers from the Head Start Pre-School program are coming to the Library weekly for storytelling and other preschool actitivies with our Library Ladies. The 25-30 preschoolers are divided into 2-3 groups around the library for the group story, singing and/or movement activities.

Kokua Boxes is busy with refills and orders. Reach out to Mary Monohon for instructions, or when she can meet you at the store to help with this important project.

OPERATION WILDLIFE: Volunteers present a conservation wildlife program to fourth grade students on all islands to raise awareness of endangered animal species and their preservation (contact Hazel Sumile, 808-722-7897). 

OWL'S most recent presentation was at Waianae Elementary School. OWL's goal to reach all islands this year is close to being a reality, with more than 50 schools benefitting from this educational video and hands-on program.

OUTREACH: Volunteers are ready to provide a "one and done" service that helps organizations in crisis or emergency situations (contact, Miho Teipel, 808-342-9151).

Outreach has approximately $7,400 left in Maui Relief Budget. We are currently looking to find some worthy cause that needs Outreach help. In addition to Maui Relief, OUTREACH is always looking for new emergency needs in our communities that can benefit from this one-and-done program.

SHARE: Distributes items donated to Assistance League of Hawaii that are unsellable in the Thrift Shop to other nonprofit agencies (contact Karen Kehoe, 808-754-7755 or Marty Kehoe, 916-215-0950).

News coming from our Share program - the foster kids at Family Programs Hawaii Safe House greatly appreciated the new blankets we gave them that were donated by Hawaiian Airlines. These blankets were a warm and welcome donation.

WE CARE: Operates a flexible program that identifies children at risk, in trauma or foster children in transition, women in distress and new mothers in need - provides a variety of services, including distributing Malama Bears to various agencies and Lullaby Layettes to hospitals (contact, Linda Tsark, 808-343-1107).

On Monday, March 4th, Lullaby Layettes will be assembling packs of onesies, receiving blankets and diapers for area community maternity wards. You can reach out to Linda for more information about this event. Details will be coming soon! We Care continues to be busy with Malama Bear deliveries to hospitals and other agencies across the islands.

Assistance League of Hawaii Announces Upcoming Fundraisers and Project Deadlines

Assistance League of Hawaii’s Resource Development team is excited to announce upcoming events and project deadlines:

Change 4 Change 2023-2024

Campaign Ends on May 15

• Project: Support Youth Outreach, a haven for homeless youth, offering medical care, social services, and more.
• How to Help: Donate to the Change 4 Change campaign before May 15th.

Spring Cleaning Jewelry Drive

• Dates: February 15 - April 10, 2024
• Donations: Costume jewelry, fine jewelry, hippie beads, or holiday gems.
• Benefit: Proceeds from sales at the Assistance League Thrift Shop will support Hawaii's children and those less fortunate.

Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Charity Walk

• Date: May 4, 2024
• Event: Statewide Charity Walk sponsored by the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association.
• Who: Assistance League members, families, and friends are all invited to participate.
• More information: Details will be provided in the coming month.

Assistance League of Hawaii encourages the members and the community to support these important initiatives and join them in making a difference in the lives of Hawaii’s families and children.

Photo at right: Last year's Charity Walkers.

Show Your Support and Decorate Your Ride with Our New Window Clings!

Get ready to add a touch of personality to your car while supporting a great cause!

Assistance League of Hawaii is now offering four fantastic car window clings, with even more designs on the way. Show your love for our community and mission by picking up one (or all!) of these free eye-catching clings at the Thrift Shop in the Ohana Room.

These clings are super easy to apply. Simply peel and stick to any window! Check out the attached example to see one of the vibrant designs.

Beyond the Clings: How You Can Make a Difference

Your support doesn't have to stop there! Here are some ways you can further help us spread the word:

• Share our Business Cards: Our business cards do double duty! They not only let people know about the Thrift Shop, but also highlight our need for donations and volunteers, and the impactful work we do. When you encounter someone new, don't hesitate to share a card and tell them about our mission.

• Get Social: Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram are powerful tools for raising awareness. Give our posts a like, share them with your friends, and leave a comment to boost our reach. Every interaction helps!

Missed the Hawaii Public Radio feature that aired last month? You can listen to it at this link. The Conversation

Strong Sales Going Into March

Looking forward to St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) and Easter (March 31). There will be lots of merchandise to celebrate these events. Sales continue to be strong with everyone giving their 110 % The new credit card terminals are installed and working well.

March 2024 Thrift Shop

Cashiers’ Calendar

Submit Your Service Hours

As you read in Mary’s Monday Message Fiona Manse has decided to travel and will no longer collect your service hours. As before, please respond to the alhservicehours@gmail.com email address. Enter your first name, last name and the hours you worked (please do not enter any text – just numerical hours).

If you have any questions please respond to the email from alhservicehours@gmail.com or email Linda McColgan at linda.mccolgan@hotmail.com.

We are looking for someone to help with the recording of these hours. Most of the members now respond to the email and only a few minutes are needed to collect the remaining hours. Please let Linda know if you are willing to help with this. Mahalo!

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