MARCH 2026 STRATEGIC PLANNING MEETINGS

Wednesday, March 11, 2026 - 10:30 AM

Various Locations on Oahu - See Content Below

March 2026 Newsletter

The Operation Wildlife team visited Molokai in late February and got to see over 100 people in two days of school visits. Details in the OWL article below.

Team Building, Charity Walk

and Strategic Planning

February was filled with activities, planning, and meaningful connections. A sincere thank you to Nancy Sparacino and Linda McColgan for co-hosting the members’ luncheon and creating a wonderful afternoon of team building with a game of Bunco.

Team building is essential to the strength of Assistance League of Hawaii. The many support services, such as the Thrift Shop and Resource Development, help members feel connected and supported. When members feel connected and supported, we work more effectively together and deepen our impact through Operation School Bell, Operation Wildlife, We Care and our community programs. Each year, we make time to build these relationships, not only through service, but also through socializing with one another, which strengthens our Ohana and the spirit behind all that we do.

One of Assistance League of Hawaii’s annual traditions is participating in the Visitor Industry Charity Walk—a community “stroll” that begins at Ala Moana Beach Park and continues through Waikiki. Sponsored by the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association, this event supports nonprofits across the state, including Assistance League, through annual grants that help sustain our philanthropic programs.

Beyond the funding, the walk offers opportunities to enjoy food along the route, strengthen friendships, and build our Ohana through shared participation. This year, participants may also choose the Laulima Loop, a shorter 1 km route option. Assistance League participants will receive a commemorative t-shirt.

Save the Date: May 2, 2026. Join us as we walk together in support of our mission and community.

STRATEGIC PLANNING for 2026-2027

We look forward to continuing this spirit of teamwork as members gather in small groups for our Strategic Planning discussions on March 11, 2026. These conversations will ensure every voice is heard as we shape the future of our Assistance League—together. The meetings begin at 10:30 AM and are scheduled to end by 12:00 PM, followed by a light lunch, if you choose to stay.

March – It's all about Strategic Planning, so put on your thinking caps and get ready for small-group meetings. Information for the Business /Strategic Planning meetings was outlined in Mary's February 23rd Monday Message and reprinted for your information here.

There are 5 locations where these meetings will be conducted on March 11 from 10:30 - 12:00 pm. You may select any of these locations (or join your mentor).

1. Laurelyn Berger (Hawaii Kai and East Oahu area) 94 Lumahai St., Honolulu
2. Jaye Devendra (Ala Moana or Downtown area) 1000 Auahi St., Honolulu
3. Arden Moore (Waikiki area) 3068 La Pietra Circle, Honolulu
4. Hazel Sumile (Central and West Oahu) Pu'uhale School @ 345 Pu'uhale Rd, Honolulu
5. Peggy Monell (Windward, Oahu) 1366 Aupapaohe St., Kailua

Mahalo to those of you that have already let Gloria know you are coming. If you haven't had a chance yet to do so, PLEASE RESPOND ASAP with a YES OR NO, whether you are able to attend, and what location  (1,2,3,4,5) you would like to attend. I will confirm your request and let the host at each location know that you will be joining her group. We want to ensure we have enough materials for each site.

Click here to let Gloria McGehee-Koel know you are coming and tell her which location works best for you.

Mark your calendar for these future meeting dates and locations. More information will be sent prior to each of the meetings.

Our upcoming business meetings are scheduled on the second Wednesday of each month as follows:

• April 8: Business Meeting at Wolfgang’s Steakhouse, Waikiki.
• May 13: Business Lunch at the Oahu Veterans Center.
• June 10: End-of-Year Celebration at The Pearl at Kalauao (formerly Pearl Country Club) in Aiea. This will be a banquet luncheon.



We’re looking forward to an exciting 2026 spring season!

On behalf of the Hospitality Committee, thank you all for participating in the Assistance League of Hawaii business meetings. Your attendance is very much appreciated.

Aloha to the Hospitality Committee of member volunteers: Allison Shin-Yuen, Maren Bonnet, Jamie Tangonan and Lorna Motas.

It was a fun time for all at the Assistance League of Hawaii Game Day meeting held on February 11 at the One Kalakaua building near our Thrift Shop. More than thirty members showed up for fun, fellowship and of course good food! Its back to business in March with our annual Strategic Planning Meeting. 

CLICK OR TAP HERE TO SEE ALL OF THE FUN GAME DAY PHOTOS

Join Assistance League of Hawaii at the

Visitor Industry Charity Walk

Lace up your sneakers! Assistance League of Hawaii is calling for 25 to 50 volunteer walkers to join our team for the annual Oahu Visitor Industry Charity Walk on Saturday, May 2, 2026.

Starting at 7:00 a.m. at Ala Moana Beach Park – Magic Island, this beloved tradition brings the community together for a morning of music, fellowship, and some of the best food you'll find at any fundraiser.

For those looking for a lighter stroll, a shorter walk option begins at 7:30 a.m.

Why Your Participation Matters

The Charity Walk is Hawaii’s largest single-day non-profit fundraising event. Most importantly the funds raised by our team are returned to Assistance League of Hawaii, bolstered by an additional matching gift from the Hawaii Hotel Industry Foundation.

Our goal this year is to have 25 to 50 walkers. You can sponsor a student walker for $25.00 or an adult for $50.00.

How to Join or Donate

The Charity Walk organizers have made it easier than ever to support our mission. You can jump directly to our team page to register or donate by scanning our QR code on the flyer below or by visiting the Web Donation Page.

If you prefer to donate via cash or check, printable walker forms and liability waivers are available at charitywalkhawaii.org.

Exciting news! We have two

New Members to tell you about!

Michelle Grow - She joined us as a member on February 5th and she is very enthusiastic about Assistance League of Hawaii. Michelle came into the shop one day as a customer and was very impressed with the friendly volunteers working as cashiers (She mentioned Robert Fox; way to go Robert!) She has already been trained by Nancy Sparacino upstairs in our Thrift Shop. Eventually, she may be trained as a cashier and /or rover, and she seems open to other volunteer opportunities. 

Photo inset: Michelle Grow (L) and Ellen Sugai (R)

Ellen Sugai - She is a recently-retired pre-school teacher and after learning about Assistance League of Hawaii and our mission, she contacted us via our website. Ellen has already been trained upstairs by Nancy, and she recently observed one of our OWL presentations at Ka'ahumanu Elementary School (Thanks to Hazel Sumile.) She says she has computer/clerical skills and loves animals and wildlife. She enjoys working with children, youth and women in our community.

At our February Meeting/Game Day all our volunteers were recognized as "Stars" and thanked for their volunteerism. A special thank you to the downstairs volunteers who are such wonderful ambassadors for Assistance League of Hawaii . They greet our customers with an enthusiastic smile and show them how fun it is to be part of our team of volunteers. They also help customers to understand our mission and how the money from our Thrift Shop goes into our programs!

Operation School Bell Literacy Services

Expand from Pre-K to High School

Operation School Bell^® Literacy Services has expanded to include students from Pre-K though High School.

Four-year-old Pre-K children at Pu'uhale Elementary enjoy their weekly visit to the Library which may include sons, stories and borrowing books.

Students, who had been learning about the Hawaii Plantation Life, were treated to a historical and cultural activity. Library volunteers shared the rules and demonstrated the way they played marbles and yo-yos. [photos below] It was quite an enjoyable library class. 

We recently purchased 180 books for a Middle School and a High School for their students who are second language learners, in At-Risk/remedial classes, in special education and in the gifted classes. Book titles focused on building language skills, learning about the world, developing empathy, as well as pure reading enjoyment. 

Reading to students (above) captures young minds as they imagine the characters and situations presented in the printed word. Below students learned how marbles were used for play back in the plantation village days.

Over 2300 Students Reached

Through the OWL Program

As of mid-February, Operation Wildlife (OWL) has worked with over 2,300 students across the state and 125 teachers! And there is more still to come!

The OWL Member Volunteer Team visited Molokai in the last week of February and got to see over 100 people over two days of school visits. Children at Kualapu'u Charter School (group photo near the top of this newsletter) loved being able to hold the animal biofacts. They were so excited and couldn't believe all our stuff was real! 

Molokai is always such a great place to visit, and the people there are so friendly. It feels like everybody is family, and we were treated like family as well! 

The OWL member volunteers got to have dinner at a food truck in the middle of Kaunakakai town. Live music and freshly caught shrimp from their fishponds were made available to the team. It can't get better!

OWL Neighbor Island visits are hard work, but we get lots of cultural experiences too. The trips are not only fulfilling for our members but the school children we serve are very appreciative of the learning experiences with the program, especially the biofacts that they can see and touch.

Students from DeSilva Elementary School in Hilo had this to say: 

“I learned not to litter the world and keep the world clean and safe and healthy.”

“I will keep my promise and recycle to help protect our wildlife.”

“I will always remember to throw away trash and recycle.”

“Thank you for letting us touch your really cool artifacts!”

“I learned ways to protect wildlife and you taught us ways like HIPPO: habitat loss, invasive species, pollution, population increase, and over hunting and over fishing.”

“I learned that I should pick up trash when I see it on the ground and not just leave it there because it will probably go into the ocean and make the animals sick and endangered and maybe extinct.”

“Favorite animals: rabbits, otters, rattlesnake, tiger, possum, red fox, bobcat, black and brown bear.”

“I really love animals and it makes me so sad that this is even happening. I actually almost cried when I saw the artifacts.”

“I want you to know that I will cherish this memory forever.”

Working with our fourth grade children is always a special experience for our member volunteers.

Assistance League of Hawaii In

New Partnership with RYSE

We are proud to announce that Assistance League of Hawaii now has a new partnership with the RYSE program in Waianae. The Residential Youth Service & Empowerment team in Waianae opened in October on a part-time basis, serving as a drop-in center for homeless youth ages 14 to 24. They started out with a client list of about 70 youth, with a goal of serving more through outreach in the area.

The staff at the Waianae center have an obvious passion for the work they do. The picture was taken inside their office, which has two bunk beds (with a total of 4 bed spaces) inside, a small kitchenette, pantry, sofa, TV and desks. The photo was taken by a person who had sought safety and calm for some "kick-back" time before heading out to the streets again.

Although it started out as part-time, it is now functioning fully, with shelter beds, classes for clients, assistance with applications for bus passes and housing support, etc., pretty much whatever help they need.

Assistance League of Hawaii's initial project to support this program is to supply hygiene kits that they can hand out to youth on their outreach forays into the community and onto the beaches. 

If you are interested in helping with this or any other We Care program, let Dianne Girard know!

____________________

Left to right: Nick Thompson, director of RYSE for Oahu; Hazel Sumile; "Stone", their community liaison; Laurie Von Hamm; Kaleo, Waianae site manager; and DJ, who manages their housing options.

Record Setting Sales at Thrift Shop

The Thrift Shop has been a busy place, as usual. Sales were exceptional during February, with a particularly record-setting Thursday gleaning $4,600! (Some pricey Bid Box items contributed to that total.) Arden Moore recently gathered many bits and pieces of broken or unsaleable gold jewelry, which had been donated to Assistance League, and sold it all to a trusted local jeweler. She came away with a check for more than $9,000. Think of all the keiki who will benefit from that unwanted gold jewelry!

Our fabulous Frenehunes (Friday Menehunes) have outdone themselves again with a beautiful wedding dress display and wedding dinner tablescape. It certainly makes for a dramatic entrance to the shop for our customers.

We recently received a large donation of lanai furniture from one of our regular customers, as her condominium building was replacing it with new pieces. Our Wednesday workers, Bobby Black and Jim McClelland, power washed all the furniture (24 pieces in all) in our parking lot and made it sparkle. I was hoping they would wash my car in the process, but no such luck. 

Two of our newest members, Michelle Grow and Ellen Sugai, have been trained in upstairs procedures and have jumped right into helping with all kinds of tasks. They have become part of our ever-growing village of Thrift Shop volunteers. As they have learned, we work hard, but we have fun too. You couldn’t ask for a nicer bunch of workmates, whether you are ringing up sales at the cash register or putting price tags on hats. It all gets done because of our members, and the sales from our shop keep our philanthropic programs humming along.

Mahalo for all that you do.

The wedding dinner table-scape (left) is a is a perfect compliment to the beautiful wedding dress (top right). Bobby and Jim (right) spent some time washing down our donated furniture.

March 2026 Thrift Shop

Calendar for Cashiers & Rovers

Thrift Shop Days & Hours:

Tuesday & Thursdays 9:30 am to 1:00 pm

Saturdays 9:30 am to 3:00 pm

Login to our Members Page on the website to view another copy of the current Thrift Shop Calendar.

Submit Your Service Hours

Turn in your monthly service hours to: alhservicehours@gmail.com Enter your first name, last name and the hours you worked (please do not enter any text – just numerical hours).

STAY CONNECTED