Assistance League of Hawaii Regular Meeting
Wednesday, January 11, 2023 • 10:30 am to 1:30 pm
Kirin Restaurant, Waikiki • 1420 Kalakaua Ave. Hyatt Regency
Deadline to RSVP: Sunday, January 8, 2023.
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Transforming Lives - Strengthening Community |
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Assistance League of Hawaii members Jaye Devendra, Dianne Girard, Gerri Migita, Cathy Ong, Peggy Monell, Andrea Cyriacks, and Ku'ulei Pai were among those gathered at Laurelyn Berger's home for the annual Christmas Social on December 14. (More photos of this event at the bottom of the Newsletter.) We look forward to making 2023 successful in all that we do. |
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Starting the New Year With a BANG! |
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Happy 2023! Assistance League of Hawaii is starting off the year with a fireworks bang. Our programs are busier than ever, helping keiki and families throughout Hawaii. Our Thrift Shop continues to hum along, generating the funds for those programs. You, our member volunteers, make all of this happen. We pride ourselves on running this organization with no paid staff of any kind. To that end, we rely on all of you to share the load.
Please stop by the Thrift Shop on any Tuesday-Saturday, and smiling faces will greet you and put you to work. Contact Hazel Sumile about helping out with our Operation Wildlife program by attending one of the many school presentations. Contact Linda Tsark about helping out with our We Care program by making deliveries of basic needs items to various locations on Oahu. Contact Laurelyn Berger or Carol Hasegawa about helping with our Operation School Bell program by acting as a reading tutor or pitching in at the Pu’uhale School Library. Contact Karen Kehoe about helping with the sorting or delivery of items from our Thrift Shop that will be passed along to other nonprofit organizations for their clients. Give Jane Winslow a call if you would like to help the Hospitality Committee with monthly meetings/luncheons. Send an email to Linda McColgan if you want to flex your technology muscles to help out with Marketing/Communications. There are several projects that can be done from home, if need be.
Perhaps your New Year’s resolutions can include a goal to up your involvement in Assistance League of Hawaii. Our community will be the better for it.
Mahalo for all that you do.
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First 2023 Regular Meeting to be
Held at Kirin Restaurant
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The first Regular Meeting and Luncheon of 2023 will be held on Wednesday, January 11 at the Kirin Restaurant located on 1420 Kalakaua Ave., in the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Hotel. The restaurant is located in the basement of the ground floor mall area. You must take a steps down or use the elevator in the back.
Self Parking is $3.00 (Validation is inside.) Valet Parking is $5.00. Meeting time is 10:30 am through 1:30 pm. Lunch will be served at 12:00 noon. The cost is $25.00 per person by cash, check or credit card.
Reservations are taken at althrift281@gmail.com. The deadline for reservations is Sunday, January 8, 2023.
The menu is as follows: Chicken Salad with Oriental Dressing; Four Types of Dim Sum; (BBQ Pork Bun, Chive Dumpling, Siu Mai, Seafood Dumpling); Salt & Pepper Calamari; Stir Fried String Beans, Sweet & Sour Pork, Minute Chicken Fried Noodle, and Mango Pudding for dessert.
We hope to see you there.
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Think About Spring Evaluations |
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Strategic Planning is on track to do the Spring Evaluations, where we enjoy the success of our programs and discuss ideas. In a few weeks, we will all be invited to a meeting at a member's home or by Zoom. In the meantime, scroll through the Newsletter and spend some time thinking about our programs, and pop into our busy Thrift Shop (There is good coffee upstairs, and cookies too.) with a treasure trove of donations to sort and shelves to fill. Enjoy your visit and give a helping hand when you can. |
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Our Finances Remain Strong |
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Assistance League of Hawaii finances continue to be strong due to the success of the Thrift Shop, hard work of members and the loyal support of our generous donors.
Officers and Chairs, as we go into the new year, please review your current budget status. Begin to consider your committee’s needs for the next fiscal year.
The Annual Finance Budget Meeting will be on Wednesday, February 22, 2023 at 9:30 am in the O’hana Room.
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Philanthropic Programs Holding Steady,
Gearing Up for More Involvement
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Our member volunteers have been making the rounds to various schools around the state with Operation School Bell's Kokua Clothing Boxes. Shown clockwise are (top left) - donation to Nanakuli Middle School, Ma'ili Elementary School and Maunaloa Elementary School on the island of Molokai. |
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Philanthropic Programs continue to have lots of news to share about the great work being done to support our communities! As the New Year 2023 begins, we hope you will consider volunteering in one of these exciting programs as part of your New Year's Resolutions.
Operation School Bell® - (Chair Laurelyn Berger and Vice Chair Andrea Cyriacks) Mary Monohan (Kokua Boxes), Carol Hasegawa (Literacy):
Kokua Boxes and refills are for the most part delivered. We are just waiting for schools to reopen after Holiday Break to finish delivering to schools on Oahu. We have already had requests for refills from Molokai (Kaunakakai Elementary) for larger shorts and Big Island (Pahoa Elementary) for a complete reorder with more slippers!
Pu'uhale Library, as part of Operation School Bell's Literacy Program, continues to provide library services to many students. Our volunteers, including Carol Hasegawa, Hazel Sumile, Linda Andersen, Joan Helbling, Gloria McGehee-Koel, Jaye Devendra, and Helen Taufa'asau, all work together to conduct library services for 260 students in Grades K-5, with weekly class visits on Tuesdays (8 classes) and Thursdays (6 classes). There are an average of 15-25 students in each class, many of whom are second language learners, whose families may speak Chukese, Marshallese or Tagalog.
The typical day begins with the first class visit at 9 a.m. and ends with the last class visit at 1 p.m. (There is a lunch break.) Some volunteers read books, do storytelling and give book talks. Other volunteers check books in and out of the library, shelve books and process new and cancelled books. The students enjoy listening to stories and often request to borrow the specific titles the readers have introduced. Teachers also request specific types of materials for their class use.
Books keep us busy. It is rewarding to see the students' excitement and reactions to new information. We are always looking for new member volunteers!
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We Care (Chair Linda Tsark): The We Care Elves have been busier than ever during the season of giving, and giving we have!
Photo right: Trunk full and ready for We Care Delivery
The Hale Kipa project was able to provide household items to two youths aging out of foster care and transitioning into independent living. Stacie is attending HPU and studying criminal justice. She also works part time with homeless young adults 18-24. Pat Dixon purchased bathroom and kitchen items for Stacie at a cost of $219.87. Brandon needed clothes, shaving supplies and a 3-drawer chest which Pat Dixon and Carol Jones purchased at a cost of $233.38
Due to shipping cost increases, we lost our long-time supplier of Malama Bears. Luckily, Mary Monohon found a new supplier in Los Angeles and was able to purchase 1,000 bears at a cost of $7.70 per bear, which is about $1.20 more than we previously paid for bears. The total cost of $7,700 represents about 80% of the Malama Bear budget for this year, but 1,000 bears should be sufficient to carry the project through this fiscal year and well into 2023.
Reiko Stiver is enjoying supplying Shriners Hospital with goodies to fill their Treasure Chest for the children. Reiko recently delivered small new toys to Shriners that had come into the Thrift Shop as donations. A win win for everyone!
In December, Linda McColgan purchased toilet paper, laundry soap and softener, shampoo, conditioner, hand soap, and body lotion for the Domestic Violence Action Center at a cost of $308. There are currently 20 women, most with children, who are benefitting from our goods and services.
On the Friday before Christmas, Youth Outreach hosted a Christmas party for the homeless teens and former youth that have aged out of their program. YO! requested that Assistance League of Hawaii help them to purchase items that could be given to the youth as useful Christmas gifts. On December 8 Linda Tsark delivered 29 new backpacks, 12 gently used backpacks from Thrift Shop donations, 200 pairs of assorted men’s and women’s socks, 200 men's and women’s deodorants and 6 boxes of gummy candies for a total cost of $1671.08.
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Operation Wildlife (Chair Hazel Sumile): Hazel received thank you letters from the Ka'iulani Elementary School teacher and students.
Here are some excerpts. This is what makes it all worthwhile, when you get this kind of feedback. The teacher's comments included:
- Most of our students had never even seen many of the animals, so being able to touch them was really a treat!
- Our students lack background knowledge, and experiences like this are just what they need! Thank you for your patience with our more impulsive learners!
- Our students could hardly believe that the artifacts were real!
Students wrote thank you letters describing what they learned and what they really enjoyed. They also wrote what their commitment was going to be for the next two weeks, to help their environment. Their pledges included turning off the lights, turning off the water, recycling, using reusable bottles, and picking up trash. According to the teacher's data report, 81% of the students achieved their goals!
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Students at Likelike Elementary School Operation Wildlife presentation proudly wearing their "Donated by Assistance League of Hawaii"
T-shirts.
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Philanthropic (Continued)
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Share (Chair Karen Kehoe and Vice Chair Marty Kehoe):
Share recently made the first delivery to our newest partner, Family Programs Hawaii.
They are responsible for managing the Federal Programs for Children on Welfare and also Foster Children. They have a Safe Shelter in Waianae, which has 15 beds for children from 2-17 years of age. These kids are between “foster home placements”, have been removed from their latest family, and are waiting for reassignment to a new foster home.
Sometimes Child Protective Services removes them for neglect or abuse, and sometimes the child asks to be reassigned. Hopefully, most of them will be reassigned to a family member or friend that has some relationship to the child. Others are assigned to complete strangers who qualify for the program that includes compensation. The goal is for the children not to stay at the Shelter longer than 30 days, but that does not always happen.
Our Share Santa Marty brought clothing, shoes, socks, toiletries, school supplies, games, toys, and a few jigsaw puzzles to help support this important program that helps so many of Hawaii's neediest youth. The services that Family Programs Hawaii provides to foster youth tie in nicely with our We Care recipient, Hale Kipa, that helps youth who are transitioning out of Foster Care.
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What’s Up at the Thrift Shop? |
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Have you seen our new banner flapping in the breeze at the entry to the Thrift Shop? The feather flag adds visibility to our entrance on Young Street. |
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Thanks to everyone for all the hard work and “going the extra mile” to make 2022 such a successful year!!
Everyone has gone above and beyond – not only doing the things they like to do, but learning to do other things, especially upstairs. Sometimes you look around and it seems like it can’t be done, and then you just jump right in, and it gets done. Remember "it takes a village” and Assistance League of Hawaii has the best villagers.
There will be a Thrift Shop Committee Meeting on Tuesday, January 3 at 1:30 pm in the Ohana Room. The Thrift Shop Committee is listed below, but anyone who is interested can come also to participate in the meeting.
Thrift Shop Committee:
Peggy Monell - Chair
Sharon Ehrhorn - Vice Chair
Andrea Cyriacks
Ellen Dihel
Jim McClelland
Mary Monohon
Arden Moore
Ku'ulei Pai
Shirley Rebello
Nancy Sparacino
Margie Van Swearingen
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Thrift Shop Days & Hours:
Tuesday & Thursdays 9:30 am to 1:00 pm
Saturdays 9:30 am to 3:00 pm
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Thrift Shop Cashiers Calendar |
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Fun at the Christmas Party: Our member volunteers wrapped up 2022 at our annual Christmas Social held in Hawaii Kai at Laurelyn Berger's home.
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Your Service Hour Report is Important |
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The Holidays have provided nearly all of our member volunteers with many work hours to account for. Whether you work on one of our many programs, in the Thrift Shop or other at-home tasks, it is important to count your hours this month. Please send me a log of your hours, including meetings and transportation. All volunteer hours will be included in the grand total for Assistance League of Hawaii.
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Amazon.com donates 0.5% of qualifying AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice. Why not choose Assistance League of Hawaii? Here’s how it works:
2) Sign in with your Amazon.com credentials (Amazon Prime can be used too.)
3) Select Assistance League of Hawaii as the charitable organization.
4) Start shopping!
5) You can add a bookmark for smile.amazon.com to make it easier to return again to shop at AmazonSmile.
Once you have Assistance League of Hawaii registered with your Amazon Smile account, every time you shop at Amazon that .5% of your purchases help us!
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Newsletter Editor: Melvin Ah Ching assistanceleaguehimarketing@gmail.com
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