Assistance League of Hawaii Regular Membership Meeting

Wednesday, November 8, 2023 • Old Spaghetti Factory

Aloha Tower Marketplace, Honolulu • Check in 11:00 am

November 2023 Newsletter

Our newest recipients of the President’s Volunteer Service Award from President Biden. L to R: Betty Parinas, Marge Fabre, Mary Monohon

Busy Weeks Ahead as Christmas Party Kicks Off The Holiday Season

November will prove to be a very busy month for Assistance League of Hawaii members. We kick off the month with our annual Christmas Work Party at the Thrift Shop on Saturday, November 4th and Sunday, November 5th. We will have the assistance of several students from Farrington High School and McKinley High School all day on Saturday and Sunday.

Our Assistance League of Hawaii Members will be needed from 3:00-5:00 on Saturday and 9:00-4:00 on Sunday. This is a fun event and a way for us to get our huge supply of holiday merchandise out from its storage spots and onto the sales floor for our customers. As in years past, we will have a potluck lunch on Sunday around 12:00 noon. If you haven’t already RSVP'ed, please let me know if you plan to join us on either or both days.

Miho Teipel and her Outreach Committee have been hard at work, fulfilling requests from the teachers of King Kamehameha III School in Lahaina, Maui. As you know, this school was totally destroyed by the fire, and teachers lost everything they had accumulated to enhance the education of their students. These 17 teachers put together wish lists on Amazon, and Assistance League was able to fulfill almost everything on their lists.

We spent $11,000 on books, art supplies, educational games, student incentive rewards, classroom organizational supplies, bulletin board supplies, etc, etc. All of these items are being delivered directly to the school principal for distribution to the teachers for their classrooms. This is the first of many needs we will address as part of our Maui Relief efforts.

In this month of thankfulness, we are thankful for all of our hard-working and talented Assistance League Members. We hope to see many of you at our meeting and luncheon on November 8th at the Old Spaghetti Factory. (Details are below in the Hospitality article.) 

Mahalo for all that you do.

Regular Meeting at Old Spaghetti Factory on Wednesday, November 8

The November Meeting & Luncheon will be held Wednesday, November 8, 2023, starting at 11:30 am (Doors open at 11:00 am.) in The Old Spaghetti Factory, 3 Aloha Tower Drive, Suite 1106 Honolulu, HI 96813. 

Table Service Lunch.

Menu is as follows: Salad with Creamy Pesto Dressing,

Hot Fresh-baked Bread, Pasta Classics choices are:

• Marinara Sauce from Scratch (fresh onions, carrots, tomatoes and garlic sautéd in olive oil and Italian seasonings) 
• Rich Meat Sauce (ground beef sautéd with onions, celery, tomatoes and Italian spices)
• Baked Lasagna (ground beef, pork and four cheeses)

Dessert - Spumoni Ice Cream,

Water is provided; Iced Tea is $2.50.

Validated Parking, 1st hour free and $2.00 each additional hour.

Carpooling is encouraged

Deadline for RSVP is Sunday, November 5th. No late reservations. Price to be determined.

Send reply by email to:

althrift281@gmail.com

or call Jane Winslow at 808-285-5606

Volunteer Opportunities Available

and Needed More Than Ever!

Our programs are going strong and continue to provide a variety of services in our community. Volunteers are always needed and appreciated, so we continue to encourage new volunteers to sign up for a program that appeals to them. Remember, within each program there are lots of tasks that need to be done. Right now, our We Care Program is especially in need of volunteers for shopping and delivery of goods to various agencies (See We Care section for more details).

We are heading into the season of caring, sharing, and giving. Let's all find ways to show our gratitude by helping Hawaii's keiki and families in need! 

Recent activities and upcoming events for November include:

OPERATION SCHOOL BELL: So far this year OSB has spent $16,000 on Kokua boxes, $25,000 on t-shirts (purchasing 2,608 shirts) and $10,000 on in-store shopping for 3 schools with 129 students purchasing clothing, spending an average of $70.22 per student. We are still waiting to decide about another in-store shopping event, depending on our budget. OSB is also working on Maui Relief to purchase clothing for students who were displaced by the wildfires. 

LITERACY: There was much anticipation and excitement on October 17 as the DOE State Superintendent of Schools, Keith Hayashi, and his staff members visited Pu'uhale Elementary School. The school staff and student leaders greeted him and conducted a tour of the school facilities. 

During his visit, the Superintendent stopped at the Pu'uhale Library to express his appreciation to the Assistance League Hawaii volunteers for providing the children with library services. He was impressed with the dedication of the Assistance League of Hawaii volunteers over the years. 

OPERATION WILDLIFE: OWL had our first official school session on Oahu on Friday, Oct. 20th, at Pu'uhale Elementary School. As always, we had a great time sharing information and biofacts with the children. As one of the teachers said, "This never gets old!"

Left: Unpacking the OWL suitcase - Betty Parinas, Carol and Larry Jones, and Kathy Takemoto Right: Carol Jones showing the rattlesnake's fangs at the OWL "Do Not Touch" table.

OUTREACH: The Outreach Committee, under the leadership of Miho Teipel, is working with King Kamehameha III Elementary School and its teachers to fulfill their wish lists for their classrooms as part of Maui Relief. Thanks to Ginger Fujimoto, Cathy Kissell, Peggy Monell, Mary Monohon, Ku'ulei Pai, and Jane Winslow for becoming a part of the Outreach Committee.

SHARE: Our volunteers, Karen and Marty Kehoe, continue to provide delivery of goods to several agencies that greatly appreciate our donations. Deliveries to Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services are enthusiastically received and the "Seams Wonderful" program manager always expresses gratitude for the fabric donations to their programs.

SHARE- "Seams Wonderful" program at Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, a dress in progress! "Seams Wonderful" ladies working their sewing magic with materials donated by our SHARE program.

WE CARE: Lullaby Layettes: Mary Kay Junk will be hosting another fun-filled Lullaby Layette packing party on Friday, November 3rd, starting at 9:30 am (Note this new date.)

The event will be held at Mary Kay's home at 461 Iliwahi Loop in Kailua. Mary Kay is also asking any Kailua members that have some free time and would like to fold receiving blankets prior to the event, to please give her a call at (808) 254-2627 (h) or (808 392-6510 (c). 

This invitation is being sent to all and is a great way to give a couple of hours for a worthy program. Light refreshments will be served. If someone would like to contribute a dessert or other goodie, please let Mary Kay know.



Questions? Call Linda Tsark at (808) 343-1107 (c). Linda has been very busy working to arrange for this important event, calling hospitals to determine their needs. 

On October 2, 2023, Linda Tsark delivered one bag of Malama Bears to Wahiawa General and on October 3, 2023, Ku’ulei Pai delivered 3 bags of Malama Bears to St. Francis Hospice.

We Care urgently needs shoppers to fulfill wish lists for Family Programs Hawaii and Youth Outreach. If interested in helping with shopping and/or deliveries, call Linda Tsark at (808) 343-1107 or email latsark@gmail.com. These are such important activities and new volunteers are highly encouraged to offer assistance!

Assistance League of Hawaii Receive Donations from Foodland’s Give Aloha Program

Assistance League of Hawaii was among GIVE ALOHA's Top 100 Recipients for the 2023 Campaign, receiving a check of $4,189.59 on October 13, 2023. The donations made at Foodland from members and friends totaled $3,270, with additional funds from Foodland and Western Union at $919.59. Also, donations from Change for Change and directly from members unable to go to Foodland equaled $754.66.

The total GIVE ALOHA amount for 2023 for Assistance League of Hawaii was $4,944.25. Mahalo for your generous donations made to us through Foodland's GIVE ALOHA campaign. Please know that your donation will help change the lives of Hawaii's keiki.

Photo above: Assisance League of Hawaii's Gloria McGhee-Koel and the rest of the Foodland GIVE ALOHA recipients.

Policies to Be Reviewed by the Board

The governance of Assistance League of Hawaii is guided by Federal, State of Hawaii and local jurisdictions. We are listed as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Each Assistance League chapter has its own set of Bylaws and Standing Rules, which provide direction.

The purpose of Policies is to provide specific guidance where it is needed. The Bylaws Committee has reviewed the Assistance League of Hawaii Policies. They will be presented to the Board of Directors for their review and reapproval.

Latest News From The Thrift Shop

Experience the thrills and joys of Assistance League of Hawaii’s organizing and pricing the bins and stocking the shelves at our annual Christmas Work Party this coming Saturday, November 4 (3:00-5:00 pm) and Sunday, November 5 (9:00 am-4:00 pm). Pot-luck lunch on Sunday!

October continued to be a good sales month. The final figure for the month is $26,502..

The Thanksgiving items are out and will hopefully sell quickly.

Several pieces of the “Made in Occupied Japan” remain but we will set them aside until the Christmas rush is over.

You may be unaware that there are three lovely young ladies, students at McKinley High School, who usually come in to help on Saturdays (They even came in during their fall break.) They are excellent workers, self starter, and they cheerfully do anything we ask them to do. Their names are Jennifer Li , Jennifer Dahn and Cathleen Nguyen. Add our other volunteer, Alissa Jow, and we have certainly been blessed with great student volunteers. If you see one of them when you are there, you could mention how much we appreciate them.

A “Gentle Reminder”: If you are scheduled to cashier, especially in the morning, please arrive ahead of time at Assistance League of Hawaii (by 9:00) as there are many things that need to be done before opening at the Thrift Shop, such as setting up the Kaheka gate, the feather flag and the cash for the registers.

A Thanksgiving Assistance League of Hawaii Thought:

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst,

for they will stick to their diets”

November 2023 Thrift Shop

Cashier's Calendar

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