During the stay at home order, the Honolulu Mayor’s Office called and explained that IHS had a COVID outbreak, and their kitchen was closed. Habilitat provided the food that they needed for 10 days. Waimanalo community activist Kalani Kalima, reached out to Habilitat because there were kupuna who were food insecure and hadn’t eaten since the day prior. We responded by preparing over 100 meals in less than an hour. We even partnered with Meals on Wheels and prepared hundreds of meals daily for our Windward kupuna. Habilitat decided that the best thing we could do to help the community during the pandemic was to make sure that people had food. We became the Windward food box hub, which fed thousands. With this sudden increase in food preparation, we soon realized that we needed more freezer space. That is when Austin, Habilitat’s fundraising representative, reached out to Paul Kosasa.
Paul Kosasa, the owner of ABC Stores, was a very polite and professional gentlemen. As Austin introduced himself and Habilitat, he explained our new ventures with Meals on Wheels and our dilemma. He directed us to his foundation and offered that we apply for a grant.
Our grant got accepted for $25,000! The new walk-in freezer allowed us to expand our efforts. We have since been able to partner with U.S. Vets and serve 275 meals daily to houseless veterans. Our latest partnership will provide food for the Homeless Shelter in Waianae. Thanks to Paul and his generosity, we now have enough space to store all the food for our new endeavors. Habilitat will continue filling the gaps in our community’s needs, and this is possible because we have marvelous supporters.