Jacob is a young boy who will be turning 3 years old next month in December. He is a child who has delays in multiple areas of development and was recently referred to the state Department of Education to have an evaluation completed to determine his eligibility to receive preschool services.
Jacob enjoys being physically active and has made progress in every area of development during his time participating in and receiving early intervention by the Easter Seals.
Jacob would benefit from a gift card from a retail store that the family could use to purchase an educational toy to help address his developmental delays.
He is just one of the many who will receive help from The Garden Island/Zonta Christmas Fund, which is supported by the community.
Donations to the Christmas Fund are used by Zonta Club members to purchase gift certificates at local stores to make wishes come true.
New this year, the Hale Uluwehi Kauai Fund announced that it will provide a dollar-for-dollar match for donations of $100 or greater. It will match the total up to $5,000 and, if there’s great success, will consider adjusting that figure higher.
Here’s how the program works:
Families apply for assistance through social service agencies, which in turn connect with the Zonta Club of Kauai.
Each donated dollar is accounted for and carefully recorded. Rest assured, the money is spent wisely.
There are no administrators collecting salaries. There are no hidden costs. The money goes directly to provide gift certificates to those who need them for gifts and groceries. The gift certificates are distributed in early December.
If you hold a fundraiser for the Christmas Fund, let us know and we’ll spread the word. Anyone making a donation of $50 or more may have his or her picture presenting the check published in TGI.
The Garden Island/Zonta Christmas Fund was established in the early 1980s when Jean Holmes was editor of TGI.
Only monetary donations are accepted. Checks, payable to Zonta Club of Kauai Foundation, can be mailed to P.O. Box 3032, Lihue, HI 96766. For more information, call 822-4517.
Following is another story of a person who could use our help. While their names have been changed, the situations described are real.
w Anna grew up without any parental supervision or support. She was never sent to school and was allowed to roam free around the island doing what she wanted. She lived on a farm with her parents and many other people in tents and shacks sharing bathroom facilities with strangers on a daily basis.
Anna was taken from her parents’ custody two years ago and placed in a foster home. She has struggled in the foster home getting along with the family and with having rules and boundaries. The foster mother no longer wants Anna in the home and Anna feels rejected and abandoned again. She has many needs as her foster family has limited finances to support.
She needs school clothes and supplies so she can feel more comfortable as she is going to school with her peers for the first time.
