Kauaians gave more, got involved more after 9/11

KALAPAKI BEACH – The Kaua’i Museum gained members after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and giving to Island School remained steady.

Overall, Kauaians gave more to island nonprofit groups, organizations and causes after the attacks than before, leading the state with 97 percent of all households giving to some cause in 2001, and giving more per household than the state average.

“Kaua’i’s impressive charitable giving participation can be linked to the high levels of civic engagement, or social capital, among its residents,” according to the 2002 Hawai’i Giving Study released recently by representatives of the Hawai’i Community Foundation.

Those working with Kaua’i nonprofits shared some of their ideas about why Kauaians gave so freely after Sept. 11, 2001.

“After nine-11, people needed to be grounded, needed to be needed,” said Carol Lovell of the Kaua’i Museum. The museum’s membership numbers increased after Sept. 11, 2001, she said.

“People of Kaua’i have passion and a vision for the betterment of our island,” said Lovell.

Giving to Island School has been steady after the terrorist attacks, said the Joan Shaw. Donations have not been just monetary, as in-kind donations continue to be “vital” to the school’s continuation, she said.

With a 30-acre campus and only one paid landscape person, volunteer labor helps keep the campus looking nice, for example, she said.

“We live on the best place on earth” in terms of giving, said Tom Shigemoto of Alexander & Baldwin’s A&B Properties and Kukui’ula Development Company.

A continued strong economy is important, as the economy plays a “huge” role in terms of influencing giving on the island, he added. The gainfully employed will tend to give more, said Shigemoto, noting that educating people about the importance of giving is crucial.

Shigemoto, Lovell and Shaw were panelists during a discussion of island giving trends and habits held during the unveiling of the Hawai’i Community Foundation’s giving study at the Kaua’i Marriott Resort & Beach Club here recently.

Shaw talked about a concern shared by her at Island School and representatives of other island nonprofits about increased competition from public institutions for the same finite amount of charitable contributions.

Lovell said nonprofits today are under “intense pressure to do more with less,” and that they should create more alliances, learn more about other island nonprofit organizations, and work together more with county officials, business leaders, organizations like the Kaua’i Chamber of Commerce, and others.

“I think it’s really time to try to unify ourselves and make Kaua’i a better place,” she said.

A voice from the crowd of around 70 people said there exists a “rich opportunity” not only for various nonprofit organizations to avoid stepping on each others’ toes while seeking the same pockets of the island’s finite funding sources, but to work together on common issues, and share expertise and experiences.

With the tremendous amount of goodwill and reciprocity on Kaua’i, “you really have a great opportunity here to do that,” said Kelvin H. Taketa, president and chief executive officer of the Hawai’i Community Foundation.

Whether that means sharing an organization’s van or sharing an information technology expert or accountant among six organizations, the ability is there to work together in novel ways to reduce organizational overhead, Taketa said.

Especially as private-foundation giving is expected to decrease in Hawai’i as a result of stock-market volatility and losses, such innovative partnerships may be more critical now than ever, said Taketa.

Staff Writer Paul C. Curtis can be reached at mailto:pcurtis@pulitzer.net or 245-3681 (ext. 224).