WAILUA — Leroy Dauz did not have to say a word, but could not believe his good fortune Thursday. Neither could a young boy earlier in the day, said Rowena Contrades Pangan of the Ho‘omana Thrift Shop located behind the
WAILUA — Leroy Dauz did not have to say a word, but could not believe his good fortune Thursday.
Neither could a young boy earlier in the day, said Rowena Contrades Pangan of the Ho‘omana Thrift Shop located behind the booking shed of the Smith’s Motorboating in Wailua.
Contrades Pangan said the young boy found a Pokemon doll he wanted and when he took it to the register, was given a 50 percent discount in accordance with the special Kuhio Day promotion.
Next to the register, a basket lined with Easter grass concealed plastic eggs from which he selected one. Inside the egg was a Makana buck certificate good for $5, an amount greater than his already-reduced price.
Similarly, Dauz found some glasses that rang up less than the $10 Makana buck found in the plastic egg he selected.
“That meant the item was free,” Contrades Pangan said. “This was a good day to go shopping.”
But the Ho‘omana saga goes beyond the bargains and recycling that takes place inside the building formerly occupied by Rehabilitation Unlimited Kaua‘i on Kuamo‘o Road.
Anela Pa, who along with Contrades Pangan founded the organization, said Ho‘omana Thrift Shop is celebrating six years of being in existence as a thrift store that goes beyond the literal definition of recycling.
“Nothing goes to waste,” Pa said, recollecting the days when her mother would salvage the strings from the rice bags, or how Contrades Pangan’s grandmother would wash out the plastic bags containing poi and hang them out to dry.
“When you needed plastic bags, you just went to grandma’s house because you knew she had them,” Contrades Pangan said. “We don’t throw anything away because people have given with a good heart and so we recycle as much as we can.”
These lessons have been incorporated into the curriculum for the students who take an active part in the Ho‘omana program.
“Ho‘omana means to cause power, or strength,” Contrades Pangan said. “Most of the kids who come through here have social security to help take care of them. But that’s all they have.”
Ho‘omana works with the special education classes at both Kaua‘i and Kapa‘a high schools, children from the Teen Court, the Drug Court, and the court system where people need to do volunteer work, Contrades Pangan said. During the weekends, women from the Lifetime Stand at the Kaua‘i Community Correctional Center spend 10 to 12-hour shifts at Ho‘omana. The non-profit organization also partners with WorkWise, Work Readiness and Hawai‘i Public Housing.
“What is their quality of life?” Contrades Pangan said. “We teach them job skills and life skills so they can earn an income to put back into the community that gives them support.”
Some of the skills the students have learned include classroom skills such as reading and spelling where the signs marking the different sections were at one time spelling words, Contrades Pangan said.
“The students also do furniture refinishing and set their own prices for the refinished furniture,” she said. “More recently, they are learning yard maintenance skills when one student, on a trip to the elderly housing behind the Samuel Mahelona Memorial Hospital, saw an elderly gentleman trying to tackle knee-high grass using a pair of scissors and brought it to the attention of the staff.”
Contrades Pangan said the Ho‘omana staff has been very blessed and has no problem giving to the needy.
“With the economic downturn, we have seen more great grandparents coming in looking for help because they are caring for their great grandchildren,” Contrades Pungan said. “I strongly believe that what you give comes back threefold.”
When the elderly and young parents come in to volunteer, Ho‘omana has a system where they can get what they need through volunteerism, Contrades Pangan said. For every hour they volunteer, they earn five Makana bucks which can be used to acquire items they need.
Now, Ho‘omana needs the public’s help, Contrades Pangan said.
Recently, they received a letter from the Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative saying the electrical boxes to the building are unsafe and need to be replaced.
“This is a pressing need,” said Contrades Pangan. “We need help financially because on the high end, we estimate that it will take about $6,000 to do the work and KIUC needs a response on a plan of action, soon. We need to get the ball rolling on this, soon.”
For more information, visit the shop on Kuamo‘o Road in Wailua from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
